One girl began

Murray-Browne, Kate

£20.00

‘One Girl Began’ entwines the stories of three women, separated by history but connected by the same building. For Ellen in 1909, it is a box factory where she finds work and a transformative circle of friendship when her family fall on hard times. For Frances in 1984, it is a derelict ruin, where she joins a group of squatters and is drawn into a coercive relationship. And for Amanda in 2020, it is a gentrified conversion, where she finds herself trapped in a tiny flat and grappling with new motherhood as the pandemic looms into view. Over the span of 111 years these three women will come to haunt one another backwards and forwards in time, each immersed in the ripples of the lives that came before, and each struggling with the same questions of who to be and how to live.

In stock

Publish Date: 18/04/2024

Description

‘A beautiful novel . . . reminds us that our streets are thick with history’
ROWAN HISAYO BUCHANAN

‘Both moving and addictive’
JOANNA BRISCOE

‘Terrific’
FRANCES QUINN

THREE WOMEN. ONE BUILDING. 111 YEARS . . .

East London, 1909. When her family fall on hard times, Ellen finds work in a box factory and is drawn into a tight-knit circle of friendship, one that will transform her life and test her in unexpected ways.

In 1984, the factory is now derelict. Eighteen-year- old Frances moves in with a group of squatters and activists who have taken over the abandoned building. As she tries to build a new life, an unsettling relationship develops, forcing her to question who she is and where her loyalties lie.

In 2020, the squat is now a gentrified conversion in a fashionable corner of the city. Amanda feels trapped in her tiny flat, overwhelmed by the demands of new motherhood and unsure of what the future holds – until the possibility of an alternative life presents itself . . .

From acclaimed author Kate Murray-Browne, One Girl Began is a vibrant, enthralling and moving novel about three women across three very different moments in time, connected by the same building and the forces that shape our lives.

Additional information

Weight 700 g
Dimensions 236 × 154 × 46 mm
Author

Publisher

Imprint

Cover

Hardback

Pages

464

Language

English

Edition

Hardback original

Dewey

823.92 (edition:23)

Readership

General – Trade / Code: K