Read in 2018 - 12: In Homespun

Another "old" book, this free ebook was first published in 1896.

 
It is a collection of stories by Edith Nesbit, an author I much admire and always enjoy. I have written a short paragraph about her and her life at the end of this review, and there are several other reviews of her book on my blog; if you are interested, simply type "nesbit" in the search box on the top left corner of my blog.

The stories in this book all have one thing in common: They center around a female character who tells the story in her own words. The women are all of more or less humble backgrounds, unlike many books of that time, when novels were often set in aristocratic circles. They tell the reader of how they got where they are now, how they found their place in life, in the world, and what made them do what they did - how circumstances and their own personality worked for or against them and formed their actions.

With some of them, the reader can fully sympathise; with others, the impulse is rather to tell them what one thinks of their actions. No matter which way the reader is inclined with each story, they all offer a good glimpse of what life used to be like for the "average" woman more than 100 years ago in a village, small town or on a farm in southern England.

And, if you know Edith Nesbit's work, you'll find her typical sense of humour coming through more than once.

It definitely made me grateful for living here and now, where I can largely lead the life I want, choose where I live (and who with) and what I want to do for a living and how I want to spend my free time.