Read the book, then step into its pages!
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I came to this book in a back to front way. Most people read the book then visit the Manor at Hemingford Grey, where the story is set. I first read Lucy Boston's autobiography then visited the house, and finally read the children's story. The Norman manor is absolutely wonderful and a child on the tour I was on was wide eyed with joy at being shown everything exactly as it was in the book. I could understand how she felt when I too held Toby's Japanese mouse, saw the rocking horse, wicker bird cage and painted toy box.
Toseland arrives by river at night to stay with his grandmother. He meets children who lived in the house a very long time ago. The entire book is full of wonderful magic and so is the house still today. Everything is exactly the same and I can't imagine how they manage it. It's not a museum, the day we visited, Lucy's daughter in law had cooked dinner for countless family members and she was concerned about the grandchildren going too near the bees.
I heard several mothers on the tour agree that this was their favourite children's book as they had enjoyed reading it as much as their children enjoyed hearing it. I think it would probably be suitable for any child from age 8 upwards, and any adult who loves magical old fashioned tales of animals and birds, gypsies and horses, and a lonely little boy who finds friendship and love in the magical old manor.
And after reading the book, its possible to step into its pages by visiting the Manor. The music room where Lucy Boston gave recitals to the RAF in the second world war, is entirely intact, down to the mattresses around the wall where they sat, and the 1930's gramophone, which still plays - we heard it. The wonderful gardens and Lucy's patchworks can also be admired.
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Still a classic for any agegroup
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This was a childhood favourite and its good to know that 25 years later it still retains the magic, lovely tale of young boy Tolly coming to live in a big rambling house with his grandmother and the spirits of children who lived there centuries ago; this is one of those timeless classics, good writing and lots of detail, as an adult I love the way the child and the old woman are equals in their joy over the house, grounds and history. This is the book I will give to friend's children when I think they're old enough to appreciate it. Perfect.
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Breaks all the rules
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It is a sheer delight to read such a beautifully written and imaginative story in today's world of formulaic writing for children. "The Children of Green Knowe" defies categorisation but somehow captured the imagination of 40-something Mum and 7 year old son alike.
The language and some of the concepts involved in the book seem, superficially, to be beyond the scope of younger readers but somehow, when read aloud, the gist of the meaning on a number of levels can be picked up by children. The descriptive passages are beautifully evocative: you can see the greenness of the garden, feel the sharpness of the yew and hear the crisp footprints on new-fallen snow. I read the book to my son at Christmas-time which added to the atmosphere.
Perhaps what I loved most was the room for mystery and wonder, and for questions that don't all get answered. Are the children ghosts or spirits? Is the house itself alive in some way?
Finally, the woodcuts by Peter Boston are enchanting and further add to the other-wordly feel of the book.
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A childhood classic
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I read and reread the Green Knowe books when I was a child. Boston wrote about her own house, fictionalising its history for her books. It is possible to have guided tours around the house which is still in Boston's family, and people make pilgrimage there every year in homage to these fantastic books. Each book in the series deals with a different historical period of the house's existence. The story is told through the experiences of Tolly, a small boy whose parents live abroad and who send him to live with his grandmother in the house Green Knowe during his school holidays. Tolly encounters the ghosts of previous generations of children and has exciting adventures with them. They are spooky without being truly scary and really adventurous exhilarating reading. The language can be a little old fashioned, as these books were old when I was a child, but I recently started reading them to my eight year old daughter and she loves them as much as I do. In this book, Tolly first comes to Green Knowe and meets Toby, Alexander and Linnet, three ghost children who help him explore the wonderful house and grounds.
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Absolutely classic children's novel
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I was first introduced to The Children of Green Knowe through the BBC's TV adaptation which, like the Box Of Delights, was a brilliantly memorable piece of children's television for the festive season (they really don't make them like that anymore). My best friend had all of the books and after I watched it on TV I immediately sat down and read them all. I feel so fortunate to have discovered them. As children's classics go the whole series is up there with the Chronicles of Narnia, although the Green Knowe books are arguably better written - yes, I know CS Lewis was an Oxford don, but Lucy M Boston writes such beautiful, vivid, flowing prose. I'm just re-reading the Children of Green Knowe again now and it's still as beautifully written, as captivating and as poignant as I remember it. I still have the rest of the series (I collected a set of my own after I read my friend's copies) and after I've enjoyed The Children of Green Knowe I'm going to read them all. What a treat! The Children of Green Knowe is a perfect Christmas read, whatever your age, and if you're looking for a book to read aloud this one is perfect. I'm glad my 1988 Puffin editions have the Peter Boston illustrations though, they're much more evocative and magical than the new illustrations.
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