Sussex Gorse: The Story of a Fight

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kaye-Smith, Sheila, 1887-1956

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource : multiple file formats

Place of Publication:

Salt Lake City, UT : Project Gutenberg,

Summary:

"Sussex Gorse: The Story of a Fight" by Sheila Kaye-Smith is a historical novel set in the early 20th century. The narrative revolves around a rural community in the 1830s and captures the tension stemming from the Inclosure Act, which threatens traditional ways of life. The central character, Reuben Backfield, emerges as a passionate and ambitious young man determined to reclaim and cultivate the land known as Boarzell, which has significant personal and communal value. At the start of the story, we witness the Boarzell Fair, a critical social event that highlights the community's struggles against the backdrop of the impending Inclosure. As discussions unfold, the fairgoers express their anger towards Sir John Bardon, the local squire, for attempting to enclose their communal lands, a move that threatens their livelihoods. Reuben, a fifteen-year-old boy, feels the burden of these changes especially deeply as he grapples with his family dynamics and his father's passive acceptance of their situation. His fiery desire for land ownership becomes evident as he dreams of subduing Boarzell, making it flourish, and ensuring it is not lost to encroaching developments. The opening lays a foundation for themes of ambition, community resistance, and the struggle against oppressive change. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Credits:

Produced by ellinora, Martin Pettit and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)

Notes:

Reading ease score: 78.8 (7th grade). Fairly easy to read.

Release date is 2018-04-15