#Blog Tour #Guest Post by Beth Merwood, the author of The 5 Things @rararesources

Thankyou to Rachel from Rachel’s Random Resources for inviting me to participate in the blog tour for The FiveThings by Beth Merwood and to Beth for her guest post today!

The Five Things

For nine-year-old Wendy, the summer of 1969 will never be forgotten.

                Local kids have always told stories about the eerie wood on the outskirts of the village, and Wendy knows for sure that some of them are true. Now the school holidays have started and she’s going to the wood again with Anna and Sam, but they soon become convinced that someone is trying to frighten them off.

                When a terrible event rocks the coastal community, the young friends can’t help thinking there must be a connection between the incident, the tales they’ve heard, and the strange happenings they’ve begun to witness. As glimpses of a darker world threaten their carefree existence, they feel compelled to search out the underlying truth.

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Author Bio – Beth Merwood is from the south of England. The Five Things is her debut novel.

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Old things — beth merwood

I’m wearing an old blue jacket. It’s quite disreputable actually. I have plenty of others. I have bought a few simply in order to replace it. It should be thrown out, but when I open the cupboard, in general it’s the one I choose.

I have always preferred older items, and they don’t have to be perfect or valuable. If they have belonged to someone else along the way, all the better. If they have belonged to someone I know, better still.

I remember being taken to a late relative’s house when I was very young and being told I could choose something to keep. The house was to be cleared and sold. I chose a tiny handmade lavender bag in the shape of a flower. It had a wire attached to it, wound round with yarn to cover the metal. The little flower can be fastened to a coat hanger. I still have it, and I still like it.

As a teenager, it would have been very cool to dress in clothing from second hand and vintage shops, but unfortunately, I never seemed to be the right shape for this. I was incredibly envious of friends who seemed to be able to pop anything on and look stunning. I think I had a modern body; those garments never looked good on me. I made do with costume jewellery instead, buying brooches and necklaces for pennies and adoring them.

I have pieces of furniture with marks and imperfections, pieces missing. They are often totally impractical and serve no purpose other than ornamental. I have items stuffed away in drawers that only exist to be brought out once in a while and pondered over. Then put away again.

Old photographs. Oh, don’t get me started! There is so much in an old photograph, and even just imagining what went into taking it and processing it is to be marvelled at. Photographs of people are best, black and white or sepia images. I don’t need a single connection with the subject in the frame. Many of the oldest photographs are posed and prepared for; I’m currently looking at images from the nineteenth century. So much thought has gone into them. Men, women, and also children are often dressed immaculately, in shirts or blouses incredibly white, and with detail that we could never hope to see in our drab world of t shirts and trainers. There are collars of intricate lace and covered buttons, edging and ribbon. I admire the natural materials, cottons and wools. I find myself thinking about how difficult it must have been to look after your clothes at the time: elegant suits, adventurous hats, highly polished leather shoes. How time consuming it must have been.

I want to walk into the buildings in the photos and climb the stairs, hold the books that lie on the table in the background. I long to be able to hear the conversations that were going on. What did the photographer say to his or her subject? What matters were on their minds? Were they happy?

So I’ve put on my old blue jacket, and perhaps I know why. Do you have a garment such as this one?

Thank you to Beth Merwood for her guest post! Have a wonderful Thursday!

If you would like to find out what other bloggers thought of the The Five Things by Beth Merwood, here is the full tour schedule: