Blogs in November 2019

Secrets of the Homefront Girls 18th November 2019

Although England may be at war, for the young women working the lipstick production line at Yardley’s cosmetics factory in East London, it’s business as usual. For headstrong and flirtatious Renee Gunn, that means taking Esther, a young Austrian...

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Sea Babies 18th November 2019

Lauren Wilson is travelling by ferry to the Outer Hebrides, about to begin a new job as a social worker. When somebody sits opposite her at the cafeteria table, she refuses to look up, annoyed at having her privacy...

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Swimming in the Monsoon Sea 18th November 2019

The setting is Sri Lanka, 1980, and it is the season of monsoons. Fourteen-year-old Amrith is caught up in the life of the cheerful, well-to-do household in which he is being raised by his vibrant Auntie Bundle and kindly...

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The Mirror and the Light 17th November 2019

England, May 1536. Anne Boleyn is dead, decapitated in the space of a heartbeat by a hired French executioner. As her remains are bundled into oblivion, Thomas Cromwell breakfasts with the victors. The blacksmith’s son from Putney emerges from...

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Bring up the Bodies 17th November 2019

With this historic win for Bring Up the Bodies, Hilary Mantel becomes the first British author and the first woman to be awarded two Man Booker Prizes. By 1535 Thomas Cromwell is Chief Minister to Henry VIII, his fortunes...

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