Tuesday 20 November 2012

A House Unlocked by Penelope Lively

In this book Penelope Lively uses her memories of Golsoncott, her grandparent's house in Somerset to discuss social changes in England during the twentieth century. Each chapter is titled according to items  in the house which Lively remembers, and these items are the starting point for the discussion. So, for example, the second chapter is entitled 'The Children on the Sampler'. It begins with a description of a fire screen which was embroidered by her grandmother, who was a very accomplished needlewoman;

It is formal and stylized, in the sampler tradition, with the house at the top and beneath it significant elements of the garden - lily pond with goldfish shimmering beneath the blue stitched water, dovecot with white doves, sundial, mole and molehill, frog, toad, dragonfly.....Below that is the stable block, horses peering from loose boxes, each named, and a row of prancing dogs beneath - Sheltie and Waif and Merlin and the famous Dingo, a real Australian dingo bought from London Zoo by my aunt Rachel. At the very bottom is a line of children. Not as you might think, grandchildren, but the wartime evacuees.

Lively then goes on to write about the evacuees who were billeted at Golsoncott, and more generally about the effect of the evacuation on the country. Other chapters cover the opening up of the West Country to tourism with the coming of the railways, the role of the church in rural life, and garden history, among other subjects.

Lively's references to her own family history have the effect of making the subjects personal and real, but she isn't sentimental about the past. I don't think I have read any of Penelope Lively's novels, and this book has made me want to seek them out.

6 comments:

  1. I have read a novel by Penelope Lively and really enjoyed it, though the name escapes me at the moment. This books sounds very interesting and thoughtful. Thanks so much for reviewing it and bringing it to our attention. So many worthwhile books are not well known, and deserving of attention, and that is where book blogs like yours play such an important role. Thank you!

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    1. Sunday, I think that this is a book which you would enjoy. I love books about the early twentieth century in England - I think it's the Downton effect! A Perfect Summer by Juliet Nicolson is another good one.

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  2. This is the second review I have read about Lively on blogs I visit, so I think I will certainly have to try one out!

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    1. She is an author I seem to have heard a lot of good things about, but I still haven't read any of her novels. I'm going to check at the library next time I'm there and see if there's anything by her on the shelves.

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  3. I just came across your blog & enjoyed this review. I'm a big fan of Penelope Lively's books and I've been thinking I need to re-read this. I've also been reading her children's books, now that I've finished her adult novels.

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    1. Hello Lisa May and thank you for visiting. I hadn't realised that Penelope Lively wrote children's books. I'm always on the lookout for good books to read to my son, so I'll investigate further.

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