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I, Coriander

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I, Coriander

By: Sally Gardner
Narrated by: Juliet Stevenson
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About this listen

The story is told by Coriander, daughter of a silk merchant in 1650s London. Her idyllic childhood ends when her mother dies and her father goes away, leaving Coriander with her stepmother, a widow who is in cahoots with a fundamentalist Puritan preacher. She is shut away in a chest and left to die, but emerges into the fairy world from which her mother came, and where time has no meaning. When she returns, charged with a task that will transform her life, she is seventeen.

This is a book filled with enchantments, a pair of silver shoes, a fairy shadow, a prince transformed into a fox, that contrast with the heartbreaking loss and cruelty of Coriander's life in the real world. With its brilliantly realised setting of old London Bridge, and underpinned by the conflict between Royalists and Puritans, it is a terrific page turner, involving kidnapping, murder, and romance, and an abundance of vivid characters.

Coriander is a heroine to love, whose joys and sorrows we follow through huge adventures. Her story is utterly captivating and will establish Sally Gardner as a major children's writer, of boundless imagination and originality.

2005, Nestlé Children's Book Prize, Winner

©2005 Sally Gardner; (P)2005 Orion Publishing Group Ltd. Classics Fantasy Fiction Growing Up Growing Up & Facts of Life Historical Fiction Literature & Fiction Science Fiction & Fantasy

Critic reviews

"Original and enigmatic." (The Spectator)
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A relaxing listen whilst on a train! Would highly recommend the beautiful work of Sally Gardner to anyone - reader or not, you'll be captivated by the imagery that Juliet Stevenson brings to life.

"Absolutely beautiful"

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Sally Garner has a very different take on historical fiction to most writers of such period stories - she has a remarkable ability to put herself in the position of characters of all social levels, even four hundred years ago. Add Juliet Stevenson's astonishing range of characterisations, and this becomes something very special. Well worth a listen.

Great sense of time and place

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This is truly a fictional masterpiece. The settings, both of the fairy realm and particularly 1650's London are beautifully realised. The story deals brilliantly with such themes as religion and child abuse. At times I was moved to tears. Coriander is a heroin to love. Beautifully written and read, this book is an esential for any story collection.

Stunning

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Juliet Stevenson is an absolute joy to listen. a fantastic storyteller bringing all the characters to life

story telling at its best

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Enjoyed listening from start to finish. Captivating characters and a truly engaging story. The narrator's voice is easy to listen to and did an excellent job.

Purely enjoyable! An absolute gem of a book

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