Spanning nearly fifty years, from the 1860s through to the turn of the century, THE TOUCH tells the story of Alexander Kinross, who flees from a childhood of poverty in Scotland to make his fortune in the Australian and American goldfields. In the process he meets the women he loves but can never marry - and marries a woman who can never love him. When Alexander Kinross writes home to Scotland for a bride, he is remembered only as a shiftless young boilermaker's apprentice. Since he encloses a draft for one thousand pounds ...
Read More
Spanning nearly fifty years, from the 1860s through to the turn of the century, THE TOUCH tells the story of Alexander Kinross, who flees from a childhood of poverty in Scotland to make his fortune in the Australian and American goldfields. In the process he meets the women he loves but can never marry - and marries a woman who can never love him. When Alexander Kinross writes home to Scotland for a bride, he is remembered only as a shiftless young boilermaker's apprentice. Since he encloses a draft for one thousand pounds, however, arrangements are swiftly made to send him his young cousin Elizabeth, although it is her sister Jean he had wanted. So Elizabeth makes her way across the Atlantic towards a land she knows nothing about, and a husband about whom she knows still less. Arriving in Sydney, she meets Alexander - handsome, devilish in appearance and manner, and obviously rich, and determined to get richer. He marries her and takes her home across the wild and barren countryside to his great house. What he does not tell her is that he first made his fortune in the Californian gold rush - where he also fell in love with the only woman he will ever truly love. Intermingling the stories of a rich cast of characters, and bringing the novel to a stunning climax as Alexander Kinross sacrifices himself for his wife's happiness, this latest novel is a stunning story of love and passion set against the harsh and brutal world of emerging modern Australia
Read Less
Add this copy of The Touch to cart. $9.61, very good condition, Sold by Yare Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Great Yarmouth, NORFOLK, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2004 by Century.
Add this copy of The Touch to cart. $51.87, very good condition, Sold by Jenhams rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Dundee, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2003 by BCA.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
A hardback volume in Very Good condition, slight tanning to edges, in a Very Good dustjacket. This book is in stock now, in our UK premises. Photos of our books are available on request (the pictures you see on Alibris are NOT our own).
Add this copy of The Touch to cart. $6.67, very good condition, Sold by Greener Books rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from London, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2004 by Century.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Very good. **SHIPPED FROM UK** We believe you will be completely satisfied with our quick and reliable service. All orders are dispatched as swiftly as possible! Buy with confidence! Greener Books.
Add this copy of The Touch to cart. $12.67, good condition, Sold by Kennys.ie rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Galway, IRELAND, published 2004 by Century.
Add this copy of The Touch to cart. $12.98, very good condition, Sold by Pendleburys Bookshop rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Llanwrda, CARMARTHENSHIRE, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2003 by Century.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Very Good in Very Good jacket. Book Hardback, octavo, paper age-toned, gift inscription to a previous owner on front free endpaper else a tightly bound copy in a well preserved pictorial dust wrapper, 520pp.
Add this copy of The Touch to cart. $7.99, good condition, Sold by Goodwill rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Brooklyn Park, MN, UNITED STATES, published 2003 by Simon & Schuster.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Good. All pages and cover are intact including the dust cover if applicable. Spine may show signs of wear. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting. May include From the library of labels. Shrink wrap dust covers or boxed set case may be missing. Item may be missing bundled media.
Add this copy of The Touch: a Novel to cart. $8.42, good condition, Sold by Goodwill of Greater Milwaukee rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Milwaukee, WI, UNITED STATES, published 2004 by Pocket Star.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
Book is considered to be in good or better condition. The actual cover image may not match the stock photo. Hard cover books may show signs of wear on the spine cover or dust jacket. Paperback book may show signs of wear on spine or cover as well as having a slight bend curve or creasing to it. Book should have minimal to no writing inside and no highlighting. Pages should be free of tears or creasing. Stickers should not be present on cover or elsewhere and any CD or DVD expected with the book is included. Book is not a former library copy.
Add this copy of The Touch: a Novel (McCullough Colleen) to cart. $8.62, good condition, Sold by BookHolders rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Gambrills, MD, UNITED STATES, published 2003 by Simon & Schuster.
Add this copy of The Touch: a Novel to cart. $8.65, good condition, Sold by Gulf Coast Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Cypress, TX, UNITED STATES, published 2004 by Pocket Star.
Add this copy of The Touch: a Novel to cart. $8.65, good condition, Sold by Your Online Bookstore rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Houston, TX, UNITED STATES, published 2004 by Pocket Star.
'The Touch' is another book by the author of 'The Thorn Birds'. It is set in an era, when Australia was still in its formative stages. In this book the main story is about an arranged marriage between a young Scottish girl and Alexander Kinross, who is remembered in his native Scotland as a shiftless apprentice. But Alexander has travelled the world, made money and discovered gold. He is now a respected and very rich Australian citizen and he has given his name to the mining town where he has found gold in large quantities. He decides it's time to get himself a wife of impeachable reputation to provide him with heirs, and sends to Scotland for one. The choice falls on sixteen year old Elizabeth Drummond. Their marriage doesn't stand under a favourable star even though Elizabeth comes to a life of luxury and riches. Elizabeth is immature and cannot completely let go of her Presbyterian principles. Both are unhappy in the marriage but learn to accept and tolerate the other. Alexander continues to find consolation in the arms of his long-time mistress Ruby, who runs the best hotel in Kinross. After Elizabeth has borne Alexander two daughters, coming close to death each time, their physical relationship ends and they drift into a no-go situation.The oldest daughter is very intelligent, and the youngest one is mentally retarded. Ruby and Elizabeth become good friends (as far as I am concerned the weakest link in the story, because I wonder if any wife would deliberately cultivate friendship with her husband's mistress, but it's a book after all! .....). Ruby's eight year old son from an affair with an immigrant Chinese prince is sent to England to be educated. When he returns as a handsome and cultivated young man of twenty-five, he is just a few years younger than Elizabeth. The story continues ..... Anyone who is a McCullough fan will enjoy this book. Perhaps it is wrong to expect the expanse and richness of The Thorn Birds in this particular story but it is well worth reading. Like most of Ms. McCullough's books, she has remained true to the background of her native Australia and has tried to show the positive and negative sides of imaginary people who stamped their mark in forming this relatively 'new' continent.
