Everybody's Somebody

Beryl Kingston has written another wonderful historical saga.Rosie is a character I fell in love with strong independent her friends the town drew me right in was sorry to read the last pages. #netgalley#agorabooks

Received a copy of this book by Agora publications through NetGalley to give an honest opinion.
Loved this historical novel and Rosie, such a strong character,dealing with all her ups and downs,love, lost struggling to make ends meet.
Taking us from the beginning of the first world war to the start of the second,loved this book highly recommend it.

Another well researched on this time in history for this woman to dig down deep and try.to make a difference in her.life,her families,her friends! What a time in history for woman to not to be overlooked anymore and to show that women are just as important as men and just as smart! This story takes you to hard times,sad times and happy times! Very strong characters that.really stick in your mind and think about later. This is a must read I received from Net Gallery. This could become a series not only books but tv.or movie. You will fall in love!

What a lovely story, full of great period descriptions and facts of the era which was told in a compelling way to keep the reader's attention. I really enjoyed it.

In Beryl Kingston’s latest novel, we follow the life of Rosie Goodison, from the day she sets out to become a nursemaid at Arundel Castle, at the age of 12. She is told that she is, “nobody of consequence,” but she is a strong independent girl of the early 20th century and she is determined to take on everything she can attain. A few years later she finds a temporary job as housekeeper to two young toffs on holiday from Eton and when one of them gives her a reference to take to the RAC club in Pall Mall, she has no idea that his signature, Anthony Eden, will be of significance in the future.

On her afternoon off she meets Kitty, a young suffragette, whose brother Joe is a docker. Soon Rosie meets them regularly, increasing her political understanding as well as enjoying trips to Music Halls. Romance blossoms as war approaches and both Rosie’s brother, Tommy, and her sweetheart, Joe, become soldiers. There is tragedy and there are life-changing consequences.

But we first meet Rosie in a painting in an art gallery many years later, so how did that happen? While working at the RAC club, Rosie had made the acquaintance of a young artist who wished her to model for him and when she finds herself unemployed at a difficult time in her life, Rosie agrees.

This novel is a superb description of southern England from the turn of the century until 1939. Through the lives of poor families in the countryside and in London, the struggle to succeed and even to survive, despite war, unemployment and hardship, is shown clearly. Rosie’s warm, vibrant character makes each event human and I found myself rooting for her and for her family. She embodies the title, “Everybody’s Somebody.”

What I Loved: This simplicity of this story was wonderful. I loved following this one woman's life.

How I Felt: Rosie made me nervous at times. Her choices were spontaneous and stubborn, but always to better her family. My only complaint about this book is the writing style to show the way the character's speak. When I first started the book, I had a hard time with some of the sentences. It is written as some speaking in a cockney accent. So the words are broken and it makes the sentence jilted. I hand to read many sentences more than once. That said I loved this story.

To Read or Not To Read: This is a To Read. A historical fiction novel covering world war 1 through the beginning of world war 2. It touches on the Wall Street crash as well.

The book starts with a class touring an art museum. A girl asks about a woman in a painting and is told she is no one of consequence. The girl feels that Everybody's Soomeone...and then we time jump to Rosie as a young girl waiting for her Pa to get home.

Rosie lives in the country with a poor family struggling to make it. Rosie is heading to her first job working in a castle. We follow Rosie as she busts her butt to keep stepping up in life; making her life better. She ends up in London where we encounter the artist from the painting. The story unfolds so beautifully going to through highlights in her life. It was a wonderful book and made me smile with happiness many times.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARac in exchange for my honest review.

Beryl Kingston enchanted me with this tale of life love families and the harsh reality of WW1.
Rosie was born and bred in the country into a hard-working family. Once she reached the age of 12 she left home to work as a nursemaid in service to the gentry. She soon discovered the huge divide between the working class and the wealthy aristocrats.
We follow Rosie and her family through her lifes journey sharing her happiness, sorrow, weddings and births and everything else life puts in her path .
A strong character who has an interesting journey and well worth sharing with us. Looking forward to the next book in this saga.