Clairsentience.

No, not "Claire Scentiments" (a maker of perfumed memory candles, perhaps?) or "Clear Sentences" (a desirable, and grammatically-correct way of communicating).

No, "clairsentience" - a means whereby, when you're in a particular place at a particular time, you absolutely know that you are meant to be there, no question. It's like "clairvoyance", with the added awareness of other senses. And it's clairsentience that drives Robin Bayley's search for his great-grandfather's Mexican past in this cracking tale of family history and discovery.

That a Greenhalgh would emigrate from Tottington, in Lancashire, to Tepic, in Mexico, is almost unbelievable. So the question is : why? That he would return and start a family is perhaps more predictable, and then the question becomes : what did he leave behind?

The author hangs a gripping and engaging narrative off the back of these two questions and introduces us to any number of characters along the way, each of whom adds to the value of the tale and helps uncover the facts behind a fascinating emigration story.

Like Carolyn Abrahams before him (see "The Juggler's Children"), Robin Bayley follows in his ancestor's footsteps and, in discovering the reasons for his movements, introduces us to some little-known aspects of history. In this case, we learn about the cotton industry, transatlantic communications in the days before radio and, last but not least, the Mexican revolution of 1910. As with Carolyn Abrahams' tale of her chinese juggler ancestor, Robin's story is a tour-de-force of genealogical discovery. That he also manages to experience it as something that he was destined to do, is a delight. It's "clairsentience".

I enjoyed verifying the facts in Robin's tale with the tools that are now available to family historians, especially the births, marriages and deaths of the principal characters. What a surprise, too, to find the probate record for one of Robin's less worthy, but still fascinating characters, Arthur Ecroyd, otherwise known as "Flash Harry from Oswaldtwistle"! (It's available on-line if you look for it).

So - an engaging story, well-told with warmth, humour and one or two lovely surprises as well. I felt better when I had read this book than I did before I started, and that is a sign for me that it's a great book. ( )

Certainly we all have a bit of "unknown" history somewhere in our past generations, but this one is more unique.
Truth is bit more interesting that a fiction in this book.
Enjoyed the background, the journey and the unfolding of the combined family. ( )

This is the story of the author, Robin Bayley, following in his great-grandfather's footsteps and travelling to Mexico. Arthur Greenhalgh, or Arturo as he was called in Mexico, had travelled there at the end of the 19th century to run a cotton mill. Robin travelled there almost 100 years later to put flesh to the bones of the stories that his grandmother had told him about her father's time in Mexico.

This is a really charming and, at times, funny story. There's a quote on the front cover of the paperback from Who Do You Think You Are magazine, and it really is like something you would see on that programme, as the author uncovers various information and meets people connected to his family.

I found this an engrossing tale. I loved looking at the pictures in the centre, particularly those of Arthur, as they brought the characters to life for me. I'd recommend this to anybody who enjoys a good story of family life, particularly a true one. Excellent stuff. ( )

wonderful if you are interested in genealogy ( )