Back Home (novel)
Encyclopedia
Back Home is a children's historical novel
by Michelle Magorian
, first published in 1984. The novel was adapted into a TV drama, Back Home (1990), starring Hayley Mills
and Haley Carr, and again in 2001 starring Sarah Lancashire
, Stephanie Cole
and Jessica Fox
.
, where she was sent as a child evacuee in 1939, when the war broke out.
Much to her disappointment, Rusty finds England hidebound, run-down, boring and totally devoid of any decent food. Her mother, Peggy, is an awkward woman who, all her life, had been dominated by her parents, husband and mother-in-law. During the war, Peggy came out of her shell and became a skilled car mechanic. She is stiff and hurt when the Americanised Virginia returns home. However, Rusty does initially have one ally - the kindly and eccentric Beattie Langley, in whose Devon home her mother and brother have been staying throughout the war, before they return to the family home (Rusty and Charlie's grandmother's house) in Guildford
.
Rusty is initially rejected by her brother, Charlie, who was born after she had been sent to America. She is baffled by the range and scale of rationing
, rules she is not used to, and the people around her, and longs to return to her host family in Connecticut. Rusty struggles to deal with her peers and teachers at boarding school, her spiteful grandmother, stiff mother, and strict and violent father when he returns from war, but her tough spirit helps her through it and leads to her happiness in the end.
Historical novel
According to Encyclopædia Britannica, a historical novel is-Development:An early example of historical prose fiction is Luó Guànzhōng's 14th century Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which covers one of the most important periods of Chinese history and left a lasting impact on Chinese culture.The...
by Michelle Magorian
Michelle Magorian
Michelle Magorian is an English author of children's books, including Goodnight Mister Tom, Back Home and A Little Love Song.- Biography :...
, first published in 1984. The novel was adapted into a TV drama, Back Home (1990), starring Hayley Mills
Hayley Mills
Hayley Mills is an English actress. The daughter of John Mills and Mary Hayley Bell, and sister of actress Juliet Mills, Mills began her acting career as a child and was hailed as a promising newcomer, winning the BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer for Tiger Bay , the Academy Juvenile Award...
and Haley Carr, and again in 2001 starring Sarah Lancashire
Sarah Lancashire
Sarah Lancashire is an English actress, probably best recognised for her role as Raquel Watts in Coronation Street. She graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 1986.-Television:...
, Stephanie Cole
Stephanie Cole
Stephanie Cole, OBE is an English stage, television, and film actress, best known for playing characters a great deal older than her actual age.-Early life:...
and Jessica Fox
Jessica Fox
Jessica Fox is an English actress. She is most notable for playing young witch Enid Nightshade in the CITV show The Worst Witch, whom she began playing in the late 1990s...
.
Plot summary
Virginia 'Rusty' Dickinson is the main protagonist of the novel. The story centres on her return to England in 1945 from ConnecticutConnecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, where she was sent as a child evacuee in 1939, when the war broke out.
Much to her disappointment, Rusty finds England hidebound, run-down, boring and totally devoid of any decent food. Her mother, Peggy, is an awkward woman who, all her life, had been dominated by her parents, husband and mother-in-law. During the war, Peggy came out of her shell and became a skilled car mechanic. She is stiff and hurt when the Americanised Virginia returns home. However, Rusty does initially have one ally - the kindly and eccentric Beattie Langley, in whose Devon home her mother and brother have been staying throughout the war, before they return to the family home (Rusty and Charlie's grandmother's house) in Guildford
Guildford
Guildford is the county town of Surrey. England, as well as the seat for the borough of Guildford and the administrative headquarters of the South East England region...
.
Rusty is initially rejected by her brother, Charlie, who was born after she had been sent to America. She is baffled by the range and scale of rationing
Rationing
Rationing is the controlled distribution of scarce resources, goods, or services. Rationing controls the size of the ration, one's allotted portion of the resources being distributed on a particular day or at a particular time.- In economics :...
, rules she is not used to, and the people around her, and longs to return to her host family in Connecticut. Rusty struggles to deal with her peers and teachers at boarding school, her spiteful grandmother, stiff mother, and strict and violent father when he returns from war, but her tough spirit helps her through it and leads to her happiness in the end.