Somewhat inevitably I’ve chosen the subject of holidays this month – a topic which usually produces definite reactions, good, bad, paradise or hell. The following books reflect these attitudes to a greater or lesser degree.
Rumer Godden’s The Greengage Summer is a bittersweet coming of age story about five English siblings left alone in a French hotel when their mother is hospitalised. The hotel owner, Madame Zizi, reluctantly agrees to supervise them, aided by her English partner Eliot, whose attention turns to 16 year old Joss. The ensuing web of deceit, narrated by Joss’ 13-year-old sister, creates a dark, dangerous atmosphere before the summer ends. Published in 1958, certain events would be looked at askance today, but it is written with such style, perfectly evoking the faded beauty of post-war provincial France and the emotions of an impressionable teenage girl, that it was small wonder it was made into a classic film.
The Enchanted April is Elizabeth von Arnim’s most widely-read novel, and follows four distinctly dissimilar, yet all unhappy, women in the early 1920s. Lotty, a timid woman, sees an advert for a medieval castle on the Italian coast for rent. Unable to afford the expense alone, she recruits three companions. Gradually the surroundings transforms them all in positive ways, opening up bonds of unexpected friendship. Again, unsurprisingly, made into an award nominated film in 1991.
Counterpoised against the feel good factor of The Enchanted April is Stanley Middleton’s Holiday. Barely heard of these days, Middleton was compared by critics to E.M.Forster and D.H. Lawrence, and Holiday co-won the Booker Prize in 1974. The action is all inside the head of the main character: Edwin Fisher is a university professor who takes an impromptu seaside holida, as he’s coming to terms with the breakdown of his marriage after the death of his young son. Initially not a particularly likeable character, he slowly becomes more sympathetic and relatable. The atmosphere of the declining 1980s seaside holiday plays an important role, and is perfectly captured by Middleton, a sadly neglected author who deserves better.
According to Reese Witherspoon, Cowley Heller’s The Paper Palace is a ‘deeply emotional love story’ that follows one day in the life of Elle Bishop. The story begins with Elle swimming in a fresh water pond behind The Paper Palace, a slowly decaying summer camp in the back woods of Cape Cod. It encompasses 50 years of family legacies, love, lies and one unspeakable incident in her childhood. During the course of the day, Elle will have to decide between the life she has made with her much loved husband, and an imagined life with her childhood love.
So, leave ’em laughing or crying? It’s got to be Jack Whitehall’s How to Survive Family Holidays. If you enjoy Travels With My Father, Jack Whitehall’s hilarious guide to surviving holidays is just as good, especially as mother Hilary is also a contributor.
Whatever your destination this summer, have a wonderful holiday.
Visit Victoria Sturgess’ Black Pug Books in Wimborne – look for it opposite the Tivoli Theatre.
