i think if you're a giant winspear fan then this book has stories and reflections that you would really like. if you aren't too familiar with her or don't already come to the book interested in her life, there isn't much here for you. for me, it was fine, nothing special, and with a few stories that i enjoyed but i generally didn't find anything to hold on to in this one.

it's just remembrances and reflections of her and her parents' lives; nothing universal and no learning or overcoming to relate. ( )

I loved this book. Delighted to hear Jacqueline Winspear read it herself. This gave me so much insight into how her life informs her writing. A fascinating memoir! Ms Winspear is such a great storyteller. She felt like a friend sharing memories. I will definitely read anything she writes. She never puts a foot wrong! Thank you very much for the gift of this book! ( )

Winspear's memoir of a childhood growing up in post-WWII England is marked mostly by how wartime trauma affected two generations of her family, and by just how long it took the English countryside to move into the 20th century after losing two generations to bloody conflict. ( )

Digital audiobook read by the author
4****

Jacqueline Winspear, perhaps best known for her Maisie Dobbs cozy mystery series, turns to autobiography / memoir in this wonderful work. With honesty, humor, tenderness and compassion she explores her family background and her own childhood in the English countryside.

Winspear’s paternal grandfather served in “The Great War” and suffered from “shell shock” (today, recognized as PTSD) the remainder of his days, sometimes leading to behavior that others were unable to explain. She explores her parents’ experiences in WWII; her mother was evacuated from London during the Blitz, while her gentle, animal-loving father was assigned to an explosives team during the war. No wonder, then, that once married, her parents sought a quieter life outside London, and spent years living among the Romany people in rural Kent. Winspear recounts childhood memories of picking hops and fruit on farms, while she dreamed of being a writer.

I doubt I would have picked up this heartfelt and touching memoir were it not a book-club selection. I’m so glad I read it, and I think knowing Winspear’s own background will give me additional insight into her characters in the Maisie Dobb series.

Winspear read the audiobook herself. I cannot imagine anyone else doing a better job. ( )

Tales of her parents and of her childhood. Not much about writing career, which is what many fans would be interested in.