Andrew Franklin⎮Author⎮Don’t Cry
A Wartime Child Who Refused To Cry
Last year I published my mum’s memoirs. Carol Bonny was a wartime child in Cornwall, raised in children’s shelters and relatives’ homes while her mother nursed through the Blitz in Plymouth. We spent hours talking, wrote it all down, and Don’t Cry is her story in her own words.
If your family has a story like hers, I think you will recognize her.
Her story, in brief
Born Carol Johnstone in wartime Cornwall, she spent her earliest years without a father, while her mother served through the Blitz as a Staff Sister in Plymouth.
She grew up in turmoil but at 11 yrs old was adopted into the household of a Rear Admiral. Her journey runs from the Cornish coast to the streets of Bath, through four names; Johnstone, Dunn, Franklin and, finally, Bonny.
Across eight decades she raised children through lean years, lost loved ones too soon, and kept the family together.
What readers are saying.
“I thoroughly enjoyed this book! While I live in Canada, I found myself looking up the places mentioned in England on Google Earth just so I could put it into context. A very well written book, and even better because it’s a true story.” Sam (Amazon: 5 Stars)
“I really enjoyed the journey of learning the personal perspective of what life was like in England through the war and afterward embedded within the interesting story.” PR (Amazon: 4 Stars)
“This is one of the best books I’ve ever read! And the pictures included make the story come to life.” LH (Linkedin)
“Congratulations.” DW (Linkedin)
“Congratulations on the release of the book. I look forward to reading it.” AL (Linkedin)
“I’ve ordered a copy. I look forward to reading it and of course, the Bath references. Congratulations.” TV (Linkedin)
“Looking forward to reading your book. Congratulations.” LF(Linkedin)
Why it’s on My Return Ticket
This site is about couples, family and the places that shape us, Cornwall, Plymouth and Bath are places, and this is the family story behind them. Carol’s Cornwall and Bath years are the parts travel readers will recognize first.
► Read an excerpt
A Christmas Carol in the Shadow of War
The Winter of 1940 found Eileen Laurie Johnstone, my mother, brimming with excitement, her heart full with the life stirring inside her. In the throes of war, when each day brought a new struggle for survival, discovering she was pregnant felt like a rare spark of hope. But that joy was fleeting.
The man she loved, the father of her unborn child, cruelly turned away when she shared the news. He could not fathom the burden of a child, let alone in wartime, and he walked away, leaving my mother in devastating silence. In those days, shame clung to unmarried mothers like a shadow.
Cornwall, her childhood home, offered no sanctuary.Her own mother refused to welcome her back, scorning her with harsh words and the societal judgment that women bore alone. Only Aunt Primrose, her sister, stood by her side, providing the moral support Mum desperately needed.
But with war in the air and the pressures of society on her back, my mother was forced to make an impossible decision: give me up for adoption or raise me in a world that made no room for us.
Read the full story. . .
► Buy the book
Don’t Cry: A Wartime Child’s Fight for Family: Carol Bonny, published November 30, 2025. Buy it here: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0G45Z26HQ
🎄 A Christmas gift that means something
If you are looking for a gift for a parent, a grandparent, or anyone who lived through — or loves hearing about — wartime Britain, this is one to give with a note inside. A memoir in the writer’s own words beats another gift card.
If you read it, please leave a review
The book has enjoyed great reviews including 5.0 Star Ratings. Every honest Amazon review helps the next reader decide, if you enjoyed it, a few lines on Amazon would mean a lot to Carol and to me.
Author
Andrew Franklin published his mum Carol Bonny’s memoirs, Don’t Cry, in 2025.
Amazon link: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0G45Z26HQ
