Elizabeth Jane Howard Cazalet Chronicle 4 Books Set,

Cazalet Chronicles #1-4

by Elizabeth Jane Howard

Acquaint yourselves with the Cazalets in this four-book collection from the bestselling author Elizabeth Jane Howard. Tracing the lives of three generations of the Cazalet family, the books are full of heartache, fear and loneliness as the three Cazalet brothers revisit their childhood home during the wartime period of 1937 to 1945. Vividly bringing this era to life, the books focus on the changes both in society and in the brothers' personal lives as family issues come to the fore... A fascinating saga for anyone interested in historical fiction.
As heard on Radio 4's Woman's Hour.

Books in this collection

Confusion
The Light Years
Casting Off
Marking Time

Paperback

About the author

Elizabeth Jane Howard, CBE, was an English novelist. She was an actress and a model before becoming a novelist. In 1951, she won the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize for her first novel, The Beautiful Visit. Six further novels followed, before she embarked on her best known work, a four novel family saga (i.e., The Cazalet Chronicles) set in wartime Britain. The Light Years, Marking Time, Confusion, and Casting Off were serialised by Cinema Verity for BBC television as The Cazalets (The Light Years, Marking Time, Confusion and Casting Off). She has also written a book of short stories, Mr Wrong, and edited two anthologies.

Her last novel in The Cazalet Chronicles series, "ALL CHANGE", was published in November 2013.

Reviews

[Julia Herdman]

I think Elizabeth Jane Howard is a wonderful writer - everything in her books seems authentic. I feel that I am there in the room with her characters which are mainly drawn from her own family and their friends and acquaintances. With each book you enter the lives of the characters living their hopes and fears. I think they are masterful.

[Maura]

Wow. I've been living a parallel life this past month, experiencing family life among the extended Cazalet clan. Some might find it a bit soap opera-ish, but at the beginning it reminded me of Delderfield novels, full of day to day dramas of ordinry people, but in a time and place different from my own life. This saga covers four generations of the family from just before WWII to the late 50's in England. Originally published as 4 or 5 books, the earliest ones seem to me the strongest. Some of the later ones slow down or present characters who aren't as likeable. The chapters become short and choppy as the author tries to keep up with all the family members, but the ending is fairly satisfactory as the cast makes their exits.