MOTHER’S BOY, by Patrick Gale (Hachette, 37.99)
A generation of women born around the turn of the 20th century went through the horror of losing not only a husband and brothers to World War I but also a son or sons to World War II. In Patrick Gale’s Mother’s Boy, a loose retelling of the life of Cornishman Charles Causley, a popular and respected World War II poet, we see his mother, Laura, go through this very real fear.
The story begins with the meeting of Charles’ parents, who are in service at a time when servants are questioning their place in life. Laura is a maid/cook in a residence in Teignmouth, Devon, when she meets Charlie Causley, a driver for a doctor. He’s an entrepreneurial man with big ideas, but no sooner do they marry than he goes offto fight in World War I.
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Denne historien er fra March 19 - 25, 2022-utgaven av New Zealand Listener.
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