In This House of Brede (Paperback)

by Rumer Godden (Author), Phyllis Tickle (Introduction) "The tower of Brede Abbey was a landmark for miles through the countryside and out to sea; high above the town of Brede its gilded..." (more)
Key Phrases: claustral sisters, choir postulant, abbatial chair, Abbess Catherine, Dame Veronica, Dame Agnes (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
This extraordinarily sensitive and insightful portrait of religious life centers on Philippa Talbot, a highly successful professional woman who leaves her life among the London elite to join a cloistered Benedictine community. In This House of Brede was the basis of a 1975 made-for-television film starring Diana Rigg.

About the Author
Rumer Godden 1911ñ1998 was born in England. She was the author of several novels, including Black Narcissus, The River, and Five for Sorrow, Ten for Joy.

Product Details

• Paperback: 656 pages
• Publisher: Loyola Press (February 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0829421289
• ISBN-13: 978-0829421286
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 5 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (46 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #19,494 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

82 of 83 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Favorite Novel by a Favorite Author, January 17, 2005

By	Constant Librarian "constantlibrarian" (Columbia, MD United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In This House of Brede (Paperback)

If we lived in the disutopia described in Ray Bradbury's Farenheit 451, this would be the book I would choose to memorize. Any sane person might ask: "Why would someone want to memorize lengthy fiction about cloistered nuns?" Answer: "Because the characters are so real and the writing is so luminous."

The main character is Phillipa Talbot, a 40-ish successful career woman who enters an English Benedictine monestary. Author Rumer Godden skillfully weaves several plot lines that tell Phillipa's story as well as the stories of many of the other nuns. Sister Cecily the musician, learned Dame Agnes who becomes Phillipa's bete noir, tragic, silly exaggerated Dame Veronica, a victim of the rigid British caste system, and Dame Catherine who is elected Abbess. The writing is so beautiful--there is one description of the seasons of the year that never fails to move me no matter how often I read the book. In addition, the book contains some of the most fascinating "shop talk" you'll ever read.

Godden is a master story-teller, and even if the book contains a jarring Deus ex Machina solution to a serious problem, in the context of monastic life, it is believable.

43 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Masterful, June 15, 2000

By	UCLAgirl "uclagirl" (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: In This House of Brede (Hardcover)

This book shows the rich and full life that was to be had in an abbey. Godden portrays the nuns as human and individual beneath the uniform guise of the habit. Religious devotion is depicted with respect and warmth--a difficult combination, and a rare and welcome perspective in this day and age. Each time I've read it, I've found the book moving and thought-provoking.

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Quiet Comfort, February 8, 2006

By	John D. Cofield - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

I've enjoyed Rumer Godden's books on many levels for years. As an Anglophile of long standing, I love the "Britishness" of the culture and people of which she wrote. I've also loved the quiet intelligence of her books, which never talk down to their readers. Recently, after dealing with the last illness and death of my mother, I have found in Godden's writings on faith comfort and support. In This House of Brede is her strongest and most complex work, and one I have found particularly valuable during the last few months.

Brede Abbey is a Benedictine monastery in the south of England. Its nuns are an enclosed community who devote themselves to constant prayer and worship. The nuns are not saints but very human characters who struggle with pain, temptation, and sundry other challenges: physical, mental, and spiritual. It is comforting to read of their battles and of the faith which sustains them.

Godden wrote beautiful, thoughtful, prose, and in any of her books you will encounter engaging and attractive characters. In This House of Brede is her masterpiece.