A Year and a Day

by William Mayne, John Lawrence (Illustrator)

Originally published in 1976, this classic tale captures the joys and struggles of a fairy child who, after being abandoned in the human world, is adopted by a human family for one year and a day.

Genres: Childrens

126 pages, Hardcover

First published January 28, 1990

About the author

William Mayne was a British writer of children's fiction. Born in Hull, he was educated at the choir school attached to Canterbury Cathedral and his memories of that time contributed to his early books. He lived most of his life in North Yorkshire.

He was described as one of the outstanding children's authors of the 20th Century by the Oxford Companion to Children's Literature, and won the Carnegie Medal in 1957 for A Grass Rope and the Guardian Award in 1993 for Low Tide. He has written more than a hundred books, and is best known for his Choir School quartet comprising A Swarm in May, Choristers' Cake, Cathedral Wednesday and Words and Music, and his Earthfasts trilogy comprising Earthfasts, Cradlefasts and Candlefasts, an unusual evocation of the King Arthur legend.

A Swarm in May was filmed by the Children's Film Unit in 1983 and a five-part television series of Earthfasts was broadcast by the BBC in 1994.

William Mayne was imprisoned for two and a half years in 2004 after admitting to charges of child sexual abuse and was placed on the British sex offenders' register. His books were largely removed from shelves, and he died in disgrace in 2010.

Reviews

[Capn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bittersweet. A year and a day in the lives of a Cornish village family of yesteryear, who take in a Changeling boy they Christen 'Adam'.

"Loss mends," said Mother. "But there'm ever a patch showing."

Learned a few Cornish words in the process: bowjey, which I surmise means 'cow-shelter' but never found a good reference (I can't tell if it's in the OED, because I don't have access to it, being but a simple peasant and all... grr); and milpreve which is the Cornish word for Hag Stone (read, don't watch, Coraline, for another example. Learned all kinds of info from Wikipedia on the adderstone front today - worth a gander).

I'm honestly beginning to think that I just don't enjoy Mayne's writing style, though this one was easier to get through, dialect-wise. Seems as if many of his sentences are front-to-back for me, and I'm a student of the German language, so you'd think I'd be fine with that.. but no. And now that I go to search for an example, I can't seem to find one you'd find very convincing. So I'm left wondering if it's just me. :S Ah well. I'll get around to reading A Swarm in May sometime, I suppose. But this is my fourth Mayne book, and I always get that same feeling about the syntax.

All in all, the book is sweet and a little sad. Keeping it for the sweet illustrations (Walker 'Treasures' hardcover, 2000?, illustrated by John Lawrence ISBN: 0744567548 or 9780744567540.. suspect that there might be a mismatch there, because when I updated my progress on the app, it switched editions on me and I had to monkey around with it, which annoys me to no end). Will make sure it's listed in Listopia under Cornish Children's books and Changelings. ;)

[Charlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting Cornish tale of a poor family who adopt a fairy child for a year and a day. Both twin daughters are delighted by the appearance of the small, naked boy who does not walk, speak, eat or sleep, and determine to care for him and teach him. The parents want to make sure he isn't lost and has a family looking for him. There are good descriptions of the girls' feelings, their ups and downs, their worry that the child will be taken away from them and need to go to the Rector or to the Foundling Home.

[Neile · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of William Mayne's most charming stories. Even though it's for younger readers it's typically gorgeously written with loving insights about the characters and the world they live in. This story is about two very close sisters who find a naked boy in the woods--the boy doesn't eat, sleep, or speak, and the village witch says he'll only be with them a year and a day.

I'm sickened that I can't love this writer as much as his work, but still find his writing magical.

[Mir · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tiny, delicate story about a poor family who adopts an odd, wordless foundling boy.

[Sharon Buxton · Rating 2 out of 5]

C-. fiction, children's fiction, fantasy, folklore, Cornwall, foundling, magic, Mom's stash, discard

[Doodles McC · Rating 1 out of 5]

As a child I was not fussed on this short children's story from the 70's

[Kiwi Carlisle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a strange little story, full of Cornish folkways. It seems to be set in the early 19th century, but has a timeless air. It's a classic changeling tale, but rich in unexpected details. It seems to have been written for younger children, and is suitable for them if they aren't put off by the use of dialect and the occasional untranslatable Cornish word.