The Floating Theatre
This captivating tale of courage and redemption will sweep you away
Will be published approx. on 6. September 2018
Book
Paperback/Softback
368 pages
978-1-78576-284-0 (ISBN)
Description
'Completely charming' Imogen Hermes Gowar, author of The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock
'An engaging story with lovely detail' Daily Mail
Ohio, 1838. To save the lives of others, a young seamstress must risk her own.
When young seamstress May Bedloe is left alone and penniless on the shore of the Ohio, she finds work on the famous floating theatre that plies its trade along the river. Her creativity and needlework skills quickly become invaluable and she settles in to life among the colourful troupe of actors. She finds friends, and possibly the promise of more ...
But cruising the border between the Confederate South and the 'free' North is fraught with danger.
For the sake of a debt that must be repaid, May is compelled to transport secret passengers, under cover of darkness, across the river and on, along the underground railroad.
But as May's secrets become harder to keep, she learns she must endanger those now dear to her.
And to save the lives of others, she must risk her own . . .
A gloriously involving and powerful read for fans of The Essex Serpent and Tracy Chevalier's The Last Runaway.
'An engaging story with lovely detail' Daily Mail
Ohio, 1838. To save the lives of others, a young seamstress must risk her own.
When young seamstress May Bedloe is left alone and penniless on the shore of the Ohio, she finds work on the famous floating theatre that plies its trade along the river. Her creativity and needlework skills quickly become invaluable and she settles in to life among the colourful troupe of actors. She finds friends, and possibly the promise of more ...
But cruising the border between the Confederate South and the 'free' North is fraught with danger.
For the sake of a debt that must be repaid, May is compelled to transport secret passengers, under cover of darkness, across the river and on, along the underground railroad.
But as May's secrets become harder to keep, she learns she must endanger those now dear to her.
And to save the lives of others, she must risk her own . . .
A gloriously involving and powerful read for fans of The Essex Serpent and Tracy Chevalier's The Last Runaway.
Reviews / Votes
Completely charming -- Imogen Hermes Gowar An engaging story with lovely detail and moments of comedy * The Daily Mail * Romance. History. Adventure, both serious and rollicking. Danger, treachery, and betrayal. Bits of magic. Plus riverboats. There is absolutely nothing not to love here! The day you pick it up will be the same day you finish reading it -- Karen Joy Fowler The Floating Theatre is both a dear love story and a page-turning adventure about the Underground Railroad-and an unwilling participant. An extraordinary cast of memorable characters gives this book irresistible appeal while the setting on the watery boundary between North and South places them in dangerous and morally ambiguous territory. A captivating, thoughtful and unforgettable read. -- Kathleen Grissom, author of <i>The Kitchen House</i> and <i>Glory over Everything</i> Martha Conway, award-winning US author of 12 Bliss Street and Thieving Forest, explores the complex moral dilemmas of slavery, compromise and betrayal in a powerful and gripping novel of ideas, emotions and dramas. The Floating Theatre is an ingenious production, a gripping, atmospheric adventure story, packed with secrets and treachery, but with flashes of leavening light humour and with a strident anti-slavery message at its moral heart...a fascinating, gritty and enlightening glimpse of the realities of life on the showboats in the early to mid-19th century, the terrible plight of slaves in the southern states and the risks taken by all those determined to fight for the cause of freedom. * Lancashire Evening Post *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Dimensions
Height: 197 mm
Width: 128 mm
Thickness: 25 mm
Weight
275 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-78576-284-0 (9781785762840)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Martha Conway has been nominated for an Edgar Award and won the North American Book Award for Best Historical Fiction. She teaches creative writing for Stanford University's Continuing Studies Program. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, she is one of seven sisters. She now lives in San Francisco with her family.