- Hardcover: 352 pages
- Publisher: Headline Review (1 Nov 2007)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0755333888
- ISBN-13: 978-0755333882
- Product Dimensions: 23.6 x 15.6 x 3.4 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,181,893 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Hearts And Minds
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More About the Author
Product Description
Review
"The power of this novel lies in the portrait of Dr. Martha Pearce." --"The Daily Telegraph"
Product Description
An irresistible new novel that mixes the charm of GOODBYE MR CHIPS with the drama of DEAD POETS SOCIETY.
Sometimes it’s not easy being a woman in a man’s world. But James Rycarte is about to find out that the reverse is also true. Taking on the job of Principal at an all-female college at Cambridge is going to be the biggest challenge of James' career. He’s breaking with tradition and he’s terrified. But amid the hostility of his fellows and the endless bureaucracy of university life, he finds an unexpected hand of friendship from Senior Tutor Dr Martha Pearce. Who knows where it will all lead…
Sometimes it’s not easy being a woman in a man’s world. But James Rycarte is about to find out that the reverse is also true. Taking on the job of Principal at an all-female college at Cambridge is going to be the biggest challenge of James' career. He’s breaking with tradition and he’s terrified. But amid the hostility of his fellows and the endless bureaucracy of university life, he finds an unexpected hand of friendship from Senior Tutor Dr Martha Pearce. Who knows where it will all lead…
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This is the second book I've read by Rosy Thornton and this one was slightly different in tone to her first, while still retaining her unique focus on love, 'issues', comedy and tragedy. I would say that Hearts and Minds is a more poignant, tender and 'real' book than her first.
The story follows the experiences of the first male 'Master' of a Cambridge women's college but there is so much more to the novel than that. Once again, the theme is relationships - not just romantic love but family love and the way that colleagues interact. I came away with the impression of good people struggling against the odds and sometimes succeeding though not in the way they might have expected. The characters are very subtly drawn and I was rooting for some to succeed while hoping others failed! I enjoy 'chick lit' but I would say that this book is not a conventional chick lit read. It definitely is a book that will leave you wondering and hoping long after you've finished it.
The story follows the experiences of the first male 'Master' of a Cambridge women's college but there is so much more to the novel than that. Once again, the theme is relationships - not just romantic love but family love and the way that colleagues interact. I came away with the impression of good people struggling against the odds and sometimes succeeding though not in the way they might have expected. The characters are very subtly drawn and I was rooting for some to succeed while hoping others failed! I enjoy 'chick lit' but I would say that this book is not a conventional chick lit read. It definitely is a book that will leave you wondering and hoping long after you've finished it.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Hearts and Minds is very different from More Than Love Letters, Rosy Thornton's debut novel, but no less a great read for that. The attention to detail is superb; Martha Pearce and James Ryecarte are expertly drawn characters and the weird, wacky and esoteric world of Cambridge academia and politics are, as you would expect from an author who is a Cambridge College fellow, brilliantly portrayed. The nuances of this cloistered world were hilarious and exasperating in equal measure! I thoroughly enjoyed Hearts and Minds and will be looking out for Rosy Thornton's next novel.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
James Rycarte is the first man to be appointed as Head of St Radegund's, a woman's college at Cambridge. He not only has to cope with the chintzy furnishings in the Masters Lodging left behind by the retiring Dame Emily, but with the polite hostility of several members of the Senior Common Room. Martha Pearce has been Senior Tutor for 10 years and her term is coming to an end. Martha's personal and professional life is at a crossroads but her commitment to the College is paramount. When a friend of James offers a substantial donation to the College with the unspoken proviso that his daughter will be admitted as a student, the battle lines between academic integrity and financial necessity (the library is sinking into the fens and needs urgent work) are drawn. This is a fascinating novel about academic politics, student unrest with lots of human interest and a budding romance or two as well.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Characters that leap off the page
Other than the beautiful one for The Tapestry of Love, Rosy Thornton really isn't well represented by her covers - other than the bicycle + mortarboard (and I guess the Cambridge... Read more
Published 13 months ago by Welsh Annie
Intelligent chick lit: a delight!
Martha Pearce is facing a jobless future, a withdrawn teenaged daughter, and a marriage which seems to be crumbling. Read more
Published on 3 May 2010 by tiggrie AKA Sarah
Fun, light and feel-good
This is a charming book filled with genuinely nice, well-meaning characters. Set in an all-women's college at Cambridge, life is upset when a man from the BBC takes over as the new... Read more
Published on 26 April 2010 by Roman Clodia
Academia only?
Before you start this book you might need to know how universities work not just how any university but in particular Cambridge university and all its colleges. Read more
Published on 21 Aug 2009 by Joanne D'Arcy
Shame about the cover
I felt really sorry for Rosy Thornton having her clever university novel marketed in this trashy chick-lit cover. What on earth was the publisher thinking of? Read more
Published on 13 Aug 2009 by booksetc
Cambridge University
This is a behind the scenes tale of life and politics at St Radegund's College at Cambridge University. Read more
Published on 13 Nov 2008 by kehs
It's not easy being a novel in a chick lit cover
St Radegund is a college in Cambridge that needs help. Money actually. Tons of it. And they have just appointed a former BBC executive, James Rycarte, to their Head of House. Read more
Published on 6 May 2008 by Emma French
Great book, Awful cover
Hearts and Minds is a book which, if I had seen it in a bookshop, I wouldn't have even picked up. The cover is all pinks and pastels, with florid script and, just for good measure,... Read more
Published on 6 May 2008 by Other Stories
Wonderful world
This book was a joy to discover. I know nothing about the world of academia but the author created such a warm, vibrant picture of the closed world of her fictional Cambridge... Read more
Published on 21 Mar 2008 by Suzanne Armorier
Classic campus tale.
Hearts and Minds is a classic campus novel. While placed in an oxbridge setting it follows in the footsteps of Lucky Jim and the likes of David Lodge. Read more
Published on 2 Jan 2008 by Mark 1234
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