King Arthur and His Knights by Roger Lancelyn Green

My entire knowledge of the Arthurian legends is based on movies from my childhood (“Camelot” and Disney’s “The Sword in the Stone”), so this book was bound to be enlightening. I must admit the first fifty pages were tough going with countless knights being named on one page and countless unnamed knights being killed on the opposite page. But I’m glad I persevered.

In the introduction to King Arthur and His Knights, Green states that although he used Sir Thomas Malory’s “Le Morte D’Arthur” as the basis for his retellings, he also includes stories from half a dozen other sources. I was disappointed that Green told the stories quite simply without any beautiful language, but discovered that the legends themselves are so compelling that they don’t need much embellishment. I thoroughly enjoyed the book once I adjusted my expectations in that regard. As I read, I was reminded of other favorite stories. The lion that meets Sir Percivale had Aslan-like characteristics and the Enchanted Ship and the Quest reminded me of Lord of the Rings. At times I felt I was immersed in a sad and beautiful fairy tale. The Christian symbolism throughout was also fascinating.

Green does his best to weave the separate stories into a single timeline, but don't expect the same cohesiveness as a novel. The first group of stories introduce Arthur and the evil Morgana le Fay. Book Two is about the noble knights of the Round Table. Book Three focuses on the quest for the Holy Grail, and Book Four is about the final days of King Arthur’s reign.

My nephew named his new daughter Columba (after a woman in the Arthurian legends) and I wanted to know more about her. Sadly, she appears in only one sentence in this book, but I am delighted that my curiosity led me to take the plunge into these fabulous tales.  It is easy to see why they have captured the imagination of fans for centuries. 

P.S. When I finished this, I immediately devoured Sir James Knowles' version which was a bit longer and in King James English (which seemed more fitting). I loved both versions.

Blessings,

Village School by Miss Read

I thoroughly enjoyed Miss Read's Thrush Green series and have long looked forward to beginning her Fairacre series. As in the first Thrush Green book, I was introduced to a dizzying amount of characters, but I know that as the series develops, all of them will become as familiar to me as old friends.

The main character in Village School is the school mistress, Miss Read and the stories are based on the author's (her real name is Dora Jessie Saint) many years of teaching. If you are looking for a thrilling page-turner, please look elsewhere. These books describe commonplace activities with charm and gentle wit. The descriptions are lovely:

Behind the tractor wheeled and fluttered a flock of hungry rooks, scrutinizing the fresh-turned ribs of earth for food; their black shapes rose and scattered like flakes of burnt paper from a bonfire.

No English village story would be complete without a vicar and a chapel. While decorating the church for the Harvest Festival, Miss Read writes:

The troubles and vexations of the last twenty-four hours suddenly seemed less oppressive. It is difficult, I reflected, to take an exaggerated view of any personal upheaval when standing in a building that has witnessed the joys, the hopes, the griefs, and all the spiritual tremors of mortal man for centuries.... In the presence of this ancient, silent witness, it was right that personal cares should assume their own insignificant proportions. They were, after all, as ephemeral as the butterflies that hovered over the Michaelmas daisies on the graves outside.

As I said earlier, there isn't much of a storyline, but I very much look forward to getting to know Miss Read, her students, and neighbors in the coming months. Friends who have read both sets of novels say they prefer the Fairacre folks. I have a hard time imagining that I could love any group more than my Thrush Green family, so I'm interested in what my final verdict will be.

Blessings,

At Home in Thrush Green by Miss Read

The gardens of Thrush Green were bright with irises and peonies, and the air

was murmurous with the sound of lawnmowers. But not all was idyllic.

 

 

This 8th installment in the series takes the reader on another delightful visit to Thrush Green. Not only are the regular residents "at home," but the book recounts the arrival of several new couples who move in to the newly completed senior-living apartment complex.  Jane and her husband Bill are managers and caregivers of the facility and are discussing their concerns about how the residents will get along. Bill wisely replies, I expect they'll turn out like any other family, a good deal of affection spiced with bouts of in-fighting. Interestingly, they have a rough go of it until each of the residents finds a place in the community to use their gifts (i.e. to serve others).

 

The regular members of the neighborhood make an appearance in the novel too. I particularly enjoyed this reference to the three stingy Lovelock sisters: One Lovelock was intimidating enough, but in triplicate they were formidable. Nelly Piggot is a middle-aged woman, married to the town grouch. Most of the town folks hold her at arm's length because she left her husband for another man and then came back again. In this novel she finds a friend, finds her calling and comes into her own. So when the old boyfriend comes into town, she reacts in a way that the old Nelly could never have done. 

These small episodes of British country life may not be great literature. But I find the repeated acts of grace (especially to the undeserving) to be soul-nourishing. And the good writing kicks it up to another level as well:

The whole world was white. The moonlight reflected from the snowy fields was intensified. In the garden of the pub next door, the small cherry tree cast a circular tracery of shadows on the white lawn. It was a tree which gave Nelly joy all through the year, from its first tiny leaves, its dangling white flowers, its scarlet fruit so quickly ravished by the birds, and then its final blaze of gold in autumn which it dropped, like a bright skirt, to the ground in November.

Blessings,

Affairs at Thrush Green by Miss Read

I'm partial to well-written novels about men of the cloth (Dean's Watch by Elizabeth Goudge and The Warden by Trollope are my favorites) so I was delighted that this seventh installment in the Thrush Green series focused more on Charles Henstock, the vicar.

He is assigned to a new church at Lulling and is grieved by the fact that he is often compared to the former minister. This is not because he is jealous or vain, but because he really wants what is best for the church and is not sure he fits the bill. He humbly responds to one particularly critical busybody and reaps the fruit of his kindness later in the book. I thoroughly enjoyed the occasional glimpses into his heart (his humility, his faithfulness and his gratefulness, to name just a few qualities) At a discouraging moment, he remembered suddenly a phrase someone had shared with him - "Fear nothing, thank God!" The first two words covered the unknown future. The last two covered past mercies received. The rector turned over the four words in his mind, and was strengthened and comforted. (p. 70)

These books are not saccharine sweet. There are happy marriages and troubled ones. Some characters smoke, drink, or swear. But for the most part, the people of the village of Thrush Green look out for one another. And Miss Read does a bang up job of describing their daily trials and victories.

Blessings,

Gossip from Thrush Green by Miss Read

All of Miss Read's books pay homage to the humble afternoon ritual of tea and sponge cake, but Gossip from Thrush Green excels them all with its extended tribute to tea time on the first and last pages.

In far too many places in England today, the agreeable habit of taking afternoon tea has vanished. "Such a shocking waste of time," says one. "Much too fattening a meal with all that dreadful starch," says another. "Quite unnecessary, if one has had lunch or proposes to eat in the evening," says a third.

All very true, no doubt, but what a lot of innocent pleasure these strong-minded people are missing! The very ritual of tea-making, warming the pot, making sure that the water is just boiling, inhaling the fragrant steam, arranging the tea cosy to fit snugly around the precious container, all the preliminaries lead up to the exquisite pleasure of sipping the brew from thin porcelain, and helping oneself to hot buttered scones and strawberry jam, a slice of feather-light cake or home-made shortbread. Taking tea is a highly civilized pastime, and fortunately is still in favor at Thrush Green, where it has been brought to a fine art.

I'm working my way through the whole series and am enjoying it very much. I read Books One and Two last year and bought hard copies of the next five while in the U.S. in January. The books are about life in an English Village and don't have a lot of plot. Each one focuses on half a dozen of the many townspeople, with an occasional romance thrown in. I haven't reviewed all of them here because I haven't enjoyed all of them equally, but I highly recommend reading the series in order because each book builds on a previous one.

Now that I've read six books in the series the characters are beginning to feel like family. I was inordinately happy that Dotty got the help she needed and that the vicar found a better house in which to live. The sophisticated Harold Shoosmith, the timid, lonely school teacher, the gruff but loving Ella, and the crotchety old groundskeeper are only a few of the endearing characters you'll meet in these books.

Previous reviews can be read by clicking on each title: Thrush Green, Winter in TG, Battles at TG, Return to TG. I'm happy to see that I can get the next five books in the series as digital downloads from my Michigan library.

Blessings,

Thrush Green by Miss Read

A few weeks back I posted a review of the second of the Thrush Green books, Winter in Thrush Green. When I saw that I could read the first book via a Kindle Unlimited free trial, I jumped at the chance. I'm so glad I got to read the lovely introduction to the series.

The title might as well have been "The Fair at Thrush Green" because many of the events are connected to the magical day in May when Mrs. Curdle's fair comes to town. First we see it through the eyes of a little boy:

He lay there for a minute, beneath his tumbled bedclothes, savoring the excitement. His mind's eye saw again, with the sharp clarity of a six-year-old, the battered galloping horses with flaring nostrils, the glittering brass posts, twisted like giant sugar sticks, the dizzying red and yellow swing boats and the snakes of black rope that coiled across the bruised grass of Thrush Green waiting to ensnare the feet of the bedazzled. (p. 3)

Then we see it through the eyes of  the aging fair owner, the town physician, a pair of young lovers, a cantankerous spinster, and a lonely girl. Miss Read (née Dora Jessie Saint, 1913-2012) wonderfully describes human emotions without sentimentality. Even the way she writes about the lovers is fresh and light (none of the sweaty palms and goose bumps of most romantic Christian fiction.)

He knew, with a deep sense of wonder and inner comfort that was to remain with him all his life, that the girl before him was his forever, to be as essential to him, as much part of him, as his hand or eye. (p. 115)

Though people drink, smoke and swear on occasion, this is an utterly charming community that you will learn to love. Many of the characters face their trials bravely, cheerfully, and with an eye to serving others that I find absolutely refreshing in comparison to the self-absorbed characters in much modern fiction.

There are witticisms such as the food poisoning inflicted by the eccentric Dotty Harmer. Her neighbors are so used to it that they affectionately call it "Dolly's Collywobbles." The writing is gently lyrical: A gray squirrel darted up a tree with breath-taking ease, and the young man watched it leaping from bough to bough, as light and airy as a puff of gray smoke. (p.91)

Blessed are those who have access to these books. I will not be paying $10 each for the Kindle versions, so hope to find some of them when I'm in the U.S. next year. One of the commenters from the original post said she's been collecting all of them to read in order. A splendid idea!

Blessings,

Worthwhile Movie #13 Lark Rise to Candleford

Lark Rise to Candleford is one of BBC's best kept secrets. I only found out about it on Black Friday when Amazon had it for 75% off. I bought it based on the rave reviews and I'm so glad I did. Every tea-sipping, book-loving anglophile should see this series.

Postmistress Dorcas Lane is the central figure in the town of Candleford. Not the "big city" by any standard, it is still considered "uppity" by the villagers of nearby Lark Rise. The series highlights the conflicts between the townspeople from both places.

If you are used to fast paced dramas, this will seem, oh, so slow, but if you are patient, you will gradually learn to love each and every character in the show: the slow-witted Twister, bee-keeping Queenie, impressionable Laura, surly Mr. Timmins, the feckless Mrs. Arless and many more.

Although the scenery is idyllic and the costumes and filming provide a visual feast, this is no sugar-coated fairy tale. Yes, the villains are "light" by today's standards, but the conflicts in the stories don't come from outside influences as much as they come from people's inward struggles with pride, insecurity, fear, etc. In short, the characters are delightful, but full of very human flaws.

The themes and dialogue are superior in every way to the drivel on television. Family, marriage, children, honesty, hard work, and forgiveness are just a few of the themes covered in seasons One and Two. (We have all four, but are only half way through.)

If you enjoy BBC productions, you'll recognize Brendan Coyle as Mr. Timmins (Mr. Bates from Downton Abbey), Julia Sawalha as Dorcas Lane (the silly sister in the 1995 version of Pride and Prejudice) and Claudie Blakely as Mrs. Timmins (Elizabeth Bennet's plain friend in the 2005 version of P & P). Blakely is amazing in this role and has become my favorite female television character of all time because of it. The Timmin's marriage is a highlight of the series because it provides a wonderful look at two very different, imperfect people who are committed to love each other "till death us do part."

I could quibble about some of the imperfections of this production (mainly that the one professing Christian is a dolt), but, honestly, my husband and I have never laughed and cheered our way through any series, as much as this one. Highly, highly recommended.

I Saw Two Englands by H. V. Morton

H.V. Morton (1892-1979) came to public attention as the reporter who scooped the story of King Tut’s tomb in 1922.  Afterward he became known as a travel writer, initially in England and the Holy Land, but later in other countries.  In I Saw Two Englands Morton writes of the summer just before World War II began and of the first few months after it started.

Rumors of war were imminent in May of 1939 and Morton set out to see England “one last time.”  In his traveling and journaling, he is never in a hurry.  He offers descriptions, bits of history, and occasional philosophizing as he visits each city.  His prose is gentle and lyrical. (“The contours of the Sussex Downs are as restful as a day in bed.”) But modern readers may find his meandering to be nerve-wracking. 

In September of 1939, war was officially declared and Morton began another set of travels - to observe the effects of the war on the English:

It happened to me at Peterborough.  I was sitting in a restaurant which overlooks the market place.  The old town hall, lifted on its Sixteenth-Century columns, stood immediately below me, and I sat there watching people queue up outside it.  Each one held in his hand a small cardboard box; inside the box was the State’s gift to its children – a gas mask.  Somewhere inside the building the citizens were having their masks tested so that they might face the future with confidence.  They were an ordinary-looking crowd.  Some were smiling, others were just dull or impassive, and no one could have guessed that they were candidates for survival in a mad world: they looked like people waiting for a bus, not a cataclysm. (p. 186)

He recounts the disappointment of the English people during the first months of the war.  Massive evacuations of women and children seemed to have been for nothing when the promised air raids never came.  In those pre-Churchill days, Morton decried the lack of a full-blooded leader who would have given blow for blow, and have expressed the contempt and indignation that existed in England for tyrants and aggressors. (p. 281)

Little did he know that the Battle of Britain was just around the corner and that Britain’s “phony war” was about to become astonishingly real.  This book is recommended for anglophiles and WWII buffs who like stories of the homefront.   (But if you are looking for a quick, exciting read, you’ll want to pass on this one.)

Books about Travel to England

I wrote in my last post that I hope to go to England next summer.  Since this plan was hatched three weeks ago, I’ve been devouring books on the subject.  The first was Susan Allen Toth’s My Love Affair with England.  Unfortunately the book dealt too much with her difficult marriage, problem students and her daughter’s very bad foreign exchange experience.  Happily, her second book, England as You Like It, had more information about how to actually plan a trip to England.

I appreciate Toth’s habit of heading off the beaten track, as well as her practice of balancing comfort with frugality.   Her suggestions are, “always seasoned by experience and caution, with a substantial dash of adventure and a huge dollop of curiosity.” (p. 4)

Her best traveling tip is to spend a week in one area (no bigger than a thumbprint on the map) while exploring its museums, beaches, gardens, churches, shops, etc.  This relaxed type of trip has more appeal to me than one where you try to hit as many cities as possible within a short stay.

The final book I read was Philip Crowl’s The Intelligent Traveller's Guide to Historic Britain.  All entries in this book are very brief.  It will be useful once we decide on a location since it covers the main places to see in each county.

“From  private gardens to quirky museums, woodland walks to seaside resorts, all of Great Britain is a treasure-house for the thoughtful and observant tourist.” (Toth, p. 51) 

I’d love any suggestions for other books to read or places to visit.

A Village Girl by Sarah Shears

This was another book recommended in Gladys Hunt’s, Honey for a Woman's Heart. It recounts a young girl’s childhood in the county of Kent (southeast England) between the first and second world wars. Although the book is subtitled “Memoirs of a Kentish Childhood” and is told from the point of view of young Sarah, I feel the book could almost have been titled, “Memories of an Amazing Mother.” As Sarah’s story unfolds, you can’t help but admire the astonishing resourcefulness and courage of a penniless young widow with four children. She suffered hardship with dignity and without complaint, enabling her children to grow up in “genteel poverty”.

This is no action-packed novel, but rather a gentle tale told in a matter-of-fact tone. In fact, Shear’s straightforward prose gives the book much of its charm. Consider this quote from a chapter called “The Aunties.”

Grandmother Prior, who eloped with a poor farmer at the age of seventeen and was left a widow at thirty-five, had eight children – two boys and six girls. The boys, William and Henry, lived just long enough to bequeath their names to my two brothers, then quietly died – of measles. (p, 124)

In the book’s introduction, author R.F. Delderfield wrote, “Occasionally, possibly once every decade, the English literary scene is enriched by a piece of writing that glows with truth like a cottage lamp set down among a cluster of neon lights.” A Village Girl is one such book.

(Note that this book is also available with an alternate title: Tapioca for Tea)