The Wind Off the Sea - Hardcover

Charlotte Bingham

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0385602855 ISBN 13: 9780385602853

Publisher: DOUBLEDAY, 2003

Synopsis

It is 1947, the worst winter in England since records began, and even the sea is frozen. For the women living in the little fishing port of Bexham, the chronic lack of everything from fuel to food has left them reeling.When Waldo Astley drives through thick Sussex snow into the village in his large American Buick, it is to find Bexham filled not just with grumbling residents, but frustrated wives and mothers forced back behind their stoves after the joy of the victory for which they fought so hard on the home front. Government directives have ensured that the returning men resumed the jobs their women managed so brilliantly through the gruelling years of war.But Waldo is no ordinary character, and while he has come to Bexham on a personal mission, his effect on all the residents is as warming as the electricity of which there is still such a shortage. For Judy, whose marriage to Walter has been badly affected by long years of separation; for Rusty, whose miscarriage has been mind-shattering; for Mathilda, whose single motherhood has put her eligibility in jeopardy, and for Meggie, still not recovered from her alter ego as a secret agent. No matter what the age or circumstances of the person, Waldo Astley is not just a breath of fresh air - but the wind off the sea.

About this title

About the Author

Charlotte Bingham is a bestselling women's fiction writer in the UK. She has written comedy and drama series, films and plays with her husband, the actor and playwright Terence Brady. Her bestsellers include Distant Music, Summertime, and The Season.

From Booklist

In the sequel to The Chestnut Tree (2003), Bingham continues the story of a quartet of British women. It's now two years after the end of World War II, and Judy, Meggie, Mattie, and Rusty are living off rations, enduring a severe winter, and suffering the aftereffects of the war. Judy's husband has returned but her marriage is not what she has imagined it would be. Afflicted with ennui, Meggie wanders alone through her huge house. Mattie, a single mother, faces the silent condemnation of the village, and Rusty is deeply depressed after a miscarriage. Into this morass of sadness comes Waldo Astley, a rich, handsome American, who becomes the talk of the village. Once again, Bingham juxtaposes male expectations of women with the new expectations women have for themselves, but the sequel is not as stratifying, or as satisfying, as the original. Yet Bingham does craft wonderful characters, and places them in fully detailed settings to create a historical novel that honors the strength of women. Neal Wyatt
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About this edition

• Publisher: DOUBLEDAY
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0385602855
• ISBN 13: 9780385602853
• Binding: Hardcover