Warpaint by Alicia Foster

After reading a few books with weak female characters, Warpaint by Alicia Foster was a welcome change. Here are some women doing it for themselves, and what makes it even better is that the characters are based on real people.

Set during World War II amongst female artists in the War Artisits Advisory Committee, much of the story focuses on three women comissioned to paint uplifting war time scenes. Tired of painting knitting parties and people happily making-do, all three women strive to paint something real, something that depicts the harsh realities of war in England. Men, on the other hand, don’t think they should trouble their pretty little heads with such things. Ugh.

Of course there is more to the story than that – there’s also romance, mystery and intrigue. This is everything you’d want a great war time saga.

Who would like this book? Want a little feminist war history without getting bogged down in some weighty non-fiction tome? Warpaint is the book for you. In some ways, because of the World War II setting and the focus on artists, it reminded me of The Muralist (review). Overall, an enjoyable book.