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Homecoming
Up on the North Yorkshire moors, the Hartle family is about to have a life-changing year.
Ann and Joe, with more than thirty years of marriage and two sons between them, are torn between giving up and pressing on with their struggling farm. Max, their older son, is set to inherit the farm and his wife Primrose has news to share, but is he ready for these new responsibilities? Their younger son, Bartholomew, escaped to the south as soon as he could, building a new life for himself with his girlfriend Ruby. But when tragedy strikes he is forced to return home �- and must come to terms with his past, in order to create a future.
Filled with both the joys and losses of ordinary life, Homecoming is a big-hearted drama about how a family falls apart and comes back together again from a hugely talented new writer.
Ann and Joe, with more than thirty years of marriage and two sons between them, are torn between giving up and pressing on with their struggling farm. Max, their older son, is set to inherit the farm and his wife Primrose has news to share, but is he ready for these new responsibilities? Their younger son, Bartholomew, escaped to the south as soon as he could, building a new life for himself with his girlfriend Ruby. But when tragedy strikes he is forced to return home �- and must come to terms with his past, in order to create a future.
Filled with both the joys and losses of ordinary life, Homecoming is a big-hearted drama about how a family falls apart and comes back together again from a hugely talented new writer.
304 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
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999 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
January 2, 2018
This was a great read, I totally enjoyed discovering this new (to me) author!
May 29, 2016
I'm not sure how much I liked this. It had elements I like, a rural setting, family drama, a few shocks and surprises (although they came along quite a way into the book), but I also had a few issues, especially with the three main male characters, none of whom had many good qualities. The women were treated much better, each showing strength of character when needed. There was also a near obsession with Greggs bakeries.
The plot revolves around a Yorkshire sheep farm, run by an older couple, Joe and Ann, and their eldest son Max, who is married to Primrose, a self-taught would-be electrician, who also works in the local Co-op. Bartholomew is the younger son, who lives in 'the south' and runs his own garden centre. The farm is slowly failing, and the story revolves around whether Joe can turn their fortunes around in difficult circumstances in order for Max to take over the running of the farm.
For some reason I find novels written in the present tense difficult to get on with, so that didn't help, but overall the story itself was okay.
The plot revolves around a Yorkshire sheep farm, run by an older couple, Joe and Ann, and their eldest son Max, who is married to Primrose, a self-taught would-be electrician, who also works in the local Co-op. Bartholomew is the younger son, who lives in 'the south' and runs his own garden centre. The farm is slowly failing, and the story revolves around whether Joe can turn their fortunes around in difficult circumstances in order for Max to take over the running of the farm.
For some reason I find novels written in the present tense difficult to get on with, so that didn't help, but overall the story itself was okay.
November 28, 2017
3 - 4 stars for this novel. I’ve previously enjoyed Susie Steiner especially Manon Bradshaw novels but this one is not the most cheery of reads! It’s principally set in Yorkshire and centres around a sheep farming family - mother Anne, father Joe and sons Max and Bartholomew. The family basically implodes and despite their best efforts the farm has to be sold. The book ends in a more hopeful note and it is thoughtful and thought provoking.
April 26, 2013
I found this novel really readable and rather moving. At the heart of it is a love story and you really feel for the characters - They are involving, and though they have flaws, they are warm and sympathetic and you end up routing for them. It's also very funny in places. Would definitely recommend.
April 24, 2013
I so thoroughly enjoyed this book. It's incredibly funny in places and terribly moving in others. Susie Steiner writes beautifully and I look forward to reading more from her in the future. I would definitely recommend it.
June 22, 2014
I won this book on first reads its a family saga on a farm found it good. abit slow for me.
August 30, 2022
This was Susie Steiner's first novel and it is now out of print and hard to find. It is worth seeking out, however. Susie Steiner has the capacity to draw people in all their contradictory elements, and less than appealing ones, and yet we grow fond of these characters. This novel is set in North Yorkshire, following a family with two grown sons, one away, one who has stayed, working a farm; living on the edge in a life run by the seasons of the sheep-- lots of detail about the relationships and interdependencies of living on the edge in a small rural town. Ann, the mom of these two grown sons, reflects on how we view and assess our lives over time. Here at the point where everything they own is being auctioned off, so that this couple in their sixties can figure out how they will move forward once all the debt is paid, she sees a young family sitting at the "open boot" of their car and passing around sandwiches:
"The mother unwraps a foil parcel and hands some food to the two children who sit cross-legged on the grass. The father, sitting low in his foldaway chair, reaches into a bag and pulls out a newspaper. Ann thinks she can see the mother frowning. Why is it, she thinks, when they went to events like this-a country show or an auction or a church fair- times when they were younger and the farm was still going and the children were young-why hadn't she enjoyed it, in the way she was enjoying this one? Tasting it. Noticing. She had so often been angry or tied up with how the boys were misbehaving and not getting enough help from Joe. Oh the mind is perverse, that she should feel pleasure on this funereal day which is trussed up like a garden party and peevish when it had been there for her to enjoy. Why must it take a lifetime to learn to live in the present and to have the knack of it arrive just when the present is running out?" (pp284,285).
"The mother unwraps a foil parcel and hands some food to the two children who sit cross-legged on the grass. The father, sitting low in his foldaway chair, reaches into a bag and pulls out a newspaper. Ann thinks she can see the mother frowning. Why is it, she thinks, when they went to events like this-a country show or an auction or a church fair- times when they were younger and the farm was still going and the children were young-why hadn't she enjoyed it, in the way she was enjoying this one? Tasting it. Noticing. She had so often been angry or tied up with how the boys were misbehaving and not getting enough help from Joe. Oh the mind is perverse, that she should feel pleasure on this funereal day which is trussed up like a garden party and peevish when it had been there for her to enjoy. Why must it take a lifetime to learn to live in the present and to have the knack of it arrive just when the present is running out?" (pp284,285).
November 15, 2017
I read this novel because I really enjoyed Steiner's 'Manon Bradshaw' series. I knew that this was a different genre, but I did expect the lively characterisation of the other two books; however, although a few of the characters - Ann, Ruby- did stand out ( In fact, Ruby may have been Manon's precursor ) the three male characters - around whom much of the story revolves - did not convince me at all: I just couldn't root for any of them. However, the rural setting seemed to be well realised, and there were some very affecting moments involving Joe's farm which I won't describe, since they would spoil your appreciation of the novel. The ending, which I think is meant to be hopeful, was a bit of a damp squib, for me.
January 14, 2023
I loved Persons Unknown & Presumed Missing, and I thought I would instantly love this one. I did not. It took a while to get into it, but when I did, I really loved it. I was moved to tears a few times. I really cared for the characters & connected to the story. I loved the references to the farm & the care of the animals. I have a little experience with those things, and it really came across as authentic. I'm in the winding down years, so I really connected with that aspect, too. I love how Susie could look back across a lifetime and illustrate for the reader how life affects people in all stages of life.
July 1, 2019
This is such a quiet domestic story, with very ordinary characters, and yet I literally couldn't put it down. I would mark my page in preparation for getting a snack, and then 15 min later I'd realize that I'd just kept on reading instead. You wouldn't think a lambing farm could be all that engrossing, nor the rural family that live and work there, but Steiner has mixed some drama with a lot of realism to create a great novel. Superbly written.
March 17, 2019
A lively trip to Emmerdale cum Ambridge where it was reassuring to see that country conventions live on, strong steadfast women, weak, emotionally crippled men. I enjoyed the rolling narrative that passed the baton from character to character, and there was a lot to smile about, and also the odd puzzle, such as where Primrose's interest in electrical projects came in.
February 14, 2020
The reader is invited to the lives of the Hartle family from the very first page, and by the end, you feel part of them. The story is about a quiet, ordinary family on the Yorkshire farms and how it survives, changes and grows through tragedy. It is very well written throughout, amazing setting of the Yorkshire countryside, lovely characters who you care about and heartwarming moments.
April 28, 2020
Heartfelt honest portrayal of a farming family life and life in general
I’d read Susie’s ‘Detective Manon’ series first and thoroughly enjoyed them. This was completely different but nonetheless so enjoyable. A wonderful portrayal of family life in a farming family with all the heartaches and up and and downs that real life throws at you. A marvellous read. Thanks
I’d read Susie’s ‘Detective Manon’ series first and thoroughly enjoyed them. This was completely different but nonetheless so enjoyable. A wonderful portrayal of family life in a farming family with all the heartaches and up and and downs that real life throws at you. A marvellous read. Thanks
August 8, 2017
I enjoyed Susie Steiner's other book, Missing, Presumed but unfortunately I can't say the same for Homecoming. It really has nothing special to recommend it.
February 16, 2019
I must admit, it’s not really my type of book.
Missing Presumed & Persons Unknown were fab books to read.
This book made me think about things & I’m sure many have loved reading it.
Missing Presumed & Persons Unknown were fab books to read.
This book made me think about things & I’m sure many have loved reading it.
April 9, 2019
Homecoming is about growing up, taking responsibilities not matter your age. The characters each grow on you as fallible and complex as anyone else. The two sons who still compete with each other, the father who couldn’t let go, the mother who endures it all.
One aspect of this book is the reminder of how hard and worthwhile farming is - the backbone of most countries!
One aspect of this book is the reminder of how hard and worthwhile farming is - the backbone of most countries!
December 18, 2020
If there was ever a perfect book, this is it.
May 16, 2021
Lots of truth in this wonderful book.
August 30, 2021
loved this - the sort of book I would like to think I could write but would never be able to sustain
September 30, 2021
This was a lovely story set on a farm in Yorkshire. Sad in places, made me laugh in other parts.
The story deals with everyday life in all its glory and heartache.
Worth reading.
The story deals with everyday life in all its glory and heartache.
Worth reading.
December 25, 2022
Loved this book. Steiner makes ordinary people interesting and alive, which is the kind of books I like best.
January 22, 2023
What a wonderful story. It was a real page turner. I've read and enjoyed all this author's few books. It's tragic that she died so young.
April 5, 2023
I found the book to be very sad except at the end. I felt sorry for the characters.
January 29, 2024
`Second time of reading, Susie Steiner is a great writer and all the dialogue was cracking
March 26, 2024
Gentle plod of a book. Quite enjoyed it.
October 28, 2018
If you enjoy novels by Anne Tyler, full of delicious characters, family dynamics with all the ups and downs of everyday life, with disputes, reconciliation, love and laughter thrown in and beautiful, lyrical prose to warm you, then you will love Homecoming. There is no real drama, no murder or mayhem, just the daily life of a somewhat disjointed family, brought back together by life’s events. Very different to the author’s first two books Missing Presumed and Persons Unknown, but a rewarding, enjoyable read - highly recommended.
October 23, 2013
As someone whose only knowledge of farming comes from listening to "The Archers" and "Farming Today", I can't comment on how accurate this novel's depiction of sheep farming in North Yorkshire really is, but it certainly seemed very plausible to me. I enjoyed the unglamorous but homely feel of the novel - I can't remember reading another book where a fairly incidental character says "Do you mind if I use your bathroom?". Nobody in this novel has a glittering career in the media or IT, is amazingly beautiful or sexy, or rich, or famous (though we do overhear one of the main characters giving a telephone interview to "The Dalesman") . It's all very ordinary and believable, though most of the main characters have their quirks or obsessions. It came as something of a surprise, when I read the blurb about the author on the inside back cover, to discover that she is a longtime former Guardian journalist who lives in London. Almost the only thing I thought was a little unlikely was the hotmail email address one of the characters has managed to get, as most people seem to have to decorate theirs with numbers.
This novel follows much of Jane Austen's recipe for success: it's set in a small rural community; most of the characters are from one family; and much of the plot is about courtship and marriage (there is much more, but I don't want to give anything away). We get to read emails and text messages between some of the characters too, though not so many that it becomes annoying. However, I doubt Jane Austen would have approved of some of the language used in the book, and the Hartle family are poor tenant farmers, not landowners or gentry; nor is there much in the way of wit or irony: what humour there is, is broad. But there's bags of compassion and understanding here, and while some of the characters are weak they do move on and learn from their mistakes.
Despite the ordinariness, "Homecoming" does not read like a novelisation of a soap opera - even if much of the situation, and many of the plot details are reminiscent of long lost episodes of "Emmerdale Farm", or that other everyday story of countryfolk. Susie Steiner doesn't toss her characters from one drama to another; while there is drama, it unfolds naturally, and the author has plenty of time to describe small events like a darts match or an evening class. This is a good story, and a well-written one too. Recommended.
This novel follows much of Jane Austen's recipe for success: it's set in a small rural community; most of the characters are from one family; and much of the plot is about courtship and marriage (there is much more, but I don't want to give anything away). We get to read emails and text messages between some of the characters too, though not so many that it becomes annoying. However, I doubt Jane Austen would have approved of some of the language used in the book, and the Hartle family are poor tenant farmers, not landowners or gentry; nor is there much in the way of wit or irony: what humour there is, is broad. But there's bags of compassion and understanding here, and while some of the characters are weak they do move on and learn from their mistakes.
Despite the ordinariness, "Homecoming" does not read like a novelisation of a soap opera - even if much of the situation, and many of the plot details are reminiscent of long lost episodes of "Emmerdale Farm", or that other everyday story of countryfolk. Susie Steiner doesn't toss her characters from one drama to another; while there is drama, it unfolds naturally, and the author has plenty of time to describe small events like a darts match or an evening class. This is a good story, and a well-written one too. Recommended.
February 12, 2016
In places this book is so depressing as everyone is in trouble of one sort or another. However, it did keep me reading until late. This is a story of one family of farmers and what many farmers are going through now, with produce prices so low. Many bordering on having to give up. Life of farmers has never been easy, but even more so lately with the demands of the supermarkets. Read this book as her next one Missing, Presumed, is absolutely brilliant.
December 4, 2021
Here the characters react in such a believable way to everyday events; spending their time never really articulating what they want to say. An affirmation of the ties of family without ever being saccharine. Read this and you'll never want to go into farming though...
June 9, 2016
I was totally immersed in this North Yorkshire farming world - the family dynamics, the joy and heartbreak, and the authentic dialogue and characters. Look forward to her next book!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews