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1952: The story of a war widow in New Zealand’s tobacco fields
All Day at the Movies
What you need to know before your trail
When war widow Irene Sandle goes to work in New Zealand’s tobacco fields in 1952, she hopes to start a new, independent life for herself and her daughter – but the tragic repercussions of her decision will resonate long after Irene has gone.
Each of Irene’s children carries the events of their childhood throughout their lives, played out against a backdrop of great change – new opportunities emerge for women, but social problems continue to hold many back. Headstrong Belinda becomes a successful filmmaker, but struggles to deal with her own family drama as her younger siblings are haunted by the past.
A sweeping saga covering half a century, this is a powerful exploration of family ties and heartbreaks, and of learning to live with the past.
Locations
ResetTravel Guide
Travel BookTrail style to the New Zealand tobacco fields
“It was like moving to another country. The city of tram lines and crowded houses left behind., and now this wide open landscape.”
Leaving Wellington
Now here they were at the other side of the strait, the sea ironed as flat as a linen tablecloth when they arrived in Picton
Motueka
The small town they arrive at in order to work in the tobacco fields
Ahead of them lay a shining estuary, a silver swathe across the landscape, and before they knew it, they had arrived in the main street of a small town: a few tall houses, but most of them modest wooden dwellings with flower beds around them some churches, all the shops you would expect – butcher, grocery, dress shop. Everything about Motueka was awash with glowing light.
Booktrailer Review
A story of many parts which takes readers from 1952 to the more recent 2015. This is a story split between characters, time and themes but the main thread is that of Irene Sandle and her daughter Jessie.They come to a small town of Motueka trying to make a new life for themselves by working in the tobacco fields. This is a new start for them and the tobacco industry is booming. However something will happen to test them all and like a ripple on a pond, the affects of this will be felt for years to come.
This is a story essentially about family and choices and how one choice by one family member can have so much impact on everyone else. The author writes well and captures raw human emotions. Everything was interlinked and the story built steadily. The short chapters and feel that these were short stories rather than chapters for the most part, meant that it often felt choppy and I couldn’t dive in as deep as I would have liked in to the depths of the characters.
That’s not to lessen the effect that this powerful and quietly understated style of writing had on me. You’re left to make up your own mind about the family and their individual actions. It makes you think about choices and choices or rather, lack of, that women had at that time.
BookTrail Boarding Pass: All Day at the Movies
Destination: New Zealand Author/guide: Fiona Kidman Departure Time: 1952
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