For this week's #HistFicThursdays blog, I'm delighted to be welcoming Rosemary Hayward to the blog with a guest post about her new release Strait Lace , as part of her Coffee Pot Book Club tour. Read on to discover the history surrounding this fabulous book. But first, let's meet the book... Blurb It is 1905. Edwardian England. Harriet Loxley, the daughter of a vicar and niece to a prominent Nottingham lace manufacturer, spends her days playing cricket with her brother, scouring the countryside for botanical specimens, and never missing an opportunity to argue the case for political power for women. Given the chance to visit the House of Commons, Harriet witnesses the failure of a historic bill for women’s voting rights. She also meets the formidable Pankhurst women. When Harriet gets the chance to study biology at Bedford College, London, she finds her opportunity to be at the heart of the fight. From marching in the street, to speaking to hostile c...
Excerpt: I play outside and breathe sweet air. There are flowers and animals around me everywhere. Just like the wiggly worm, the curious cat, and the giant trees, My life has a special purpose; I am on a unique journey. This is what it means to be me. Review: "What It Means to Be Me" is a book with a great message - helping children to make sense of what makes them special and unique, but also what they have in common with others. As a teacher, it made me think of the requirement in the Curriculum for Excellence for pupils to: "I recognise that we have similarities and differences but are all unique." This book totally has that outcome covered! The book starts with a very lengthy opening, which I did feel may have been more audience-appropriate if it had been split over a few pages. The rest of the book carries on at a really good pace, mixing short snippets of advice and guidance with dazzling and/or dreamy illustrations. The book is written in a gentle rhyme, b...