Winter Readings December 2007

The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole- Sue Townsend- Alan

London Snow- Robert Bridges -Janet M
Hoar Frost- Huw Menai

Wind in the Willows- Kenneth Grahame -Ann

The Christmas Truce- Tony

The Death of the Heart- Elizabeth Bowen- Janet B

Winter Solstice- Rosamund Pilcher -Linda

Reginald on Christmas Presents- HH Munroe -Jean

Christmas Storms and Sunshine- Elizabeth Gaskell- Carole & Barbara

Journey Back to Christmas -Gwen Dunn- Janice
Mary Did You Know?- Kathy Matthau

Comments on 'The Warden'

A Victorian classic enjoyed by all.

'Septimus is a kind gentle man but proves to have an iron will in his determination to do what he considers right'
'The description of Septimus's visit to London is very Dickensian'
'One character I took an instant dislike to because of his pomposity is Archdeacon Grantly'
'Although set in the 1850's the hounding of Septimus by the press has a very modern feel to it'
'I like the way Susan, Septimus's eldest daughter, deals with her husband the Archdeacon'
'Sadly for the inmates of the almshouse they were worse off when Septimus left. They lost out financially and also lost a caring friend'
'The strong moral ground which John Bold took almost lost him the love of his life. But it was this zealousness which attracted Eleanor to him'
'Trollope has a subtle sense of humour. One of the funniest passages is the chapter describing the Grantly children'
'It was interesting to discover a little more about the character Panurge created by Rabelais of whom Dr Grantly enjoyed reading about. Reading matter which was considered dubious in the Victorian age'

Further Reading

'Domestic Manners of the Americans' by Frances Trollope
'Barchester Towers' by Anthony Trollope

The Warden by Anthony Trollope

This is the first book in Trollope's 'Barchester Chronicles' series.
It tells the story of Mr Harding a good and generous man who is the warden of a charity hospital situate in the cathedral town of Barchester.
The story revolves around an accusation made by his prospective son-in-law Dr John Bold that he is accepting money to which he is not entitled. Yet another classic I thoroughly enjoyed.

Tony Riley