Set against the backdrop of spring 2015, the narrative follows the life of Thamar, a young woman navigating personal and societal challenges. As she grapples with her identity and relationships, the story intertwines themes of resilience, love, and the quest for belonging. Through her journey, readers are drawn into a rich exploration of the complexities of modern life, highlighting the impact of external events on individual lives and the strength found in community and self-discovery.
A powerful, beautifully written historic novel of loss, finding and being found, set in a very traumatic period in Europe. The turbulent sixteenth century saw the disintegration of medieval Christendom as it was split into sovereign states. This was particularly destructive in Tudor England where rapid switches in government policy and religious persecution shattered the lives of many. Especially affected were the monks and nuns who were persecuted by the wholesale dissolution of the monasteries carried out under Henry VIII. One of these monks, Robert Fletcher, a Carthusian of the dismantled priory of Mount Grace in Yorkshire, is the hero of this novel. The story of this strong, vulnerable man is told in counterpoint with the story of one of the most interesting men in all of English history, Reginald Pole, a nobleman, scholar and theologian who was exiled to Italy for twenty years. He was a Cardinal of the Church, papal legate at the Council of Trent, and as Archbishop of Canterbury, with his cousin Queen Mary Tudor, they tried, in too short a time, to renew Catholic England. This man, in the tragic last months of his life, becomes in the novel the friend of Robert Fletcher, condemned as a heretic
Winner of the 2015 Aquinas Award for Fiction! An octogenarian bookseller living alone in London has found a description of his father, as a young doctor in 1920s Breslau, in a story about Weimar Germany. Perhaps his own story might be worth telling? In 1945, as a sixteen-year-old boy rescued from the ruins of Europe, he arrives at a Yorkshire farmhouse. Working on the farm for two years in the strange atmosphere of rural England immediately after World War II, he learns to deal with his memories of what happened to him and to his family and to trust, up to a point, those around him in a foreign country. London in 1947 is stranger still. But the boy is lucky, as he has been since 1941, when marksmen tried to shoot him into a pit full of corpses in a Lithuanian forest. The year before, different executioners in a different forest further east had shot and killed his father. Those who faced the worst atrocities of World War II, which were inflicted on people in the "bloodlands" of eastern Poland and western Russia, knew that there was little to choose between the two mighty machines, Nazi and Soviet. How was it possible for the individual to survive the crushing wheels of ideology, terror, and mass murder with his integrity intact? The Leaves Are Falling , a sequel to A Postcard from the Volcano but a stand-alone story, explores this question.
Beginning in 1914 and ending on the eve of World War II, this epic story follows the coming of age and early manhood of the Prussian aristocrat, Max von Hofmannswaldau. From the idyllic surroundings of his ancestral home to the streets of cosmopolitan Breslau menaced by the Nazi SS, Hofmannswaldau uncovers the truth about his own identity and confronts the modern ideologies that threaten the annihilation of millions of people. A Postcard from the Volcano opens with the outbreak of World War I and the Prussian pride and patriotism that blind the noble von Hofmannswaldau family to the destruction that lies ahead for their country. The well-researched narrative follows the young count as he leaves home to finish his education and ends up a stranger in the land of his birth. Both intelligent and sensitive, Beckett’s prose explores the complex philosophical and political questions that led Europe into a second world war, while never losing sight of a man whose life is shaped by his times. A deeply moving historical novel that shows the horrific impact that two world wars had on whole countries, and how individuals struggled to deal with the incredible challenges presented by such devastation.
Focusing on the major themes of Wallace Stevens' poetry, this critical study delves into the intricate concerns that define his work. It offers an in-depth analysis of his unique style and philosophical insights, exploring how Stevens' poetry reflects complex ideas and emotions. The study provides valuable context for understanding the significance of his contributions to literature and the nuances of his artistic expression.
Clare Wilson, a widow in her late seventies, navigates the complexities of post-Brexit Britain while grappling with personal loss and the impact of Covid-19. Her comfortable life in South Kensington is disrupted by unexpected events, forcing her to confront a world filled with anxiety. The novel serves as a poignant 'state-of-the-nation' commentary, rendered in Lucy Beckett's precise and gentle prose. Richly detailed, it offers intimate reflections on faith and the human experience, evoking the essence of a Flemish painting through its domestic and distant imagery.
Clare Wilson, nearing eighty and grappling with the solitude of old age, finds unexpected solace in a new friendship amidst the isolation of the Covid pandemic. As she navigates her grief from past losses and her disillusionment with contemporary England, this late-in-life connection offers her companionship and a deeper understanding of her country’s tragic history. Their bond becomes a refuge, highlighting the resilience of human connection even in the face of external turmoil and personal sorrow.
