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Angela Cater

Angela Cater

About

Angela Cater has been painting cats and animals all of her life and is largely self-taught.  Since 2006, she has self-published, written and illustrated 3 children's picture books, and illustrated a fourth in collaboration with Canadian writer, Giovanna Lagana.

As a mature student, she took the Foundation course in Art and Design at Chesterfield College of Technology and Arts, before studying on the BTEC HND in Design and Advertising at Doncaster College.

An accomplished wildlife artist, she was a finalist in Roy Chaffin's prestigious 'Paint a Wildlife Subject' competition for 5 consecutive years.

She is an active member of the UK Coloured Pencil Society and one of the first ten to achieve signature membership. 

The Sons of Godwine: Part Two of The Last Great Saxon Earls

The Sons of Godwine: Part Two of The Last Great Saxon Earls

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<p>Emerging from the long shadow cast by his formidable father, Harold Godwineson showed himself to be a worthy successor to the Earldom of Wessex. In the following twelve years, he became the King's most trusted advisor, practically taking the reins of government into his own hands. And on Edward the Confessor's death, Harold Godwineson mounted the throne—the first king of England not of royal blood. Yet Harold was only a man, and his rise in fortune was not blameless. Like any person aspiring to power, he made choices he wasn't particularly proud of. Unfortunately, those closest to him sometimes paid the price of his fame.<br /><br />This is a story of Godwine's family as told from the viewpoint of Harold and his younger brothers. Queen Editha, known for her Vita Ædwardi Regis, originally commissioned a work to memorialize the deeds of her family, but after the Conquest historians tell us she abandoned this project and concentrated on her husband, the less dangerous subject. In THE SONS OF GODWINE and FATAL RIVALRY, I am telling the story as it might have survived had she collected and passed on the memoirs of her tragic brothers.<br /><br />This book is part two of The Last Great Saxon Earls series. Book one, GODWINE KINGMAKER, depicted the rise and fall of the first Earl of Wessex who came to power under Canute and rose to preeminence at the beginning of Edward the Confessor's reign. Unfortunately, Godwine's misguided efforts to champion his eldest son Swegn recoiled on the whole family, contributing to their outlawry and Queen Editha's disgrace. Their exile only lasted one year and they returned victorious to London, though it was obvious that Harold's career was just beginning as his father's journey was coming to an end.<br /><br />Harold's siblings were all overshadowed by their famous brother; in their memoirs we see remarks tinged sometimes with admiration, sometimes with skepticism, and in Tostig's case, with jealousy. We see a Harold who is ambitious, self-assured, sometimes egocentric, imperfect, yet heroic. His own story is all about Harold, but his brothers see things a little differently. Throughout, their observations are purely subjective, and witnessing events through their eyes gives us an insider’s perspective.<br /><br />Harold was his mother's favorite, confident enough to rise above petty sibling rivalry but Tostig, next in line, was not so lucky. Harold would have been surprised by Tostig's vindictiveness, if he had ever given his brother a second thought. And that was the problem. Tostig's love/hate relationship with Harold would eventually destroy everything they worked for, leaving the country open to foreign conquest. This subplot comes to a crisis in book three of the series, FATAL RIVALRY.</p>

Story Behind The Book

This book is based on a real-life event that occurs most years in the school where I work as a Secretary. Staff and children alike enjoy watching Mrs Mallard choose her nesting site and we all look forward to finding out just how many ducklings will be hatched. The book also contains photographs of the real Mrs Mallard and her ducklings.

Media Links

The Kitten Diaries blog

🔗 http://sandie-lee.blogspot.com/2009/11/perfect-nest-for-mrs-mallard-review.html

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Reviews

This endearing story is written by Angela Cater, a secretary at the school where Mrs Mallard chooses to build her nest. This beautifully illustrated tale will appeal to children everywhere and is set to become a firm favourite with the youngest children at Manchester High School for Girls, who will love reading a story based on a ture event that occurs each year in their own school. <p><font face="Arial"><em>Mrs Claire Hewitt, Head Mistress, Manchester High School for Girls<br /><br /></em></font></p> <p><font face="Arial">Who doesn't love an adorable downy duckling? In 'A Perfect Nest for Mrs Mallard', we follow two determined ducks as they find just the right spot for their nest, then take their new family to the nearby lake. This charming story, sprinkled with interesting bits of information about ducks and their habitat is a delight from beginning to end.</font></p> <p><font face="Arial"><em>Jean Tennant, author of 'Olivia's Birthday Puppy'</em></font></p>