Five for Sorrow, Ten for Joy

This “acceptable” rated book, from Texas, fell apart while reading. Also, after ineffectively spraying each moldy smelling page with lavender, I deemed it unacceptable & will not order another such rated book again! That being said, it was an excellent book. I’m new to Rumer Godden & delving into darker themes of reality. I am finally realizing that what readers mean as “a good writer”, pulling me out from my Pollyanna mode.

A wonderful book found in a used bookstore. I wish they wrote like this today. Miss Godden is a masterful storyteller, who writes about the Catholic faith beautifully. You don't have to be Catholic to understand and enjoy the subject of this book. It is a dark story--much more so than most of her books. However, the love, faith, and beauty that shine forth from the despair and degradation of Lise's early life are thought provoking. The charactors will stay with you for a long time. Highly recommended.

This is the story of Elizabeth Fanshawe. In 1944, when she was twenty-one years old, she was enlisted in the English army and her assignment as a driver took her to Paris. It was an exciting time because the French were jubilant over the liberation of France. Elizabeth joined in the celebrations, but became separated from her English army companion. Intoxicated from hours of drinking, she splashed around with a group of other celebrants in a fountain. Wet, exhausted and cold, she was approached by Patrice Ambard, a charming and well-dressed man who befriends her. When he finds out that she's alone, he offers to take her to his home to dry off. Drunk and unable to remember where her hotel is, she goes with him. She's seduced and ends up madly in love with Patrice. Thus, she began a new life. Patrice owned a high-class brothel, and Lise becomes a prostitute and was known as the notorious Madam Lise Ambard. She was also referred to as La Balafree, the Scarred One. Her life is told through flashbacks and the book actually begins with her in a convent that is run by the French Dominican Sisters of Bethanie. This particular order of Sisters work in helping drug addicts, vagrants, prisoners and prostitutes. Lise's story unfolds, as she remembers her past and the circumstances of her life. Despite the sordid early life that Lise led, this is actually a story of faith, love and forgiveness. The title, FIVE FOR SORROW, TEN FOR JOY is a reference to the rosary. The Rosary, is a Catholic tradition where the different prayers reflect on the life of Jesus. The author of this fascinating story is Rumer Godden. She is the superb author of dozens of wonderful books for both adults and children. Three of her most well known stories were also turned into films. They are, IN THIS HOUSE OF BREDE, THE PEACOCK SPRING and BLACK NARCISSUS.

How sad that this book is no longer in print. "Five for Sorrow; ten for Joy" is beautifully written as are most of Rumer Godden's books. Liz is only 19, fresh from London and driving an army car during World War II. She has no parents and was brought up by a cold, unmarried aunt. Her life changes when she is seduced by a charming Frenchman who is actually the proprietor of a brothel. Degradation, despair, and eventual redemption are the themes of this novel. Rumer Godden also weaves in the history of the order of nuns Liz joins--an order founded to rescue the prostitutes of Paris. The five for sorrow and ten for joy refer to the decades of the rosary. The descriptions and writing are exquisite. I loved this story.

I too am sorry this book is not currently available. The story is darker and less "easy" than Godden's luminous IN THIS HOUSE OF BREDE -- the main character becomes a madam and a convict -- but the themes of religious faith and redemption are the same and are beautifully rendered.

The title refers to the Rosary which the main character can not escape - or the child in whose hand she first saw it. The Catholic imagery and ritual is pervasive but with enough explaination for a reader who is not familar with it. From being a driver in the armed forces at the liberation of Paris at the end of the war Liz could not have seen the path her life would take. Rumer Godden paints vivd picture of the times and places she describes from the brothel to the prison and finally to the convent where she finds her peace in the orders' work with prisioners. It is many years since I last read this book and yet the images from it and the character stay in my memory still. The work may not be quite to the standard of "In this house of Brede" but it is still a brilliant story and very well crafted. I am very sad to see it is no longer in print.