Enjoy an evening with Boston-based historical fiction author Jane Healey.

Her newest novel, The Beantown Girls (release date: Feb. 2019), features a group of Red Cross women in World War II. Three women leave Boston to volunteer as Red Cross "Clubmobile Girls" on the front lines of the war. Fiona, Viviana, and Dottie form new friendships, face unforeseen dangers, and come to understand more about themselves and the world as they take on the daunting challenges of war.

This book is based on true history: In the latter part of WWII, the morale of the U.S. military was so low, the Red Cross came up with the idea of Red Cross Clubs on wheels (aka clubmobiles), so they could bring “a bit of home” to the front lines of the war. Jane Healey read hundreds of letters and diaries of the girls who staffed the clubmobiles before and while writing this novel.

About the Author: Jane Healey is a Boston-based writer, who has done all kinds of writing, from magazine articles to tech company white papers to marketing copy for non-profits. Her first novel, The Saturday Evening Girls Club, was inspired by an article she researched and wrote for Boston Home Magazine. Jane lives outside of Boston with her husband, daughters, and cats. When she's not writing, she enjoys reading, running, cooking, going to the beach, and drinking lots of coffee. For more, see her website http://janehealey.com

Sponsored by the Billerica Public Library Foundation