WHEN WE WERE YOUNG & BRAVE

Two narrators deliver this absorbing drama about teachers and students at a British-run missionary school in China at the time of the Japanese occupation. Their lives move from privilege to privation as the 100+ children, sons and daughters of missionaries and diplomats, are relocated, first, to a nearby dilapidated compound and, then, to the grim Weihsien internment camp. Rosie Jones describes the ordeal from the perspective of Nancy, a perceptive and winsome preteen. Her voice, while clearly childlike, resonates with strength and courage. Imogen Church portrays Elspeth Kent, who teaches and comforts while demonstrating an intrepid will to survive. This new WWII story is exceptionally well told. D.L.G. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine [Published: NOVEMBER 2020]