It is October 1918 and London is gathering in its dead. For Henry Speake, of Speake & Son Undertakers, laying to rest the shattered young bodies of those sent home from the Front to die has become a grimly familiar duty. But what he is seeing now, as influenza claims its victims with increasing speed and force, is something different, and for the first time in his life, Henry feels afraid of death. Unable to share his fears with his waspish, disapproving sisters, Henry turns instead to Mrs Allen Thompson, a recently widowed school teacher, so beginning a friendship which gradually, stumblingly, pulls them in a direction neither is prepared for.
Publisher: Granta Books
ISBN: 9781846270468
Number of pages: 240
Weight: 283 g
Dimensions: 198 x 127 x 21 mm
MEDIA REVIEWS
"'Rich and absorbing... a five-star weepie' The Times"
You may also be interested in...
“This Time of Dying”
A man of courage, a man of compassion, a man of conviction, a man of integrity. Such a person is Henry Speake. A funeral Director at the time of the Spanish Flu in 1918, Henry Speake deals with the intense horror of... More
“A timely read.”
This book was a delight to read. Reina James shows great skill in evoking the feelings and sensibilities and language of 1918 London just a month or two before the Armistice. The fact that a 'flu pandemic was... More
“This Time of Dying”
A man of courage, a man of compassion, a man of conviction, a man of integrity. Such a person is Henry Speake. A funeral Director at the time of the Spanish Flu in 1918, Henry Speake deals with the intense horror of... More
Please sign in to write a review
Sign In / Register
Sign In
Download the Waterstones App
Would you like to proceed to the App store to download the Waterstones App?