Amazon.com: Linnets and Valerians (9780380019342): Books

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24 Reviews

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
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Average Customer Review

4.7 out of 5 stars (24 customer reviews)

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25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars uplifting and wonderful fantasy for kids of all ages, September 23, 2000

By

Mary Gibson - See all my reviews

This review is from: Linnets and Valerians (Paperback)

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.

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19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Rich World of Childhood Enchantment, March 25, 2000

By

Librarian (Vancouver, B.C.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Linnets and Valerians (Paperback)

I first read this enchanting book as a child, and over the years have read it many more times with my daughters. Linnets & Valerians is a magnificent story about the adventuring spirit of childhood and the restorative power of the natural world. In a lush, appealing, way it presents the empowering advantages of higher learning and the great moral value of living an honest and kind life. Linnets and Valerians is also a deeply romantic story about the mystery of family lost and family found. From the first reading I thought this book would one day stand next to J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan and Aurther Ransom's Swallows and Amazons series. And while I found Harry Potter a delightful read, that recent best seller certainly pales next to the world of Goudges's Linnets & Valerians; a place in which good relationships between children and adults foster the growth of those children into wise and responsible adults themselves. I own one copy of this book but had hoped to obtain newer copies for my daughters when they were grown. I have found, to my grief, that this book is out of print. I would love to see Linnets & Valerians rediscovered in my library as Aurther Ransome has been, thanks largely to new paperback edtions with appealing cover illustrations. With the many glowing reviews on this site, won't some publisher consider re-issuing this book soon!

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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars delightful and fun for kids, adults and pets, November 19, 2006

By

bluetwilight - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Linnets and Valerians (Mass Market Paperback)

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 love 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.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars Dated, classist, doesn't re-read too well
I remembered liking this book as a child--though even then I remembered the last quarter being less compelling than the earlier parts of the book. Read more

Published 14 months ago by Lixy

5.0 out of 5 stars Still my favorite after all these years
I found the Linnet children on the shelf in a Cambridge bookstore 30 years ago, and it immediately became my favorite story. Read more

Published on February 24, 2009 by K. Peloquin

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wonderful, Warm Story
This is an absolutely charming story set in England before the war. The Linnet children are sent to live with their staid grandmother after their mother dies and their father is... Read more

Published on March 25, 2008 by Judith Ann Blanchard

4.0 out of 5 stars Delightful Literature for Children
This enjoyable tale is about 4 children who, separated from their father by war, end up spending the summer with an elder, bachelor, uncle. Read more

Published on May 15, 2007 by D. Phillips

5.0 out of 5 stars Engaging Story
Beautifully done story that starts off with the Linnet children running away. The story has an air of mystery and magic to it, that might or might not be.

Published on March 29, 2007 by S. Turner

2.0 out of 5 stars Inappropriate themes for a children's book
This book begins as a delightful Victorian-style children's adventure. However, about halfway through the book, it turns to witches and witchcraft, evil spells, and an oblivious... Read more

Published on February 18, 2007 by M. Hamilton

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the very best!
I first read this book as a pre-teen. Then reread it again and again until the cover began to shred off. The only other books I have read more often are Jane Austin's novels. Read more

Published on February 2, 2007 by Maya

5.0 out of 5 stars Delightful, My second copy of this book
Linnets and Valerians is even better than the Blue Hills, both or delightfully fanciful and intriguing books by my favorite English Author: Elizabeth Goudge.

Published on August 12, 2006 by Elsa E. Jamison

5.0 out of 5 stars Not pleasing only to children
Elizabeth Goudge captured the quality of enchantment with her first book; and it permeates all of them. The so-called children's volumes are as delightful to adults as the others.

Published on June 25, 2006 by A. Nolen

4.0 out of 5 stars A Charming Story
Runaway children, a crusty old uncle, and guardian bees. A gentle adventure story with a satisfying end. Read more

Published on September 1, 2005 by Rainyafternoon

› See all 24 customer reviews...

Inside This Book (learn more)
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First Sentence:
Robert gave the box-room door a resounding kick, merely for his own satisfaction, for he knew that only the kick of a giant would have made any impression on its strong oak panels, and sat down cross-legged on the floor to consider the situation. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
glory alleluja, noble bees, madam queens, three bees

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Daft Davie, Emma Cobley, Lion Tor, Tom Biddle, William Lawson, Hugo Valerian, Miss Bolt, Moses Glory Glory Alleluja, Colonel Linnet, High Barton, Ezra Oake, Linden Manor, Linden Wood, Castle Rock, Eliza Lawson

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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!