"A Cry for Home" relates the story of a family living in Spain during the Spanish Civil War.
After the army has arrived to their town, they're forced to leave because Luis - the head of the family - is a well-known socialist and fears for his own life and the lives of his family - his wife, two young daughters and mother-in-law. They start on a frightening journey where they have to face the horrors of the war.
Luis joins the Republican army while his family are left in a place they believed to be safe, but danger comes to them and they have to run away, making it difficult for them to reunite with Luis. Eventually Luis leaves the battlefield to go looking for his family. After many obstacles, they at last meet in Barcelona, where Luis is still very actively fighting for the Republicans.
By this moment, the family have lost their social status and wealth and live in a small, cramped flat. When revolution uprises in Barcelona, a sort of a war inside another war, Luis is concerned that what the leftists are doing is not good for the future Spain he believes in.
The hostilities in Barcelona come to an end, but by then Luis is done fighting. He limits his efforts attending secret meetings to discuss ways to prevent Franco's forces arriving at the east coast of Spain where Barcelona is. At the beginning of the year 1939, it's clear that Franco has won and, before the fascists arrive to Barcelona, Luis and his family are forced to emigrate.
They leave Spain to cross an inhospitable border into France, where they must stay until they are able to go any further.
In a reminiscence from much later (when Beni - the oldest daughter and by then a medical doctor in a French hospital - is having a baby) we learn of the hard years they all lived in France.
About The Author
I was born, grew up and studied in Spain. After finishing my studies at the tourism school in Valladolid, Spain, I decided to go to London to learn English.
My knowledge of the British capital at that time was quite limited
and the great cosmopolitan city daunted me by its magnitude and
fascinated me by its variety of culture. After some time in England, where I acquired a degree in English at Cambridge University and another at the London Business School, I met my Australian husband and so it was that my life journeyed to this beautiful country.
Perhaps it was the beauty of the surroundings that prompted me to start writing. I did several courses in Tafe and Wea, and also participated in and created different writing groups. My stories have been published in different websites, local magazines and I have contributed to two different anthologies with two stories in each of them.
My greatest achievement has been my book A Cry for Home.
