Here be Spoilers
THIS PAGE CONTAINS LINKS TO MAJOR SPOILERS FOR:
The Greengage Summer by Rumer Godden
Daddy Long-Legs by Jean Webster
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LINKS AFTER THE IMAGE
What people did before the Internet: got updates from their magic mirror
A very entertaining review and interesting stuff about colours. I love your version of a Famous Five picnic. I agree that there is a lot that’s unconvincing about Eliot’s actions / ultimate fate, and it seems very much an add-on or McGuffin, as Hitchcock might have called it. But as Mrs B says, this doesn’t really matter. I think RG was mainly interested in the adult/child tensions especially as children grow up and become sexually mature and that the confused feelings are beautifully realised and conveyed.
PS Interested to read that your favourite characters include Lady Catherine de Bourgh and Lord Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane.
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with a McGuffin as long as the material created around it is worthy of interest in itself – and agree with you that that is definitely the case here.
I know some people like the Wimsey books without liking Harriet – I actually prefer the books which have her in. Lady Mary, by contrast, I find extremely irritating.
As for Lady Catherine de Bourgh, I’m thinking of dedicating a special post to her in the near future.
Would be interested to see the post about Lady C! I like the Wimsey/Vane books best as well, though I think Susan Hill said in Howard’s End is on the Landing recently that she found their relationship embarrassing (?!). Harriet can be a bit of a cow, though. Is v. bitchy about fellow students at the beginning of Gaudy Night, for instance.
I’ve got Howard’s End is on the Landing on reserve at the library. I have no idea why anyone would find the Wimsey/Vane relationship embarrassing so I hope there’s a bit of context to explain it! Harriet is not perfect but she’s tough, very self-sufficient and I like her for that.