When I started writing this book, the most significant decision for a generation in Britain had not yet been taken. This is a book about following a dream, one shared by many people, but one that only a few manage to fulfil – the dream of making your life in another country of your choice, of choosing how you live rather than accepting the place and culture you are born into. It was possible to make such a dream come true then because of another equally significant decision made by the British people in 1973.
In that year, the UK voted to join the EU, seeking not only a better economic future but also a more secure one. That decision opened not only the physical borders to many other countries and cultures, it also opened the eyes, the minds and the hearts of British citizens many of whom travelled to Europe for the first time.
As we enter a future where borders will be closed and people no longer feel able to travel easily to each other’s countries, where people regard each other with suspicion rather than curiosity, will a dream such as Sarah and Luke’s still be achievable?
Paula Read 