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The Poet's Wife Judith Allnatt

The Poet's Wife By Judith Allnatt

The Poet's Wife by Judith Allnatt


£3.70
New RRP £7.99
Condition - Very Good
9 in stock

Summary

It is 1841. Patty is married to John Clare: peasant poet, genius and madman. Travelling home one day, Patty finds her husband sitting, footsore, at the side of the road, having absconded from a lunatic asylum over eighty miles away. Hopeful that his condition has improved, she takes his hands in delight but he fails to recognize her.

The Poet's Wife Summary

The Poet's Wife by Judith Allnatt

It is 1841. Patty is married to John Clare: peasant poet, genius and madman. Travelling home one day, Patty finds her husband sitting, footsore, at the side of the road, having absconded from a lunatic asylum over eighty miles away. Hopeful that his condition has improved, she takes his hands in delight but he fails to recognize her. She is devastated to discover that he has not returned home to find her, but to search for his childhood sweetheart, Mary Joyce, to whom he believes he is married. Patty still loves John deeply, but he seems lost to her, obsessed with the idealised image of a woman that she cannot possibly match. Plagued by jealousy, she seeks strength in memories: their whirlwind courtship, the poems John wrote for her, their shared affinity for the land. She must try to heal John's turbulent, unhappy soul and restore him to the man she married. But as John descends further into delusion and his behaviour becomes increasingly volatile, hope seems to be fading. Will she ever be able to conquer her own anger and hurt and reconcile with this man she now barely knows?

The Poet's Wife Reviews

Clare often pops up in fiction, but it was high time someone rescued his poor wife from footnote-land. Allnatt (herself a poet) gives her an affecting, beautifully written afterlife. The Times a beautifully written, poignant novel, lyrically descriptive of the landscape, detailed in the country life of the time and reminiscent of the gentle style of the genius peasant poet. Choice Magazine This novel will have you reaching for the nearest copy of John Clare's powerful poems Daily Mail This book is superb -- Charles Palliser

About Judith Allnatt

Judith Allnatt lives in Northamptonshire. She is the author of one previous novel, A Mile of River.

Additional information

GOR002525924
9780552774437
055277443X
The Poet's Wife by Judith Allnatt
Used - Very Good
Paperback
Transworld Publishers Ltd
20110217
416
Short-listed for East Midlands Book Award 2011
Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
This is a used book - there is no escaping the fact it has been read by someone else and it will show signs of wear and previous use. Overall we expect it to be in very good condition, but if you are not entirely satisfied please get in touch with us

Customer Reviews - The Poet's Wife