By KATHRYN BERMINGHAM
FOR many, letter writing is an art which has been lost in the tide of email, SMS and social media.
Yet Officer author Karen Lamb has recently released a book to ensure that sentimental love letters between her grandparents will live on.
Love Has No Boundaries tells the story of Lucy and George, a young English couple who separated during World War II.
Karen, their granddaughter, was born in Dartford, England, and moved to Melbourne in 1989.
In 1998, her mother returned to England for a funeral and brought back a box of letters with her which were written throughout the war.
“I didn’t read them at first, I just knew they were there,” Karen said.
It was a trip to New Zealand that prompted her to go through the letters.
“Then my husband and I went on holiday to New Zealand and I knew my grandad had been on a warship there,” she said.
“By reading the letters I felt I knew who he was, even though I never met him.”
Following the trip, Karen returned the letters to her mum.
It wasn’t until a couple of years later that she decided to use them to tell the story of her grandparents.
“I thought ‘I really need to share this with other people’ but I didn’t know how to put the letters into a story,” she said.
“I saw a book by Yoko Ono, and there’s an introduction that says how the book came about.
“That was definitely an influence.”
The book comprises letters from Lucy and George, Karen’s personal reflections and details about the history and timeline of the story.
Each letter reveals the desperation of war but also the strong love and devotion between the couple.
Karen said she compiled the book not only to honour her own grandparents, but in the memory of all the men and women who served during WWII.
Love Has No Boundaries was published by Impact Press and is available in bookstores now.
