📚 'Rather Dated' April: Rumor Godden's 'The Greengage Summer'📚

After reading this I definitely wanted to eat chunks of fresh, proper French baguette slathered with butter and jam! Introduce the goûter over here, I say 😋

(Oh, and the other thing about the film is that it’s much more heavily implied that Mademoiselles Zizi and Corbet were a couple before Eliot arrived on the scene)

This is my 1958 copy, sans introduction, but I rather like the cover (it cost 5p, according to the pencilled price inside!)

I re-read it a year or so ago but enjoyed re-reading this time, and noticed a lot more details, I think. What occurred to me was the small mystery of exactly when Cecil was recalling her memories - evidently she was an adult, as she says 'I am grown-up now - or almost grown-up', and several times that 'we didn’t know such things then' or 'we were children', or words along those lines.

But Godden's very clever in creating an in-between character, a watcher, who's just the right age to not really fit in with any group, but also to be quick and observant and able to understand just enough French. Even better, this allows her to narrate events contemporaneously as though they were just happening, without really allowing adult knowledge to creep in except very occasionally. The sense of innocence and bewilderment at adult actions is beautifully handled, while we - the readers - instantly understand exactly what’s happening. We can see that Mademoiselle Zizi is sick with sexual jealousy of the beautiful, budding Joss; that Eliot is mesmerised by her (at 16 - yep, pretty repulsive to us now and indeed 'rather dated', not to mention all that 'you are a woman now and Ready for Love' business 🤮) - but also that Eliot, despite being the baddie, indeed a killer, and a thoroughly reprehensible character, takes pity on the children in their plight and comes to feel and behave almost as a father towards them, to the point where he probably allows himself to be caught by sending the telegram to Uncle William.

I really enjoyed it once again.

There's a film of it too, with Susannah York as Joss (her first starring role; she's young, but looks too old for the part) and Kenneth More as Eliot. Jane Asher is Hester and Danielle Darrieux is Mademoiselle Zizi, but they erase Cecil completely. It’s actually a really good film but it can’t convey the same subtleties as the book and it doesn’t try to, although plot-wise it’s pretty faithful. Godden collaborated on the screenplay.

@MotherofPearl there is a beautiful TV production (years old) of The Peacock Spring, if it's available anywhere online. Very beautiful camera work.

My favourite of Godden's is The Battle Of The Villa Fiorita. And my mum's favourite was Kingfishers Catch Fire. But Two Under The Indian Sun is also very good.

I loved the occasional appearance of Nebuchadnezzar in his basket, getting increasingly withered!

I agree that RG is really skilled at capturing the interior lives of children. I enjoyed the novel very much. This had quite a lot of ‘rather dated’ elements, including the depiction of the relationship between 16 year old Joss and 35 year old Eliot, and indeed the kiss Eliot gives Cecil, who is only 13. It’s hard to imagine a hotel in 2025 allowing five children - including a 4/5 year old - to stay on their own! My edition did have that Preface you mention @highlandcoowhich explains this was based on a real life experience.

I very much enjoyed all the descriptions of French food, and also the garden and orchard. My French isn’t great so I had to battle through some of that. The characters were all well-drawn though few were likeable - though Eliot’s charm really came through. Monsieur Joubert seemed one of the only honourable adults.

RG seems to have a knack for telling slightly strange but interesting stories, I think. I’ll definitely read more of her books.

I love this book and Rumer Godden in general, because she was one of my mother's favourite writers.

She captures the reality of childrens lives and focuses really well.

I really enjoyed this! An excellent choice.
I’m not sure whether everyone’s edition has a preface explaining how closely the events in the book resemble the author’s own experience as a teenager marooned in a French hotel with her siblings when her mother becomes seriously ill. Really interesting. The novel’s plot is more dramatic, but only a bit!
I agree that the children are brilliantly depicted in the novel. I think RG had three sisters in RL, and Willmouse is an amusing and interesting additional character.
The awkwardness and embarrassment of trying to navigate a grownup world that you don’t fully comprehend is well portrayed. I did actually have the experience, living-in while working as a waitress at the age of 16 in a small countryside hotel, of a lad from the village climbing a ladder to try to get into my bedroom window. I hadn’t thought about that for years until the episode with Paul reminded me. Happily nothing too serious happened ( he gave up in the end ..)

Place marking to come back properly in a day or two. Thanks for starting us off Fuzzy. That’s a great summary and I agree about the writing. More shortly.