Historical Homes

When Simon McDermott first noticed his dad Ted's sudden flares of temper and fits of forgetfulness, he couldn't have guessed what lay ahead. Then came the devastating, inevitable diagnosis. As Ted retreated into his own world, Simon and his mum, Linda, desperately tried to reach him until at last: an idea. Turning the ignition in his mum's little run-around, Simon hit 'play' on Ted's favourite song, 'Quando Quando Quando'.

It's the 1940s. World War II. A New England farm boy is growing up during wartime. That's what Home Front: A Memoir from WWII is about. You'll share his experience - the blackouts, the rationing, the fears, the patriotism, and the unity everyone felt. As the men go off to war, you follow Douglas, our young narrator, as he grows to an obliged maturity, sharing with others, enduring the scarcity of the depression, the fear and patriotism during World War II and then the exuberance in that brief, post-war period when America felt safe and when the middle class was born.

In 1898, Maggie and Silas Pennington’s lives took an unexpected turn when they inherited Silas’s Uncle Jacob Pennington’s estate in Tishomingo, Indian Territory. This unforeseen event sparked a journey to their new home, filled with hope and the promise of a new beginning. Maggie longed for a place to call her own, while Silas harbored dreams of becoming a writer to support their growing family.

North London, 1916. When Olivia Bone and Lieutenant Lucas Black shared a passionate kiss one summer's evening, it seemed as if their love might finally have a chance to bloom. But their brief happiness is cut short when Lucas is sent to fight on the front line, leaving Livvie uncertain if she'll ever see him again. And after a chance encounter with one of Lucas's old flames, Livvie is left doubting whether an ex-factory girl like her will ever fit into his world - and wondering if she would be better off protecting her heart.

Norfolk, 1944. Phylly is a Land Girl on Catchetts Farm. She and her friend Gracie are doing their bit to support the war effort. But times are changing at Catchetts—there's an evacuee and two POWs on their way. And then Phylly meets an American airman from the base up the road. As the War rages on the Continent, Phylly and Gracie's world will be changed forever.

Lady Mary Masterson had no objection to being betrothed to Gilbert Talbot until he ridiculed her. Now, years later, it appears her chance for an adventure on the Continent will be thwarted by the very man when he turns up, vowing to keep her safe. Insufferable! If only it weren’t so difficult to ignore her fluttering heart - and the voices constantly touting the advantages of marrying the man who long ago called her a witch.

Townsville, 1942. Young women aged sixteen and over are obliged by law to join the war effort, and Emma Hatton's world is at last about to change. Longing to escape the humdrum poverty of oceanside Blueholm Bay and the demands of her domineering mother, Emma reaches the bustling wartime mayhem of Townsville where the city streets are filled with glamorous GIs and red lipstick is the colour of the day. Befriending charismatic Cassie O'Byrne, Emma believes her adult life has finally begun.

In this classic coming-of-age story, Carter Barnwell is thrust into an early manhood as he faces the challenges of living off the land, caring for his ailing grandmother, wrestling with his budding sexuality, and wrangling with his awakening conscience. When he meets an abolitionist missionary from the north – who happens to be a beautiful young girl – Carter begins to see his world through new and critical eyes, even as he maintains fierce loyalty to the people and homeland he loves.

Heartbreaking and wise, Rush Home Road tells the life story of Adelaide Shadd, who finds redemption in old age, and Sharla, a five-year-old mixed race girl abandoned to Addy’s care by her white mother. Born in the first decade of the 20th century in Rusholme (inspired by the real town of Buxton), in southwestern Ontario, an all-black community settled by fugitive slaves, Addy Shadd is raped as a teenager and forced to flee the family home. She makes her way on foot to Detroit.

When William D. Thomas’s wife dies in childbirth, he places an advertisement in his local newspaper seeking a nanny for his newborn child. He is thankful when an experienced nanny arrives at 43, Laurence Street, and takes over from his frazzled housekeeper Mrs McHugh. Mrs McHugh confides in her bedridden friend Betty, who has a bird’s-eye view of all the happenings on Laurence Street, that the nanny is not all she seems.

When her life is shattered by the War Between the States, Olivia Harrington scrambles to rebuild a lost family fortune by running the Federal blockade out of Wilmington, North Carolina. Her daring and bravery has allowed her to keep Bliss, the home she hasn’t seen in months... the place where she is now headed. Yet waiting at home for Livie is a houseful of trouble… her dying brother, and the man who risked everything to honor a friend’s final wish… the very man who broke Livie’s heart long ago, and whom she thought never to see again…. The Long Road Home is a novella that is ...

We're in Bacchus Marsh in the 1950s, with car salesmen, an early aviator, and the lives of Irene Bobs and Willy Bachhuber. The striking Irene is ahead of her time, a fearless, big-hearted, independently minded woman. Her next door neighbour Willy seems to be constantly in flight from his own life. He lacks social confidence but is extremely well read, so much so that he's a radio quiz champ. And he has a particular fondness for maps.

Born in England and raised in India by her father after her mother's untimely death, Asyra has been ostracized from her small village most of her life. News of her impending marriage arranged by her grandmother back in England only serves to confuse her further about who she is and where she fits in. When Madras is attacked by the French before Asyra's ship sails, she must pretend to be the wife of her grandmother's agent, who happens to be the elder brother of her intended. Can she move beyond prejudice to find her place in the world?

The wonderfully nostalgic and heartwarming new novel from the Sunday Times top-ten best-selling author of The Beggar Maid. Born out of wedlock when her mother was only fourteen, Lucy Pocket has spent all her life in the care of her disreputable but charming grandmother, Eva. They dodge from one poor lodging house to another, always in debt and resorting to theft in order to exist. Until her wealthy paternal grandfather buys her from Eva, determined to bring Lucy up to be a lady.

Der Preis der Freiheit. Lady Aisla Montgomery führt eine durchaus erträgliche Ehe - ihr Mann bleibt in Schottland und sie in Paris. Doch irgendwann reicht ihr dieses Leben nicht mehr und sie will nur noch eines: die Scheidung. Niall Stuart Maclaren, der raubeinige Laird von Tarbendale, bereut den Tag, an dem er seine schöne, widerspenstige Frau kennenlernte. Der Gedanke an sie löst bittere Wut in ihm aus. Und doch hat keine andere Frau sein Blut je so in Wallung gebracht.

After her plans to elope with her married lover fall through, Rachel Kivell is brokenhearted and saddened that she must remain in her small Cornish mining town, with all of its dark secrets. But her brooding is put to an end when the loving but childlike Alice Bowden turns up on her doorstep. Poor orphaned Alice has nowhere to go, but Rachel cannot see herself taking on the responsibilities of a child. Can she put her worries aside, or will Alice never find a place to call home?

When journalist Jessie Daly loses everything she holds dear, she travels home to Ireland's west coast and helps an old friend researching life during the famine. Jessie becomes drawn into the heartbreaking story of a brave young mother, Bridget Moloney, and her daughter, Norah.

It's 1941, and Kate is living in Rangoon, Burma. A world away from her traditional English upbringing, she is bewitched by the country and the kindness of the Burmese people. When Edwin, a young teacher from London, starts working in the government office with her, a friendship develops between them. But Kate can sense that Edwin has secrets and is looking for a place to call home - something she shares. As their bond grows, Kate begins to understand Edwin's past and the tragic events that brought them both to Burma.

جاءني خاطر في تلك الجلسة أنه كان عليّ أن أدرس الجغرافيا. لقد اكتشفت معه أنني أحبها حقاً وأنها ربما كانت شغفي المغيّب الذي لم ينتبه أحد إليه، حتى أنا. وربما لهذا السبب تخصصت في مجال قريب من الجغرافيا البشرية تحديداً، وهو الأنثروبولوجيا الثقافية. لو قام ناصر بتدريسي هذه المادة في سنواتي المدرسية المبكرة، لكنت أعددت معه خرائط بديلة لهذا العالم الرديء. ولو أن بابا اشترى لي تلك الكرة الأرضية التي رأيتها في واجهة مكتبة في شارع جان دارك في منطقة الحمراء ببيروت، لكنت ذهبت باتجاه الجغرافيا بلا شك. ولكتبنا أبحاثنا معاً، أنا وناصر، حول الفخاخ السياسية التي تصنعها التضاريس مثلاً. كنت في الرابعة من عمري،

That elusive dream: the mate who makes your heart skip a beat each time you see them, children you can impart wisdom to and learn from, a comfortable home worth coming home to, and no concern for money. We all want that. What if you got it - every bit - and snapped? Jesse McKlintock did. He received the love of his life, the children, a working ranch, a gold, silver, and copper mine, and a bank.