Product Description

Rachel, Alex, Billy and Jemima: four women whose lives are changed for ever by the Haven, a home for unmarried mothers. Theirs are tales of sadness and heartbreaking loss, but also of discovery: of intense and magical friendships, chocolate sponges, unexpected kisses and the secret world of the Memory Lane cafe. When Erica, a young woman just out of prison, begins to stir up the past, she discovers that the Haven's story is far from over.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1736870 in Books
• Published on: 2004-11-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 320 pages

Review
Louise Tondeur was born in Poole in 1972, and grew up in Bournemouth. She is a graduate of the MA in Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia, and was singled out as one of the most promising contributors to their FIRST HAND anthology. Louise teaches scriptwriting at UEA, and lives in Cambridge.

TLS
'She manages an intriguing blend of nostalgia and knowingness, reminiscent of Todd Haynes's film, Far From Heaven'

Time Out
‘Hers [Tondeur’s] is a voice with real energy, surfacing in flurries of Nicola Barker-like acrobatics’

Customer Reviews

An imaginitive book, almost good to eat!
I have to say that I'm the kind of girl who is attracted to a book by it's cover, and that's what happened with 'The Haven Home for Deliquent Girls'. Currently working with what might be described as 'delinquent children', the title appealed, as did the cover, and I found myself being drawn to this book.
On first sitting down to read, I was excited about what I was going to experience - no reviews yet on amazon, and the book being in three different time settings. I was delightfully amazed....
This book is basically about 4 women - Rachel, Alex, Billy and Jemima - whose lives have been affected by the Haven, which was originally a home for unmarried mothers. Erica, a young woman recently out of prison, takes you on the journey of discovery, back through the people who lived at the Haven and what the Haven stood for. But don't ever think that this is a slightly boring tale....from jumping from different time scales - just when you're about to find something out, forbidden kisses, astounding cakes (where you can almost taste them), intense friendships and tales of loss and happiness. This is the kind of book that you will never forget.
Filled with passion, love, loyalty and secrets, "The Haven Home for Delinquent Girls" is a definite one to read.

The Haven Home
Tondeur's writing is spectacular for this being her second novel. She is confident, and exceedingly able to take you on a journey through three different eras at the 'Haven Home for Delinquent Girls', allowing you to identify with the characters from each different period of time to the stage where you are genuinely moved by each twist in the tale that is met.
The fantastic descriptions of the cakes in the bakery, the journeys to the lighthouse, the attitudes and personality of each individual girl and the feelings of the narrator Erica, a young woman just out of prison leave the reader feeling enveloped by the book. A wonderful story, perfect for anyone who enjoys losing themselves in the characters of a novel.

cakes and social history
This is a many-layered story of girls, from different decades whose lives have been affected by 'The Haven'. In many ways it is a social history showing societal beliefs that have in most communities now changed.

For many years 'The Haven' was used to house and 're-educate' girls who were considered, by society to be troubled and delinquent - runaways, young unmarried mothers-to-be and girls showing lesbian tendencies. The methods used seem, in more enlightened times, incredible - suppression, punishment, a form of brain washing and manipulation.

Mrs Brown, the supervisor at 'The Haven' was heartless, dictatorial and unnecessarily cruel to girls who had committed no crimes. The pregnant girls were forced to sign papers authorising the adoption of their un-born babies believing either that they would be 'rescued' in time or that they had no choice. With no family support, no money and no other help available, their options were extremely limited.

But this is not a book without hope, friendship or tenderness.

We learn about the past through the eyes of former inmates, women who lived through these experiences and are now turning 'The Haven' into a baking school with the help of another troubled modern-day young woman.

The time shift in this book can feel a little confusing initially, but it is well worth the read. It is written with a light touch and a degree of empathy for many of the characters.

Oh yes and many of the cakes sound delicious too!