L. M. BostonRecensioni

This is such a charming, spooky, old-timey book. It is full of mysterious magic, but very little actual adventure or plot. Despite this I really enjoyed it and found the little boy and his grandmother a delightful pair.

This was sweet, but it definitely could've been written better. There was very little action or plot, it was mostly the main character learning about his family history through stories and meeting the ghosts of his ancestors. The opportunity for an adventure scene only lasted about 10 pages or less, and I wished Green Knowe could've been built up more. It's literally what the novel and manor are named after.

This is a hard one for me to review. I think if you read it as a child, it's going to have a really strong pull - it speaks to something about what it is to be a small, imaginative child, particularly a small, imaginative, only child, that I don't think I've ever seen represented in prose before. It's a favorite book of a close friend of mine, who read it when young, but I didn't read it for the first time until I was almost 30. It doesn't have the same pull for me - I don't really see how it could.

It's a relatively free-form story, almost a "sandbox" story in the way we talk about video games where characters can explore environments at will and at their own pace. Predominantly, it's about a young boy arriving to stay with his great-grandmother at Christmas, and exploring the house and grounds that have been in his family for over 400 years. He and the great-grandmother strike up a special relationship, and she tells him about a trio of his ancestors who lived as happy children in the same house. They died in the Great Plague, and soon, by playing with their toys and engaging in their games, the boy realizes that their ghosts are still there.

This is not a scary book, although there are one or two dark moments. The ghost children are kind presences, and the overall tone is a dreamy one that pushes gently toward whimsy. The protagonist, Tolly, is fascinated by everything he sees; his mind goes into overdrive as he imagines how his ghostly relatives were inspired by the same house, the same gardens, the same topiaries. He leaves sugar cubes for a legendary horse in the stable and pretends that a ceramic mouse is alive in his pocket. It isn't really a question whether or not he's dreaming, or whether or not the children are really there - it's all kind of a blur, without a lot of boundaries, and mostly we are simply aware that both Tolly and his grandmother are pleased by what they experience. There is a great love of the natural world, too; does it really matter if the squirrel and the mole and the hare that Tolly sees are the same ones those long-ago children named and tamed? No, it doesn't - everything is in its place and all's right with the world.

I'll be honest and say that I, personally, usually prefer a children's book with just a little bit more to it. I don't mind the "sandbox" idea of drifting without a really defined plot, but I think it would work better for me with some slightly more contrasting characters involved. The most enjoyable bits of the book, to me, are the rare ones where the gardener, Boggis, brings his somewhat earthy pragmatism into the "airy" world Tolly inhabits (and which his grandmother supports). There's a gentle conflict of personalities there that is very appealing without being abrasive in any way. Having one, more central character exhibit a stronger down-to-earth perspective, or even a dry sense of humor, would have punctured some of the "fairy tale"-ness that, for me, simply goes on too long without tonal variation. I can see how other people might like that undisturbed "golden glow," though.

Happily, I think the final quarter moves the story from merely good to very good, at least for me. The magic (or whatever you wish to call it) is at its height, and there's a sequence of genuine terror, offset by the joy of a Christmas Day that includes feeding all the animals who find their homes on the grounds. At that point I'm content to let the book be as dreamy and sweet as it wants to be without any further complaint: after all, it's Christmas!½

Fascinating story. Kind of sad. I reread One and Only Ivan to compare. I was startled by the differences in zoos from the time of Green Knowe to the more modern Ivan where the zoo was a goal of a great place to live. I read this with my book group and we mostly enjoyed it. It was fun to learn about Lucy Boston and her inspiration for the book.

A young boy (Tolly) visiting his grandmother at Green Knowe, works with the ghosts of children who had once lived there, to discover the final resting place of a long lost family treasure. Two of the ghosts are of a blind girl (daughter of Captain Oldknow, who was a former owner of Green Knowe), and a young, rescued slave-boy (Jacob), who was eventually adopted by the Captain as his son. Warnings: some characters use extremely racist and vile language when referring to Jacob, and they treat him cruelly when the Captain is away. They are also cruel and callous in their treatment of the blind girl when her father is out of town. There is an episode when Green Knowe is on fire, and Jacob races into the burning building to rescue the blind girl, who is his dearest friend.

A young boy (Tolly) visits his grandmother in an old English mannor house called Green Knowe. He meets and eventually befriends the ghosts of the long-dead children, who had lived in Green Knowe centuries before.

It wasn't what I expected. Perhaps my opinion was tainted by memories of Pope's Sherwood Ring which caters more to girls. Or maybe it was Helquist, who, as whimsical and fantastic as he is, doesn't really prep you for the story you get. I'm rather sad that I didn't read this one first and, probably more important, that I didn't read it before I was 13 or so. Not that I wouldn't recommend it. It nicely alternates between action and a homey sort of style that really is perfect for evening storytelling.

The boy is on a visit at a family home. He has lots of adventures and run-ins with ghosts. Fun tale for kids.

This book collates two of the books in this classic children's series published between the 1950s and 1970s. The original Children of Green Knowe is a lovely atmospheric story of a seven year old boy Tolly's stay at the ancient house of his great grandmother Mrs Oldknow, where the present merges with the past and Tolly meets the spirits of children who lived in the house in the 17th century. River of Green Knowe is actually the third in the series not the second and I didn't enjoy it anywhere near as much. It had no characters in common with the first book and concerned the adventures of three children staying in Green Knowe, Ida, Ping and Oskar on the river, and it doesn't feel like the same place as in the first book. I thought this almost entirely lacked the atmosphere of its predecessor, apart from one mysterious timeslip sequence near the end. 5/5 for Children, 3/5 for River, so 4/5 overall

Well not quite 4 stars, but nearly. The story is a bit twee but has lived with me ever since - much helped by the illustrations (woodcuts?) by her son Peter Boston. They are quite frightening and a glimpse of what Lucy Boston could have unleashed on us children if she had so minded. I think I should try one of her adult books and maybe visit the house near Huntingdon.

I am not sure why I have never read these books before. I bought it after finding the film 'From Time to Time'. The whole concept is lovely and Lucy's story telling was superb. I don't seem to be reading the books in order but I will be reading them all.

Weird, weird book. I'm looking forward to reading what others have to say about it.

First off (and it's not the book's fault) for some reason I was expecting a kid's time-travel fantasy, a la Tom's Midnight Garden or something like. That didn't happen.

Instead, it was a beautifully written but strangely, strangely plotted novel where almost nothing happens. I have no idea what the market for this book is/was. The protagonist is a boy who actually gets excited about sitting in a rocking horse for half an hour at a time, and yet any child for whom that occupation would actually appeal would be years too young to follow this story.

Here's what happens, no real spoilers because nothing actually takes place: a boy goes to a house and gradually gets to know the ghosts who live there. Or (perhaps I've read too many adult novels, I am 53 after all) is he simply going mad, along with his mad great-grandmother? Are the events that happen real, a shared delusion, or are they kind of unintentionally gas-lighting each other?

(You can see from my issues above that the book is too sophisticated (and dull) for the "riding horsie" set).

There's a hint of a plot (a tragic curse!) but it doesn't take place until 80% of the way through, doesn't make sense, and is shortly wrapped up.

And yet the writing is wonderful, so long as you're not particularly interested in interesting events happening in an exciting order. Here's a lovely paragraph of Tolly's first visit to the dreary local church:

"the first impression that he received was the mixed smell of incense and clammy mold, with the mold predominating. There were a few other people there, dingy, unromantic townsfolk, no children at all. The church was battered and dank, festooned with cobwebs round the windows, carpeted like a kitchen with brown coconut matting and bleakly lit with electric light ... there was a huge picture hanging on the wall on his left that was so horrifying that he kept one hand up to the side of his face like a blinker in case he should see it by accident."

I mean, you couldn't ask for a clearer description. I see that church! But without pacing and a plot, and without a sense that the author was aware that her cast seemed congenitally insane, it's all a bit unsettling. (It doesn't help that I've just read Joan Aiken's Black Hearts in Battersea, which is very well-plotted, lively, and bursting with vivid characters.)

This is a nitpick, but it also troubles me that a very elderly lady lives alone in a lovely old manor house with apparently no servants (just an outside gardener/handyman/cliché named Boggis), or are we meant to infer them as well? Weird book!

(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s).

Just as Lucy Boston describes here, as we passed her garden gate many years ago, hoping only for a distant peep at "Green Knowe", she invited us in to look at the magical garden of yews and willows. She must have been well approaching one hundred, but was still sprightly and very much with it. The most special "famous person" I have met, apart from Desmond Tutu many years later at St Albans.

After a random rewatch of From Time to Time, with Maggie Smith and Dominic West, I thought I would try (one of) the Green Knowe books. Not really my style - very Enid Blyton, and horribly dated and racist - but a good story for children, based on the author's own house. Nine year old schoolboy Tolly goes to stay with his great-grandmother and visit with the 'ghosts' of children from another time. In between adventures reminscent of The Secret Garden, Mrs Oldknow recounts the story of Jacob, an African slave bought to be a companion to the blind daughter of the house. She talks like she was there at the time, which makes no sense, but perhaps she means that she was introduced to the children at a young age too.

Recommended, but I would perhaps suggest the adaptation over the books!

When twin sisters Mickey and Mouse dicover a tiny house, no bigger than a mushroom, in their farm's orchard, they observe a ladybird (AKA ladybug) taking up residence, and vow to bring the new home-owner some honey. When they return the next day however, they find that the house has grown to twice its size, and is now inhabited by a bee. By the third day the house is as big as a doll's house, and hosts a green and blue lizard. Over the course of the following days the house continues to grow, sheltering two adorable puppies - Pudding and Pie, whom the girls adopt - then two badgers, a fallow deer, and finally an Ogre. By this stage the house has attracted the attention of the twins' parents, who ring the Planning Office in indignation. When the Planning Officer is routed by the Ogre, the girls call in the White Witch, who puts the Ogre to flight, and helps the girls resolve the issue with the Planning Office...

Published in 1969 and long out-of-print, this rather odd little short story is not one I would have sought out, were I not such an admirer of its author, L.M. Boston. I have read all of Boston's Gree Knowe books, her play, The Horned Man; Or, Whom Will You Send To Fetch Her Away?, and all (so I believed) her stand-alone children's books, from The Sea Egg to (my personal favorite) The Guardians of the House. I was therefore delighted recently to learn of the existence of The House That Grew, and lost no time in seeking it out, through inter-library loan. I found the story interesting, although certainly not up to the standard of many of Boston's other work. I wondered a bit at the names of the twins - was it some kind of reference to Disney's Mickey Mouse, and if so, with what significance? In the end, much to my surprise, I found that it was illustrator Caroline Hemming's artwork that I most enjoyed here. Done in black and white, with each panel featuring a black background with stylized figures in white on it, these illustrations were quite striking. I liked Hemming's animals more than her people, but even so, I came away with a desire to see more of her work. I'm not familiar with her name, and am unsure if she has any other titles, but if she has, I'd like to track them down. Recommended to L.M. Boston completists, if they can track it down, and to anyone who enjoys quirky fairy-tale-like stories for children.

Nice, though I don't enjoy their magical adventures as much as Tolly's - they're sort of disconnected and random. The descriptions, however, are even better - when they close their eyes and tell what they hear on the river, it's wonderful. A bit of casual racism at the beginning; Hsu doesn't seem to mind being called Ping, and in fact he's as talkative as either of the others, but still. And more of the same at their first meal. Hmph. There's a faint flavor of Swallows and Amazons to some of their adventures, though S&A never had the magic touch most of theirs do. Fun, though not my favorite Green Knowe story. And it ends very abruptly - I was expecting at least a leavetaking, but it just stops.½

I do love Children of Green Knowe - I like Tolly, and enjoy his adventures. The matter-of-fact way magic just sort of happens is lovely. I also love the descriptions - the everyday English countryside, and all the bits of secret around Green Knowe. And a lovely ending, after one very scary scene. I know how it ends - I've read it probably a dozen times over the years - and I still hold my breath and shiver in that dark night.½

Two rereads. I do love Children of Green Knowe - I like Tolly, and enjoy his adventures. The matter-of-fact way magic just sort of happens is lovely. I also love the descriptions - the everyday English countryside, and all the bits of secret around Green Knowe. And a lovely ending, after one very scary scene. I know how it ends - I've read it probably a dozen times over the years - and I still hold my breath and shiver in that dark night. The River at Green Knowe - nice, though I don't enjoy their magical adventures as much - they're sort of disconnected and random. The descriptions, however, are even better - when they close their eyes and tell what they hear on the river, it's wonderful. A bit of casual racism at the beginning; Hsu doesn't seem to mind being called Ping, and in fact he's as talkative as either of the others, but still. And more of the same at their first meal. Hmph. There's a faint flavor of Swallows and Amazons to some of their adventures, though S&A never had the magic touch most of theirs do. Fun, though not my favorite Green Knowe story.

Tolly spends his summer holiday at Green Knowe with his great-grandmother, befriends more of the house's ghosts and learns their stories.
I just love this series. So perfectly magic-in-the-everyday-ical. And I love that Charlie is enjoying it, too.½

The Children of Green Knowe - Boston
Audio performance by Simon Vance
5 stars

This is the wonderful first book of a children’s fantasy series. Green Knowe is an ancient manor house. When Tolly arrives for his school holidays, it’s only other inhabitant is his Great Grandmother. It’s only other living inhabitant. Green Knowe has an empty stable yard, topiary in the gardens, antiques in the dusty rooms, and ghosts of past residents. It’s the perfect place for a lonely child to spend his Christmas break.

It was the perfect book to reread at the end of a hectic season.

A little boy goes to live with his grandmother in an ancient house. He eventually finds there are the ghosts of 3 children who had lived there in medieval times.
Very interesting piece of children's fiction -a pleasant but eerie ghost story. It has a kind of Turn of the Screw vibe to it, but there's nothing terribly sinister, at least in this volume, the first in a series of books.
It has great atmosphere and sense of place.There is a measure of thematic richness. The ending is a bit of a let down, feeling a bit too much like a celebration of class privilege. Prior to that it was cruising for a 4 star evaluation...½

A boy comes to live with his great-grandmother in the ancestral family home and makes friends with the ghosts of three children who live there, too. I love this series (a re-read for me, and Charlie's first time - this was our bedtime read for the past few weeks); Tolly is such a great character, as is Mrs. Oldknow, and Boggis, and the children, and the story as a whole is so wonderfully, quietly magical.½

The Children of Green Knowe, the first of Boston's six books about the fictional manor house, Green Knowe, was a commended runner up for the 1954 Carnegie Medal.[7][a] The novel concerns the visit of a young boy, Toseland, to the magical house, Green Knowe. The house is tremendously old, dating from the Norman Conquest, and has been continually inhabited by Toseland's ancestors, the d'Aulneaux family, later called Oldknowe or Oldknow. Toseland crosses floodwaters by night to reach the house, to spend the Christmas holidays with his great-grandmother, Linnet Oldknow, who addresses him as "Tolly".

Over the course of the novel, Tolly explores the rich history of his family, which pervades the house like magic. He begins to encounter what appear to be the spirits of three of his forebears—an earlier Toseland (nicknamed Toby), Alexander, and an earlier Linnet—who lived in the reign of Charles II. These meetings are for the most part not frightening to Tolly; they continually reinforce his sense of belonging that the house engenders. In the evenings, Mrs. Oldknow (whom Tolly calls "Granny") entertains Tolly with stories about the house and those who lived there. Surrounded by the rivers and the floodwater, sealed within its ancient walls, Green Knowe is a sanctuary of peace and stability in a world of unnerving change. (Wikipedia)

Well not quite 4 stars, but nearly. The story is a bit twee but has lived with me ever since - much helped by the illustrations (woodcuts?) by her son Peter Boston. They are quite frightening and a glimpse of what Lucy Boston could have unleashed on us children if she had so minded. I think I should try one of her adult books and maybe visit the house near Huntingdon.

Patron recommended at the library; also recommended the movie From Time to Time.

A gentle, imaginative fantasy that starts with a young boy arriving at his great-grandmother's house at Christmas break on a flood. Tolly's parents are abroad, but at his Granny's house he finds a kind soul, and the friendly, if teasing, ghosts of three children - Alexander, Toby, and Linnet - who died in the Plague. Gently infused with wonder, and containing stories-within-stories (the one about Alexander's horse, Festy, was my favorite), The Children of Green Knowe is a good choice for anyone interested in English children's stories with a bit of magic.½