BLOG VIEWS | Most-Viewed Posts to Date

The Boissevain Books blogsite has just passed the  5,000-page-view mark. The site was opened in 2013. Thank you for reading. We expect to be posting here more frequently from now on. These are the most-read posts so far, in order of popularity: THE BOX HOUSE | Review by Marlene Rehkamp Aug 13, 2015
TO AFRICA WITH A DREAM | Olga Marlin Is 80 Sep 15, 2014
RONDO | Where UPS, FedEx, USPS Dare Not, He Goes!!... Dec 25, 2014
WW2 | The Dutch Resistance Apr 15, 2015
NEW EDITION | The Borrowed House May 21, 2016
BOOK BIZ | Goodman's Plan for Indie Stores May 31, 2017
BOOK BIZ | Outsourcing Design May 31, 2017

THE BOX HOUSE | Review by Marlene Rehkamp

The Box House cover by Brigid Marlin.
Excerpts of the book may be read here.

Boissevain Books has just released The Box House by Brigid Marlin - the story of an abused child, Cassie, as told to an adult who has befriended her.

Boissevain Books was interested in the opinion of someone who has worked in the children's-services field. We contacted Marlene Rehkamp, who used to serve New York City's Administration for Children's Services as Deputy General Counsel. She has just sent her review of the book, and we couldn't be more pleased at her reaction to the book:

"Ms. Marlin shares the real-life journey of an abused and courageous girl who uses her imagination and resourcefulness to help shelter her siblings from an abusive and neglectful home life in 1960s England.

"Fashioning a playhouse out of cardboard boxes in a nearby alley, the young ‘Cassie’ creates a safe haven of sorts; there, away from the imminent threat of harm, she provides the children some feeling of normalcy and tenderness.   The author knows Cassie well: soon after meeting her, Ms. Marlin reaches out to help and unwittingly becomes the girl’s model of good motherhood.

"Occasionally visiting the Marlins’ house and dreaming of creating a safe and loving home like hers, Cassie emerges poignantly as a model herself: one of lifelong commitment to family and faith. Ms. Marlin’s epiphany on the effects of taking time to help the young outcast is priceless.   Told through Cassie’s perspective, Ms. Marlin’s cinematic portrayal of violence and betrayal of trust, and of one child’s resilience, reveals youthful stoicism and terrifying realities rarely seen in young adult works.

"The author insistently details the profound effect of adults’ treatment of children over time, and the perils of passivity. The systemic, utter failings of family, school and government safeguards during this period in the history of the United Kingdom as well as of the United States, loom large. Given recent revelations surrounding the global trafficking of children, Cassie’s true story takes on new dimensions today.

"A lauded painter, Ms. Marlin paints with words. Her brushstrokes illuminate the young girl’s intimate experiences in a way that will move teen and adult readers alike to tears of sorrow and delight. This book is a joy, a bona fide page-turner and must-read for teens and for all parents and other adults devoted to understanding the unspoken yearnings of children in crisis."

The Box House can be ordered through Amazon.

NEW BOOK! | The Box House, by Brigid Marlin

Just Released: The Box House

Boissevain Books has just released Brigid Marlin's The Box House, a poignant and inspiring story of a child's ability to transcend neglect and abuse.

This remarkable new book is the true story of an abused and neglected child's struggle to survive.

Only eight years old when we first meet her, Cassie Drover is determined to protect her younger siblings and create a "real home" for them all.

The Box House is Cassie's story. Both heartbreaking and inspiring, this story will stay with you long after you finish the last page.

Set in a small English town in the 1960s, the story follows the Cassie's journey. She has taken on the role of caretaker to her younger siblings. 

She is determined to make a home for them. She literally builds a box house - a home constructed out of cardboard boxes. 

The heroine of the story is a young teenager. The book is not intended for young children, since it describes child abuse. It might be appropriate for young adult readers.

The Box House is the Brigid Marlin's third book. She previously authored A Meaning for Danny and From East to West: Awakening to a Spiritual Search. 

Ms. Marlin is known primarily as an artist and is the Founder and Director of the Society for Art and Imagination based in the UK.  She has also illustrated a number of books, including King Oberon's Forest, a children's book written by her mother, Hilda van Stockum.

Boissevain Books has primarily published books for children, building on those of Hilda van Stockum (1908-2006), whose books are the core of the list. Starting with Robert Wack's book, Time Bomber, Boissevain Books has opened up a list of biographies/memoirs, of which this book is the third. (The second was Brigid Marlin's A Meaning for Danny, about the tragic life of an autistic/epileptic boy.)

To order The Box House (preview of some pages is available), click here.