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Gentian Hill
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Gentian Hill Start date 7th of November NON SPOILER thread
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I have a lovely first U.S. edition with the dust jacket that was given to me years ago by my oldest friend, who introduced me to Elizabeth Goudge. A treasure on so many levels! It will be a few days before I can start reading but I’ll be joining soon.
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I'm wondering if mine is a British first edition. It says First printed 1949.
That’s the date of mine as well! And it doesn’t list any other copyright date so it sounds as if there were simultaneous first editions in England and the USA.
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Have just read the first chapter and loving Goudge’s lush descriptions as always.
I just started this morning, and already I'm inside Anthony's head. She has such clear-sighted compassion for humanity; she knows his despair is too quick because she knows we can always go farther than we think we can, but she's understanding of his thinking. She's such a human writer! I've read this before, but I think this is one of her books that requires re-reading to really get into!
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Yes, there is a real warmth to Goudge's writing!
I got mine on Kindle and haven't started yet. I am finishing a book with another group read so will be starting a little late.
By the way, here’s a link that shows pictures of gentians, if you don’t know what they look like: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gentian....
Abigail wrote: "By the way, here’s a link that shows pictures of gentians, if you don’t know what they look like: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gentian...."Is it gentians that are the star of Mary Stewart's Thunder on the Right? They're such a gorgeous blue, and I think my climate could support them, so why haven't I at least tried to grow them, I wonder?
I don’t remember whether there are gentians in Thunder on the Right, sigh. There is a native gentian in your state so I imagine you would be able to grow the cultivars, which are bluer and more striking.
Currently reading in chapter IX the scene where Zachary joins in singing and guiding the plow with Old Sol. So beautiful! “The oxen moved forward again, turning downhill, the white cloud of gulls rose and followed, and the old man’s voice, very frail, yet so sure and sensitive in pitch and tone, rose lonely and serene in the immemorial chant that his fathers had sung before him century after century over these same green hills.” The love for place and her power to evoke that place in this book are ravishing me right now.
I tried to find a recording of Devon plowing chants, but other than an obscure reference to the fact that farmers did chant, all I found was a miscellany of completely unrelated (and odd) things. It's sad how quickly traditions can disappear. Goudge had a talent for mentioning things that are now just about gone: the chanting here, the bodging in The Scent of Water, the telling of the bees in Linnets and Valerians, for starters. How sad to think that when she is no longer read, many of these old customs and traditions will be completely forgotten.
It is gentians that figure in Thunder on the Right, by the way, because of their clear blueness!
I looked up our native gentians, and they seem to be white and only grow naturally to the east of us, where there actually is a Gentian Lake! Not far as the crow flies, but quite a distance by car, because of the mountains and inaccessible terrain. Maybe next summer.
Once again, I'm struck by the classical knowledge Goudge so casually inserts into her stories and how it all ties together her love of the land's beauty and fairyland and the heavens. The story of Trygaeus, which brings Stella to the Doctor and starts her education, is one I would never have heard if not for our story.
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The cover of my copy (see message #1) has blue gentians. They have ended up scanning somewhat bleached out, but are a pretty pale blue on the actual cover.
Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂ wrote: "Karlyne wrote: "It is gentians that figure in Thunder on the Right, by the way, because of their clear blueness!"The cover of my copy (see message #1) has blue gentians. They have ended up scanni..."
My copy has a wooden-faced naval officer of mahogany hue being wrapped up by a long-haired siren. She's obviously saying, "Kiss me, you fool!" And he's saying, "Not now, woman!" It's so nineteen sixties it makes me laugh every time I pick the book up!
I am so enjoying how Goudge can create an atmosphere with her words and descriptions. I could hear Sol's singing echoing around the valley as he plowed, just as I could feel the tension of the sea battle and smell the sea and feel the salt spray as the deck rolled.
I revelled in Stella's visits to the orchard, loved that the trees all had names, and the story of Trygaeus was the ideal introduction to Stella's education.
I've just arrived at book three. I'm looking forward to the outcome of this beautifully told story.
I had marked these two sentences in a previous read (not with highlighter or underlining - so crude - but with [ and ] ): "Zachary had been brought up to believe that those who do right are happy. He found next morning that this is not necessarily the case."
It reminds me of C.S. Lewis' contention in one of the Narnia books that the reward for doing a good deed is often another, harder one. The irony is smile-worthy, but they're both truth.
Gotta love Goudge for never settling for the facile!
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Oh yes!
Abigail wrote: "Gotta love Goudge for never settling for the facile!"That's exactly it! There's always more to her than easiness!
I had to stop for a bit and read some other things but am happily back again. Must say I struggle with her exaltation of “glory” but am trying to remember that she wrote this in the aftermath of WW II. Loved one passages though, very characteristic of her thinking—about the Catholic priest: “Personal sanctity, after which he had striven with such desperation after his sojourn in the Irish monastery, was not enough. He had been regarding it as an end in itself instead of as that which determines the quality of what a man can do for his fellow men.” That seems to go to the heart of her worldview in all of her books that I’ve read so far.
Abigail wrote: "I had to stop for a bit and read some other things but am happily back again. Must say I struggle with her exaltation of “glory” but am trying to remember that she wrote this in the aftermath of WW...""Glory" is one of those concepts that's just alien to me, although I do think that it can be a fine thing, a motivator for good. I've often thought that I just have my feet too firmly rooted in the ground for such loftiness, but when I think of it more as bravery and courage, a facing of your fears so that others benefit, it does become more understandable.
Totally agree! The way Goudge describes Anthony’s gritty determination makes it very admirable; “glory” just seems like the wrong word, carrying overtones of arrogance.
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I know it’s too Christian for some but to me it speaks more broadly to the human condition. As an atheist I’m never offended by the Christian content of her books—they are more about living the best one can in the world.That said, in this book I am seeing a bit of the taint of the idea that upper-crust blood lines lend an innate superiority that transcends even “lowly” circumstances. A pity.
I just finally got started on this and have read 2 chapters thus far. I am already quite interested in the characters and am anxious to continue.
Abigail wrote: "I know it’s too Christian for some but to me it speaks more broadly to the human condition. As an atheist I’m never offended by the Christian content of her books—they are more about living the bes..."Every time that I read about the differences between the gently born and the rest of us, I have to laugh. Doesn't it always seem that the aristocrats had long, slender feet (as though it's a virtue)? And that always reminds me of certain dog breeds who were bred to have long, slender faces, and then (surprise, surprise) their heads were smaller and thus, so were their brains. In other words, there we go again, us humans thinking we know everything....
As far as I can remember this is the only Goudge that does mention physical traits as being aristocratic, but there are several characters in other books whose demeanor is regal and autocratic. Since aristocratic behavior is not as readily noticeable as physical being (unless, of course, you've got a Divine Right of Me complex), it's easier to not notice and take exception to. Personality traits are easier to excuse, maybe?
I think I’m extra sensitive to such ideas because I was brought up with them and have had a long, painful process of unlearning. You’re right, it hasn’t seemed as prominent in other books of hers that I’ve read—perhaps here it’s because of the time period and the presence of emigre characters?
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Sorry to be MIA, btw. (ha, look at me Queen of the Acronyms!) Its been a busy couple of weeks & I was struggling with a couple of reads for another group. But Gentian Hill will have my undivided attention now. :)
You’re in for a treat!
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Yes, loving it. I must have been asleep at the wheel though, as I didn't predict the turn the plot was going to take.
Yes, it’s very rich in traditional rural celebrations—a favorite subject of mine.
I'm seeing lots of 5 star ratings here. I know the group read is over, but I may have to go find myself a copy of this book. :) I've loved most of what I've read from Elizabeth Goudge.
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The group read still going & we do have people who started late. It has some Christmas traditions too!
I’ll look forward to your comments whenever they appear!
I am setting this read with a NON SPOILER & a SPOILERS thread.
Using spoiler tags in this thread is fine though.
I think I tried this one when younger but couldn't finish it. This time I got up to 9% in an instant - I am already so engaged. No one writes descriptive prose like Goudge.
This is my copy;
How about the rest of you?