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The Very Thought of You

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Author: Rosie Alison
Publisher: Alma Books Ltd
Category: Book

List Price: ~~£7.99~~
Buy Used: £0.41
as of 7/9/2010 22:55 BST details
You Save: £7.58 (95%)

New (30) Used (27) from £0.41

Seller: revivalbooks2
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

107 reviews
Sales Rank: 753

Media: Paperback
Pages: 350
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5 x 1

ISBN: 1846881005
EAN: 9781846881008
ASIN: 1846881005

Publication Date: March 1, 2010
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days

Features:

•	New
•	Mint Condition
•	Dispatch same day for order received before 12 noon
•	Guaranteed packaging
•	No quibbles returns

Also Available In:

•	Kindle Edition - The Very Thought of You
•	Paperback - The Very Thought of You

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Editorial Reviews:

Product Description
England, 31st August 1939: the world is on the brink of war. As Hitler prepares to invade Poland, thousands of children are evacuated from London to escape the impending Blitz. Torn from her mother, 8-year-old Anna Sands is relocated with other children to a large Yorkshire estate which has been opened up to evacuees.

Customer Reviews:

Showing reviews 1-5 of 107

1 2 3 4 5 6 ...22 Next »

Very lovely September 6, 2010
S. Jackson (Tyne & Wear, England)
A very lovely read which had me wracked with sobs on a sun-lounger with only my sunglasses to hide behind. Spoilt only by the phrase uttered by the paramedic (shame).

1 out of 5 stars

Subtle?? August 24, 2010
Jadi (Manchester)
Interesting story line,very badly written with bizarre choice of words and phrases. I became fascinated by how many times the words "subtle" and "subtly" were used! I lost count..

1 out of 5 stars

Can't believe this made the Orange shortlist August 20, 2010
Jane Hopkinson
I was lured into buying this book by the Waterstone's 3 for 2 offer, and by the picture and the blurb on the cover, which suggested it might compare with Ian McEwan's work.

This book is so irredeemably awful that I didn't get past page 58 so I can't tell you about the story.

However, to give you a flavour, here is a random excerpt that is typical of the writing style, although I could pick any page. Note that every noun has an adjective: " Anna emerged from deep, sweet oblivion to a strange room. She saw a high white ceiling edged with intricate patterns, like cake icing. Her body was limp and damp. She looked up into the face of a stranger - a stranger with an anxious face and dark glossy hair".

And another: "Her old upright piano was lying open, its ivories throwing out a pale gleam in the dark front room. She strummed an Al Bowlly song, but it felt too feckless, so she drifted into a lullaby". Apart from the sheer awfulness of the prose, how can you strum a piano??

Ian McEwan? I don't think so. Never, never again will I judge a book by its cover. Too bad for a charity shop so it'll have to go to recycling.

4 out of 5 stars

an emotional page turner August 17, 2010
Reader, I Read It (London)
It's a warm sunny day when 8 year old Anna Sands prepares for her evacuation out of London. Not even the threat of the Blitz can spoil the excitement and sense of adventure both Anna and her mother, Roberta, share. Strangely, World War Two has brought new opportunities for them both.

The same feeling is shared by Elizabeth and Thomas Ashton who are busy converting their North Yorkshire Manor House into a school for evacuees with the hope that it will cover the cracks in their failing marriage. While Roberta enjoys her newly found freedom in London, we follow Anna who becomes entwined in the Ashton's lives and is witness to key events which will affect her for the rest of her life.

The novel is a deep exploration of the mixed emotions war brought to those on the home front and has the ability to hold the reader's attention throughout the novel. Although at ReaderIReadIt it is policy that spoilers aren't given away but it is difficult not to warn readers to brace themselves for a lot of tragedy in this story. This unfortunately tips the balance of the story from an enjoyable read into something much more harrowing.

Alison is expert when it comes to adapting her style of writing between the age differences. From the children's exploration of the house to Elizabeth's despair of not having a child of her own, you quickly engage with each feeling. However, as there are so many issues and story lines being explored, it is difficult to know what message Alison is wanting to present.

Despite the narrative's bluntness which describes significant events in a couple of sentences leaving you feeling cheated out of further explanation, Alison doesn't fail to capture you into the lives and stories of her characters. Be prepared to not only become emotionally involved with the characters but also to love and to lose.

1 out of 5 stars

OK if you like Woman's Own August 16, 2010
Alison L (UK)
Very disappointing. The Orange shortlist is usually guarantees a good literary read but not in this case. The beginning started well with the relationship between daughter and mother and the evacuation. It was all downhill after that. Lacked charaterisation and narrative drive and ended hurriedly as though the author couldn't be bothered any more or just didn't know what to do with the characters.

Showing reviews 1-5 of 107

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