If you need to take a break from stitching for a brief moment and you fancy diving into a good book or audio book, this is a great read. We don't usually do book plugs but this is a special, and perhaps indulgent one, for it documents in most eloquent form a vibrant period in Phillipa's maternal grandfather's family history.
Mr Atkinson's Rum Contract: The Story of a Tangled Inheritance tells of the life a Mr Richard "Rum" Atkinson, who's involvement in politics and international trade in the 18th century put him at the centre of one of the most extraordinary and also one of the darkest periods of British history.
If you are interested in the history of Anglo-American relations, international trade, the war of independence, British politics, and most notably, the slave trade, this is one to add to your reading list. It was written by a beloved cousin of ours, Richard Atkinson, who has spent the last 10 years painstakingly piecing together this story of his direct family line. We first got to know Richard at the beginning of this journey and couldn't be more pleased or proud to see if come to fruition in the form of this brilliant book. Available on Amazon now.
Well done Richard, you absolutely did it. P&L xx