5 h 53 minAudiobook6 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 5 h 53 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
On an island where families know one another, choosing your own path is never just your own affair.
In The Silver Lining, John Roussel brings you to Guernsey, a small island in the English Channel. Here, the sea shapes work and weather, and daily life binds families together. Against this close community stands a young person's wish to reach beyond the life that family and island expect.
Ambition, love and courage pull at the heart of this tale. The wish to rise and prove oneself meets the claims of affection and duty. What does it mean to choose freely when your choice matters to others? Roussel explores that question through island life and the desire for a path of one's own.
What you’ll discover
- An island with character Enter windswept Guernsey, where farming, fishing and trade shape the lives of a close community.
- The pull of ambition Explore the wish to prove yourself when familiar expectations point toward a different life.
- Love beside duty Consider how the heart complicates the wish to choose a path of your own.
- Courage without easy approval Face the question of choosing for yourself when others may not approve.
- Freedom close to home Discover a quiet story where one person's choices matter far beyond that person's own life.
Who will love it
For readers who enjoy island settings, local customs and folk tales, and for anyone who likes a love story with family quarrels, comic village scenes and a young hero who learns life's lessons.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A boy disobeys his mother on the beach
- A dead pig and a mother's forgiveness
- Adèle, the stern school and the witch story
- Boarding school and a loss at home
- Grief, a stepmother and a patent that fails
- A rescue and a first visit to Les Marches
- A father's plan and a cousin's scheme
- Frank's new life and the lessons of superstition
- Hope, secret meetings and what the story means
Who’s who
- Frank MathersA self-taught Guernsey youth, proud of his learning, who longs for success and love, and who must learn that gloom and pride are poor guides.
- Adèle RougeantA farmer's daughter, educated in town, who loves music and flowers and refuses to be forced into a marriage she cannot accept.
- Mr. RougeantAdèle's miserly, stubborn father, who fears ghosts and spending money, and who wants his daughter to marry within the family.
- Tom SoherAdèle's spoiled cousin, a lazy young man who drinks and plots to remove his rival.
- Jacques DorantThe loyal old farmhand of Les Marches, who speaks broken English and gladly carries letters for the young lovers.
- Mrs. Mathers, Frank's stepmotherA sharp-tongued woman who mocks Frank's schemes and keeps a cold distance from him.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
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- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 5 h 53 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 6 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
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Read and hear L’Éclaircie in 25 languages and switch at any time. Or read two side by side, paragraph by paragraph: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
L’Éclaircie
by John Roussel
On a Guernsey beach a boy's clothes vanish, and years later a farmer's daughter must fight her father for love.
Easy read5–10 hours to read25 languages
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In short
A boy sneaks into the sea against his mother's orders, and his clothes vanish. So begins The Silver Lining, John Roussel's novel of Guernsey life.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A boy disobeys his mother on the beach
On a calm June afternoon at Cobo Bay, Frank Mathers, about nine, stands in a neat suit. His mother has forbidden him to bathe, and he argues with his conscience as the waves call.
Finding no one near, he hides behind a rock and slips into the warm water. He chases small green crabs and forgets his mother. When he comes out, his clothes are gone, and a man who digs for sand eels grins from a distance.
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What is The Silver Lining by John Roussel about?
It is a Guernsey novel about Frank Mathers, a self-taught young man, and Adèle Rougeant, a farmer's daughter. They struggle with ambition, gloom, a miserly father and a jealous cousin before finding hope in love and trust.
What does the title The Silver Lining mean in this book?
The phrase comes from a sermon that tells listeners that every cloud has a silver lining. It turns Frank from gloomy pessimism toward optimism, and it sums up the book's message of hope after disappointment.
Where and when is the story set?
It is set on the island of Guernsey, in places such as the parish of the Forest, the Rohais and the town of St. Peter Port. The setting shows island life, with its farms, dialect and customs.
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