You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
estherscholes 's review for:
Tidelands
by Philippa Gregory
I’ve held onto this book for a long time before reading it because it felt extra special - I got to go to one of Philippa Gregory’s readings thanks to the best present ever from my in-laws, and she gave a fantastic talk on the challenges of being a woman during the 17th century. Then I was first in the queue afterwards with my book to be signed and told her all in a jumble how I didn’t used to be into history at all but since reading her Plantagenet and Tudor books, I’m absolutely obsessed and now can’t get enough of reading about history from all different time periods and perspectives :)
This book is different from all the others by her that I’ve already read. As well as being in a later time period, it focuses on life which, although influenced by the royal upheavals which changed the way people worshipped, dressed and paid their taxes, is removed from the courts and upper classes. This is the story of poor people who have to make their living any way they can. Every day is precarious for them as they try to make enough money to survive, and each one is at the mercy of the goodwill of their neighbours and parish leaders.
In someone else’s hands I might have found this subject matter too trivial, but I trust Gregory implicitly, and disciplined myself to soak up every word instead of trying to race though for the dramatic conclusion. She is an absolute master at immersing the reader into a daily existence we could never have imagined without the historical records of how people survived centuries ago. The minutia of tending herbs so they can be administered as medicine; collecting and trading basic ingredients so there was enough food to live on; daily practices of hygiene, religion and superstition that carried family life from day to day; and the disparity of wealth and influence between different people that prevented so many from ever being able to change their lot - all of these elements are spell-binding in this story.
I was absolutely hooked, absolutely invested in all the characters, and absolutely overjoyed that it’s the first of a three-part series and now I can immediately start the next one!
This book is different from all the others by her that I’ve already read. As well as being in a later time period, it focuses on life which, although influenced by the royal upheavals which changed the way people worshipped, dressed and paid their taxes, is removed from the courts and upper classes. This is the story of poor people who have to make their living any way they can. Every day is precarious for them as they try to make enough money to survive, and each one is at the mercy of the goodwill of their neighbours and parish leaders.
In someone else’s hands I might have found this subject matter too trivial, but I trust Gregory implicitly, and disciplined myself to soak up every word instead of trying to race though for the dramatic conclusion. She is an absolute master at immersing the reader into a daily existence we could never have imagined without the historical records of how people survived centuries ago. The minutia of tending herbs so they can be administered as medicine; collecting and trading basic ingredients so there was enough food to live on; daily practices of hygiene, religion and superstition that carried family life from day to day; and the disparity of wealth and influence between different people that prevented so many from ever being able to change their lot - all of these elements are spell-binding in this story.
I was absolutely hooked, absolutely invested in all the characters, and absolutely overjoyed that it’s the first of a three-part series and now I can immediately start the next one!