A whimsical story, featuring adventure, very old gentlemen, books, underground caves and rivers, and a delightful surprise for a very loving girl.

Henrietta is ten, her adopted brother Hugh Anthony about to celebrate his birthday. However most of the characters in the book are adults, the majority quite elderly. It's a children's book, but I don't know many children nowadays who would appreciate it, other than, perhaps, voracious and eclectic readers of between about nine and twelve.

However, for adults who like Goudge's writing, steeped in history and cathedral culture, it's a pleasant book. It's set entirely in the real world despite some bizarre circumstances and coincidences. I read it in just a couple of days. ( )

Délicieux conte à demi féerique, en anglais, que j'ai traduit. ( )