This Country Business: Tales from the Dales

by Max Hardcastle

The third part of a fictionalized memoir, following The Luck of a Countryman. It is an interweaving of family and village life in the Yorkshire Dales, with interruptions from visitors to the pub, the occasional antique dealer in search of a bargain, blossoming romance and an amorous billy goat.

Genres: Memoir

303 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 1995

About the author

Max Hardcastle was born in the old West Riding of Yorkshire, just before the outbreak of the Second World War. He started collecting antiques at an early age, hoarding his treasures - including a five-foot stuffed crocodile - in a disused hen house, known ever after as the 'junk hut'.
After National Service and a brief period working for an engineering company, Max and his family heard the call of the Yorkshire Dales, where they bought a cottage, hung out their sign - Bullpen Antiques - and made a happy living for many years.
Max and his family now live in Leyburn, North Yorkshire, with two dogs, two ponies and an ever-fluctuating population of hens, ducks and pigeons. His only regret is that he no longer has contents of his treasured 'junk hut'.

Reviews

[Vera · Rating 5 out of 5]

a reight good read

Life in a Yorkshire village . With characters that make you laugh. Escapade’s galore, and people who come out of the page to make life grand. I’ve read the books out of order 2nd , first now this one and I’ll get the third next.

Feel good book well written and full of fun

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gentle, entertaining read.

[Mr K H Hudson · Rating 5 out of 5]

First class read

Enthralled from beginning to end, so wonderfully descriptive. I have read Mac's three books and eagerly look forward to reading more!

[Somnath Sengupta · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a shame this series doesn't have more books. Such a delightful, relaxing read.

[Rosie Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually read this book in paperback but couldn't find it on this website. The book got better as I got further in to it and all the many crazy named characters kept re-appearing, such as "Canary Mary, Thievin' Jack and Fiery Frank". The plot reminded me of the television series "Lovejoy" written by Jonathan Gash, which ran on the BBC from 1986-94 and followed the antics of an East Anglian antiques dealer who walked a thin line between right and wrong. "This Country Business" is set in one of my favourite areas, the Yorkshire Dales, where many of the charaters would have fitted very well into Lovejoy's world. The book is dedicated to the men who served in the Merchant Navy from 1939-1945 and there is a great piece written about ships for you to discover.

[Colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

At first I put this book aside as too difficult to get into but I picked it up later and started over. The book jumped right into the life of a gentleman who is an antiques dealer. Nothing tells you this about him; you have to figure it out as the story goes along. Each chapter seems like a whole different story. Takes time before the chapters tie together at all. It got better as I read it. There are lots of British references that I don't understand. The saving grace are the unusual characters.

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

enjoyed the third in the series of lovejoy of the dales and the family adventure with the shop and the daily life of living in a small dales village