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Private Papers
 
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Private Papers (Paperback)

by Margaret Forster (Author)
4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
RRP: £8.99
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Private Papers + Keeping the World Away + Over
Price For All Three: £18.97

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  • This item: Private Papers by Margaret Forster

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  • Keeping the World Away by Margaret Forster

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  • Over by Margaret Forster

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Product details

  • Paperback: 252 pages
  • Publisher: Penguin (1986)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0099455625
  • ISBN-13: 978-0099455622
  • Product Dimensions: 19.2 x 12.8 x 2 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 86,781 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category:

    #9 in  Books > Fiction > Authors, A-Z > F > Forster, Margaret

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Product Description

Susan Hill
'This stuff of intimate family life is brilliantly presented, subtly and yet with unnerving directness'

Product Description
To Penelope Butler the family was all, the sole ambition of her adult life. Three of her four daughters, however, had different ideas. Rosemary rejected it; Jess was destroyed by it; Celia found it eluded her. Only Emily pursued her mother's ideal, with disastrous results. Penelope begins to record their family story as it unfolds. But when Rosemary discovers these private papers she is enraged by her mother's distortions of the truth and proceeds to tell the story from her perspective. From D-Day on into the turbulent post-war years, a picture emerges not only of a single family in all its complexities, but also of the changing world that shaped their lives.

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Private Papers
67% buy the item featured on this page:
Private Papers 4.8 out of 5 stars (5)
£6.99
Keeping the World Away
16% buy
Keeping the World Away 4.6 out of 5 stars (10)
£5.99
Diary of an Ordinary Woman
6% buy
Diary of an Ordinary Woman 4.2 out of 5 stars (13)
£6.39
Hidden Lives: A Family Memoir
5% buy
Hidden Lives: A Family Memoir 4.4 out of 5 stars (5)
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Customer Reviews

5 Reviews
5 star:
 (4)
4 star:
 (1)
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Average Customer Review
4.8 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Deep and disturbing ring of truth., 27 April 2000
By A Customer
This review is from: Private Papers (Paperback)
Forster does a masterful job in creating two very believable and credible characters, each of whom presents the "truth" about life inside a family structure. The mother, Penelope, believes in the sanctity of the family and its ability --- above all other institutions --- to shelter, protect and preserve. Penelope's eldest daughter Rosemary, however, sees things from a much more independent and modern viewpoint: a post-war childhood leading to a rejection of the pre-war social conventions. The writing is sure and solid, and the characters are flawed enough to be human and likeable. You're never quite sure which is the more truthful narrator (or who has the greater level of self-awareness), so there's a tautness to the storyline that serves the reader well. A highly, highly recommended book.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A deeply interesting view of a family history., 26 Sep 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Private Papers (Paperback)
To have the 'life' of the family viewed from the sentimental aspect of the mother, and the very modern jaundiced view of one of the daughters was fasinating.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Thoughtful and though tprovoking, 1 April 2008
By MCB (Sheffield. England) - See all my reviews
A very wise and intuitive description of family relationships. It illustrates and emphasises how every aspect of life can be perceived and interpreted and misinterpreted in different ways by different observers.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars absorbing read
I found this novel absolutely gripping - Margaret Foster's understanding of human relationships is precise and piercing - a great read. Read more
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I thought this story gave an insight as to how families cope with bereavement or perhaps more to the point it isn't until later life a child comes to recognise the true impact of... Read more
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