Linnets and Valerians

Okay I'm not sure about the pets. But this is a great story, I love kids stories like Wolves of Willoughby Chase, books by Edith Nesbit (The Enchanted Castle) and Tom's Midnight Garden. I especially old fashion books like this one. The children are charming, their adventures full of wonderful characters like the grouchy uncle and the cheery gardener. Their search for a missing family is touching and sweet, and in the best of traditions, ends well with a hint of sadness. I love the beautiful passages in this book - "It was a small silver bell, but it rang out in a marvellous manner, clear and sweet and loud, as though it were ten times its size, and echoes woke up in the house and answered it, ringing and ringing away and away like birdsong in the wood." The whole book is not like this, obviously, it's quite readable. But there are enough gorgeous passages with beautiful descriptions - I especially love the old-fashioned food and frequently force my husband to listen to my ravings about it.

The phrasing and descriptions may be from another era, but the charm remains forever! The idea that children and adults can work together with respect and politeness is, I fear, completely foreign to today's society. It has become an "us" vs. "them" proposition. Won't you do your children a favor and read this book, or another of Goudge's, aloud to them one night?I have yet to find any "contemporary" books that can compare to the innocent spirit and adventure of this, and other, Elizabeth Goudge books. It is a tragedy that they are so difficult to find today--I had to do an inter-library loan to get a copy to read.Delightful escape from the brutal reality of our lifestyle of today, do yourself a favor and try to track down a copy. It will lift your spirits and make your day brighter every time you read it.

I read this book almost 30 years ago. I so loved it that I kept thinking of it as a Disney film. My mother encouraged me to write to Disney about it, I did and actually received a reply. I have been trying to locate this book for years and refuse to give up! I have two daughters who need to read it!