On the Border - Davies, Cari

. .

Résumé :
A coming of age, family saga. Megan Owen, a teenager, is torn between two opposing worlds. One in Wales, one in England. And between two diverse lads - Welsh wild boy Iolo, and the cultured English Hugo. As she moves through adolescence to adulthood, experiencing both the rollercoaster of farming life in Wales in the late 1950's, and the turbulence of the post-war cultural revolution of London, England, we see her battle to decide where she truly belongs, and with whom. Will it be the world of nature, farming and tradition in Wales? Or, the brave new sophisticated world flowering in London as it heads into the hippy sixties? Is it possible for love and personal empowerment to co-exist in these times? Through heartache and drama, Megan discovers there's no easy answer. No easy way to make choices, either. Particularly when fate will keep interfering... PART ONE - Megan Owen, 13 years, old, dreams of being a farmer alongside her older brother, on the land she's lived on since she was born. But in the male dominated community of the 1950's, situated on the Welsh border with England - this is a tall order. Against all of this how can Megan ever attain her dream? PART TWO - A year on, Megan is 15. Her father is recovering. Megan is lost. When extra help is needed with the lambing season, Iolo returns. Secretly, Megan visits Iolo's home in the Welsh mountains, learns to ride his wild horse, becomes enchanted with his gypsy free way of life, and falls in love for the first time. PART THREE - Megan hates the Metropolis at first. But, influenced by Mabel, brought along as her chaperone, who tells her shocking wartime tale of being in London during the blitz. PART FOUR - Great Aunt suffers a stroke. A shocked Megan abruptly returns home with no time to say a proper goodbye to Hugo. When Great Aunt dies she leaves Megan her house in the hope she will one day live in it. But now Megan feels like an outsider in Wales. Megan is left feeling torn between two opposing worlds. And two opposing lads - Iolo and Hugo. She seeks solace in writing, finds a voice for herself. Takes a part time job with the local newspaper, starts to stand on her own two feet. She chooses to stay loyal to Iolo, who has now proved himself an invaluable member of the farming community, even to her father and brother. At last they can be a couple, openly. But then Foot and Mouth disease strikes the farm....