One of the joys of visiting second hand bookshops is finding books you did not know existed. This was such a discovery (at Barter Books in Alnwick).
It is the story of Carol and her husband John who, in their fifties, move to Weardale (county Durham). Carol has lived here before and she has always longed to return. On seeing Hill House West she immediately knows this is where she wants to live. She and John decide to go for it, though the house and outbuildings need a lot of work. Their ultimate aim is to start a B&B.
When they first move in there is no heat or hot water, but they manage to get things fixed just before Christmas.
Although they know they will always be 'Incomers' they soon make friends, especially with Ian, a farmer neighbour who becomes a regular visitor and helps them on many occasions. John, in turn, becomes a regular helper on Ian's farm. 'The relationship was completely symbiotic; Ian gave John every bit as much help as John gave him. Anything that needed moving, fetching or digging and he would be there.'
'That first winter was long, cold and hard.' Carol works as a teacher in Durham. Often she arrives 'attired more like an arctic explorer than a teacher into a city that was barely scattered with a handful of snowflakes.'
Slowly they start work on the house, installing a multifuel stove and French windows, building wardrobes and repairing floors.
They get some chickens and offer the field they rent to Ian, to keep his sheep. Having had "midwife lessons" from Ian's wife Lynne (helping with lambing) Carol is offered a sheep of her own, which she calls Crumpet.
It takes four years before they feel they can welcome guests to Hill House East. Because they worry they might not like the reality of sharing their home with guests they first have a trial period with people staying for free. 'To our joy, and great relief, it worked wonderfully and we really enjoyed doing it. Weekday visitors were catered for largely by John, as I was up and off to school by 7.15 a.m. At weekends we worked together.'
When guests are there they have their own private 'bed-sitting room' in the conservatory. The glass roof enables them to gaze up at the night sky 'in all its star filled glory'
But before they become a 'real' B&B they first host the wedding of Carol's daughter Megan.
The book contains plenty of anecdotes about animals and people (B&B guests). Some of the guests become firm friends, like the Adams family from Oregon. Other guests are 'ancestor hunters' from the U.S., Canada, Australia or New Zealand. This leads to Carol finding out more about the history of the hills and valleys of Weardale, at one time a centre of lead mining. After a boom time mines closed in the late 19th century, causing many people to leave. Some of Carol's guests even turn out to be related to people who lived in Hill House East.
Life goes on: Carol becomes a grandmother and her mother dies. After working part time for some years she decides to retire from her teaching job.
After sixteen years she and John decide to stop running the B&B. The book ends with them, being determined to have no more pets, 'being adopted' by a tiny abandoned kitten. They call her Fudge and thank her for coming into their lives and keeping them young at heart a little while longer.
This a happy and well written book. Carol has written a 'companion’ volume with further tales about her life in Weardale, her family, animals and friends: A Shoulder to Lean on (2022)
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