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WW2: A troubled marriage, a man sent to war and a young girl on the brink…
The Girl from the Tyne
What you need to know before your trail
Alice Rooney and Jack Wood have a volatile marriage. When baby Lizzie comes along however, he hopes that life will get better. But at the start of WWII Jack is drafted by the Air Force, and little Lizzie is left with her mother. Damaged and troubled, Alice grows increasingly unstable and Lizzie finds herself the focus of her mother’s frustration and anger.
It’s only when Lizzie arrives at Madame Bella’s Academy for the Theatrical Arts that she blossoms.
Travel Guide
Newcastle in the 1930s. 1940s
From the Brylcreem to the pots of tea always on the go, there is a lot of fine detail which helps to set the scene. The bus conductor who pulls the cord to stop the bus…
The novel starts with all the excitement of some youngsters going to a dance. Saturday nights and the dance halls are the buzz of excitement – and there are a few around the region such as the one in Blaydon and the Oxford Galleries in Newcastle where there were many a dance in years gone by. This was one of the hotspots for youngsters during the war years and for many years afterwards so really adds to the reality of the story.
To further cement the story in the North East, there’s plenty of Geordie anthems in the Geordie dialect so be prepared to be singing these ditties once you’ve you tubed them of course. They should come with subtitles for those not born in the north east and if not the words are in the novel to enjoy. The streets are dark and wet but the lampposts are shining on the merry makers. Quaint descriptions help to draw the picture of a Newcastle heading towards war but with the feeling that the show must go on.
The age of young couples attending and meeting at dances is nicely captured with the freedom and fancies you have at that age.Contrast that with the fear of the young men going to war and the troubles which can result at home – particularly the violence of a woman against her own daughter. It was a violent time but not in the family home and certainly not between a woman and her daughter.
Streetview Maps
B) Newcastle - Blaydon - St Joseph's Church
C) Newcastle - The Theatre Royal
Booktrailer Review
Susan: @thebooktrailer
Coming from the North East, this put a smile on my face – the language, the sayings, the sing song rhymes more than took me back to that time (well not exactly, I’m now that old). This was a story set in the lead up to the war and how its shadow hovered over and changed everything that the local people of Newcastle and Blaydon did.
The tone of the novel changes as the abusive relationship between Alice and her daughter comes to the fore.
It was sad to read this at times as the woman did what she could to scupper her talented daughter’s plans.However the journey little Lizzie goes on in the world of dance – her dreams of performing at the Theatre Royal was a joy. It was hard to see this kind of abuse when the men were away at war but it makes you think just how life could be far from the battlefield, the type of story that doesn’t normally get told.
I do think a few geordie phrases might have been useful here as there is a fair bit of dialogue in the dialect too which might put some people off. There is plenty warm Geordie fair to enjoy here though and the first book I’ve read set in Blaydon!
Booktrail Boarding Pass: The Girl from the Tyne
Author/Guide: Melody Sachs Destination: Newcastle, Blaydon Departure Time: 2WW
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