Imagine leaving your child to board a ship to cross the Atlantic during WWII to live with an American family! No phone contact. How long would it take a letter to reach your child if a ship did reach the other side. As a parent, these were my thoughts as I read about Reginald and Millie leaving Beatrix to cross the Atlantic. In the Prologue written in 1963, Beatrix writes about returning to the island she lived on with Nancy and Ethan’s family, so we know she did survive and is visiting the island. I look forward to reading this debut novel.