Guy Mankowski's Reviews > Northern Pole

Julie Fearn takes us seamlessly into the texture of WW2 and the traumatic upheaval in Polish and English lives as the fight against Nazi terror trumped all else. As someone whose grandfather escaped Poland to restart life in England I was utterly gripped by the way Fearn brings to life- with deft and finely researched skill- the psychological interiors of those displaced. Those who found within themselves resources they did not know existed. Flitting between narrators, ‘Northern Pole’ manages to be pacy with a lightly-worn depth, showing us the gritty nuance of what was at stake and how people’s resources were mined. This emotionally wrought novel shines a powerful light on those untold stories that would recast their lives and the lives of generations to come.