In The Ship of Brides, Jojo Moyes beautifully narrated the story of 600 Australian brides traveling to England in summer 1946 to meet their British husbands who served in WWII. This is based on the tale of the HMS Victorious, the aircraft carrier that carried 700 brides across the world. This story is about the brides' sacrifices, bullying and judging others, giving second chances, being there for mates, losing loved ones, and having a new beginning. This book also showed that women weren't allowed to forget their past, and were judged for any improper behavior or staining their reputation (like Jean) but not men. The story also highlighted that some of the marines didn't see that these Aussie women left their home and loved ones, and traveled so far based on a promise from a man they married, who might turn them down or give them up or not even show-up.
There is a complete summary in my blog: www.tamarayousefmousa.com