Overview

In the aftermath of World War II, the members of the Sutton family are reeling from the death of their ""golden boy,"" Eddie. Over the next twenty-five years, they all struggle with loss, grief, and mourning. Daughter Harriet and son Nat attempt to fill the void Eddie left behind: Harriet becomes a chemist despite an inhospitable culture for career women in the 1940s and '50s, hoping to move into the family business in New Jersey, while Nat aims to be a jazz musician. Both fight with their autocratic father, George, over their professional ambitions as they come of age. Their mother, Eleanor, who has PTSD as a result of driving an ambulance during the Great War, wrestles with guilt over never telling Eddie about the horrors of war before he enlisted. As the members of the family attempt to rebuild their lives, they pay high prices, including divorce and alcoholism-but in the end, they all make peace with their losses, each in his or her own way.

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9781631526022

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Reviews

Don't Put the Boats Away is an impeccably researched and simultaneously heartfelt novel about what it was to be a woman and a scientist in the wake of the Second World War. The world needs more novels like this. --Louisa Hall, author of The Carriage House, Speak, and Trinity

2020 American Fiction Awards: Winner in Family Saga and Finalist in Women's Fiction 2020 International Book Awards, Finalist in Fiction: Historical 2020 Next Generation Indie Book Awards Finalist in General Fiction/Novel (Under 80k Words) 2019 Best Book Awards Finalist in Historical Fiction Don't Put the Boats Away is chock-full of well-researched historical details about political events, medical advancements, and even food trends of the 1940s, '50s, and '60s, and it also offers important commentary on professional opportunities for women during these decades. The author creates believable characters with complex interior lives. Overall, it's a touching tale that examines the ways in which grief, regret, and unmet expectations can reverberate through generations. --Kirkus Reviews Don't Put the Boats Away is an impeccably researched and simultaneously heartfelt novel about what it was to be a woman and a scientist in the wake of the Second World War. The world needs more novels like this. --Louisa Hall, The Carriage House, Speak, Trinity Reading Don't Put the Boats Away is like being enveloped in a family, a real family bound by love and loss, music and science. It's a testament to the danger of secrets and the hope we place in future generations. I enjoyed it thoroughly. --Jeanne McWilliams Blasberg, Eden and The Nine Don't Put the Boats Away is a richly detailed family saga of the Suttons' post-WWII lives--and a wonderful sequel to Ames Sheldon's first novel Eleanor's Wars. Ames's knack for period authenticity is paired with a keen portrayal of the inner lives of major characters that transcend common narratives of '50s, '60s, and '70s America. Complex relationships, dedication to music, science, and family loyalty, and the haunting legacy of war even on privileged families make this a compelling read. --Barbara Stark-Nemon, Even in Darkness, Hard Cider Sheldon shows us that, although the sea of life is filled with waves of change and raging riptides, if we surround ourselves with the people and things we love, the voyage is not so treacherous. --Minnesota Monthly Don't Put the Boats Away is a thoroughly engaging story. . . . I recommend this gem of a story to a broad audience. --Online Book Review

2020 Next Generation Indie Book Awards Finalist in General Fiction/Novel (Under 80k Words) 2019 Best Book Awards Finalist in Historical Fiction Don't Put the Boats Away is chock-full of well-researched historical details about political events, medical advancements, and even food trends of the 1940s, '50s, and '60s, and it also offers important commentary on professional opportunities for women during these decades. The author creates believable characters with complex interior lives. Overall, it's a touching tale that examines the ways in which grief, regret, and unmet expectations can reverberate through generations. --Kirkus Reviews Don't Put the Boats Away is an impeccably researched and simultaneously heartfelt novel about what it was to be a woman and a scientist in the wake of the Second World War. The world needs more novels like this. --Louisa Hall, The Carriage House, Speak, Trinity Reading Don't Put the Boats Away is like being enveloped in a family, a real family bound by love and loss, music and science. It's a testament to the danger of secrets and the hope we place in future generations. I enjoyed it thoroughly. --Jeanne McWilliams Blasberg, Eden and The Nine Don't Put the Boats Away is a richly detailed family saga of the Suttons' post-WWII lives--and a wonderful sequel to Ames Sheldon's first novel Eleanor's Wars. Ames's knack for period authenticity is paired with a keen portrayal of the inner lives of major characters that transcend common narratives of '50s, '60s, and '70s America. Complex relationships, dedication to music, science, and family loyalty, and the haunting legacy of war even on privileged families make this a compelling read. --Barbara Stark-Nemon, Even in Darkness, Hard Cider Sheldon shows us that, although the sea of life is filled with waves of change and raging riptides, if we surround ourselves with the people and things we love, the voyage is not so treacherous. --Minnesota Monthly

Author Information

Ames Sheldon worked as a reporter for two small-town newspapers in Minnesota before becoming lead author and editor of Women's History Sources: A Guide to Archives and Manuscript Collections in the United States, which ignited her passion for studying and writing about the history of women in America. After that, Sheldon ventured into the world of creative nonfiction, writing grant proposals and raising funds for the Sierra Club in San Francisco, the Minnesota Historical Society in St. Paul, the Minneapolis Public Library, and a variety of other nonprofits. She lives with her husband in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.

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