Oh and finally, there were way too many characters either being referenced or introduced at the start and it took me ages to remember who anyone was. A sad, deprived child, he slowly begins to flourish under the care of old Tom Oakley - but his new-found happiness is shattered by a summons from his mother back in London.

Michelle Magorian - Back Home - Available Episodes - BBC Michelle Magorian - Back Home - Available Episodes - BBC

She trained to be an actress, studying at the Rose Bruford College of Speech and Drama, and at Marcel Marceau's L'école Internationale de Mime in Paris. A good book about a girl coming home to England from America after WWII, and finds herself adjusting to a familiar yet unfamiliar world. The sampler was only a tease and not enough but as it has inspired me to find a new copy, it''s not all bad.The ongoing struggle between Rusty being all for women's rights and education and her disdain for her mother's interest in cars was frustrating at times. Other audiobooks include Just Henry, read by the actor Richard Mitchley; and Goodnight Mister Tom, read by Christopher Saul for the RNIB (full version), and an abridged version read by Patrick Malahide. She is lonely and misunderstood and nobody seems to appreciate how the whole experience has been for her.

Back Home by Michelle Magorian - Penguin Books Australia Back Home by Michelle Magorian - Penguin Books Australia

Peggy is a good example of how British women's roles changed during the war, moving into jobs traditionally held by men and often becoming the sole breadwinner for their family because of being widowed or their husbands being away fighting.From the author of Goodnight Mister Tom, a postwar story in which a mother and daughter learn to love each other again. Hopes of a happy reunion are dashed by the state of the nation, bomb sites and rationing and by a mutual sense of horror at each other’s change of personality.