Relief Reads 3 - Pauper's Gold

Pauper's Gold by Margaret Dickinson

Charity Shop: Scope, Byker/Heaton, Newcastle

Charity: Scope is a UK disability charity that supports disabled people and their families in England and Wales. scope.org.uk

Price: 50p

Book Blurb: (it's a long'un) Hannah Francis has been forced to leave her beloved mother and the life she knows in the silk mill town of Macclesfield ????????become an apprentice at a cotton mill in the Derbyshire dales ????blow for such a young girl, but her three travelling companions ????? younger than she is, and Hannah is determined ???? spirits up and remain in good cheer. // Once she is settled in the mill, Hannah discovers the hours of work are long, and the daily routine is dangerous, arduous and harsh, but her bright singing and capacity for joy lighten the load for everyone. // Hannah soon becomes a favourite with the other mill workers. Friendships are forged and an innocent love starts to blossom. But can such a fragile love survive cruel reality? It is not long before Hannah attracts the eye of Edmund Critchlow, the man who owns them all, body and soul - the man from whom no pretty mill girl is safe. // Times are hard in the cotton industry as civil war rages across America, affecting not only the mill owner but also the lives of all his workers...
(???? are the bits that are covered by the price sticker)

Expectation: What the blurb said. Tale of hardship and woe.

Reality: Amazing! I read this book all in one day because it was so good. It follows the life of Hannah Francis, from her separation from her mother right through to Adulthood (I won't give away the ending) The start of her life is marred by bad luck and bad people, and yet it is not all bad, it's just unfortunate that those in power are the evil ones. Despite her circumstances, Hannah remains very innocent and sings her way through life. She is well liked by almost all who encounter her, due to her boldness, intelligence and curiosity. She seems too perfect, but then tragedy strikes and she becomes fixated on revenge. Taking a risk, her living standards improve and for several years she lives a comfortable life, and everything starts to go right. However her desire for revenge makes her throw her life back into turmoil, which results in her having the most remarkable position. It is a very good read, highly recommended.

Overall Rating

It was a struggle           2        3        4        5        6        7        8       9      Gripping page  

to make it                                                                                                        turner

Read it in a day, and it's not a short book either.

Twist Scale:

Knew the beginning,                                                                                 As twisty as the 

middle and end         2       3        4         5       6        7        8        9      bendy wendy road

from the first line         

I deliberated on this one. Hannah's life is not straight forward. However the twists are well-anticipated. Hints are dropped about impending problems/situations, although some are a little surprising. There are a few of 'whoah, what? that just happened?!' moments, but although lots of events are shocking, they aren't a huge surprise.

Tear-jerker Scale:

 As dry as a house       2        3       4         5         6         7       8        9     Cried an ocean

 throughout

Must admit, I got a little weepy. There are some very sad moments, and she's only a child!

***

So ends review #3 of the best book of the series so far.

Coming up: The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold. A book I remember many people reading in sixth form, but I never did. Found it in a charity shop so now's my chance.

Update on life: Getting into the swing of this 9-5 thing, even bought myself a bus pass (although got shouted at by grumpy bus driver for not using it properly!) Rained all week, but woke up today to glorious sunshine, so I went to the seaside. Tynemouth is so pretty, beats Boston harbour hands down (as that is my city-by-the-sea comparison) They have epic harbour walls that are stone piers with a lighthouse at the end. If I see a pier I want to walk to the end, so off I went, and kept going, and kept going, and kept going. It seemed never ending and I thought my face was about to be blown off. Reached the lighthouse, thought brilliant! time for a bit of shelter from the wind, only to find someone had relieved themself in the one sheltered spot, so it stank, ptsch! some people are so inconsiderate. Anyway pretty photos taken, hood put up and I trekked all the way back to land. At this point I decided to read the information board and it turns out the pier is 826m long, it didn't look that far from the land! Despite its length and critical point of smelliness, I did not regret it, there's something about being surrounded by sea which is pretty cool.