FROST IN MAY (Virago Modern Classics) [Paperback]

Antonia White (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 27, 1987 | Series: Virago Modern Classics

At the age of nine a girl enters a convent boarding school, dedicated to the "creation of soldiers of Christ, accustomed to hardship and ridicule". In this enclosed world, forbidden but passionate friendships provide the only deviation from a regime that almost stifles her young soul.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Evelyn Waugh called her one of the very best novelists of the day — a title she still deserves.” -- Carol Shields

From the Publisher

Nanda Gray, daughter of a Catholic convert, is nine when in 1908 she goes to the Convent of the Five Wounds. Quick–witted, resilient, and enthusiastic, she eagerly adapts to this cloistered world, learning rigid conformity and subjection to authority. Passionate friendships are the only deviation from her total obedience. Convent life — the smell of beeswax and incense, the petty cruelty of the nuns, the glamour and eccentricity of Nanda's friends — is perfectly captured by Antonia White.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Random House, Inc. (December 27, 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0860680495
• ISBN-13: 978-0860680499
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 4.7 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,233,720 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A 20th century classic yet little known, February 28, 2001

By 

Joanna Daneman (Middletown, DE USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Frost in May (Audio Cassette)

If you have not read "Frost in May" you are in for a real delight; this semi-autobiographical novel tells the story of young Fernanda (Nanda) who is sent to a convent boarding school in the years just before WWI. She is "unpicked and remade" in the mold of a well-bred, well-educated Catholic young lady. However, Nanda is never quite one of the group; her father is a convert to the faith and middle-class. Most of the students are daughters of old Catholic gentry and Nanda feels the subtle discrimintation.

Yet Nanda loves the hermetic routine, her companions and the age-old routine of the school. She begins to feel very at home, and excels her studies when she makes a terrible mistake.

The sensitive treatment of a young girl's feelings and attitudes, the recreation of the rarified atmosphere of a convent in pre-war England make this book a fine piece of literature. Antonia White wrote 3 more novels, all semi-biographical and then a few other short works. She was afflicted by writer's block and her output is slim, which is a shame. She was a tremendously talented writer, and every word is crafted perfectly.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Frost In May - Antonia White, December 12, 1999

By 

Charlotte Hole (Hereford, England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Frost in May (Hardcover)

Since I first read this book at the age of twelve, it has continued to both delight me and reduce me to tears each of the many times I have picked it up. It appeals to people of all ages and truly allows the reader to enter into the mind of Nanda. It is a must for anyone who can empathise with Nanda's oppression, to whatever degree, and I see no reason why anyone should fail to enjoy this beautifully structured, smoothly flowing 'calm amd factual record of the slow death of a soul', to use the words of Selina Hastings. It only disappoints me that this novel remains so little-known.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My favourite book, June 16, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Frost in May (Paperback)

I have read Frost in May more than 20 times and each time I get more from it. It is moving, funny and tragic all at once. I disagree that it is all about Catholicism, it is also about the breaking down of a child's will and about how Nanda has to accept control by the 'school' (or the religion) and her father. There are 3 more books which follow on from this although Nanda becomes Clara. All are worth a read although I think Frost in May is Antonia White's finest.