What a delightful read this one was.

Set just after the English Civil war in 1647, this is the story inspired by real-life Frances Wolfreston, a rector’s wife who is credited with collecting and preserving the earliest part of Shakespeare’s legacy. But while this may be the case it’s not a story about her collection. It’s much more than that as it a fictionalized examination of her life and the times she lived in.

When there is an introduction of a law where not attending Church or worshipping Catholicism is deemed a crime, Frances as the rector’s wife is charged with recording the names to give to the authorities. However, this triggers memories of her own mother’s secret practice of Catholicism. When her mother is jailed for not going to Church, her own standing in the community is challenged and her relationship with and with her husband and father becomes strained. Through all this is her unwavering passion for books which she turns to for consolation and guidance.

It’s a well-researched story highlighting how Frances sets about to help women whose voices were ignored. There are themes of witchcraft, motherhood, loss, childhood disability, and a class system where education was not seen as useful for the poor. Indeed, during those times, it was rare for women to be able to read and write let alone collect and appreciate books.

A fascinating and disturbing part of history, check this one out.