The Winds of Heaven

Monica Dickens was the great grand-daughter of Charles Dickens. I have read a number of her books and, this week, I re-read The Winds of Heaven. I have not read this book for many years and enjoyed it more this time than last perhaps because I relate to it more now than when I read it before.

Louise Bickford is the widow of Dudley. Dudley was an aspirational Londoner of the post-war period, who found it hard to accept the limitations of his earnings. When he died his wife Louise was left with debt and lost the family home. Louise's life is spent between four "homes", her three daughters', each of whom is busy with her own life and her winter home with her friend Sybil.

Louise tries to fit into each home, attempting not to impose on any of the three different daughters, living on her tiny income and trying to help each grown daughter to realise her own happiness. Louise is something of a free spirit in middle age, she is energetic, willing to work, optimistic but very aware of being beholden. She wants the best for each of her daughters and sons-in-law, her grandchildren and the people with whom she interacts.

She accepts her fate relatively cheerfully, she is non-judgemental but wishes for a place to call home. Louise's search through family leads her to a greater understanding of who she is.

To begin

I started to read long before I can remember, I was a lucky child whose parents read voraciously and taught my brother and I to do the same. The four of us would sit in a room reading our library books and be in perfect accord.

In an ordinary working class Australian home of the 60s and 70s this was less than rare but not common. We read everything we could from the local library, we also had some books of our own.

I always found it difficult to read books or watch films from the two world wars but, at the same time, I became increasingly obsessed with domestic fiction about the wars and the times leading up to and following them. I've always had a rapport with the period which I can't quite explain.

Chick lit never did it for me though I read it. Classics were always a welcome read but they had the scent of the senior English classroom.

Early last month I came across Lyn's blog. I was introduced to a new genre that was being read around the world. Persephone came into my life via Lyn. I am the lucky child who grew up to middle age and skipped across the Internet and found herself at home.