A meditative book on fresh beginnings. I suspect that Elizabeth Goodge was writing "magic realism" long before the term was coined. Here there is perhaps a little too much of the magic/spiritual element, which does make the story somewhat slow, however if you perservere there's a quiet story of broken people finding healing - in part thanks to the catalyst of two people whose arrival sets off a chain reaction of self awareness and healing in a quiet English village. Not perhaps her best - I'd recommend starting with one of her other books (The Elliots series, or The Little White Horse), but still plenty of food for thought. I realised I hadn't read this one when I discovered that this book had be plagiarised (almost word for word) as the Indian novel "Crane's Morning", ending in the tragic suicide of the plagiariser - which makes me wonder if they understood any of the message of this book... ( )

A relaxing book from the late 1950s revolving around a delightfully vague vicar and his wife. Lovely word pictures of each individual are drawn, with a clear understanding of temperament differences and high sensitivity. A bit long-winded and over-descriptive in places, but overall extremely enjoyable.

I liked it even more the second time I read it; this is not a book to read quickly, but one to savour. Excellent characterisation, lovely places, gentle Christian themes. ( )

Encore une histoire de domaine, de maison à l'influence magique, d'amitié et d'enfance. ( )