Our thanks to Amberley Publishing for sending us a review copy of this book
Thornton Through Time
Alan Whitworth
ISBN: 9781445606286
Amberley Publishing
Perhaps because Haworth is the place where the Brontës became the legends they are today, the fact that Charlotte, Branwell, Emily and Anne were born a few miles away in Thornton is often overlooked. Granted, there isn't much to sustain the connection through time: just a house that is somewhat changed since they were born there, a church and some friends' houses attesting to Maria Branwell's (and therefore her family's) social life.
But whatever there is to be found in Thornton today connected to the Brontës is included in Alan Whitworth's
Thornton Through Time, which looks at Thornton in general but without forgetting one of its claims to fame. We get to see a rare drawing of the Brontës' birthplace before the current shop front was added and much is told about Patrick's efforts to renew the old church. Also, the font where all four Brontë babies were baptised is also shown. Even if the Brontës left the village in 1821, probably way too early for any of them to have any memories of the place, the book, through its text and especially its many pictures, helps the reader create a larger, more complete and definitely more vivid image of a place where the Brontës, by all accounts, were very happy.
A book for the Brontë completist (and aren't we all?) to take on a trip to Thornton.
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