An immersive, moving story of a woman coming into her own at the dawn
of the Second World War, from internationally bestselling author Tracy
Chevalier
1932. After the Great War took both her beloved brother and her fiancé,
Violet Speedwell has become a surplus woman, one of a generation doomed
to a life of spinsterhood after the war killed so many young men. Yet
Violet cannot reconcile herself to a life spent caring for her grieving,
embittered mother. After countless meals of boiled eggs and dry toast,
she saves enough to move out of her mother's place and into the town of
Winchester, home to one of England's grandest cathedrals. There, Violet
is drawn into a society of broderers--women who embroider kneelers for
the Cathedral, carrying on a centuries-long tradition of bringing
comfort to worshippers.
Violet finds support and community in the group, fulfillment in the work
they create, and even a growing friendship with the vivacious Gilda. But
when forces threaten her new independence and another war appears on the
horizon, Violet must fight to put down roots in a place where women
aren't expected to grow. Told in Chevalier's glorious prose, A Single
Thread is a timeless story of friendship, love, and a woman crafting
her own life.
