Beyond That, the Sea

Beyond That, the Sea by Laura Spence-Ash is a sweeping, tender-hearted love tale about two families who lived through World War II on different sides of the Atlantic, and the timid, alluring young lady who would come to call them both her own.

Working-class parents Millie and Reginald Thompson make the unthinkable decision to transfer their eleven-year-old daughter Beatrix to America in 1940 as German bombs rain over London. For the length of the conflict, she will reside there with another family in hopes of her safety.

Bea, feeling lost and alone, comes in Boston to see the Gregorys, scared and furious. Bea is easily assimilated into the lives of Mr. and Mrs. G, as well as their kids William and Gerald. She integrates into this vibrant family, picking up their customs and tales, and becoming used to their opulent way of life. Bea bridges the distance between the two boys—one older and one younger—by being close to both of them. She soon finds that living with the Gregorys is more natural to her than the calm, simple existence she had with her own parents in England, even before she recognizes it.

The girl Bea had starts to melt away as she finds herself and settles into her new life—summertimes on the Maine shore, new companions eager to learn about life across the sea—until, suddenly, the war ends and she is summoned home to London.

Bea, desperate to stay in this existence, obediently recounts her journey over the Atlantic to return to her former planet. The memory of her American family follows her back to post-war London, never quite letting go and tugging at her heart as she attempts to move on and seek love and a life of her own.

Beyond That, the Sea shows itself to be a masterfully written, captivating book full of grace and sadness, forgiveness and understanding, loss and love as we follow Bea throughout time as she navigates between her two worlds.