Missee Lee (by Arthur Ransome)

(Amazon UK link)

I needed one more book to read in order to complete my GoodReads ‘challenge’ of 100 books in 2022. I perused my shelves for quite a while, knowing it needed to be fairly quick to read, yet I didn’t want another very short children’s book. At last I settled on Arthur Ransome’s ‘Missee Lee’, one of the Swallows and Amazons books which I had liked very much as a child. 

It’s at least 25 years since I last read it; possibly longer. However I re-read it several times as a child and teenager, so had a vague memory of the overall plot, which I knew involved Latin lessons, a dragon parade, and an exciting escape…

Apparently ‘Missee Lee’ is one of two books in the series which are considered not to fit with the rest. The other is ‘Peter Duck’, which was never one of my favourites, and which I knew was supposed to be a story that one of the children made up. Fiction within fiction, so to speak. I only recently learned that ‘Missee Lee’ is, similarly, supposed to have been a fictional story written by the (fictional) characters, which explains, perhaps, why it’s so exciting and (frankly) a bit surreal in places.

It begins with the four Swallows (John, Susan, Titty and Roger) with their friends the Amazons (Nancy and Peggy) and the Amazons’ Uncle Jim (Captain Flint) departing from their 100th port on what was evidently a lengthy voyage, in a yacht called the Wild Cat. While it’s not spelled out, it appears that they have been in Japan, and they’re discussing whether or not they want to visit China. They are warned of some of the dangers, but feel that a round-the-world tour should not miss out such a large country altogether.

Travelling with the human crew are a parrot called Polly and a monkey called Gibber. Gibber likes to copy what he sees, and this turns out to be a disaster as he drops a smouldering cigar, after pretending to smoke it, in some petrol… and a very quick escape has to be made, on the children’s two dinghies. It’s night time, and they attempt to sleep; but one of the dinghies drifts and they lose sight of each other. They hope to be rescued by a British ship, or at least one that will take them to somewhere like Singapore or Hong Kong. In the event, one crew is picked up by a Chinese boat which turns out to be a pirate ship, and the others land on a small island…

They are, naturally, reunited after some adventures. There are three main islands in addition to the tiny one where one crew lands, each ruled by a Chinese Taicoon. Two of them are important, ‘ten-gong’ taicoons, but the most important, a tiny lady known as Missee Lee, is a twenty-two gong taicoon, and somehow manages to keep the peace between the rather bloodthirsty occupants of the other islands.

Missee Lee is spoken about elsewhere in hushed tones, or to scare small children, but she turns out to be a delightful person who was educated at a British school, and then started a degree at Cambridge. She speaks excellent English, if accented, and always wished she could return to Cambridge. She had to leave before completing her BA because her elderly father needed her. So she’s delighted to discover that Roger has been studying Latin, and determines to hold Latin classes for all her visitors.

However they are not guests in the normal sense. They’re comfortable and well-fed, and Missee Lee is quite friendly - if insistent on hard work - but they are her prisoners, unable to escape or even move from her island. Her plan is to keep them there indefinitely… they are eager to get home. They can’t even contact their relatives to say they’re safe.

It’s an exciting book, fast-paced with a lot of action. There are sketch maps of the islands in the front and back of the book, and I referred to them several times during the course of the story. I assume they are imaginary. The book comes across as somewhat colonial, possible racist at times with some of the cariactures and poor English spoken by the island natives. But the book was written in 1941 and is therefore a product of its times.

Other than this (and the general lack of modern communication or even electricity on the islands) it doesn’t feel too dated at all. The six children and Captain Flint seem realistic, each with their own distinct personality, and the monkey Gibber adds a bit of humour. I knew the outcome would be positive but had forgotten how it played out, and the ending was exciting, making the book difficult to put down at times.

Although sailing takes less of a role in this book than in many of the others in the series, there’s still a fair amount of nautical terminology that went right over my head - however it didn’t matter at all. For those interested in sailing, it would add some extra authenticity.

Recommended for children of about eight or nine and upwards who read fluently, or to be read aloud by adults. Recommended, too, for adults who remember these nostalgically from the past, or for anyone who likes children’s adventure books from this era.

Review copyright 2022 Sue's Book Reviews

When you walk (by Adrian Plass)

(Amazon UK link)

Around a year ago, at the end of 2021, I decided to use a book of daily Bible readings with commentaries in 2022. So I looked at the shelf where we keep books and booklets with short devotional passages or comments, intended to be read over the course of a month or a year. The one that looked most appealing was ‘When you walk’ by Adrian Plass. The subtitle is ‘365 readings for ordinary followers of Jesus who sometimes find the going a bit tough.’ It sounded ideal, and I hadn’t read it since 2009 so I started on January 1st and have finished it today.

The book is divided into topical sections, although they deliberately don’t correlate with times of the year. Since the book is intended to be started at any point, there are no dates - but I knew I would find it hard to keep track, and wanted to finish it in a year, so I went through, pencilling in dates for all 365 passages. I think some of them must previously have been published in booklet form; readings for passiontide and Holy Week, for instance read as if they were intended for that time of year, but they came up (in my yearly reading) in August. There were readings about the birth of Christ, too, and events leading up to it - in October. That wasn’t a problem. It’s important to read about these things, and perhaps easier to ponder more when they’re unseasonal.

Other sections include some about Biblical characters (such as John the Baptist, Jonah and Job), some covering books or sections of Biblical books (such as the letter from James, the Song of Solomon, even part of Revelation) and some look at themes with quotations from a variety of books in the Bible. I found the one on creativity (in its broadest sense) to be particularly interesting. Each main section then divides  into around ten to fifteen individual days with a couple of paragraphs quoted from the Bible, and a few paragraphs of Adrian Plass’s commentary. Most end with a short prayer.

I’m not sure I learned anything new, but there were several good reminders about different principles, or explorations into the lives of characters whom I hadn’t thought about much. And I always like the author’s style of writing. He’s always honest, somewhat self-deprecating, well aware of his faults and foibles, and yet he knows, absolutely, that God loves him for who he is, and that there’s nothing more worth doing than walking with Jesus. Anecdotes and reminiscences appear alongside questions and insights that are often quite deep, even if written in apparently light-hearted ways.

I didn’t read exactly one page or passage every day. I started out with the best of intentions, but sometimes I forgot… but, as I’d written on the dates, it was easy to ‘catch up’ by reading an extra one. In the summer I went away for six weeks, and since this is a large book I didn’t take it, but read something else on my Kindle. When I returned, I then deliberately read two passages every day (well, most days…) until I reached the correct date.

Of course it doesn’t have to be read as I did - it’s a book to dip into, to explore different topics, perhaps, or to find something appropriate or seasonal. The commentary is mostly designed to make the reader think, and perhaps to ask questions. I’m not sure there’s anything I can actively remember from it, but books like this have a trickle effect, with apparently random ideas or thoughts returning at appropriate moments.

Definitely recommended if you’d like a low-key way of exploring some well-known (and some lesser-known) passages of the Bible. Nothing too complicated, but much to think about. No longer available new, but it can sometimes be found second-hand.

Review copyright 2022 Sue's Book Reviews

Starry, Starry Night (by Marcia Willett)

(Amazon UK link)

Marcia Willett has been one of my favourite authors for many years now. Every time she published a new novel, I put it on my wishlist as soon as it was available in paperback. That’s the case with ‘Starry, Starry Night’, published in 2021, and which I received for Christmas. I picked it up to read yesterday and finished it today. It’s not a long read - just 215 pages, unlike many of the author’s much longer novels.

I’m saddened to read that Marcia Willett died six months ago after the return of an illness. She was only 76. So this is her last full-length novel, though I understand there’s one more novella which has recently been published, not yet out in paperback.

As with so many of this author’s novels, there are some familiar characters as well as some new ones. Next time I do a complete re-read, I plan to keep a list of the people as so many recur in later books. I love picking up the threads and learning what happened to people I had started to care about, but sometimes need a reminder as I don’t generally read one author’s books one after another.

Leo is one of the most important people in this book. Separated amicably from his wife, with adult children living away from home, he lives on his own in a village in Devon where he has many friends. A nearby house is occupied by Will and Bea, an elderly pair of cousins, and the younger Giles and Tessa (familiar from earlier books by Marcia Willett). Giles is away on duty, their two children are grown up and have flown the nest, and since they recently moved from a gorgeous coastal property Tessa is feeling a little depressed. 

Into the story comes a young woman called Em, best friend of Leo’s daughter-in-law Bethany. Em is attempting to write a play, and is staying nearby; she has met the family and is rather taken with Leo even though he’s a generation older. Then Tessa bumps into an old friend, Sebastian, whom she was once engaged to. And Leo, out of the blue, hears from his cousin Alice who disappeared from his life forty years earlier, taking with her a secret that only the two of them knew about.

So the scene is set for a warm, character-based novel as is typical of Marcia Willett. Since it’s shorter than many of her other novels, there’s not much description. I’m not a fan of descriptive passages so that’s not a problem to me at all.  But the characters still shine through. I couldn’t really relate to Em or Tessa, but I liked Leo very much. I could sympathise with his general chivalry and kindness that makes him go along with other people’s plans, unwilling to say ‘no’, even if it got him into difficulties.

The writing is good, the story moves forward at a gentle pace with just the right amount of action for a relaxing, uplifting read. It’s poignant that one significant character has cancer; I didn’t know that Marcia Willett had it in the past, or earlier in the year. But most of what she writes is from personal experience, which is what makes it so authentic, so perhaps I should have realised.

I’m very glad I read this book and look forward to re-reading it in five or six years when I’ve got to the end of my next re-read of Marcia Willett’s novels.

Definitely recommended if you like this kind of gentle, sometimes poignant character-based women’s fiction.

Review copyright 2022 Sue's Book Reviews

Almost Everything (by Anne Lamott)

(Amazon UK link)

I don’t recall where I first came across Anne Lamott. But I was evidently impressed enough by what I saw or read (or perhaps by someone’s recommendation) that I put three of her books on my wishlist nearly a year ago, and was given them for my birthday, back in the spring. I read and very much liked ‘Bird by Bird’, the author’s advice on writing. So it was with enthusiasm that I picked up ‘Almost Everything’ a couple of weeks ago, determined to read a chapter or so each morning.

The subtitle of this book is ‘Notes on Hope’ and the introduction - or ‘prelude’ chapter - talks about modern life, with its wars, shootings, famine, political battles and more, causing depression and hopelessness. She also mentions taking note of the happy voices of children playing, of flowers blooming, of other indications that God - or the light - is still there. She says, too, that despite all the horrors in the world and in many people’s backgrounds there are moments of joy, times for celebration, reasons to be thankful.

It might sound a bit preachy, but that’s not the case at all. Anne Lamott writes informally, pointing out her own flaws and temptations and in a random selection of broad topics, she introduces reasons to hope. She acknowledges that perhaps most people feel more reasons for despair than hope, but that every step forwards counts; that each act of love or kindness brings God into other people’s lives.

The chapters are short, each one complete in itself; one of them is just one page long. They’re quick to read, and on the whole I thought them encouraging, even if I really couldn’t relate to the one about the author’s childhood, expected to be a particular kind of person, and encouraged in perfectionism. But in other chapters, I found myself nodding my head, even if the style of writing is a bit abrupt. Anne Lamott was around my age when she wrote this book, but evidently a great deal more active even though she mentions aches and discomforts of being not as young as she once was.

The most important message that shines through this book is one I have heard many times from other writers, but it’s always worth hearing: we are good enough as we are. We are made in God’s image, and we can’t do anything to make him love us any more. That’s not to say we shouldn’t be kind, or generous. But we should do it because we know it’s right, and because it helps other people and spreads God’s love.

However we don’t need to have perfect bodies, or give up food we like eating, or attempt to fit in clothes we wore as teenagers. We need to accept ourselves as beloved children of the Father. Again, the author manages to feel very balanced in her casual advice: forget about spending an hour at the gym every day being coerced, but maybe go for a half hour walk. Eat and drink for enjoyment, but don’t over-indulge. Sit down at a table with people we love, as if serving every meal to an important guest, rather than grabbing junk food in the kitchen.

I don’t know that anything in the book was new to me, and I have already forgotten quite a bit of what I read, but I thought it had some thought-provoking reminders about living in the moment, gratefulness and acceptance. I had to wade a bit through the mentions of hatred and childhood pressure, which weren’t really relevant, but there’s good stuff there, and I’m glad I read it.

Recommended if you want something that’s written from a loosely Christian perspective on the topic of hope, but without any proselytism or preaching. On the other hand, if you’re bothered by even minor bad language or hints of immorality, or if you’re a fundamentalist of any kind (including atheism) then you might find this book disturbing or worse. Anne Lamott considers that fundamentalists cause most of the world’s problems.

Review copyright 2022 Sue's Book Reviews

Second Form at Malory Towers (by Enid Blyton)

(Amazon UK link)

Having just finished Enid Blyton’s ‘First Term at Malory Towers’, which I hadn’t read for about thirty years, I liked it so much I picked up its first sequel ‘Second Form at Malory Towers’ to read immediately afterwards. It’s probably thirty years since I last read that, too. These books were some of my favourites in my teenage years, and I re-read them almost yearly; I hadn’t forgotten the main characters, but with a thirty-year break, I had not remembered many of the subplots.

Over a year has passed since ‘First Term…’. Darrell and her friends are due to move into the second form, at last. There’s no explanation as to why they spent so long in the first form, or why one or two of their former classmates have already progressed to the third form. Perhaps it was age, perhaps academic achievement. In any case, this is the September term, and Darrell is firm friends with Sally, who travels down to the school (in Cornwall) with her.

Sally is made head of the second form, due to her wisdom, kindness and common sense, but others in the form are not happy about this. There are three new girls in their class and dorm. The most likeable is Belinda, who is good at art and excellent at caricatures, but as absent-minded as the musical Irene. The second new girl is Ellen, who has won a scholarship to the school so she’s evidently bright - but she seems to be constantly stressed, and doesn’t respond to anyone’s friendship.

Then there’s Daphne, who is very pretty and nicely spoken, who continually boasts about her wealthy parents with their huge mansion and yacht. The fluffy, shallow Gwendoline befriends Daphne, hoping for an invitation to her luxurious home.

Most of the action takes place in the classroom: tricks are played on the French ‘Mam’zelle’, and one of them, intended for her, goes rather horribly wrong. Then things start going missing, so many that it’s evidently not carelessness, but someone stealing. An accusation is made… I had remembered the outcome of this (or perhaps sufficient hints were dropped that I figured it out) and the climax of the story, involving a courageous girl and a dangerous rescue, is surprisingly moving.

Overall I didn’t like the book as much as the first in the series, and don’t plan to read any more right now. There’s a tad too much author commentary in this book, describing the girls and their characteristics rather than always showing them. And while there are certainly lessons to be learned about courage, integrity and kindness, which are shown in the book, the girls (other than Darrell and Sally) feel rather too caricatured.

But I’m glad I re-read these first two, which reminded me just why I liked them so much as a teenager, and I’d recommend them to anyone aged about eight or nine and up who likes this kind of book. I’m sure I’ll re-read the others at some point and am pleased to note that they have all been re-published regularly as well as being widely available second-hand.

Review copyright 2022 Sue's Book Reviews

First Term at Malory Towers (by Enid Blyton)

(Amazon UK link)

It’s that time of year, nearing the end, when I realise I haven’t quite managed the 100 books I planned to read during the year. I’m not far off: 94 completed, and a couple I’m reading slowly that I should finish on December 31st. But that still meant I needed to read four books in about six days… and I knew I wasn’t going to read much on Christmas Day. Time, I decided (as happens most years) to find a few childhood favourites: shortish books that I can read in just an hour or two, without any undue mental strain.

Glancing at the books which a 12-year-old friend has borrowed in the past couple of years, I spotted the Malory Towers series by Enid Blyton. As a teenager, those were my favourite books. I read them all regularly, but as far as I can tell I hadn’t read them since 1992. So I pulled out ‘First Term at Malory Towers’, and finished it this morning.

I knew the overall plot, of course. 12-year-old Darrell Rivers goes to boarding school for the first time. She’s a kind, honest girl who is enthusiastic about life, good at swimming, reasonably hard working. She makes friends, enjoys playing a few ‘tricks’ on teachers, and gains a great deal from her time there. But I’d forgotten most of the details of the book.

In particular, I’d quite forgotten the storyline involving Darrell’s friend Sally, who is a new girl at the same time as she is. But Sally, unlike the wise, intuitive person she becomes, is a morose, withdrawn person in this first book of the series. She answers questions in monosyllables and keeps to herself. Darrell becomes friendly with the lively and mischievous Alicia, and would mostly have ignored Sally but for a letter from her mother, who has met Sally’s mother and baby sister. But Sally denies that she has a sister…

There’s also the timid Mary-Lou, who is scared of everything. Darrell is rather scornful,and though she’s not as outspoken or unkind as some of their classmates, she finds Mary-Lou a bit irritating. However that’s nothing to what they all feel for the spoilt, unintelligent Gwendoline who thinks a great deal of herself and tries to manipulate people and circumstances to suit her own purposes.

Caricatures? Undoubtedly. But Darrell is a realistic person, whose main flaw is a terrible temper that she can’t control. It gets her into trouble in the course of the book, more than once. I hadn’t remembered that. Nor had I remembered that, despite the rather basic style, there are a couple of very moving scenes in this book.

Enid Blyton wasn’t the greatest writer, but she had quite an insight into character, and the reasons that some people were jealous, or unkind, or thoughtless. As a book intended for people of around nine or ten and upwards, I think it’s remarkable in the way it helps build understanding of those who may be different from us. Through Darrell’s eyes we start to see that being afraid is nothing to be ashamed of, that people can’t be coerced into changing who they are, and that violent behaviour in a bad temper can lead to potentially serious consequences.

Indeed, I liked the book so much that I immediately pulled its first sequel off my shelves, and will read that next.

The book is set in a girls’ school, and is obviously intended for girls, but any keen reader could benefit from the books which are appropriate for anyone of about eight or nine and upwards. These books have been reprinted many times, and I understand a TV series has recently been made to introduce a new generation to Malory Towers.

Review copyright 2022 Sue's Book Reviews

Where's my Girl? (by Malcolm Saville)

(Amazon UK link)

I’m so glad I decided to re-read the ‘Lone Pine’ series by Malcolm Saville. I started with ‘Mystery at Witchend in August 2020, and - interspersed with many other books - I’ve gradually read them, some in the full ‘Girls Gone By’ editions for the first time.  I’m almost at the end now; I’ve just finished reading the 19th in the series, ‘Where’s My Girl?’. I have a hardback edition, which I apparently bought when I was seventeen, the book was only published a few years earlier so I have a full edition of the original text.

However although I’ve re-read the books several times, I’d entirely forgotten the plot of this one. I last read it twelve years ago, and apparently it didn’t make much impression. I did vaguely recall the early chapters, where 18-year-old Tom has a nasty accident and temporarily loses his memory, but I had no idea what the story was going to be about.

In a somewhat convoluted opening, we learn that Jon and Penny, who are in France with her parents, have invited the other Lone Piners to stay in a guesthouse which Penny’s parents have bought. It’s being managed by a Colonel and his wife, and they want to see how it goes with a group of young guests. It’s supposedly for horse-riding enthusiasts, so they want Peter (Petronella) to take a look at the three horses they have already, and maybe look at advising them on getting some more.

The Colonel and his wife seem pleased to see them, and friendly. The Colonel, it turns out, is an accomplished craftsman who makes carvings of horses, and has quite a trade in selling them as a sideline. They have three members of staff, a Cypriot family - father, mother and teenage daughter - who don’t seem particularly friendly. And there are a lot of comings and goings at the Colonel’s workshop which seem a bit odd to the Lone Piners, but they try not to be suspicious…

The guesthouse is in Devon, and is a place they had previously visited so they’re interested to see the renovations, and familiar with the area nearby, so they go out in pairs to explore, wondering why the Colonel’s wife is so keen to know where they’re going all the time. Their previous acquaintance Dan Start, a journalist, pops up and tries to flirt with Peter, but she really has no eyes for anyone except David.

The book feels more up-to-date than some of the earlier books; unsurprising as it’s set in the 1970s rather than the 1940s, although the older Lone Piners are only a couple of years older, and the twins Mary and Dickie just one year older than they were in the first book. They’ve matured somewhat, and the real risks of danger are not minimised when some very unpleasant activity is uncovered.

It’s a good story, one I liked reading; I wonder if I’ll remember the plot better when I re-read it in another decade or so. Recommended to younger teenagers who want a good adventure story - no need to have read any earlier ones, although I feel it adds to the books to do so - or to nostalgic adults like myself who remember the books fondly from our teenage years. Unfortunately it's very expensive and hard to find - but libraries might have a copy.

Review copyright 2022 Sue's Book Reviews

Envious Casca (by Georgette Heyer)

(Amazon UK link)

I’ve been taking a break, this past year, from Georgette Heyer’s historical romance novels, and instead re-reading some of her mid-20th century detective fiction. I thought I might finish ten or eleven of them during the year (I had no wish to re-read ‘Penhallow’) but have only managed six, albeit interspersed with many other books.

In 2023 I’m going to go back to re-reading the Regency and other historical novels, so as it’s close to Christmas it made sense for my last chosen detective book of the year to be ‘Envious Casca’, which goes by the alternative (and far less erudite) title of ‘A Christmas Party’. Although I’ve read it twice, the last time being just six years ago, I had pretty much forgotten the story, and had no recollection of who committed the crime, or how it was done.

It’s the story of a group of ill-matched people gathering in a stately home for Christmas. Nathaniel Herriard is the owner, and he’s bad-tempered and has no wish to celebrate any festivities, nor to have his family around him. However his brother Joseph is determined to lighten the atmosphere. Joseph and his wife Maud have been living with Nathaniel for the past couple of years after retiring from the stage.

The other main characters present are Nathaniel and Joseph’s nephew and niece, Stephen and Paula, offspring of their deceased brother. Nathaniel is quite fond of them both and has been generous to them in the past, although he regularly quarrels with them. And he’s particularly annoyed this time, because Stephen has got engaged to a pretty but unintelligent young woman, and Paula has brought with her a playwright who hopes Nathaniel might help to fund his latest production. The eighth member of the party is Mathilda, a distant cousin. It’s not clear why she’s also there, but she’s a likeable, intelligent girl although considered plain.

The scene is set for a murder - and it happens, quite a long way into the book by which time it’s clear that almost anyone (except, perhaps Mathilda) could have wanted to get rid of the victim. What makes no sense is that the victim is found inside a locked room. And when the local police try to take statements, they get nowhere. Scotland Yard is called in, in the form of Inspector Hemingway (who is a regular in Heyer’s crime novels) and his colleague, Sergeant Ware. Inspector Hemingway has a sense of the ridiculous and a great deal of insight, and gets considerably more information from everyone - including the household staff - by his friendliness and sympathetic attitude.

It’s a very well-written book. Heyer’s greatest skill was always in characterisation, and this book is no exception. But she has also made a believable and clever plot, one which I hadn’t recalled the last time I read this book, in 2016, nor when I re-read it in the past few days. I had just about worked out who was the most likely perpetrator, after being suspicious of two or three other people, but had entirely forgotten how it actually happened.

There’s plenty of light-hearted dialogue that makes this a surprisingly enjoyable read, given the unpleasant subject matter. I’m not sure I could have worked out exactly what happened, although there are certainly clues.

Definitely recommended if you like this kind of 20th century ‘cosy’ crime somewhat in the Agatha Christie style.

Review copyright 2022 Sue's Book Reviews

Jo to the Rescue (by Elinor M Brent-Dyer)

(Amazon UK link)

In my meandering, gradual read-through of the lengthy Chalet School series by Elinor M Brent-Dyer (with a few extra fill-ins) I reached ‘Jo to the Rescue’. As a young teenager this wasn’t one of my favourites, but when I re-read it as an adult, it shot up in my estimation, and I now count it as one of my top five. However, although it’s ten years since I last read it, I almost skipped it this time as I had made the mistake of reading the fill-in ‘A Chalet School Headmistress’ directly after ‘Gay from China’, rather than this one first.

I’m so glad I decided to backtrack a little in the chronology and re-read ‘Jo to the Rescue’. It remains firmly amongst my favourites, and I had forgotten just how moving it is in places. It’s one of a small number of books in the series that doesn’t take place at the Chalet School at all; instead it revolves around Jo Maynard and her three closest friends, Marie, Frieda and Simone, when they and their young children go for a summer break in a holiday home in a village near the moors. I’m not sure if it’s spelled out exactly where it is supposed to be; it probably doesn’t much matter.

Their neighbour is a young woman called Phoebe who is an invalid, in chronic pain with long-term rheumatoid arthritis. She lives with her elderly maid Debby who looks after her well, but Phoebe is quite lonely. Her father, who was a renowned cellist, recently passed away and she has been hassled by a spoilt young woman called Zephyr who really wants to buy his cello from her…

Although Joey and her friends quickly befriend Phoebe, and they all spend time together much of the story revolves around the small children and their antics. I found it very readable, and while I recalled the more major plot lines, I had quite forgotten the detail that makes this such a delightful (and, in places, deeply moving) story.

There’s quite a large cast, with ten children (including Joey’s niece Sybil) as well as the four mothers, Phoebe and Debby, and a few doctors too, including Joey’s husband. Her adopted sister Robin comes in later, too, though we don’t read much about her. So although this book very much stands alone, it’s better - in my view - for being read as part of the series. It didn’t matter at all that I had read the fill-in that follows, although if I had been reading for the first time there would have been spoilers.

My only slight irritation with this book is the last paragraph which feels a bit trite, although I suppose it was typical of the era, tying everything up neatly.

When I first came across the Chalet School series (on my grandmother’s shelves) as a young teenager, I thought ‘Jo to the Rescue’, 19th in the original series, was the last. My grandmother didn’t have any others, and it felt very much like a finale to the series, re-visiting the four close friends who were so important in the earlier school books. I’m glad the author went on to write so many more, but this still feels like a milestone in the series.

The book was first published in 1945, towards the end of World War II which is mentioned in passing as part of current events, and as explanation why some of the husbands and many friends are not there. Other than the horses and carts, and lack of any kind of technology, it doesn’t feel dated - people’s attitudes and needs probably don’t change much.

My copy is a hardback original; this has also been published by 'Girls Gone By' as well as the somewhat abridged Armada edition. Well worth having the full text if at all possible.

I’m already looking forward to re-reading this yet again in another decade or so.

Review copyright 2022 Sue's Book Reviews

Souvenirs of Solitude (by Brennan Manning)

(Amazon UK link)

I have appreciated and savoured the books I have read by Brennan Manning. He was a deeply flawed and somewhat outspoken Catholic priest whose books were honest, moving and - at times - controversial. So when I saw his book ‘Souvenirs of Solitude’ available for download free for the Kindle, I took advantage immediately. 

That was eleven and a half years ago. Books on my Kindle often stay there, unread, for many years until I happen to be travelling and scroll through to find something I want to read.

I started reading ‘Souvenirs of Solitude’ while I was away in the Summer, and then forgot I was reading it until I had another week away early in December. I picked it up again and found it so engrossing that I finished it at last, reading just a chapter or so each day. 

There’s so much to think about in this book. It’s perhaps a bit random, consisting as it does of articles written by Brennan Manning when he was alone, with time to pray and ponder and realise, once again, who he was, and what was important. As he wrote, he discovered more about himself and his faith.

The main theme of the book is the need to spend time with God, to be alone to pray and listen and accept oneself as a beloved child of the Father.  A lot of the book involves the idea of being ‘enough’ - with no way to earn more favour, no need to compete with anyone else. I was challenged several times to let go of my own inhibitions, defence mechanisms, or need to argue a point of view.

I am God’s child, so is everyone around me. We’re all at different stages, and nobody should judge or condemn anyone else. The church, too often, has introduced rules and regulations that turn people away, or - at the other extreme - has tried much too hard to use evangelistic methods and techniques, which are often more harmful than helpful. My role, I am reminded, is to listen, to follow, to accept, to love. It’s not my job to change anyone’s opinions or behaviours, or to judge them for what they do or say.

It’s a book I want to re-read regularly, so I hope I’ll be able to find a copy of it in paperback form to dip into, rather than the more clinical Kindle version; on the other hand I’m immensely grateful for having had the chance to download it free albeit surprised that it took me so long to read it.

I’m not sure exactly why Brennan Manning’s writing appeals to me so much, but I find his style very readable, his comments and suggestions highly motivating, and his anecdotes moving even when they relate events or situations which feel entirely foreign.  There are some inevitable sports references, or mentions of something only relevant in the United States, but even those don’t detract from the overall book.

Very highly recommended, although it no longer seems to be available for the Kindle.

Review copyright 2022 Sue's Book Reviews

Anxious People (by Fredrik Backman)

(Amazon UK link)

I had not heard of Fredrik Backman, although I gather he’s written some bestselling novels, one of which is soon to be released as a film. His book ‘Anxious People’ was allocated for this month’s reading group, so I acquired a copy and then read it in three or four days. The author is Swedish, and writes in that language, so I was reading a translation - and am very impressed with that. The language not only flows extremely well, but even manages an annoying pun that’s mentioned more than once.

Having said that, it took me a little while to get into the book. The chapters are short, the time frame variable, and the subject matter somewhat up for debate. My summary is that it’s about a group of people who were taken hostage after a failed bank robbery. But it’s also about capitalist society, and depression, and there’s a bridge that features quite heavily. Pizza, too, and fireworks, and people hiding things from others…

It’s essentially character-driven, and the author clearly has tremendous empathy, able to get under the skins of a variety of different folk. Amongst the hostages there’s a caring elderly woman, a middle-aged married couple, a young lesbian couple, one of whom is quite heavily pregnant, and an older, single woman who is either obsessive-compulsive or autistic. There’s also an estate agent, though she doesn’t feature all that much (other than with her annoying tagline that was cleverly translated), and - though we don’t meet him at first - a guy dressed as a rabbit.

These diverse people are introduced somewhat randomly as they meet each other, initially at a viewing of a flat that’s for sale. Much is made of it being on the day before New Year’s Eve. But we also learn about a man who jumped off a bridge ten years earlier, and a little background into why the bank robber decided to do something as drastic as robbing a bank.

There are lots of other bits of background information that get filled in, sometimes in chapters that are shorter than a single page. I couldn’t keep everything in my mind, so when I was part-way through the book I went back to re-read some of the introductory section. It made more sense then, but I can see why the author did what he did.

Some quite heavy issues are covered in the gradual unfolding of people’s personalities, so it’s impressive that there is also some humour. There were several places where I smiled at the phrasing of a comment, or the way people were behaving. The balance is extremely well done, without in any way detracting from the serious nature of living with anxieties and immense stress, of not fitting in with society, or of trying to make a good life for one’s children despite a difficult childhood of one’s own.

There are some unexpected twists and turns, including a couple of revelations that I really wasn’t expecting (one of which made me go back, yet again, to an earlier section to try to figure out why I hadn’t seen it coming). And the ending is entirely satisfactory, with a kind of postscript that tells us what was going to happen to some of the characters in the future.

Those who prefer action-driven books, or those with a lot of clear plot may find this slow-moving or dull, but for those of us - and it included most of the reading group - who love character-driven books, I would recommend this highly. The entire main story takes place over just a few hours, but there are many flashbacks to events in the past, to circumstances that led to each of the hostages being present, and to one of the characters in discussion with a psychiatrist.

Overall, I enjoyed the book very much and may even look out for others by the same author.

Review copyright 2022 Sue's Book Reviews

A Collector of Hearts (by Sally Quilford)

(Amazon UK link)

I have liked all the books I’ve read by Sally Quilford on my Kindle, and downloaded several of them when she has offered them free for a short period. However it sometimes takes me a while to find one of them to read; it happens most often when I’m travelling. That’s the case for ‘A Collector of Hearts’, a novella that I apparently downloaded about a decade ago but have only just read.

Sally Quilford writes in quite a variety of genres, but her main gift is that of characterisation. She weaves a good plot, too, and while this isn’t exactly crime fiction, or a mystery, or even a ghost story, I would perhaps categorise it as a gothic romance, albeit in a rather mild forum.

The main character is a young woman called Caroline who is visiting a stately home for a few days, culminating in a fancy dress halloween ball. Caroline is the paid companion of a rather cranky elderly woman who finds it hard to keep anyone around her. But Caroline needs to be earning, and she quite enjoys her job even though it’s often frustrating. She’s the only companion who has ever been able to stand up to her employer, and hopes she won’t overstep the boundaries.

She’s out for a walk to post a letter at dusk, and, being a practical kind of person, has no worries about ghosts despite having heard stories of spooks and ghouls at the castle. However she’s quite startled to encounter a young man walking out of the mist; she doesn’t have a good first impression of him, but then again she can’t quite forget him. I assumed they were going to end up together, as that’s how this kind of romantic fiction tends to work, but couldn’t really see how it could happen based on their casual, apparently random and very brief meeting.

So it’s no surprise when the young man turns up as a guest at the houseparty, claiming an old friendship with the host. Caroline thinks there’s something odd about this, but it’s not her place to ask questions and she’s more concerned with trying to look after her employer who is worried about a valuable jewel being stolen. It seems as though there might be some justification for this, when Caroline’s room has obviously been rifled in her absence…

It’s not a long novel; I read it in about three hours on a flight that would otherwise have been quite boring, and found myself engrossed almost from the start. I was concerned it might be a bit too scary for my tastes, but the amount of tension proved to be just right: it kept me reading, wondering what was going on and how it would be resolved, but without any real sense of dread.  There are quite a few different characters but I quickly worked out - and remembered - the ones that mattered, seeing them all through Caroline’s eyes as the weekend progresses.

There are some surprises, some unexpected revelations, and the inevitable (albeit very low-key) romance.  I thought it was very well done, within the bounds of a pocket-novel or novella format, with a positive outcome… and then an epilogue that complemented the story nicely, though to say anything else would be too much of a spoiler.

Definitely recommended if you want a quick, light and engrossing read that doesn’t take more than a few hours.

Review copyright 2022 Sue's Book Reviews