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Reviewed by Jasmine O'Hea for Readers' Favorite
In Robin Hawdon’s World War II novel Dinner with Churchill, young Lucy dreams of a life beyond her family’s bakery in a sleepy English lake town. When her brother joins the army, Lucy moves to London where she enrolls in a secretarial school. After months of diligent study, Lucy finds herself in the right place at the right time, and suddenly, she is a staff member serving Winston Churchill in the Admiralty. As Lucy adjusts to the demands of working for Britain’s infamously strong-willed politician, she meets a charming young American diplomat named Daniel. Lucy’s job gives her a behind-the-scenes look at British politics, including a dinner between Winston and Clementine Churchill and Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and his wife, Anne. Daniel is more than a little curious about how Britain will respond to the brewing conflict in Europe. When Lucy learns he may be a Russian spy, she has to play her part in the war effort by gathering intelligence about a man she might be falling in love with.
I was immediately delighted by Robin Hawdon’s witty, insightful prose. Lucy is an effective point of view character, her wide-eyed wonder providing access to the geopolitical conflict. Historical figures Churchill and Chamberlain are well-researched and nuanced, and Hawdon further humanizes them by exploring their relationship. Their rivalry reveals how political conflicts are always affected by emotions such as love, fear, pride, envy, and regret. Hawdon deftly drew parallels between European politics and the events of Lucy’s personal life as she comes of age in a new city, as there is a complex interplay between choices made by individuals and circumstances beyond one person’s control. Tension builds as the impending war becomes a reality, but the pace appropriately slows for extended scenes of conversation that offer an intimate look at the people behind the politics. It is in these moments that Hawdon’s skills as a writer of dialogue shine. Dinner with Churchill delivers sharp social commentary and invites readers to consider the role of fate in our personal lives and on the world stage.
