22 Britannia Road

22 Britannia Road

by Amanda Hodgkinson (Author)

Synopsis

War changes us all, and sometimes we no longer recognise ourselves...'Housekeeper or housewife?' the soldier asks Silvana as she and eight-year-old Aurek board the ship that will take them from Poland to England at the end of the war, to Janusz, her husband. But she isn't sure any longer that she is a wife of any kind or whether she has a house. After living wild in the forests for years, carrying a terrible secret, all Silvana knows is that she and Aurek are survivors. In Ipswich, Janusz is getting ready for the arrival of the wife and son he hasn't seen in six years. After fleeing Poland and the war that left him a deserter, he has found his family a house. He works hard planting a proper English garden to welcome them and to distract him from his own secret. But the six years apart have changed them all, and they must learn that love can't work unless there are no secrets. To make Aurek a real home, Silvana and Janusz will have to come to terms with what happened to them during the war, accept that each have changed immeasurably and allow their beloved but wild son to be who he truly is.

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Quantity

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More Information

Format: Paperback
Pages: 320
Publisher: Fig Tree
Published: 28 Apr 2011

ISBN 10: 1905490704
ISBN 13: 9781905490707

Media Reviews
An affecting story, extremely well told * The Times *
The characters are so convincing and the writing's so unshowily accomplished that it soon becomes something gripping. An admirable debut * Daily Mail *
Harrowing, terrifying, heartbreaking, incredibly moving. Prepare to be left teary-eyed more than once * Stylist *
Riveting, luminous * New York Times Book Review *
A stark and beautiful book, alive to the compromises, deceptions and passions that traumatic situations can demand from the most circumspect of people * Marie Claire *
A most accomplished first novel. Powerful story-telling and entirely convincing in its evocation of post-war England. Very good -- Penelope Lively
[A] powerful debut * Sunday Times Culture Magazine *
Keep your Kleenex handy reading 22 Britannia Road * Grazia *
Convincing and touchingly portrayed * Independent on Sunday *
A riveting historical novel, set in post-WWII England, about a Polish couple reunited after enduring - and committing - crimes of love and war * Oprah.com *
A haunting debut that eschews sensationalism and unfurls with quiet delicacy * Easy Living *
Author Bio
Amanda Hodgkinson was born in Burnham on Sea in Somerset and grew up in Essex and Suffolk. She currently lives in south west France with her husband and two daughters. This is her first novel.