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22 November 2014
Title
| Pegasus to Paradise |
Author
| Michael Tappenden |
Publisher
| Hippocrene Books, Inc, New York |
Publication Date
|
May 2014
|
Pages
| 374 |
Genre
| family history, WW2 |
Blurb:
Florrie is relieved to have her Ted back where he belongs, but like many of her neighbours, she sees a distance in her husband where once there was joy and passion. Neither husband nor wife can explain their suffering to anyone, least of all each other, and they soon find themselves inhabiting different worlds under the same roof.
Based on the true lives of Ted “Ham and Jam” Tappenden and his wife Florrie and spanning three generations of the Tappenden family, Pegasus to Paradise is an ode to both the extraordinary efforts of ordinary men and women during the Second World War and a moving portrait of trauma, survival and the power of love in post-war Britain.
My review:
I was particularly excited to read a book which is set mainly in my local area. There aren't that many around. Even though I was not born in Kent, I do feel very much settled here and couldn't image living anywhere else.
This is the story of Ted and Florrie. They are young couple when World War II breaks out. 2 sons are born during the war years, and Ted is of of the lucky ones who does return. But he is not the same Ted. Still, lives goes on and the couple will have to cope.
In the early chapters, the book tells us about Ted's war adventures. I am usually not one for war and battle descriptions but here, it is firstly necessary for the story, and I also found myself quickly getting into it and rooting for the boys. It does not get too technical and easy to read and understand what actually went on. Ted returns, but after the initial euphoria he finds he now faces a different world, very different from the battlefield where he exactly knew what to do: 'Just kill the enemy and stay alive'.
What I really enjoyed about this book is relationship of Ted and his wife Florrie. Both are very different persons, and Florrie is certainly a real character. In later chapters, Florrie and her passions in life take the centre stage. But Ted is always there. Typical of a man of his generation, he just gets on with it, even when it does get difficult and both are facing physical and psychological problems as they get older. It was a very moving read, and certainly made me think about how a couple copes when they get older, maybe if one if the partners is not any more as able as the other.
I also enjoyed that Ted's mates from his war years a re-visited in later chapters during a veteran's meeting.
This is the story of Ted and Florrie. They are young couple when World War II breaks out. 2 sons are born during the war years, and Ted is of of the lucky ones who does return. But he is not the same Ted. Still, lives goes on and the couple will have to cope.
In the early chapters, the book tells us about Ted's war adventures. I am usually not one for war and battle descriptions but here, it is firstly necessary for the story, and I also found myself quickly getting into it and rooting for the boys. It does not get too technical and easy to read and understand what actually went on. Ted returns, but after the initial euphoria he finds he now faces a different world, very different from the battlefield where he exactly knew what to do: 'Just kill the enemy and stay alive'.
What I really enjoyed about this book is relationship of Ted and his wife Florrie. Both are very different persons, and Florrie is certainly a real character. In later chapters, Florrie and her passions in life take the centre stage. But Ted is always there. Typical of a man of his generation, he just gets on with it, even when it does get difficult and both are facing physical and psychological problems as they get older. It was a very moving read, and certainly made me think about how a couple copes when they get older, maybe if one if the partners is not any more as able as the other.
I also enjoyed that Ted's mates from his war years a re-visited in later chapters during a veteran's meeting.
About the author:
