Published on Thursday May 30 2013 in hardback, RRP £16.99
FIRST time author Rose Handleigh-Adams has written her memoirs about her childhood growing up in post-war London.
And what a story it is.
We start with how Rose was born in spectacular circumstances during an air raid attack in 1940, at the height of the Second World War.
After being evacuated up north to Tyneside her father Norman, returns to fetch her from an idyllic countryside lifestyle at the end of the war and returns her to the harsh realities that is growing up poor in the city.
As Rose recounts various situations throughout the years, the writing style gets more and more mature, which I liked, as it felt you were journeying alongside with her as she grew up. Some of the tales are quite hair-raising, especially about her eccentric Nan and Uncle George who live upstairs.
And some of the details she recounts are quite simply, heartbreaking. From the struggles her mother Helen went through to feed her family, to the fact Rose and her siblings sometimes had fleas, unseasonable clothing and no shoes. But this was the reality back then and a lot of families lived like this, so in her case it isn't just a blatant act of child neglect.
I also felt her story of how she was sexually abused by an uncle was sensitively handled, it didn't dominate the narrative and wasn't sensationalised. This again, was just another unfortunate element to add into the mix.
But there are also funny and heartwarming moments, such as times Rose spends with her friends and the time her father buys her a bike and teaches her how to ride it.
Another interesting aspect is the historical details, such as Rose leaving school at 14 and going into full time employment in shops and a factory, how the courts dealt with people back then and especially the police. There seemed to be quite an overemphasis on whether young women had spent inappropriate time with young men, a sure sign of the changing of attitudes over the years.
When Rose finds herself alone and pregnant at 15, we gain a valuable insight into how she was handled by the system, how people judged her and what exactly went on in a mother and baby home.
The stories of the girls who were parted from their babies are utterly heartbreaking and you really root for Rose as an inner strength takes over her after the birth of Martin Paul, an inner strength that only a mother's love for their child could create.
Thankfully, Rose's mother comes to the rescue the very day she was due to sign her son away for adoption and that's where the story supposedly ends.
I couldn't put this book down, I found the personal and realistic accounts of growing up in a world trying to rebuild itself after World War Two absolutely fascinating. I was also itching to read more about what happened to Rose and Martin Paul, what happened when they returned home? How did her father take the news? How did the neighbours react? How did she manage to raise him by herself?
But then, I suppose that's another story for another day...
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