Review ~ The Wild Air by Rebecca Mascull

Hodder & Stoughton
4 May 2017

What's it all about..

In Edwardian England, aeroplanes are a new, magical invention, while female pilots are rare indeed.

When shy Della Dobbs meets her mother's aunt, her life changes forever. Great Auntie Betty has come home from Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, across whose windswept dunes the Wright Brothers tested their historic flying machines. Della develops a burning ambition to fly and Betty is determined to help her

But the Great War is coming and it threatens to destroy everything - and everyone - Della loves.

Uplifting and page-turning, THE WILD AIR is a story about love, loss and following your dreams against all odds.

What did I think about it ..

In our modern world we rarely notice aeroplanes perhaps, barely, even looking up as they flutter across the sky above our heads. Just occasionally when the noise intrudes do I look up to catch a glimpse of a meandering contrail and wonder where in the world the plane is going to or coming from. To imagine a world where the concept of flight was so unbelievable that to bear witness to the early pioneering days of flight must have been both the strangest and scariest thing imaginable.

In The Wild Air we are taken back in time to the Edwardian days of early aviation and to the prejudice which existed for those fearless women who dared to be different and who wanted more than anything on earth to extend their knowledge of this wonderful invention. For teenager, Della Dobbs, her dream started when she, together with her great aunt Betty, learned to fly home made box kites along the beach at Cleethorpes. This overwhelming passion for flight started Della’s obsession with the newly developed aeroplanes and her first flight in a Farman Biplane with the legendary female aviatrix Hélène Dutrieu is described in such breath-taking detail that I felt like I too was experiencing the wonder of flight for the very first time. To picture the earth falling away filled Della with heightened emotions, fear most certainly, but there was also an astonishing exhilaration and a fascination for flight which made Della feel more comfortable in the air than she ever did on land.

Beautifully written from start to finish, The Wild Air gives us a story which is rich in character and alive with all the passionate fervour that is so reminiscent of this author’s fine writing. From the exhilaration of Della’s first flight, through to her, at times, rather frustrating days as a trainee aviatrix when she confronted male prejudice head-on, and then beyond to the dark days of terror during the First World War, the story truly comes alive. Strong on historical detail and passionate in its pursuit of mixing fiction with factual detail, I learned more about the pioneering bravery of the early days of aviation than I ever thought possible. I never knew that there were so many courageous aviatrixes who pioneered and fought so hard to be recognised. I also developed a strong emotional bond with Della in whose footsteps I so eagerly followed as the story progressed.

This is now the third book that I have read by this talented author and each time she has surprised me by giving me the gift of a story about a subject I never knew I wanted to read. And by the time the story ended I felt like I had learned so much, not just about the early days of aviation but also about strength and courage , truth and promise, love and loss, and most of all about the bravery of the human spirit and the endless possibility of living out your dreams.

Best Read With...Succulent pork pies, spicy haslet sandwiches and crisp green apples

About the Author

Rebecca Mascull is the author of THE VISITORS and SONG OF THE SEA MAID. She works in education and lives by the sea in the east of England.

Visit her Website 
Find on Facebook
Follow on Twitter @rebeccamascull

#TheWildAir

Huge thanks to the author for sharing her book with me.

~***~

Review ~ Song of the Sea Maid by Rebecca Mascull

Hodder & Stoughton
18 June 2015

The mean and moody streets of eighteenth century London are no place for abandoned children and yet, two young siblings, names as yet unknown, eke out a meagre existence by petty pilfering, taking food where they find it, and surviving by their considerable wits. But the fickle hand of fortune sees the older boy forcibly pressed into a life at sea, leaving his small sister at the mercy of her own fate. Rescued by a providential stranger, the girl is removed from the anonymity of the streets and is taken to a foundling place and given the name of Dawnay Price, a name which will eventually carry her far away from her humble beginnings and into a world of enlightenment. 

Dawnay Price is a commendable narrator, who leads us quite forcibly by the hand and in her unique voice allows us a glimpse into the world of an eighteenth century enlightened female. Written with the author’s fine eye for detail, the story charts the events of Dawnay’s fascinating life and allows a glimpse into the workings of a fiercely intelligent woman who used her considerable wits to survive and rise above her early challenging start. 

As with Rebecca Mascull’s previous novel, The Visitors, there is a realistic historical feel to the novel. The characters, their dialogue and their mannerisms blend together to form a distinct picture of eighteenth century life. The intelligence of the research offers the reader a story with real depth and clarity, and a feisty heroine who stays with you long after the book is finished. 

There is huge expectation when reading an author’s second novel, especially when the first left such a lasting impression, so I must admit that I felt some trepidation when I first picked up my e-copy of Song of the Sea Maid. I knew the writing would be good, after all that’s what I’ve come to expect from this talented author, but I also wanted to be blown away by a story which captured my imagination, that gave me people I cared about and a story I didn’t want to end. I am delighted to say that from the opening chapter I was totally captivated and felt completely at ease in the company of a fine array of characters and by the storytelling skill of an author who clearly knows how to hold a reader in the palm of her hand. 

My thanks to Emma at Hodder & Stoughton for my e-copy of this book to read in advance of its publication.

About the Author

Rebecca Mascull

~***~

Rebecca Mascull's Itty Bitty Christmas...

Wishing you a Merry Christmas 

from

Rebecca Mascull

What’s your earliest Christmas Memory?

I remember watching Meet Me in St Louis with my mum and later lying in bed and I swear I heard bells jingling in the night air outside, I swear it!

Do you have any special Christmas Traditions?

When I was a child, we did stockings in bed, and presents all together in the living room after. Later in my teens, for Xmas breakfast we had smoked salmon on very thin brown bread with butter, lemon juice and black pepper sprinkled on top. My partner Simon and I used to make each other Xmas cards every year, using cut-outs of characters from stuff we were watching on TV, like Brother Mouzone from The Wire with a Xmas hat on; they were bloody hilarious. These days, it's all about our daughter Poppy. So, now our little family is starting to develop our own traditions. We always make mince pies and jam tarts on Xmas Eve and I always do my favourite veggie dish Oat Roast for Xmas lunch, but I'm the only one who likes it, so it's just for me! I'm hoping one day Poppy will grow to like it too...Also, Poppy has a collection of Playmobil Xmas figures and a few little illuminated houses, one with a frosty train running round it, so we set those up at the same time as we dress the tree, and turn the lights off and see the little bulbs twinkling and watch the train go round and round, and then I know Christmas is really coming.

What’s your favourite festive carol or song?

Oh gosh, I love them ALL. I absolutely adore Christmas and carols most of all. I love In the Bleak Midwinter, O Little Town of Bethlehem and I love the a cappella version of Carol of the Bells (especially the version in the West Wing). I watch Carols from Kings every Xmas Eve without fail.

Do you have a favourite festive film?

Ooh several - my favourite has to be A Christmas Carol (see festive read below) - more or less any version, though I particularly like the Patrick Stewart one, as I feel he acts Scrooge as a real person and not a comedy baddie - yet I also love It's a Wonderful Life and even Scrooged with Bill Murray, which is very funny but strangely touching too! And Meet Me in St Louis of course, as it reminds me of childhood Christmases with the smell of my mum's cooking...

What’s your favourite festive read ?

DICKENS, every time. With Poppy, we love Melrose and Croc Together at Xmas by Emma Chichester Clark.

Are you organised or do you leave everything until the last minute ?

A bit of both, I reckon! I tend to get the shopping done in advance, but I like cooking all through Xmas and I like wrapping the presents on Xmas Eve to get in the Xmasy mood, especially the stocking, my favourite bit.

Christmas Tree – real or artificial?

I used to be a Real or Nothing kinda gal, but since Poppy was little we found it was much easier to have a safe, reliable artificial one. And the one we have looks very real but doesn't shed or turn brown, and we can put it up on December 1st as Poppy demands and it still looks great by 12th Night!

Tinsel or Glitter?

BOTH. 

Gingerbread Latte or Orange spiced Hot Chocolate?

I loathe ginger. And it absolutely did not cure my morning sickness. So Hot Choc all the way.

Mince Pie or Yule Log?

BOTH, preferably on the same plate, topped with a dollop of Extra Thick Double Cream.

Christmas Dinner – Traditional Turkey or something Different?

Well, we don't eat much meat in our household, so for Simon and me we tend to do mushroom and goats' cheese puff pastry parcels, with 2 types of stuffing, roast potatoes and parsnips, peas and sprouts, onion gravy and mushroom gravy, and then Poppy will have something like sausages or a sausage roll alongside, as she likes meat. We all muck in and have bits and bobs of everything. As I said, I always do Oat Roast for me, as it's an old recipe from my teenage years and I love it. See here for the recipe: https://www.facebook.com/RebeccaMascull/posts/744099525619392

Christmas Tipple – Bucks Fizz/Mulled Wine or something stronger?

A cup of Earl Grey tea with honey for me, please.

A fun game of after dinner charades or more chocolates and the television?

BOTH, with chocolate throughout.

Rebecca is the best selling author of The Visitors

available to buy on Amazon

and from all good book retailers.


Rebecca is kindly offering a signed paperback of The Visitors in this festive giveaway.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Huge thanks to Rebecca for sharing her Christmas with us.

Jaffa and I wish you a very happy Christmas.

****

The author in my spotlight is ....Rebecca Mascull

I am delighted to introduce Rebecca Mascull

chatting about her book

The Visitors

Rebecca Mascull
Author of The Visitors (2014) 
Song of the Sea Maid (2015), 
Published by Hodder & Stoughton.





Rebecca ~ welcome to Jaffareadstoo....

What inspired you to write The Visitors?

As with any novel, a number of things came together to influence this book. I worked with deaf teenagers when I was training to be a teacher and I realised how ignorant I was about the challenges of deaf communication and education. I shared a bus ride with a deaf lad called James and we had a fascinating conversation in my notepad, where I asked him questions about what it was like to be deaf. I also saw a film about Helen Keller when I was a teenager and was fascinated by how it must feel to not only have no sight or hearing, yet also to have no language. I tried to imagine how one could think without language. I wanted to explore my main character's mind and her transition from a pre-language state to that of communication. I wanted to set it at a time when deaf-blindness was misunderstood and see how my protagonist pushed against those restrictions, so that's one reason why I chose the late-Victorian period. Those are some of the influences that shaped 'The Visitors', but there are likely to be many more rattling around inside my head!

What can you tell us about the story that won't give too much away?

'The Visitors' is the story of a Victorian child, Adeliza, who becomes deaf and blind at a very young age. Without language she is desperately frustrated and almost feral, with a caring father who doesn't know how to help and an ill mother. Her only friends are the Visitors, who she talks to in her head. Luckily, she meets a young hop-picker on her father's hop farm who knows how to communicate through finger spelling and teaches her language. The story follows Liza on her journey through learning to communicate and beyond, to the truth about the mysterious Visitors.

Are you a 'plotter' or are you happy to let the story go wherever it takes you?

Yes, I'm very much a plotter. I write a detailed synopsis and then an even more detailed chapter plan before writing, which I then follow as I'm writing the first draft. However, in everything I've written, I always end up going off the track of my original plans. Often, the characters themselves drive this. I might have a certain plan for a character and they turn round and say, NO thank you, I'm off to do this! It is a curious thing, but there's no turning them once they've done that. I've found you can't shoehorn a character into a plot they don't fit and one must listen to that voice that tells you where they should be going. As a writer, I feel it's very important to be open to that voice, which I believe comes from the sub-conscious and is the driving force behind the most profound parts of novel writing, and probably most artistic endeavours.

What are your main literary influences?

I couldn't say I would know what influences each book that I write, as that's part of the mysterious process I've described above. Also, I try not to read any novels while I'm actually engaged in writing the first draft, as I'm terrified of being influenced, actually! I would hate anyone to say - ooh, she must have nicked that from such-and-such a writer! But of course, every novel I read enters into the back of my mind and stays there, to surface when you least expect it. I would say that there are certain writers that inspire me to be a better writer - those include Charles Dickens, Margaret Atwood, J. D. Salinger, F. Scott Fitzgerald and a very recent discovery, Elizabeth Jane Howard. All of these writers influence me in terms of writing books in which I've lost myself and continue to haunt me. That's how I want to feel about my own books and how I'd want a reader to feel about them too, hopefully!

What scares you about writing books?

What a great question! Gosh, I think it's about the book not turning out in the way you wanted. I have a vision of a book before it's written and it's always this glorious piece of transcendent art...but it never turns out exactly that way! Instead, a novel is a rag-tag bundle of words and images and fleeting impressions that goes some way towards what you intended, but once written it resides in the mind of each and every reader. And there's nothing the writer can do to control that, and if you're lucky, a reader might experience a moment of that transcendence you were reaching for, and in the end, that's enough. But I do believe that fear - the worry that the book won't live up to your early vision of it - is a good and useful thing, as it drives you to make it the best book it can be.

What books do you like to read?

Well, I've mentioned some of my favourite writers above; others would include Amy Tan, Isabel Allende, Raymond Carver, Jack London, Marilynne Robinson - a real mixed bunch! Mostly, I'll read anything if the writing grabs me - the quality of the prose is the thing that keeps me reading, not the genre or writer's reputation or previous work. For example, I think Ian McEwan is a very fine writer indeed and 'Atonement' is one of my favourite novels of all time, but I couldn't finish 'Saturday'. The same with John Fowles. Even Dickens - I didn't finish the Pickwick Papers or Barnaby Rudge, but I devoured the others. That's also about a particular plot or set of characters, that chime with me, that move me and make me want to carry on inside their world. You can't quantify that and it's random and therefore elusive. The magic of books!

What's next?

I've just finished the copy-edit of my second novel for Hodder and Stoughton. It's called 'Song of the Sea Maid' and is the story of an C18th orphan girl who becomes a scientist and makes a remarkable discovery. It'll be published in June 2015. I'm also into the early stages of research for my third novel for Hodder, set in the early years of the C20th. It's at that lovely, shadowy stage where I don't know what's going to happen, and I love that bit! Before the proper hard work starts, yet this early stage is where a lot of the character and plot development begins and is a crucial part of the process. 

Hopefully, it will turn out well...Wish me luck! 

Find out more about Rebecca here:

http://rebeccamascull.tumblr.com/

Follow her on Twitter https://twitter.com/rebeccamascull

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/RebeccaMascull

Pinterest http://uk.pinterest.com/rebeccamascull/

Instagram http://instagram.com/rebeccamascull

Rebecca ~ it's been a real pleasure to have you visit our blog.

Jaffa and I look forward to reading your next book Song of the Sea Maid in 2015.

Come back and see us again soon.

*~*~*

Review ~ The Visitors by Rebecca Mascull

Hodder & Stoughton
July 2014

Imagine if you couldn't see

couldn't hear

couldn't speak...

Then one day somebody took your hand and opened up the world to you.

 In late Victorian England on her father’s hop farm, Adeliza Golding is born with very little sight. Tragically, as a three year old, and after a bout of scarlet fever, she loses her hearing and cataracts obstruct her vision even further. She becomes increasingly isolated; unable to communicate and trapped and lost in a world of darkness. Her father tries in vain to understand her, but has neither the knowledge nor the patience to overcome Liza’s disabilities.

In her darkness and confusion, Liza’s only communication is with the visitors, ghostly visions she speaks to in her head, who bring her neither comfort or joy, but who are her only way of making sense of her dark and dangerous world. One day, Lottie, a young hop picker takes Liza’s hand and begins to draw the shape of words, and suddenly the world beckons Liza in a way that she could never have envisaged.

What then follows is a beautifully written and very poignant coming of age story, in which Liza matures and grows into a strong and courageous young woman. With Lottie’s companionship, Liza is able to make sense of a changing world which sees her leave the familiarity of the Kentish hop fields, and head towards the unknown territory of the Boer War. The sweep of history moves effortlessly and very cleverly takes the reader on a voyage of discovery. We view the world through Liza’s eyes, which damaged though they are, offer a unique perspective on everything around her.

The overriding theme of love, friendship and survival make this one of those stories that stays with you long after the last page is turned.

It is a commendable debut novel, and I look forward to reading more from this talented author.

Do come back tomorrow to read an interview with Rebecca Mascull

*~*~*