As it's National Poetry Day, I thought I'd share a few thoughts on Byron. The celebrity cult of Lord Byron began while he was still alive, boomed when he died, and still continues today. He remains an object of fascination, scandal, and appeal. I've been interested in him since I first read about him in a "Famous People" encyclopaedia. It was a children's book, so it did not explore the more infamous aspects of his life. But it was enough to inspire me to delve further into research on the man and the myth - including the puzzle of the mirror . Ultimately, Byron went on to become a major inspiration for my first published book Day's Dying Glory , right down to its title. His early poems (generally my favourite ones) feature heavily in the book, and I enjoyed weaving in lines and references which Byron-fans would spot where others might not even notice them. Poets and poetry have inspired hundreds of writers. It is fascinating that language can be so power...
"Victoria's Victorian Victory" by Abigail Shepherd
Book Review
☆☆☆☆
I really enjoyed this book! It was about a subject that I'm
really interested in - I love old-style farming. In fact, Mum and I love to
snuggle up in front of an episode of "Victorian Farm". The fact that
the story was engaging and very well written, on top of this, meant that I
could very easily go back and read the whole book again!
Vicky was very well developed throughout the book. I can't
say I particularly liked her all the way through, but this made her human. I
identified quite a bit with Mary-Anne and could see myself in some of her
characteristics.
Weirdly enough, I imagined the farm somewhere in Devon. I
can't remember if it says where it is set – I think it was the strawberries!
And the weather!
My wish was that the ending could have been longer. By the
end of the book, I felt like I knew the characters well and I would have liked
maybe one more chapter of them settling into the new way of things. Maybe I’m
just being greedy, but I was quite disappointed when my kindle told me I’d come
to the end of the book.
Overall, this was a great book that I really enjoyed! I would certainly recommend it to others, especially those fans of “Victorian Farm”. I may even persuade my Mum to read it!
I just remembered something that really caught my attention! The book is historically accurate, even down to the little tiny details. One small part of the book mentions that the room that had been used by the live-in servant was now being used to store apples. This really interested me as I was talking to my Grandma last week - she was telling us about her friend who had a room in the attic which used to be a servant's bedroom but was later used as a storeroom for the farm's fruit. Little things!!
Blurb (from Goodreads)
Fourteen year old Victoria Bloom is great at having ideas, but they don't always go to plan. Now her mistakes will have bigger consequences than ever before as it has fallen to her to run the family farm. With harvest season fast approaching, it's urgent she makes it profitable again, or they will lose it altogether.
An entertaining yet educational historical read designed primarily for girls between the ages of 10-14.
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