{"product_id":"9780141001647","title":"A House Unlocked","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"product-copy\"\u003e\n\u003ch1\u003eA House Unlocked\u003c\/h1\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eLively, Penelope\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eSummary\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePenelope Lively has turned her considerable literary talent to non-fiction with A House Unlocked, a marvellous, meandering collection of memories inspired by Golsoncott, the Somerset country home occupied by her family for the greater part of the last century.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePenelope Lively has turned her considerable literary talent to non-fiction with A House Unlocked, a marvellous, meandering collection of memories inspired by Golsoncott, the Somerset country home occupied by her family for the greater part of the last century. By walking around the rooms of the house (in her mind) and looking at fondly remembered objects and furniture, she recalls the events, customs and people that together paint a slowly shifting picture of English country life in the 20th century. It is at once personal and social--a diary of the house and its occupants, and a memoir of the historical landscape. While seemingly remote tragedies such as the Russian Revolution, the Holocaust and the Blitz all leave their mark, closer to home the house bears witness to important changes in the domestic and social nature of the surrounding countryside and its residents. Lively's memoirs are eclectic and fascinating, whether exploring changing fashions in dress, leisure pursuits, household management and gardening, or looking at the wider implications of changes in attitudes towards social class, women's role and marriage. While photograph albums chart the pictorial history of the family, a weathered picnic rug acts as a prompt for a wider discussion on the early hiking habits of the Romantic poets in that part of the Somerset countryside, the rise in popularity of rambling generally and the advent of the Great Western Railway and with it the opening up of the West Country as a hot tourist destination. Throughout this rich and varied book, written in her inimitable, considered style, what Penelope Lively seeks to show is that, while many of the customs, fashions and attitudes of 20th-century middle-England have changed forever, many remain, buried just beneath a thin coating of modernism... and some changes are so seismic that they are almost overlooked in the rush to honour our past\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"book-highlights\"\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eHighlights\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eEasy to enjoy: 240 pages · Paperback\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBy Lively, Penelope\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"book-details\"\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eDetails\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eISBN:\u003c\/strong\u003e 9780141001647\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/strong\u003e Lively, Penelope\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e Paperback\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 240\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/strong\u003e English\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication date:\u003c\/strong\u003e 27 June 2002\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eCondition:\u003c\/strong\u003e Used – Very Good\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"book-about\"\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eAbout the authors\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLively, Penelope and Penelope Lively · Publisher: Penguin UK\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/books.google.co.uk\/books?id=HyFZIUmsqKEC\u0026amp;dq=isbn:9780141001647\u0026amp;hl=\u0026amp;source=gbs_api\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eMore about this book\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"book-reviews\"\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eReviews\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cblockquote\u003e\u0026amp;#39;Wonderful. Lively is brilliant and original . . . Every page of this book captures your attention\u0026amp;#39; Daily Mail \u0026amp;#39;Remarkable, richly enjoyable . . . a captivating memoir\u0026amp;#39; Helen Dunmore, The Times \u0026amp;#39;Engaging, curious, compelling, remarkable .\u003c\/blockquote\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin","offers":[{"title":"Used – Very Good","offer_id":57652948107528,"sku":"9780141001647-UsedVeryGood","price":3.95,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0928\/5297\/7928\/files\/standardized_d3c230614dff644fba76d3ece136ab00.jpg?v=1776956526","url":"https:\/\/www.azbooks.co.uk\/products\/9780141001647","provider":"AZ Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}