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Tyneside, 1923: Catherine McMullen, or Kitty as she is known, is seventeen, restless and rebellious. After grudgingly attending her mother Kate's marriage to Davie McDermott, she refuses to accept the quiet stoker, and badgers Kate for stories of the father she never knew. Defying her mother, who has always insisted her daughter would never go into service, Catherine takes a job as a lady's companion in a grand house. But her desire to better herself won't be dampened by domestic chores, and, much to the amusement of her fellow staff, Catherine embarks on a programme of self-education. With her new-found knowledge, soon the ill-educated, illegitimate and streetwise Kitty McMullen is a ghost from the past, and Catherine leaves the North-East to make a fresh start. But there will be many hardships and heartaches before the child of Jarrow finally comes home