Band of Sisters by Lauren Willig

In the summer of 1917, eighteen graduates of Smith College volunteer to go to France as part of the Smith College Relief Unit. The women will be nine miles from the frontline trenches helping the residents of many small villages with food, housing, schooling, and medical care. The novel focuses on two of these women, Kate and Emmie, who were roommates and best friends while at Smith. Kate, unlike the other women, comes from a poor background, while everyone else, including Emmie, is wealthy. Taking details from a book written by one of the actual members of the unit and the trove of letters that the women sent home while working as part of the group, Willig has written an almost unbelievable story of perseverance, courage, and spunk. A worthy addition to the list of novels written about World War I.