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Jingle Stones #1
Earthfasts
It starts with a noise reverberating in the hill. David and Keith see a boy appear from the ground, carrying a candle and beating a drum. He is an 18th-century drummer boy, who will have an irreversible effect on both their lives. Extraordinary things start to happen - standing stones move, giants stalk the hills, and wild boar rampage through the town. Then, David vanishes, and Keith must search through time for his friend...
In the forty years since its first publication, "Earthfasts" has become an indispensable classic.
In the forty years since its first publication, "Earthfasts" has become an indispensable classic.
202 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1966
2 people are currently reading
148 people want to read
About the author
William Mayne
135 books16 followersWilliam 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.
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.
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June 2, 2017It's so difficult to rate these books when such a talented author ended his career in disgrace. It is clear from his writing that he was an extremely creative, original writer. How he could write so well (perhaps one of the finest of the post-war writers for children) and still publish prolifically (several a year) is beyond me.
Earthfasts is extremely well written. As with Garner, he shows great respect for his readership hoping they will do the work in filling in the gaps when an unearthly presence wakes up beneath the grounds of Haw Bank. There is great power in this book. It lies within the land and as David and Keith attempt to use science to unravel it, they find that the answers that they seek hold no reason within the grasp of the physical and natural world as they know it. A candle who unquenching flame will not go out, giants on the fens and a king who has woken too early from his slumber - this is a haunting, supernatural masterpiece.
Earthfasts is extremely well written. As with Garner, he shows great respect for his readership hoping they will do the work in filling in the gaps when an unearthly presence wakes up beneath the grounds of Haw Bank. There is great power in this book. It lies within the land and as David and Keith attempt to use science to unravel it, they find that the answers that they seek hold no reason within the grasp of the physical and natural world as they know it. A candle who unquenching flame will not go out, giants on the fens and a king who has woken too early from his slumber - this is a haunting, supernatural masterpiece.
July 21, 2022
He understood that the lost places are in this world and belong to the people in it and are all that they have to call home.
. . .
There is a feeling that comes at times, that what is going on has happened before, and that if things would stop for a moment you would be able to prophesy the next event. Keith had that feeling, and more, at this moment. Instead of fading into the junk heap where dreams lie, it was growing into something more actual.
Never heard of this book or author, until I picked up this vintage Puffin from a little free library. I've since discovered that the story was made into a TV series in the 1990s (five short episodes, available on YouTube).
I am astonished sometimes how often it is the case that books aimed at younger readers used to be packed with sophisticated language and concepts. This one even has bits of Latin (untranslated in the text).
The haunting novel draws heavily on elements of folklore in Great Britain, including giants and boggarts (a boggart is a type of mischievous house spirit), elements of the legend of King Arthur, as well as the many tales and mysteries surrounding stone circles. There are waves of history depicted, including how much language has evolved over 200 years. Things that are long-buried, like stones in the field, sometimes make their way to the surface. Something glimpsed out of the corner of your eye can seem too incredible to believe. Lost things are found, unexpectedly. A reverie can be dangerously captivating.
I found this to be an impressive novel, and skillfully juggles the themes (the filmed version makes it all a bit silly — books can leave more to the reader's imagination).
Note: This review is intended to be entirely about this book, and not about its author.
. . .
There is a feeling that comes at times, that what is going on has happened before, and that if things would stop for a moment you would be able to prophesy the next event. Keith had that feeling, and more, at this moment. Instead of fading into the junk heap where dreams lie, it was growing into something more actual.
Never heard of this book or author, until I picked up this vintage Puffin from a little free library. I've since discovered that the story was made into a TV series in the 1990s (five short episodes, available on YouTube).
I am astonished sometimes how often it is the case that books aimed at younger readers used to be packed with sophisticated language and concepts. This one even has bits of Latin (untranslated in the text).
The haunting novel draws heavily on elements of folklore in Great Britain, including giants and boggarts (a boggart is a type of mischievous house spirit), elements of the legend of King Arthur, as well as the many tales and mysteries surrounding stone circles. There are waves of history depicted, including how much language has evolved over 200 years. Things that are long-buried, like stones in the field, sometimes make their way to the surface. Something glimpsed out of the corner of your eye can seem too incredible to believe. Lost things are found, unexpectedly. A reverie can be dangerously captivating.
I found this to be an impressive novel, and skillfully juggles the themes (the filmed version makes it all a bit silly — books can leave more to the reader's imagination).
Note: This review is intended to be entirely about this book, and not about its author.
August 25, 2022
I was taken ill halfway through reading this and lost my rhythm somewhat, so this is a shaky review. Although, that said, the book felt a bit queasy and shaky to begin with. I couldn't decide on a 3 or 4 so I rounded up.
Set in the Yorkshire Dales in a somewhat fictional village (Vendale, Garebridge and Garebridge Castle don't come up on GoogleMaps anyway, though Arkengarthdale and Eskeleth do), this book has a lot going on: a displaced 17th century military drummer boy, a boggart, standing stones that are really walking giants, missing pigs, a lone wild boar, and King Arthur and his sleeping knights. Also, two school boys, David Wix and Keith Heseltine, and their kith and kin.
The book was a bit shaky in that it seemed to jump from one unrelated bizarre circumstance to another. The book is divided into four parts (This Aye Night; Standing Stones; On Hare Trod; Fire and the Fleet and Candlelight), and they almost read like four separate stories. They all interweave and are concluded satisfyingly at the end, but I did find it a bit lurching in its structure.
I didn't particularly enjoy the writing style. I found the sentence structure a bit confusing and had to occasionally reread sentences to get the gist of it. And I was (and still am) confused by the climax: Maybe if I had more familiarity with Arthurian myth this would be self-evident.
Otherwise, it was a ripping yarn. I liked the characters, though I found the boys to be more sarcastic and in possession of a drier wit than those of boys in other "middle-grade" books. Once I caught on, I rather enjoyed the dialogue.
I have a couple of other books by Mayne to read before I decide if I like his writing.
Set in the Yorkshire Dales in a somewhat fictional village (Vendale, Garebridge and Garebridge Castle don't come up on GoogleMaps anyway, though Arkengarthdale and Eskeleth do), this book has a lot going on: a displaced 17th century military drummer boy, a boggart, standing stones that are really walking giants, missing pigs, a lone wild boar, and King Arthur and his sleeping knights. Also, two school boys, David Wix and Keith Heseltine, and their kith and kin.
The book was a bit shaky in that it seemed to jump from one unrelated bizarre circumstance to another. The book is divided into four parts (This Aye Night; Standing Stones; On Hare Trod; Fire and the Fleet and Candlelight), and they almost read like four separate stories. They all interweave and are concluded satisfyingly at the end, but I did find it a bit lurching in its structure.
I didn't particularly enjoy the writing style. I found the sentence structure a bit confusing and had to occasionally reread sentences to get the gist of it. And I was (and still am) confused by the climax: Maybe if I had more familiarity with Arthurian myth this would be self-evident.
Otherwise, it was a ripping yarn. I liked the characters, though I found the boys to be more sarcastic and in possession of a drier wit than those of boys in other "middle-grade" books. Once I caught on, I rather enjoyed the dialogue.
I have a couple of other books by Mayne to read before I decide if I like his writing.
January 6, 2017
Jan. - Award winner
A curious book, kind of in the vein of some of Alan Garner's work. It's got time slips and history and other supernatural things. I liked the beginning of the book much more than the end. There are a few strands that don't seem to come together, making it less than entirely satisfying. The acceptance of the supernatural by some characters isn't convincingly presented or explained.
The Yorkshire vernacular is hard enough for me without the archaic words thrown in - I have a difficult time knowing which is which.
I did like the characterization of the two boys, David and Keith. It was quite realistic, with little jealousies and scrapping occasionally poking through. Too many friends in novels of this kind are just perfect teammates and the conflict is between them and something else. Here, there was - maybe not conflict, but a roughness underlying the action that was refreshing and true.
I'm leaning toward not reading the (much) later sequels. I think it can stand on its own.
Oh, and the revelations about Mayne have nothing to do with this book (or any of his books). Calling them "tainted" is just nonsense.
A curious book, kind of in the vein of some of Alan Garner's work. It's got time slips and history and other supernatural things. I liked the beginning of the book much more than the end. There are a few strands that don't seem to come together, making it less than entirely satisfying. The acceptance of the supernatural by some characters isn't convincingly presented or explained.
The Yorkshire vernacular is hard enough for me without the archaic words thrown in - I have a difficult time knowing which is which.
I did like the characterization of the two boys, David and Keith. It was quite realistic, with little jealousies and scrapping occasionally poking through. Too many friends in novels of this kind are just perfect teammates and the conflict is between them and something else. Here, there was - maybe not conflict, but a roughness underlying the action that was refreshing and true.
I'm leaning toward not reading the (much) later sequels. I think it can stand on its own.
Oh, and the revelations about Mayne have nothing to do with this book (or any of his books). Calling them "tainted" is just nonsense.
August 19, 2021
One of my favourite books over more than 40 years. I still love the way it can take me into a place of menace and danger and cheer my heart as well as chilling it.
The book was an early introduction to dialect. In this case probably written as accurately as the places the story takes place in, and the names which have been changed but remain totally authentic and in keeping. Despite the name changes, these days it is easy to find more or less exactly where it is set - but it is so vividly written that there is no need to do a tour on the ordinance survey or google maps - I already feel I know the place. The solid reality of the real world allows the supernatural to build convincingly, tricking the mind to allow you to cross from the mundane to the fantastical, effortlessly.
50 years after first reading this I have only just discovered that William Mayne wrote two more books and called the trilogy the jingle stones. I have ordered the next books with trepidation as they cannot live up to this one.
The book was an early introduction to dialect. In this case probably written as accurately as the places the story takes place in, and the names which have been changed but remain totally authentic and in keeping. Despite the name changes, these days it is easy to find more or less exactly where it is set - but it is so vividly written that there is no need to do a tour on the ordinance survey or google maps - I already feel I know the place. The solid reality of the real world allows the supernatural to build convincingly, tricking the mind to allow you to cross from the mundane to the fantastical, effortlessly.
50 years after first reading this I have only just discovered that William Mayne wrote two more books and called the trilogy the jingle stones. I have ordered the next books with trepidation as they cannot live up to this one.
June 12, 2021
Keith, the lawyer's on, and David the ultra-bright (and sometimes scathingly so) David the doctor's son unearth Nellie Jack John, a drummer boy who has been underground in a time-shift for the last two hundred years. Mysterious events happen in their Northern moorland town on the edge of Westmoreland.
David is the hero, in many ways, but he is a bit too wonderful. The story is seen mostly from the perspective of Keith, the hanger on and admirer, and this is a strength because it enables the portrait of David to be drawn. Furthermore, it is Keith who grows and learns and develops through the story; he is the true protagonist. And why shouldn't the hero be the one who is overshadowed?
It was first published in 1956 and the two boys enjoy a privileged middle-class background. I found it difficult to tell their ages. They are both at school and the drummer boy, who would probably have joined up at about the age of fourteen, is about their size (and people were smaller two hundred years ago) and that would suggest they are in their early teens. But David is not only clever (he translates Horace's Odes and knows all sorts of things) but he is also wise well beyond his years, even before his adventures: "It's a hire-purchase thought ... You think of it and buy it, and pay for it all the rest of your life." (1.5)
In the end I came to the conclusion that the two boys were late teens though still at school.
The book starts slowly, with several paragraphs about blackberry picking; modern stories try to go for the hook in the first few pages. One of its strengths is its observation:
"It was not a wind that closed eyes against specks and grit, but it did cover gutter water from washed pavements with a film of particles, and it made dogs look sideways at the corners of houses." (1.4)
"It was not pure nervousness but a sort of thin terror; something that went round inside them like some yellow acid, touching tender membranes and making inward parts recoil and tremble." (2.3)
"Both boys stopped. They had to, because their feet could not be lifted from the ground. Their muscles had tightened in some way that took all mobility from them." (2.3)
"The ground itself was dry and silent. When it is wet it always speaks." (3.3)
"Cigarette smoke lying like grey knitting round him in the still air." (3.4)
Another of the book's strengths is the very human predicament of the drummer boy who emerges into a world two hundred years after his time:
"He realized that no one could really imagine that there was a future longer than a lifetime, a future with no one in it you knew. From here and now time ahead was a hazy idea. It existed, yes, but completely without detail. Time went on, but straight into a wall. You could not even see a day ahead. Not to be here, now, was to be dead. The only thing you could hold on to at all was the actual present." (1.6)
A beautifully written book, especially lyrical about the countryside. It deals with the huge theme of loss. It manages to make supernatural events appear real by describing them in remorseless detail and embedding them in an utterly mundane everyday. Its only flaw is in the two heroes. They are, perhaps, of their time: precocious intellectually and with the capacity to understand emotions but hugely underdeveloped in other ways: neither has the least hint of any sexual interest in either girls or boys. I think modern readers would find these two lads very hard to relate to. The social setting is also of its time. It is also quite slow to get going and somewhat patchy in its narrative: a major character seems to be abandoned about a quarter of the way through; the chronology, though always linear, travels at very different speeds in different parts; the major turning point arrives about two-thirds of the way through.
David is the hero, in many ways, but he is a bit too wonderful. The story is seen mostly from the perspective of Keith, the hanger on and admirer, and this is a strength because it enables the portrait of David to be drawn. Furthermore, it is Keith who grows and learns and develops through the story; he is the true protagonist. And why shouldn't the hero be the one who is overshadowed?
It was first published in 1956 and the two boys enjoy a privileged middle-class background. I found it difficult to tell their ages. They are both at school and the drummer boy, who would probably have joined up at about the age of fourteen, is about their size (and people were smaller two hundred years ago) and that would suggest they are in their early teens. But David is not only clever (he translates Horace's Odes and knows all sorts of things) but he is also wise well beyond his years, even before his adventures: "It's a hire-purchase thought ... You think of it and buy it, and pay for it all the rest of your life." (1.5)
In the end I came to the conclusion that the two boys were late teens though still at school.
The book starts slowly, with several paragraphs about blackberry picking; modern stories try to go for the hook in the first few pages. One of its strengths is its observation:
"It was not a wind that closed eyes against specks and grit, but it did cover gutter water from washed pavements with a film of particles, and it made dogs look sideways at the corners of houses." (1.4)
"It was not pure nervousness but a sort of thin terror; something that went round inside them like some yellow acid, touching tender membranes and making inward parts recoil and tremble." (2.3)
"Both boys stopped. They had to, because their feet could not be lifted from the ground. Their muscles had tightened in some way that took all mobility from them." (2.3)
"The ground itself was dry and silent. When it is wet it always speaks." (3.3)
"Cigarette smoke lying like grey knitting round him in the still air." (3.4)
Another of the book's strengths is the very human predicament of the drummer boy who emerges into a world two hundred years after his time:
"He realized that no one could really imagine that there was a future longer than a lifetime, a future with no one in it you knew. From here and now time ahead was a hazy idea. It existed, yes, but completely without detail. Time went on, but straight into a wall. You could not even see a day ahead. Not to be here, now, was to be dead. The only thing you could hold on to at all was the actual present." (1.6)
A beautifully written book, especially lyrical about the countryside. It deals with the huge theme of loss. It manages to make supernatural events appear real by describing them in remorseless detail and embedding them in an utterly mundane everyday. Its only flaw is in the two heroes. They are, perhaps, of their time: precocious intellectually and with the capacity to understand emotions but hugely underdeveloped in other ways: neither has the least hint of any sexual interest in either girls or boys. I think modern readers would find these two lads very hard to relate to. The social setting is also of its time. It is also quite slow to get going and somewhat patchy in its narrative: a major character seems to be abandoned about a quarter of the way through; the chronology, though always linear, travels at very different speeds in different parts; the major turning point arrives about two-thirds of the way through.
June 23, 2017
Hugely powerful in its depiction of landscape and intense relationships, Earthfasts showcases Mayne well. Although the storylines can leave a lot of questions unanswered - not least how a small Pennine town can be rocked by a series of inexplicable events and then go back to its everyday life - there are some genuinely disturbing images here: the drummer in the hill; the inextinguishable candle; the boggart; the repressive darkness that stops one character in his tracks as he comes closer to an understanding of what is happening. There are more than echoes of Garner here, in the interrelationship between legend and landscape, and Mayne is not shy of exploring the same ambiguities around teen and adult relationships as Garner shows in Red Shift.
However, I have to say that I still am unsure what to make of the subtexts, of symbolism and narratives, that make me wonder quite what Mayne's "project" is here - or even whether he is conscious of some of the ideas he is playing with. That is the problem with Mayne: it seems impossible to read him without his disastrous and destructive personal life acting as a commentator on his writing. I have a lot more to think about.
However, I have to say that I still am unsure what to make of the subtexts, of symbolism and narratives, that make me wonder quite what Mayne's "project" is here - or even whether he is conscious of some of the ideas he is playing with. That is the problem with Mayne: it seems impossible to read him without his disastrous and destructive personal life acting as a commentator on his writing. I have a lot more to think about.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 27, 2017
A Puffin children's book from 1966 & it's an extraordinary piece of weird fantasy which had me scratching my head in befuddlement at its complex narrative & characterisation...not too mention its strange style & mood.Did children read this sort of stuff in the 1960s? I didn't! But then, I was no avid fan of fantasy or science-fiction & couldn't take Dr Whoooo tooooo seriously! This novel's time & shape-shifting left me with a sense of prize-winning author, William Mayne's mania for the esoteric & arcane; the novel's main protagonists, David & Keith, two primary-school-age boys in moorland Yorkshire, seemed too adult & knowing to be realistic, & the appearance of an 18th century drummer-boy, Nellie Jack John?!! only made me long for some simple explanation rather than some nonsense with earthfasts,& boggarts & cold candles! Wuthering Heights meets Enid Blyton meets Time Tunnel? Not my cup of Yorkshire Tea but I know readers who would lap it up from their flying saucer! Some great use of old Tyke dialect though, lad! Over & owt!!
July 29, 2022
Another that I wish I'd read as a child. It's magic up north, according to Mayne and Alan Garner....
Very convincing because of the prosaic mid-1960s reality of the Yorkshire market town the boys inhabit; fantasy always needs a "straight" background to set it off to its full advantage (even if the "straight" place is The Shire).
Reminiscent also of Catherine Fisher's fantasies,which were written somewhat later and are less good on plot (there is a reason for all the strange happenings in Earthfasts, and a satisfyingly logical "quest" ending.)
Very convincing because of the prosaic mid-1960s reality of the Yorkshire market town the boys inhabit; fantasy always needs a "straight" background to set it off to its full advantage (even if the "straight" place is The Shire).
Reminiscent also of Catherine Fisher's fantasies,which were written somewhat later and are less good on plot (there is a reason for all the strange happenings in Earthfasts, and a satisfyingly logical "quest" ending.)
December 20, 2018
After hearing strange sounds, Keith and his friend David find a drummer boy who seems to be out of his century, leading them on a mystery involving the secrets of a unstoppable candle, giants beyond the woods, and strange faces and figures in the mist...Mayne will keep readers guessing with this intriguing novel that, despite its clunky plot and flat characters, carries a sense of whimsy. What is it about the flames of that candle that have the boys wandering further and further into the past?
May 17, 2022
Two young boys in England come a drummer boy from under the hill from a time out of mind. Was he from King Arthur's time? Would they find King Arthur's treasure? A fantastical tale set in the past and modern times. I wouldn't have know what a boggart was unless I had read the Harry Potter series. suspenseful and and exciting ending.
December 29, 2023
After I wrote a cozy mystery (unpublished as of now) that included the Legend of the Lost Drummer Boy (Yorkshire, England), I discovered this children's novel that was loosely based on the same legend. The story was interesting but not captivating.
April 18, 2020
An 18th century English drummer boy returns to Earth carrying a candle that draws past and present together.
October 28, 2013
(3.5) Mayne's books are irremediably tainted by what we now know about him, so i'm unlikely to promote them up the reading pile or recommend them to the kids (it's not the books' fault, but how do you explain? and if not, why not? as they say in parliament) but this one has always haunted me. turns out i'd forgotten all the science experiments and the uncanny candle (although it's a nice touch) and even Arthur and his knights, and just remembered Nelly Jack John coming out of the hill beating his drum.
the plot itself doesn't feel organic, and the protaganists are definitely of the 70s - i don't think kids like this exist any more - but it contains some fantastic language, including a lot of dialect words that are always explained in context, and imagery. i'm not tempted to read the sequels though - the third one sounds dead strange.
the plot itself doesn't feel organic, and the protaganists are definitely of the 70s - i don't think kids like this exist any more - but it contains some fantastic language, including a lot of dialect words that are always explained in context, and imagery. i'm not tempted to read the sequels though - the third one sounds dead strange.
November 17, 2007
I checked this for the children's library I operate, and decided it was too mystical for our collection.
June 21, 2009
I love William Mayne's stuff. This one is an interesting twist on time travel and ancient legends - his favourite meat. Agreeably creepy; good characters.
February 16, 2016
Imaginative but uneven writing. Omniscient POV.
March 4, 2011
Still haven't really a clue what happened in this book. It jumped around all over the place too much for me.
April 18, 2012
As previously mentioned by another reviewer it is very jumpy. A dreadful book the characterisation was very stale.
May 21, 2015
time travel (sort of) weird
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