Winter Solstice in Around the World in 80 Books

Dec 24, 2023 Laura rated it it was amazing

Shelves: library, cozy-comforts, 2023, libby, ill-request, bricks, audio-avail-ill, ashley-s-list, interlibloan, favorite-authors

What a perfect holiday (or really anytime) read! I loved this, and just like every book by this author, even though it was long, I’d have been happy with another 200 or so pages. I’m determined to read all of her work.

Elfrida Phipps was once on the London stage and is now retired at 62. This and other life changes lead her to move to the British countryside, and we find her at the beginning of the novel, having settled in for just over a year in her cozy village cottage in Hampshire.

A rather s What a perfect holiday (or really anytime) read! I loved this, and just like every book by this author, even though it was long, I’d have been happy with another 200 or so pages. I’m determined to read all of her work.

Elfrida Phipps was once on the London stage and is now retired at 62. This and other life changes lead her to move to the British countryside, and we find her at the beginning of the novel, having settled in for just over a year in her cozy village cottage in Hampshire.

A rather sudden, tragic event occurs, and in the aftermath, Elfrida and four other people (one 60-ish, a teen, and a couple of thirty-somethings) are drawn together at Christmastime. (The biggest part of the story takes place way before Christmas, but by the time of the winter solstice, they have all come together.)

I first found this author’s work with her novel, Coming Home. That book is around 1000 pages and the audiobook was upwards of forty hours. I never wanted it to end. How often does that happen?! Usually by the end of a long book, I’m glad to be finished.

This one is about half the size, but Pilcher has a way of creating such a wonderful community of people in some sort of picturesque setting, usually near the sea, and I just never want to leave. (We wind up in the north of Scotland near the sea by the close of this one, but not before spending some time in the Cotswolds.)

What a cozy, wonderful, feel-good read. It’s possible I enjoyed this one even more than Coming Home, and finishing it on the winter’s solstice was just perfect. I so wish she had written a sequel, as I would love to see how all of the characters’ lives turned out! The younger ones, especially, were at pivotal points. (Rosamunde, Resurrect! Please 🙏🏻)

There are at least two audio versions of this. I prefer Lisa Burgett’s version to Jilly Bond’s, which became a bit squeaky at times. Both are available on Libby, but Audible only has the Bond version, I believe.

If you’re in the mood for a cozy escape read where a group of people come together to help each other, this may be exactly the book you’ve been looking for. Apparently a bunch of ppl read this every year, and next year, I may be joining them. 😀

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!

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Oct 20, 2007 Pam rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I love the settings & the characters in Pilcher's book. She has a knack for making the rather ordinary (Oscar, the church organist who remained a bachelor until late mid-life) seem unique & the rather non-conventional (Elfrida, the London actress) seem cozy, warm & motherly. Set mostly in Scotland, w/ an assortment of extended family members. ...more

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Dec 05, 2020 Stacey rated it it was amazing

I absolutely loved this book. The characters were people you pray you meet, but they are also normal and relatable. So good. It is a book to savor a bit and I think it will be one I return to in winter, when I need a jolly good bunch to shine some light on the dark months. There was sadness and tragedy but it was met with kindness and understanding, quiet consolation. I found myself imaging living in a stone cottage in Creagan, it made me curious for Scotland and more of this authors work to tra ...more

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Jan 05, 2023 Janet rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites

Perfect cozy read for December, a sweet story that takes place around Christmas time in England and Scotland. The main character Elfrida is a wonderfully kind and caring woman, so likeable you'll wish you knew her irl. ...more

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Dec 08, 2021 Julie Griffin rated it it was amazing

Reading this tale of an older widower and retired actor, who navigate grief, loneliness and change during late autumn and winter months leading up to Christmas, is a pure joy such as many feel watching Holiday Inn or It's A Wonderful Life yet again over the holiday season. It's gentle, nostalgic, filled with honorable and loveable characters that you root for, and you want to step in and be part of it yourself. I could easily see this book becoming an annual tradition, along with the old classic Reading this tale of an older widower and retired actor, who navigate grief, loneliness and change during late autumn and winter months leading up to Christmas, is a pure joy such as many feel watching Holiday Inn or It's A Wonderful Life yet again over the holiday season. It's gentle, nostalgic, filled with honorable and loveable characters that you root for, and you want to step in and be part of it yourself. I could easily see this book becoming an annual tradition, along with the old classic films. Maybe Emma Thompson could be aged and play the wonderful Elfrida in a film version of its own?
Elfrida is recovering from the death of her partner and needs a change, so the Londoner drops by the animal shelter and adopts Horace ( a full character in his own right in the book) and heads off to a tiny cottage she bought in rural England. A dramatic tall bohemian with flaming orange hair, Elfrida is generous and engaging and soon becomes friends with a couple who run the social circle in the area. Elfrida is particularly drawn to Oscar, and thus is open to supporting and accompanying him to a small house in Sutherland, Scotland, when a tragedy happens and he loses his home.
Oscar withdraws and Elfrida carries on as best she can supporting him and making new friends in the village. Her cousin's child, Carrie, calls her out of the blue, back home from Austria, with her niece in tow, and they join the little household for the Christmas holiday. Under the influence of time, and love, and the younger people in the house, Oscar begins to bloom like the lilies Lucy buys for her elderly relative. We bloom and luxuriate in the crackling fires and friendships and the walks on the beach with Horace, as a new character knocks on the door one dark snowy evening. Who is this man who will bring great changes to them all, as well as new lives and some healing from grief?
Highly recommend this old fashioned, leisurely story to readers who enjoy family stories, holiday takes, and Scotland, as well as engaging characters that we come to love. Oh yes, and dogs. ...more

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