Top reviews from the United States
There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 14, 2022
I have enjoyed getting to know Clara, the housemother of Shilling Grange Children's Home and all of the children living there. This is the 2nd book in the trilogy. There is lots happening every day at the Grange. All of the children have their own special interests, and it's fun to see how they grow. There are lots of other interesting characters, like neighbor, Ivor, the doctor and his wife, Anita; Ms. Bridges, Ms. Cooper, Ms. Smith and more. All of them play a part in the childrens' lives. There are lots of ups & downs in the plot to keep you reading. I look forward to Book 3.
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 26, 2022
Clara was a single woman with 8 orphans to look after when the group home they live at is at risk to being closed. Can Clara find placed for them all? And then what will she do..
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 12, 2022
A Place to Call Home is an interesting story about an orphanage, the children who live there and their house mother Clara. We get to see some of what it is like to live in the orphanage, the trials and tribulations, as well as the humor and laughter. It is a story to consider, to think about what these children go through and how each one has his/her own special needs. Clara, the house mother, does her best to provide a proper home for the children, but does not do the best in her romance life, and gets very focused on a married man throughout the story.
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 20, 2022
Continued adventures of the occupants at the Shilling Grange Home. Clara champions for her children when disturbing rumors are heard. Several of the children are adopted and there are also new ones.
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 2, 2022
A very good story about children after WWII and a woman that was determined to care for them. I felt so many emotions. As the child of foster parents, I could relate to the emotions the children displayed to being placed in a home they knew nothing about. Good story
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 4, 2022
Another great read by Lizzie Page! I loved how as the children got older, Miss Page kept them growing emotionally. She never left them out of the story. I can’t wait to start the next book!
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 4, 2022
War is a vicious reminder that adults do not consider the accidental victims of their whimsical push for power. Victims who have no say about what their future may may not be.
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 30, 2022
This book tells a very sweet story, along with suspense and drama. I loved the fairy-tale ending. The characters are so endearing, I did not want it to end and look forward to the sequel.
Top reviews from other countries
5.0 out of 5 stars Poignant cameos, laced with humour
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on February 19, 2022
Review of Lizzie’s book – A place to call home
I love this author’s writing. She is unique and with her sparky, gently-funny asides, her sketches of people, she draws me right into her world. I think she must be a sensitive soul, Lizzie Page, and I imagine her sitting quietly at social occasions observing people, carefully, quietly, discreetly. She wouldn’t scribble down
her observations in front of people but hurry home and do that afterwards. I’d love a peek inside her writer’s notebook.
The waifs and strays of Shilling Grange are bumbling along thanks to the love and care of Clara, their “house-mother”. She professes to not being maternal but she brims with love, this splendid young woman. There are mistakes and mishaps along the way and they are all very endearing. She was bereft of love herself as a child, so there is an understanding, a need to make
life as happy as she can for her protégés. And they all have problems, ranging from abuse to mutism and lots more between. No spoilers here, but take it from me that each and every little cameo is believable… and ultimately lovable. In the immediate aftermath of a dreadful war, Clara is mindful of “The things people lived with. The memories they carried around with them…” and although the story brims with humour, there is poignancy in abundance.
Menace broods – and the spectre of Fairbridge
Farm looms over the fate of some of the children. This is a real place in Australia that caused a scandal far too late. News of this awful place where children were treated so badly didn’t leak out until immediately but Clara has an instinctive fear about the proposition. Find out what happens and read for yourselves.
Page is a gifted writer, a natural. Her brushstrokes are deft, her little phrases say everything, whether it is a new-born baby described as “a swaddle of milk and talc” with
“lashes like tiny feathers”, or “clouds, fine wispy things, like young boys’ moustaches”; “Howard was teething, his cheeks like fire engines.” This author knows about children. I could cite many more sentences that I highlighted.
I can’t wait to find out what happens in the next instalment. That was a bit of a tease, like a huge cliff-hanger, but I don’t believe we have too long to wait.
Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for allowing me to read an early issue of this splendid book.
This is my unbiased, honest review. Five full-fat stars, without question.
4.0 out of 5 stars A sad period of our nation's history
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on September 1, 2022
I found this story interesting because I was a child at the time the author was writing about and it brought back memories. I am not sure the housemother in the story was a likely candidate for such a post.
5.0 out of 5 stars Review
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on February 23, 2022
Gripped by this story, can't wait for the next one to arrive. I want the best for the children and Clara
4.0 out of 5 stars Heart Warming Book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on August 6, 2022
A heart warming book set in the years just after WW2. This book is the second in the series and is an easy read. Am looking forward to the next instalment.
5.0 out of 5 stars Great
Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on September 28, 2022
A great 2nd instalment of the series, I am now looking forward to the next one . I can definitely recommend and it's five stars from me .