Thunderstone: Finding Shelter from the Storm
Nancy Campbell
ISBN 9781783966998
Published by Elliott and Thompson
Nancy Campbell
ISBN 9781783966998
Published by Elliott and Thompson
In October 2019, the author's partner, Anna, had a stroke. Nancy Campbell was working in Germany at the time, but she rushed home to Britain to be with Anna, who would require a lot of recovery time. Their relationship had been changing before Nancy left for Germany, and before Anna left the hospital, they'd agreed that they would no longer be a couple, but that they would continue to live in their flat together for a year, with Nancy as Anna's carer. Of course, this was all happening just as we were all starting to learn about COVID 19. They went through lockdown together in this way. When it was time for Nancy to move out, she had nowhere to go. She considered couch-surfing, but a new-ish friend she'd met in the hospital told her about some friends of his who lived on a boat in a canal. There was a community of people there. Nancy couldn't afford a boat, but she could afford a caravan and there was a spot near the canal towpath where she could park it. So she bid £750 on a caravan listed on eBay, and ended up owning her first home. She knew nothing about caravans, but she learned a lot pretty quickly, living as she did with no electric, water, or sewer hook-ups. This book is a journal of that time in the author's life.
The title refers to a kind of fossil called a thunderstone in Denmark, where the author found one and brought it home. They are fossils of sea urchins with a 5-pointed star pattern, but Danish in folklore, the markings on the rock come from lightning strikes. Putting these in the corners of the home was thought to protect the family inside.
It's a beautifully written book, filled not only with descriptions of the author's experiences, but also of the natural world around her, which she was experiencing in a new way, her own feelings as she found herself changing along with her circumstances, and the quirky new friends she met along the way. I loved this book. My only regret about it is that it wasn't longer. The end seemed a little bit abrupt. I would have liked to have read more about Nancy's evolution and that of her relationships, both with the people in her life and with her new life circumstances. But I suppose that's the way with memoirs--they are necessarily limited to a certain period of time and have to end somewhere. Still, I think another month or two of the journal would have made this an even better book.
I received a digital copy of the book in exchange for a fair review. I thank NetGalley, the author, and the publisher.
7 comments:
I love books like this, it sounds so good! Thanks for reading and reviewing, I'm going to add it to my list to read.
Certainly sounds an interesting book, many thanks for highlighting it.
All the best Jan
This is the first of her books that I've read, but some of the others look really good, too, so it won't be the last!
I love the name fossilstone. And I enjoyed reading book posts too. Thanks for this one.
Always happy to share the book love! :-)
That sounds extremely interesting, dear Shari - especially since I spent a lot of time with my parents in a caravan (only holidays and weekends, but winter and summer from my early childhood to as a young adult) and can well imagine living in such a caravan and find shelter in stormy times... and spiritual peace in a life without electricity and water connection. A simple life, but not a bad one, I'm sure.
All the best and a happy new week! 🌷☘️🌷
Hugs, Traude 😘
https://rostrose.blogspot.com/2023/04/costa-rica-10-kapitel-samara-delfine.html
I quite like books like this. For a couple of years we lived nomadically in a tent for several months at a time and then again staying in one place. Once we found where we wanted to settle and moved inside again, I was surprised at the adjustment and how much I missed life in a tent. I still have fond memories of that time.
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