Her family and friends all tease that she will marry air raid warden Billy, the boy next door who’s always been sweet on her. Nearly 300 people became trapped in the pileup, with layers of bodies wedged into the stairway and landing. The closest air raid shelter is the disused Bethnal Green Tube station, where many people were able to comfortably stay the night. The first part does a nice job setting the stage, introducing the characters, and detailing the rhythms of everyday life in 1940s Bethnal Green without being too long or wordy. Writing is very simple which I don’t necessarily think was a bad thing, it didn’t seem like it was ever intended to break the boundaries of writing and more so to just get a story out.

Dreamer Nellie Morris spends her days typing and her nights sheltering from the German bombers screaming overhead, imagining a bigger world beyond her East End London roots--and a burgeoning romance with an American airman offers hope beyond the end of the war. The story is so emotional and raw; you really feel the loss and the grief that main character, Nellie Morris experiences and at times, it was hard to stop my eyes from tearing up.This book kept me interested throughout and I thoroughly enjoyed the whole story, plot twists and hard to predict ending. Millie Bobby Brown pens a sweet, sensitive coming-of-age story drawn from her own family history --Nineteen Steps is a lovely read for fans everywhere.

In the novel, Nellie’s job as the mayor’s assistant allows her to see how much the government failed the people of Bethnal Green as it covered up the disaster. Nineteen Steps is a deeply affecting, mesmerizing page-turner inspired by the author’s family history.Nineteen Steps is a deeply affecting, mesmerizing page-turner inspired by the author's family history.