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At the Bottom of the Stairs

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At the Bottom of the Stairs

By: Chloe Banks
Narrated by: Emma Stansfield
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About this listen

Rachel is ten years old when a dog is rocketed into space. When she is sixteen, the first female astronaut orbits the Earth. At seventeen, she falls in love with Tommy. But Rachel and Tommy’s love is not written in those distant stars. Facing disapproval and uncertainty, they are forced apart. Half a century later, they cross paths in a hotel bar and are confronted with a lifetime of what-ifs. Rachel’s life of social conformity has brought her the joys and heartbreaks of motherhood. Tommy’s marriage into high society has made him the most famous artist of a generation. But what if they had never given up on their dreams of adventure? Is what they gained apart worth as much as what they might have had together? At the Bottom of the Stairs is a story of female space explorers and climbing trees, of loving the life you didn’t lead and learning to love the one you did.

©2022 Chloe Banks (P)2024 Chloe Banks Contemporary Heartfelt
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This book was such a pleasure to listen to. Interesting, well observed and beautiful writing style. Great narration which worked well with the story and brought out the emotion and characterisation.

Brilliant characters - very believable

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Chloe Banks has brilliantly captured a moment in post war British history through the lens of two people who should be together but aren’t due to the confines and expectations of class and gender at that time. A beautifully articulated study in life, love and longing, this short book takes readers on a very long journey that is emotional, gripping and thought provoking at every turn. A must for anyone who wants to make sense of those post war years and how they shaped the people who grew up in them. Plus Chloe writes like a dream so every sentence is an absolute treat!

A sweeping sliding doors love story set against a modern history backdrop

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I loved the choice of characters and attention to detail in all descriptions . beautifully written.

A great book

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