Travel back in time to village life in rural Edwardian England

Travel back in time to village life in rural Edwardian England; a time when children wore starched white pinafores and enjoyed such innocent pleasures as playing with the little windmills given to them by the rag-and-bone man.

An evocative narrative of childhood

In this evocative narrative of her mother''s idyllic childhood, growing up in Jasmine Cottage, Boroughbridge, Hazel Wheeler recreates the life of a country constable''s family through story, anecdote and song.

Memories of school and family

She describes Hilda''s first day at school, the fortunes of her elder brother Willie, who became a footman in London, and that auspicious occasion when Hilda won a prize for the best essay on Citizenship on Empire Day in 1915.

Hilda's early career and wartime experiences

She recalls Hilda''s first day as a milliner''s apprentice and her subsequent move to become a wartime post girl.

The community and storytelling

Throughout these fascinating sketches of her mother and her family, Hazel also describes the close-knit community in which they lived. This serves as a vital backdrop to the delightful tales which make this book so enthralling.