{"product_id":"the-secret-life-of-dorothy-justine-cowan-9780062991010","title":"The Secret Life of Dorothy Soames: A Memoir","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"Far from growing up in the wealthy, fox-hunting circles she had always suggested, her mother had in fact been raised in a foundling hospital for the children of unwed women.\"\u003cem\u003e \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e--\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003e \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eEditor's Choice, \u003cem\u003eThe New York Times Book Review\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"Extraordinary ... fascinating, moving.\"\u003cem\u003e \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e--\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Telegraph\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"This emotional and transatlantic journey is a page-turner.\" \u003c\/strong\u003e-- \u003cstrong\u003eEditor's Pick\u003cem\u003e, Amazon Book Review\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"Book groups will find as much to discuss here as they have with The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, and Educated by Tara Westover.\" \u003c\/strong\u003e-- \u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBookList\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRecommended by \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Saturday Evening Post\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eAmazon Book Review\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Atlanta Journal Constitution\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003ePublisher's Weekly\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eKirkus \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003eand more, Justine Cowan's remarkable true story of how she uncovered her mother's upbringing as a foundling at London's Hospital for the Maintenance and Education of Exposed and Deserted Young Children has received acclaim on both sides of the Atlantic. In the U.K., it has been featured in \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Mail on Sunday\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eThe Daily Mail\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eThe Daily Mirror\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Spectator\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e. \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Telegraph\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e calls it \"extraordinary and \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eGlamour\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e magazine chose it as the best new book based on real life. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe story begins when Justine found her often volatile mother in an unlit room writing a name over and over again, one that she had never heard before and would not hear again for many years - Dorothy Soames. Thirty years later, overcome with grief following her mother's death, Justine found herself drawn back to the past, uncovering a mystery that stretched back to the early years of World War II and beyond, into the dark corridors of the Hospital for the Maintenance and Education of Exposed and Deserted Young Children. Established in the eighteenth century to raise \"bastard\" children to clean chamber pots for England's ruling class, the institution was tied to some of history's most influential figures and events. From its role in the development of solitary confinement and human medical experimentation to the creation of the British Museum and the Royal Academy of Arts, its impact on Western culture continues to reverberate. It is the reason we read Dickens' \u003cem\u003eOliver Twist\u003c\/em\u003e and enjoy Handel's \u003cem\u003eMessiah\u003c\/em\u003e each Christmas. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt was also the environment that shaped a young girl known as Dorothy Soames, who bravely withstood years of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of a sadistic headmistress--a resilient child whose only hope would be a daring escape as German bombers rained death from the skies. \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eHeartbreaking, surprising, and unforgettable, \u003cem\u003eThe Secret Life of Dorothy Soames\u003c\/em\u003e is the true story of one woman's quest to understand the secrets that had poisoned her mother's mind, and her startling discovery that her family's fate had been sealed centuries before.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Justine Cowan\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0062991019\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780062991010\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Harper\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/12\/2021\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 320\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.06lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.10h x 6.20w x 1.30d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal Prepub Alert\u003c\/i\u003e 08\/01\/2020 pg. 41\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 11\/09\/2020\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 11\/15\/2020\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 12\/01\/2020 pg. 91\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e 12\/01\/2020 pg. 10","brand":"Justine Cowan","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":44048033677567,"sku":"9780062991010","price":27.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_6a75b555-60b1-45d2-9ef2-605fea99d3ee.jpg?v=1684993509","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-secret-life-of-dorothy-justine-cowan-9780062991010","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}