The Desert Crop by Catherine Cookson
Money was tight in the farming communities around Fellburn in the 1880s, so when Hector Stewart, only two years after the death of his long-suffering wife, announced to his children, Daniel and Pattie, that he was to marry Moira Conelly, a wealthy ' distant relative who lived in a castle ' in Ireland, it was Daniel, the younger of the two, who guessed the purpose behind the proposed union. As for Moira, who had not been entirely honest about her background or her finances, she had convinced herself that she would be marrying into landed gentry, with the requisite number of servants allowing her the lifestyle to which she believed herself entitled. It was with surprise, therefore, after she arrived with her companion, Maggie Ann, that she realised not only was the farm run down, but there were no servants other than the domestic drudge, Rosie. Nevertheless, with her ever-cheerful disposition, she soon settled into the routine of the farm. Wealthy Moira certainly expected to become, although that depended entirely on the generosity of an aunt, whose money she had been promised on her demise. When, however, some years later the aunt died and her will was read, to Moira 's dismay it was not she who benefited. The effects of this bombshell were to spread far and wide throughtout the Stewart family, now enlarged by children born to Hector and Moira during the intervening years. Pattie, always the rebel, had already left home to be married. Daniel, deprived of an opportunity to study at university by his father 's insistence on his working on the farm, could see no escape, but a family tragedy was to open the way for him to expand his horizons and find the love and happiness he had thought was unattainable. Book Description Catherine Cookson once again uses her gifts as a storyteller to follow the fortunes of Moira Conelly and a family conflict. From the Back Cover Money is tight in the farming communities around Fellburn in the 1880s so when Hector Stewart announces that he is to marry wealthy Moira Conelly, it is his son Daniel who guesses the real reason for the union. However, Moira has not been entirely honest about her background or finances. She certainly expects to become wealthy, although that depends on the generosity of an aunt whose money she has been promised. But when her aunt dies some years later, to Moira's dismay she is not the one to benefit. The effects of this bombshell are felt throughout the Stewart family, now without the means by which the farm could have prospered. Daniel, deprived of an opportunity to better himself, can see no escape, until a family tragedy opens up the way for him to expand his horizons and find the love and happiness he thought unattainable... This powerful novel of family conflict once again demonstrates why Catherine Cookson is Britain's best-loved storyteller. About the Author Catherine Cookson was born in Tyne Dock, the illegitimate daughter of a poverty-stricken woman, Kate, whom she believed to be her older sister. She began work in service but eventually moved south to Hastings, where she met and married Tom Cookson, a local grammar-school master. Although she was originally acclaimed as a regional writer - her novel The Round Tower won the Winifred Holtby Award for the best regional novel of 1968 - her readership quickly spread throughout the world, and her many best-selling novels established her as one of the most popular of contemporary women novelists. After receiving an OBE in 1985, Catherine Cookson was created a Dame of the British Empire in 1993. She was appointed an Honorary Fellow of St Hilda 's College, Oxford, in 1997. For many years she lived near Newcastle upon Tyne. She died shortly before her ninety-second birthday, in June 1998.
Publication Details
Title:
Author(s):
Illustrator:
Binding: Paperback
Published by: Corgi: , 1998
Edition:
ISBN: 9780552141567 | 0552141569
512 pages.
Book Condition: Good
Cover worn. Ex-library
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