A Place of Dreams
This book is a compelling blend of mystery, history, and creative non-fiction, that brings to life the wartime story of Norah Hodgkinson (1925-2009), a working-class schoolgirl, later clerical worker, and a prolific diarist. The book opens with a sailor’s letter of thanks for a pair of socks that No...
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| Materialtyp: | Online |
| Språk: | engelska |
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Open Book Publishers
2025
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| Ämnen: | |
| Länkar: | ONIX_20251117T132438_9781805115687_2 |
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| _version_ | 1869526372092739584 |
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| author | Twells, Alison |
| author_browse | Twells, Alison |
| author_facet | Twells, Alison |
| author_sort | Twells, Alison |
| collection | Directory of Open Access Books |
| description | This book is a compelling blend of mystery, history, and creative non-fiction, that brings to life the wartime story of Norah Hodgkinson (1925-2009), a working-class schoolgirl, later clerical worker, and a prolific diarist. The book opens with a sailor’s letter of thanks for a pair of socks that Norah had knitted for the Royal Navy Comforts Fund in 1940―a gift that led to an exciting romance with the sailor’s dashing airman brother. But as the author pieces together Norah’s diary entries and the sailor’s letters, questions emerge about the men’s identities and intentions. 'A Place of Dreams' uncovers a dark tale of male rivalry and wartime anonymity, and a young woman’s appetite for life and love amidst unexpected dangers. Blending microhistory with family history and life-writing, the author navigates the challenges of Norah’s tweet-like diary entries. Inviting the reader into Norah’s world, she explores ways of uncovering the lives of ordinary women, so often absent from official archives. A Place of Dreams is a timely story in the era of #MeToo, juxtaposing Norah’s wartime experiences with contemporary feminist writing to pose questions―about sex, desire, modesty, and shame—that Norah could not voice in 1940s England. By reflecting on the relevance of history today, the story explores whether narratives like Norah’s can spark broader conversations about “intimate justice” and its connection to politics and cultural change. On a personal level, it delves into what Norah’s wartime experience means to the author as a historian, feminist, Norah’s great-niece, and a mother of girls. This volume will appeal to readers with an interest in women’s lives in the past, and academics and students in the fields of women’s and gender history, the history of sexuality, the social and cultural history of war/WW2 studies, diary studies, and the relationships of history, fiction and life-writing. |
| format | Online |
| id | doab-20.500.12854ir-168923 |
| institution | Directory of Open Access Books |
| language | eng |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | Open Book Publishers |
| publisherStr | Open Book Publishers |
| record_format | ojs |
| spelling | doab-20.500.12854ir-1689232025-11-19T05:26:13Z A Place of Dreams Twells, Alison Women's Wartime Diaries World War II Romance Working-Class Women's History Microhistory and Life-Writing Feminism and Historical Memory Family History and Identity thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DN Biography and non-fiction prose::DNB Biography: general::DNBH Biography: historical, political and military thema EDItEUR::F Fiction and Related items::FV Historical fiction thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences::JB Society and culture: general::JBS Social groups, communities and identities::JBSF Gender studies, gender groups::JBSF1 Gender studies: women and girls thema EDItEUR::N History and Archaeology::NH History::NHW Military history thema EDItEUR::N History and Archaeology::NH History::NHW Military history::NHWR Specific wars and campaigns::NHWR7 Second World War This book is a compelling blend of mystery, history, and creative non-fiction, that brings to life the wartime story of Norah Hodgkinson (1925-2009), a working-class schoolgirl, later clerical worker, and a prolific diarist. The book opens with a sailor’s letter of thanks for a pair of socks that Norah had knitted for the Royal Navy Comforts Fund in 1940―a gift that led to an exciting romance with the sailor’s dashing airman brother. But as the author pieces together Norah’s diary entries and the sailor’s letters, questions emerge about the men’s identities and intentions. 'A Place of Dreams' uncovers a dark tale of male rivalry and wartime anonymity, and a young woman’s appetite for life and love amidst unexpected dangers. Blending microhistory with family history and life-writing, the author navigates the challenges of Norah’s tweet-like diary entries. Inviting the reader into Norah’s world, she explores ways of uncovering the lives of ordinary women, so often absent from official archives. A Place of Dreams is a timely story in the era of #MeToo, juxtaposing Norah’s wartime experiences with contemporary feminist writing to pose questions―about sex, desire, modesty, and shame—that Norah could not voice in 1940s England. By reflecting on the relevance of history today, the story explores whether narratives like Norah’s can spark broader conversations about “intimate justice” and its connection to politics and cultural change. On a personal level, it delves into what Norah’s wartime experience means to the author as a historian, feminist, Norah’s great-niece, and a mother of girls. This volume will appeal to readers with an interest in women’s lives in the past, and academics and students in the fields of women’s and gender history, the history of sexuality, the social and cultural history of war/WW2 studies, diary studies, and the relationships of history, fiction and life-writing. 2025-11-19T05:26:11Z 2025-11-19T05:26:11Z 2025-11-17T12:26:14Z 2025 book ONIX_20251117T132438_9781805115687_2 https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/108091 9781805115687 9781805115663 9781805115670 9781805115700 9781805115694 https://directory.doabooks.org/handle/20.500.12854/168923 eng open access image/jpeg Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/20.500.12657/108091/1/9781805115687.pdf Open Book Publishers Open Book Publishers 10.11647/OBP.0461 10.11647/OBP.0461 b014b543-78bd-4c3b-bc71-b68e2ac855b9 9781805115687 9781805115663 9781805115670 9781805115700 9781805115694 Open Book Publishers 366 Cambridge, UK open access |
| spellingShingle | Women's Wartime Diaries World War II Romance Working-Class Women's History Microhistory and Life-Writing Feminism and Historical Memory Family History and Identity thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DN Biography and non-fiction prose::DNB Biography: general::DNBH Biography: historical, political and military thema EDItEUR::F Fiction and Related items::FV Historical fiction thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences::JB Society and culture: general::JBS Social groups, communities and identities::JBSF Gender studies, gender groups::JBSF1 Gender studies: women and girls thema EDItEUR::N History and Archaeology::NH History::NHW Military history thema EDItEUR::N History and Archaeology::NH History::NHW Military history::NHWR Specific wars and campaigns::NHWR7 Second World War Twells, Alison A Place of Dreams |
| title | A Place of Dreams |
| title_full | A Place of Dreams |
| title_fullStr | A Place of Dreams |
| title_full_unstemmed | A Place of Dreams |
| title_short | A Place of Dreams |
| title_sort | place of dreams |
| topic | Women's Wartime Diaries World War II Romance Working-Class Women's History Microhistory and Life-Writing Feminism and Historical Memory Family History and Identity thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DN Biography and non-fiction prose::DNB Biography: general::DNBH Biography: historical, political and military thema EDItEUR::F Fiction and Related items::FV Historical fiction thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences::JB Society and culture: general::JBS Social groups, communities and identities::JBSF Gender studies, gender groups::JBSF1 Gender studies: women and girls thema EDItEUR::N History and Archaeology::NH History::NHW Military history thema EDItEUR::N History and Archaeology::NH History::NHW Military history::NHWR Specific wars and campaigns::NHWR7 Second World War |
| topic_facet | Women's Wartime Diaries World War II Romance Working-Class Women's History Microhistory and Life-Writing Feminism and Historical Memory Family History and Identity thema EDItEUR::D Biography, Literature and Literary studies::DN Biography and non-fiction prose::DNB Biography: general::DNBH Biography: historical, political and military thema EDItEUR::F Fiction and Related items::FV Historical fiction thema EDItEUR::J Society and Social Sciences::JB Society and culture: general::JBS Social groups, communities and identities::JBSF Gender studies, gender groups::JBSF1 Gender studies: women and girls thema EDItEUR::N History and Archaeology::NH History::NHW Military history thema EDItEUR::N History and Archaeology::NH History::NHW Military history::NHWR Specific wars and campaigns::NHWR7 Second World War |
| url | ONIX_20251117T132438_9781805115687_2 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT twellsalison aplaceofdreams AT twellsalison placeofdreams |