For these were the men who had whirled passengers. "It was an aspect of the railway boom that he had never thought about, the genocide of a class of men who had once been the best paid and most pampered professionals in England. Too much like trying to re-read Dickens.)
(Caveat - In my most recent re-read, I lost interest halfway through the story when it began to focus on the 'Swann family' instead of the transport business. The 'trucking' industry of Britain's 1860s has special personal interest. This first book in the Swann series is the only one of his thick sagas with sequels that have enthralled me in subsequent reading visits. Try instead some of his slender books set during the time of Napoleon.)
(Caveat - avoid most of his thick family sagas. Along with Nevil Shute, his assorted types of tales include multiple re-reads. I seldom select a “series” of books, I usually prefer my stories in one sweet volume, however, I am feeling a nice bit of satisfaction knowing that I have not closed the final page on Adam and company.ĭelderfield is one of my all-time favorite authors. I have the second book in the series winging its way to me, so I am not done with the Swanns. I suspect that this novel is a very well-researched narrative and that life as described here is very akin to what life in 1860’s England would have been. I am always pleased when fiction and history can cross paths seamlessly. I happen to know that this was a significant event in Charles Dickens’ life, so I liked the touch of reality that lent to the situation. There is an incident in the book that involves a train crash, and it turns out Charles Dickens is on the train. While there are sections in which the building of Swann-on-Wheels, Adam’s business, can become a little laborious, the understanding of it is essential to understanding the characters and their lives. His feisty wife, Henrietta, adds another dimension to both this man and the story, and Delderfield peoples the novel with a supporting cast that feels real and substantial. That worked out fine, because there is a lot to enjoy here.Īdam Swann is a very interesting and smart character and his aims to build his own place in the world are a kind of microcosm of how industry and entrepreneurism changed the world in the mid-1800s. This novel was set in the same time frame as Poldark, but actually covers completely different issues, so I stopped comparing the two and just settled down to enjoy this story as a thing apart.
I wanted another family I could sink my teeth into and become completely involved in. I decided to sample Delderfield after finishing the Poldark series and having withdrawal symptoms.
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