Forebears, by John Needham

Forebears, by John Needham

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Forebears, by John Needham

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When Jay Harding is given his beloved grandmother June’s diary after her death he discovers a fascinating picture depicting one Englishwoman’s life from childhood during the dark times of wartime Britain up to the present day. But he’s already learned more distant family history. Prior to her passing his gran had told him the story of her own forebears, some of it tragic, beginning in the early optimistic years of the twentieth century, before the world was torn apart by the cataclysm of the first terrible ‘war to end all wars.’ That account gave testimony to happiness but also shocking abuse, institutional cruelty and tragedy. Jay has witnessed the rich tapestry of his family history; has glimpsed his ancestors in handwritten pages yellowed with age, in sepia and black-and-white pictures dulled by time, in a poignant remembrance of stolen love in a silver frame; has heard it told first-hand in his grandmother’s voice, tremulous in her decline Now in possession of the diary too, he reads on . . . In discovering the story of his forebears, Jay finds vibrant echoes of the past resonating with his love-blessed present, inspiring him to meet the future. Told in alternating diary extracts and narrative (a surprise about the identity of the narrator is revealed at the end), several themes run in parallel through this rich, impeccably researched novel: the repercussions of sexual abuse, the continuum of female sexual reproduction, the woman’s view of fighting wars and running the world and the changing social mores throughout the twentieth century. It is a compelling social and family history typical of so many families of the last one-hundred-and-five years. ‘Intricate and beautiful’. Gwendlyn Kallie ‘Compassionate, so very real’. Marilyn Z. Tomlins ‘A tour de force’. Anthony Nobbs

Forebears, by John Needham

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1538057 in eBooks
• Published on: 2015-09-23
• Released on: 2015-09-23
• Format: Kindle eBook

Forebears, by John Needham

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Most helpful customer reviews

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. A Beautiful & Touching Multi-Generational Novel By robsrose This author’s second book begins during the present day and then whisks you back in time to span most of the twentieth century, beginning in 1906 with a melodramatic event that has sometimes profound repercussions, to bring you back to the present. Taking the character of grandmother June as a pivot, Forebears is the story of Jay Harding’s ancestors and their lives as seen through the eyes of the women in his female line. I liked the way the book interweaves the diary of June with a narrative telling a powerful family story. This beautiful, intricate and well written saga details everyday family life and what it was like living with the effects of war emotionally, physically and economically on those at home and those on the front line. It gives insight into the poverty of the Depression-stricken 1930s for ordinary people. It tells of a baby who by sheer good luck survives a World War II V2 rocket attack. It chronicles the optimism of the New Elizabethan Age. Mostly though, it’s the story of the women of each generation of this family, of their courage, endurance and ability to just get on with things, because that’s what women do. So this is a testament to the womenfolk (for reasons revealed near the end) of an unremarkable family living through remarkable events, partly told through June’s diary and partly through the words of a surprising narrator whose identity is revealed at the conclusion. I won’t it spoil by saying whom! It’s a plea, if you like, for writing things down; for recording your life for posterity. Although fictional, Forebears is a story about us all, really. About how we are all bound to those from our past and how the choices our ancestors made influence our lives today. It is a wonderful familial and generational picture of happiness, joy, sorrow and tears, but most of all perseverance that allowed Jay’s forebears to survive, flourish, and continue their bloodline. This is a wonderful story to read again and again. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. A fascinating story. By Susan Keefe This story starts with Jay, standing in the church at the funeral of his Grandmother, June. After the wake, his Granddad offers him the opportunity to read his Grandmother’s diaries, which she has kept since she was a child.That night, Jay and his partner Helen snuggle up together and open one of the journals....As they begin turning the pages, they find themselves drawn back through the years to June’s childhood. But then another, parallel narrative appears: we are taken back two more generations to begin with June's own grandmother.The story spans 105 years, and follows generations of the same family, down the female line, starting with Juniper, an attractive young woman who becomes a Governess in 1906. Her life, like so many others was moulded by circumstances beyond her control. When World War 1 started, everyone, including her boyfriend was sure it would be over by Christmas, but unfortunately, as we know it was not, and our glimpse into her life gives a wonderful insight into what living before, during and after the First World War was really like.As the story progresses, I found it fascinating to read about the changes in attitudes, fashions and morals throughout the 20th and into the 21st Century.At the end there is the opportunity to sample the authors debut novel ‘Convergence’, which is about Martin, one of the characters in this book.This, in my opinion would make a good book for students of Modern History to read, or anyone interested in family life in the 20th and 21st Century. Within its pages you will find it all, love, life, birth death, the full gamut of emotions. At the very end there is a satisfying, surprise plot twist.

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. More of the same please! By Jack H. I bought this book because I previously read Mr. Needham’s book “The One Of Us,” which I enjoyed immensely. If anything, I enjoyed “Forebears” even more!The book is a beautiful , sweeping family saga in which a young couple uncover their family history from the beginning of the 20th century up to the present day.Swapping between present and past, the author introduces a wonderful cavalcade of characters. Their life stories are contextualised side-by-side with real historical events. As with “The One Of Us” the historical detail is wonderful and well-researched adding to the story’s interest and believability and whilst all the characters may not be sympathetic (which is fine by me, not everyone you meet in life is “sympathetic” after all!) they are believable and interesting in a way that makes you determined to carry on reading so that you know what happens to them. Indeed, the author is somebody that obviously has a real feel for the way people think and operate and has the rare ability to transcribe that accurately to paper.A fascinating, extremely well-written and absorbing page-turner. Congratulations to the author and more of the same please!

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