'The kind of book that gives you hope and courage. I loved it' Kit de Waal
'Insightful, thoughtful' Carys Bray
'I relished every word' Shelley Harris
'Such a warm and touching novel' Lissa Evans
A moving and courageous exploration of belonging and finding home in a rapidly-changing world from the critically acclaimed author of Shelter.
Jo grew up in the Forest of Dean, but she was always the one destined to leave for a bigger, brighter future. When her parents retire from their butcher's shop, she returns to her beloved community to save the family legacy, hoping also to save herself. But things are more complex than the rose-tinted version of life which sustained Jo from afar.
Tessa is a farrier, shoeing horses two miles and half a generation away from Jo, further into the forest. Tessa's experience of the community couldn't be more different. Now she too has returned, in flight from a life she could have led, nursing a secret and a past filled with guilt and shame.
Compelled through circumstance to live together, these two women will be forced to confront their sense of identity, and reconsider the meaning of home.
Publisher: Zaffre
ISBN: 9781785764868
Number of pages: 368
Weight: 483 g
Dimensions: 222 x 144 x 34 mm
A tender story about finding your place in the world, about ordinary lives, belonging and being brave. The kind of book that gives you hope and courage. I loved it. - Kit de Waal
In this insightful, thoughtful novel about a farrier and a butcher, Franklin explores the meaning of home and the importance of belonging. It's replete with gorgeous descriptions of forest life - Carys Bray
Sarah writes intimately about the forest and the lives it sustains, exploring the human condition with forensic tenderness; we feel every step of Tessa and Jo's journeys. It's a big-hearted novel about how we learn to belong despite ourselves, and I relished every word - Shelley Harris, author of Jubilee
This novel is perfect for anyone who has left home, returned, and found that they are a little out of place everywhere. Sarah Franklin deals sensitively and thoughtfully with her subject matter - two women adrift in places that used to be their homes - and creates an involving, thought-provoking story - Stephanie Butland
This set up - the farrier and the butcher - is so unusual, and so engaging. I was VERY curious to see how this relationship between Jo and Tessa would unfold, and Sarah Franklin's skilful weaving of their backstories into the captivating present keeps up a constant, subtle tug of intrigue, as well as thematic poignancy. It's thoughtful, and fresh, and such a vibrant setting. The place feels completely alive - I can walk through it and practically smell those horses, that forest, the butcher's shop, the woodsmoke. And the wider community is also wonderfully colourful and alive. It's just a pleasure to read! - Lucy Atkins
How to Belong is set in the Forest of Dean and is steeped in the spirit of the place. Such a warm and touching novel - Lissa Evans
Life-affirming and compelling . . . Sarah Franklin is a breath of fresh air - Clare Mackintosh, on Shelter
Its characters pulse with life and energy - Daily Mail, on Shelter
This beautifully crafted tale of survival and solace reveals that you can find a home in the most unusual places - Sunday Express, on Shelter
An accomplished debut from Sarah Franklin . . . with humour, warmth and a real sense of place - Daily Record, on Shelter
Beautiful - Adele Parks, on Shelter
Powerful and moving - Essie Fox, on Shelter
A wonderful, affecting debut novel about the redemptive power of nature - Red, on Shelter
Beautifully written and filled with complex, real characters, it's about hope, loss, family and dreams. Deeply profound and moving, it was also laugh-out-loud funny - Bridget Christie, on Shelter
This atmospheric read is simply beautiful - Woman and Home
Jo Is fed up of London and her life in law and on a whim moves back to the Forest of Dean to try to save the Butler family butchers shop when her parents retire.
She finds lodgings with the enigmatic Tessa in a tiny...
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This book is quite interesting! It involves 2 stories in one! 2 different characters in the same predicament however both wanting to belong. One of them lives int he reforest off dean, a beautiful picturesque... More
I read Sarah Franklin's previous book Shelter and loved it so I was delighted to be given the opportunity to read How to Belong and I wasn't disappointed. Set again in the Forest of Dean the story is about... More
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