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#HistFicThursdays - The Angel of Grasmere: From Dunkirk to Grasmere - Book Review

Today's #HistFicThursdays blog comes from Judith, who is reviewing Tom Palmer 's fabulous book, Angel of Grasmere . Read on, to see what she thought... Picture from Tom's website, here: https://tompalmer.co.uk/angel-of-grasmere/ The Angel of Grasmere: From Dunkirk to Grasmere is a middle-grade novel by Tom Palmer. I came to read this book in a surprising sort of way. Having just taken up a post as an English teacher at the local High School, I was informed that each class has a session in the library every three weeks. The kind but terrifyingly organised librarian told me that my third-years had missed their last library session, so she had kindly slotted on into my first week with them. This was an absolute godsend as, last thing on a Thursday, it was lovely for me and the rest of the class to just sit with a book. It being November, there was a Book Week Scotland display up in the library, full of books which involved the theme of Hope. One of them, The Angel of Grasm...
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#HistFicThursdays - Things to Inspire - Rules and Regulations

 Yesterday, the #HistFicMay prompt asked what was the trickiest thing about a setting. There were some great answers from Historical Fiction authors, which you can read here. For my part, the answer was this:

When I write a book, I inevitably fall in love with one of my characters. But then there is that nagging annoyance that they are (well, not real, for a start) almost certainly influenced by their time and society. And those days were filled with adventure, but they were certainly not filled with justice and fairness.

Not all rules applied to all people, of course, and my "things" which I have collected for this topic are actually as much linked to the military nature of my Family Saga as they are to rules and regulations. These are from the Napoleonic era and relate to the advancements made by the Duke of York - yes, he was the Grand Old one!


But, while your characters might have to abide by the laws of the land, remember there have always been people who stand up for different beliefs. In Beneath Black Clouds and White, I explored the advent of abolition, and it was very challenging indeed to include good characters who were not in favour of it. I think I managed to balance it in the end!

Happy Writing!

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