Customer Reviews

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5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I read my first Jalna book when I graduated in 1969, because I purchased a few books with my gifts of money -- and when I found out it was a 16 volume series, I read all of them that wonderful 18th summer... AND I've been reading them ever since, one or two a year, the whole series twice at least in a row. What I like about the books is the characters are very real, with all of their faults and it isn't hard to have a few favorites immediately. I recommend the Jalna Series to anyone who likes a good story that lasts forever. Sometimes I feel like I really know those people...

A guilty pleasure. I like the novels of Mazo de la Roche (1879-1961). Her best-known books are the Jalna series, a long-running (16 books) generational saga about the Whiteoak family and their adventures in Canada from 1854-1954. The Building of Jalna is, in terms of internal chronology, the first of the series and the best place to start, though none of the books require knowledge of the others in order to be enjoyed. Loosely termed they are romance novels. The books are of a different era and some of the attitudes are very dated. But they're filled with adventure and they have a sweep to them that's exhilarating. The series was incredibly popular in its day and most of the books can be found in used bookstores, but chances are no one will have all of the titles at once, and some will be harder to find than others. Again, The Building of Jalna is chronologically the first, but you don't have to read them in order.

this is the story of the whiteoak family and their voyage to quebec,canada(circa
1850s)to start their new life and build the "dream house" that they want so much.
the character development was so-so. i never found myself really caring about any of
these people.the most interesting part of the book was during the journey to canada
and all the other people that adeline and philip whiteoak met on the ship. i read it through just to see what happened in the end. there is nothing racy or scary in
this book. i think other readers might enjoy this series,especially readers who
like very light reading and no emotional involvement. this is homespun,cheerful
entertainment.

This is a most readable story, having excellent writing skills seen within it.
The characters and the plot truly hold the readers interest. Sure hope I can get
the stories or books in proper chronologial sequence

According to Wikipedia, Mazo de la Roche's 16-book Jalna series was quite popular and successful when it was first published in the 1940s. And the raw ingredients for a good story are there: a young, wealthy, beautiful Anglo-Irish couple (he's English, she's Irish) are bored and frustrated with their life on a military station in India. When childbirth leaves the fiery and high-strung Adeline low and dejected, a change of scenery seems to be a good idea. So when Philip's uncle dies and leaves him a large estate in Quebec, Philip and Adeline seize the opportunity for fresh adventure in the New World. He sells his military commission and his polo horses, Adeline sells the furniture, and after a brief visit with family back in England, they set out on a ship for a new life. Going along with them are the baby's Indian ayah and Adeline's two younger brothers, whose antics have got them kicked out of school and made their father all to ready to see the back of them.

On their way to Canada they encounter storms, sickness, a near mutiny and the escapades of Adeline's brothers. Then they finally make land in Canada and, well, that's as far as I got. This book and the rest of the series continues on with the dynasty that Philip and Adeline built in the New World, but unfortunately, the author's style put me off and I was unable to finish. Although there is a well-turned sentence (and occasionally an entire paragraph) here and there, they are scattered pretty thinly between the rest of the narrative that is, unfortunately, not well-turned. The author tells -- makes that declares -- rather than shows, and she does it with short, choppy sentences that read like a first draft written by a high school sophomore. Take this passage for example:

"Her anger was gone. She had a basin of hot water brought and herself bathed his head. Their friendship was restored. But the next day she was not well. She could not leave her cabin. The weather became stormy. She suffered from nausea."

Granted I am a very picky reader, so perhaps such immature writing isn't a problem for others; but for me, life is just too short to read stuff like this, when there are so many other books waiting in my TBR pile.

The story, the scope and the characters of this sweeping story are tailor-made for a BBC adaptation. Where are the drama producers when you really need them?

It's not easy to find this book anymore - I got it at my library but had to special-order it from another branch. The series has two different numbering systems - one by order written, one by order of events. In the order of events, this is the 2nd in events, following The Building of Jalna. I wasn't crazy about the opening, but the story really picked up after that and is a delightful mix of humor and drama. If you like family sagas, then you'll enjoy the Whiteoaks series. I especially enjoyed the children in the story (Ernest's 'my eye' comments really become comical). I plan to read the whole series.