Elizabeth Goudge Books

This is an absolutely charming story set in England before the war. The Linnet children are sent to live with their staid grandmother after their mother dies and their father is away in the army. Grandmother is too strict to abide, so the children steal a pony cart to make their escape. And so their adventures begin, when the pony "delivers" them to the home of an old, grumpy man who agrees to let them spend the night.

This wonderful story is the very first book I ever owned and I never forgot the feelings of magic and wonder that I experienced reading it for the first time. Even now, as a grandmother sharing the story with grandchildren, I SO want to believe that Ezra talks to bees and that all can be right with the world.

I highly recommend this book to young and old alike!

Beautifully done story that starts off with the Linnet children running away. The story has an air of mystery and magic to it, that might or might not be.

This book begins as a delightful Victorian-style children's adventure. However, about halfway through the book, it turns to witches and witchcraft, evil spells, and an oblivious or helpless clergyman. I am glad that I proofread it before I was going to read it to my children. I will definitely be getting rid of this book.

This enjoyable tale is about 4 children who, separated from their father by war, end up spending the summer with an elder, bachelor, uncle. At the home of their uncle they have frightful adventures that ultimately lead to the redemption of the entire town. The book is well-written and could be appealing to both girls and boys. The book might require approximately a [...] reading level. It is a relaxing, entertaining read for those who enjoy Children's Literature.

I first read this book as a pre-teen. Then reread it again and again until the cover began to shred off. The only other books I have read more often are Jane Austin's novels. It is a charming, magical tale, meant to please young children who truly believe in good witches, and the protective nature of bees.

I too read this book in my teens and loved it. Recently picked up a copy of The Dean.s Watch at a yard sale, which reminded me how much I liked her novels... got this and was enchanted all over again. Old fashioned..yes. Wordy...yes. Racially preduciced...yes. But, remember the context; just after WW II. We don't expect political correctness in Dickens or Wilkie Collins ...just consider the era it was written in and enjoy a well-written love story,

When I first read this book, as a teenager, I just loved it. I reread it many times over the years, and my husband and I read it outloud while camping when we were young. Sooo romantic! So, it was with much sadness that, after a break of about 15 years, I tried again and found that it now seemed sadly out of date and old fashioned. Oh well. Still, there may be some souls out there who find this wonderful story, full of sweep, journeying from the channel islands to New Zealand, from youth to old age, from cluelessness to profound enlightenment, quite nice. One of the nicest things about this book was that it led me to find the little book Marguerite is given by the nuns, and that book changed my life, too. Happy reading!!

I love this book by Elizabeth Goudge! The story of Marianne and Marguerite is touching and bittersweet. The truth glistens through the thrilling adventure!

This is the first book I have read written by Elizabeth Goudge - what a great writer! Her writing gives great visualization and brings everything to life. The character development keeps you interested from beginning to end. I will definitely buy more of her books.

I read this story once as a young girl, and upon rereading it today, nearly 30 years later, I found it to be just as soul satisfying. Creme brulee in book form.

Melora

I read this book over and over as a teenager. The last time would have been about 30 years ago but it made such an impression, I still remember most of the plot and large chunks of the text. It's beautifully constructed and written with lots of skilfully-drawn and believable characters. I highly recommend it to anyone with a romantic nature who's not too concerned with historical accuracy. But who knows - maybe Charles II really did marry Lucy and the Duke of Monmouth was the rightful heir to the throne after all ...

This is a premiere work of historical fiction. I'll say it again: this is historical fiction at its best. The landscape leaps into being with a few well-chosen words; the characters seem to live and breathe. The prose peers into a long-lost time and evokes it in astonishing, true-to-life detail, showing how the broader sweeps of political fortunes and indeed the fates of nations stem ultimately from choices arising in the conflicted human heart. This book is breath-taking. After reading Goudge I judge all other works of historical fiction by this one, and when the imaginations of other authors disappoint, I come back to Goudge to be refreshed.

I am not given to romantic stories but this one is the exception. Lucy Walter was treated badly by historians but her lineage contributed to the rise of democracy in Great Britain and her ancestry, maligned by historians as "low born" was anything but - in fact, she shares a set of great-great-grandparents (8-10X removed) with Diana Spencer and the current heir to the British throne, William. This book treats her fairly and in a beautiful and compelling story and, like one of the other reviewers here, I re-read it every 4-5 years or so. It never fails to move me.

I read this book for the first time almost 30 years ago as a teenager. It has remained my favorite book of all time and I also find myself re-reading it every few years. The character of Lucy Walter as developed by Ms. Goudge is one of depth and great feeling. I love her ties with the sea and the Welsh landscape. On a trip to Wales I could see Roch castle in the distance and felt so connected to it. I recommend this book for anyone who loves British cultural history and the land on which it evolved.

No other book has ever brought tears to my eyes, but this one did. It's extremely moving & powerful. I recommend it highly for those who want a tender love story (without smut) and to those who just want to read an excellent historical novel.

Over a period of 20 years I have read and re-read this book many times. It meets the true test of a wonderful book because it never grows tiresome. Instead, each re-reading is a new entrance to a magical world that seems to transcend time. As I read the book, I almost forget who and where I am, entering into Miss Elizabeth's magical kingdom. I am never sure which character I identify with more, because I love almost everyone in the book. I seem somewhat unable to describe how her writing moves me out of the present reality into her own world of children and mental illness and groundedness, but it does so ever so enchantingly. As I move forward and back in time within the book, I too discover the scent of water and move out on living water.

It's hard to describe this lovely, enchanting book. It's one of my favorite books and I periodically reread it. It has lovely descriptions of Nature and is a story about the Most Sacred Mystery there is. Love, all kinds of Love. This is probably one of the most life-affirming books I have ever read.

This is one of those books you go deeply into and which becomes real to you. Indeed, while you are reading it, it is your reality! And what a truly Magickal reality is. This book weaves a Magick Spell. Pure Enchantment of the best kind.

So go to Appledore and like so many of us, become a citizen of this lovely town.

Ah...what Joy there is to be found in the pages of a really good book!!!

I concur with all of the reviews so far. This book has never failed to comfort and calm me; I have read it at least five times and learned new things each time. As in her other books, Miss Goudge blends past and present in a way that dispels loneliness. Her characters are delightful, her garden and interior descriptions beyond compare, and her capacity for understanding suffering and bringing it into the light of redemption a rare gift. If I meet a Goudge fan I know I've met a person who sees beneath the surface of things, into the heart.

This gentle and light-filled narrative, beginning with a death and ending with a birth in the tiny village of Appleshaw, weaves the enchanting story of the people in the village and their respective paths. Mary Lindsay, a handsome spinster, comes to Appleshaw to live the country life "before it and I disappear from the English scene." In discovering this life, she finds her capacities for maternity, love, friendship, and respect blossoming, along with a strong and sweet faith in a God she has forgotten. The other characters are as beautifully rendered as Mary herself. A book with deep roots in truth, whose unchanging message has made me stronger.

Others have described the book quite well, so I won't elaborate further, except to say that this is without a doubt my favorite book. It is a wonderful story that kept me reading non-stop and taught me so many things about life. I am not a person who re-reads books, but this is one that I feel the need to read again on a regular basis. I wish this would be published again so I could share it with more people. Just reading the book felt like someone had given me a special gift.

...I became enchanted by the tale Goudge tells. The setting for the story is a cathedral city in the fens. The city is populated with charmingly depicted characters that ooze quaintness from every pore. The main character is the old Dean, known in the town as a fierce and relentless man due to his hunting down of the city's corruption. And yet, the Dean is a misunderstood man. His love and fidelity are often met with indifference in the town, and this is even more true of his own wife who is deterred by his ugliness and who finds his devotion to her repulsive. Yet help is at hand, for the Dean owns a beautiful watch: a watch that becomes the starting point for a new friendship for the Dean, and new hope.

Goudge's tale is clearly Christian in content. It is a tale of redemption, grace and love in a world of ugliness and pain. It is never, I think crass, and retains a note of ambiguity to the end, which is appropriate to her theme. Readers will find that something of this story can speak to them if they let it, and indeed, I suspect it speaks to Everyman. Yet it is never moralistic, didactic or triumphalist: often the worst sins of the Christian novel.

A lovely tale, with enough depth to grasp sceptical readers like myself.

This is my favorite Elizabeth Goudge book. I read this every December before the Christmas holidays. This is a very well-written story about people in a small English cathedral village thrown together by a humble clockmaker. Lives are being changed and we are told how and why. It's a gentle story, and told with much insight into human behavior.

My favorite by Goudge, by far. She takes you there on a flying carpet of words so that you can see, smell and hear, visiting the homes and lives of the rich and weak, the poor and strong, the bitter, the loving, the young, the old, and helpless. Central to it all is the Dean of the Cathedral, only now in his last year is he being truly changed under God's hand. And his "watch" is a timepiece, but also his alloted time on duty. Interesting things happen during his watch!

There are characters we love, rejoice with, sigh for, and laugh at. We see the joy of a little girl receiving a gift of a parasol (though the Dean's joy in giving it exceeds her joy in receiving). But his wife, who has greater riches, does not rejoice in what she receives.

Though non-Anglicans may need a bit of help with certain terms and concepts, grab the book and enjoy. Then share it with a friend, while you run off to get Goudge's Green Dolphin Street.

Elizabeth Goudge is a fine writer. Her language is rich as butter. All of her stories are interesting, but this one is beautiful. I believe that, after all the books I have read in my rather long life, books of all manner of styles and genres, this book is the deepest and best. Her characterizations are strong and complex, her consideration of the human state both honest and compassionate. There is great affection for humanity, even in her most honest and grieving portrayal of it. Beautiful writing, strong story, interesting and provoking characters - I enjoy so much the honor of spending a few hours with this woman and the depth of her faith, courage and love.

and I think perhaps she may be right, with the exception, perhaps, of The Little White Horse. There was a poetic, magical quality about Elizabeth Goudge's writing. I always imagined I could SMELL the English countryside when reading one of her books--which is particularly amazing considering that I don't have much sense of smell to start with!

Island Magic charmed me to my toes. This book is truly magical as Mrs. Goudge captures her readers and transports them to another time and place. Her writing style, characterization, and plot are all top notch - full of a grace, style, and emotion rarely found in any genre today. I read a library copy about 10 years ago and truly wish it was one of those books I did not return. It would've been worth almost any amount of library fines. Anyway, it's on my Top 10 list along with I Captured the Castle; The Hobbit; and The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.

As the first reviewer implied, the images from this book stay with you the rest of your life. You become one of the du Frocq family children and more your own self as a child. This would be in my list of books considered for my top spot; I've had it searched for by used book stores in the past and paid $35-$40 for it.

If you do to, you will love this. The vision of this island, its flowers, cottages, and town, is clear in my memory though it has been years since I read it. The presence of the sea surrounding everything is powerful. Unlike Linnets and Valerians, this did not scare me as a youngster, when I read it.

I have read this book many times over the years. It is a favorite of mine and no doubt will hold a prominent position on your bookshelf as well. Elizabeth Goudge deftly tells a tale of Scotland through the ages. Her characters are well developed. The heroine recalls a love affair that transcends lives and geographical locale. Her lover, a soldier, comes to her through the middle window and their boundless love brings them both joy and suffering. No other book takes readers on a love journey through the silver seas.

A story about a couple which is able to discover a past life and continue their mission. Elizabeth Goudge was interested by idea of reincarnation and imagine how things which have not been solved in the past could go on in the present. A love story which can make believe how important our deeds are. A lovely country and a part of history.

A perfect romance story. Well written and totally engrossing! Combine Scotland, a lively and intelligent group of characters, and a little reincarnation, and viola!

Ingenious, insightful, creative, clever....A feast of visual imagery. This author is amazing. It should be required for high school reading to study similes, descriptive comparisons, etc. All married people should read this book. The values of tradition, faithfulness, reliability, respect, trust...all come forth in the most colorful arrangement. I heard it on tape first. Would love to have a copy of the book to highlight the clever narratives.

A feast of visual imagery. McCadden's narrative is superb. She brings each character to life as if she could throw her voice into young, old, male and female. Hats off to you. Goudge is remarkable. I enjoyed listening in the car driving about. Would love to get a copy in print to highlight the imaginative, colorful, descriptive comparisons, etc.

Elizabeth Goudge is my favorite author, and this is one of my favorites by her. If you like Rosamunde Pilcher you will love Goudge! This book was written during the war (WWII), and takes place during the same time period. It was so interesting to read, knowing that the author was in the midst of that horrible event, not knowing how it would end. Like all of her stories, it is filled with love and the eternal optimism of the human spirit.

So many stories--especially stories written in or set in times of war--bludgeon a reader over the head with the horrors human beings commit upon one another. Goudge write stories where people struggle to be kind to one another, and given the setting of this book--England during the Blitz--their battles are eloquent, heart-breaking, and ultimately transcendent. Each of the many characters are vividly real in their distress and their desires, and each confronts a battle within that calls forth every resource of their humanity and strength. And all of this told with prose that evokes landscape and setting in ways astonishing and all too rare in fiction. Goudge deserves to be read, celebrated, and studied much more than she is. Her books are memorable, evocative; reading them is at once a humbling and illuminating experience, and this is one of her best.

This book, in my opinion one of Goudge's best, is about the power of love (as many of her books are). Set in Edwardian England, the plot is simple. A young man, Jocelyn, invalided out of the army after being injured in the Boer War, cannot decide what to do with himself so he pays a visit to his grandparents who live in a small cathedral town; his grandfather is a canon of the cathedral. Living with the elderly couple are Hugh, a grandson and cousin of Jocelyn, and Henrietta, whom Grandfather adopted from an orphanage. There are also all the eccentric characters who people the Cathedral Close and the town, all of whom are bound up in each others lives in some interesting ways. Jocelyn finds his destiny, love, and the meaning of service on all levels. Henrietta discovers her past and her future. And what of the mysterious, melancholy poet who left so many clues about himself behind? Is he dead or alive? This book is completely enthralling. I've read it I don't know how many times and its charm and gentleness never pall. The Blue Hills is the follow-up book to this one.

HThis lovely story is set in Torminster (a lightly disguised Wells) at the turn of the last century. Jocelyn, injured in the Boer War, comes to stay with his saintly Grandfather and sharp Grandmother, and their grandchildren, the practical, questioning Hugh Anthony, and intense, artistic Henrietta. Jocelyn opens a bookshop in Torminster, much to Grandmother's disgust - a grandson in trade, o horror! "But the apostles were in trade, dear - fish" Grandfather points out. "What has that to do with it?" she retorts "the Apostles were not my grandsons!" The book is full of delightful characters, vivacious Felicity whom Jocelyn loves, eccentric Mrs Jameson whose husband was eaten by cannibals, the haughty Dean, the determinedly bachelor Bishop, neurotic poet Gabriel Ferranti, and many others. The story is full of details about the cathedral year and customs and has strong religious felling running through it, but a lot of humour too. Miss Goudge wrote two more books featuring the same cast of characters, Sister of the Angles and Blue Hills, they are all delightful.