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Cascades - "The Stone Book Quartet" (Collins Cascades) Hardcover – January 1, 1998

by Alan Garner (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 161 ratings
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  1. Publisher
    Collins Educational
  2. Publication date
    January 1, 1998
  3. ISBN-10
    000330034X
  4. ISBN-13
    978-0003300345
  5. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Collins Educational (January 1, 1998)
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 000330034X
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0003300345
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 7 ounces
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 161 ratings

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Alan Garner

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4.5 out of 5 stars
161 global ratings

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Top reviews from the United States

  • Leitha
    5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best young adult books ever, to be read by all
    Reviewed in the United States on July 16, 2014
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    One of the most beautifully crafted books of all time. This is purportedly a children's/young adult novel but the writing is so fine, thoughtful and economical that it (as Garner's other works) can surely be called a classic for all ages. If you discovered it as a child/young adult it will accompany you your whole life long and you will find new beauty at each reread. Through the eyes of children, Garner describes the ancient crafts of the stonemason, the smith, the reaper, with an eye for fine detail, a feel for local habits of speech, and above all an acute sense of an almost mystical heritage, the beauty and accomplishment of the ancient crafts and the simple wisdom of their practitioners, past and present. The four books each delve into an event in the lives of four generations of craftsmen in northwest England, apparently based on Garner's own family. There is a clear emphasis on the physical, emotional and even spiritual links between generations.
    5 people found this helpful
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  • Robert D. LaRue
    5.0 out of 5 stars this short collection provides wonderful generational stories about a country village family
    Reviewed in the United States on November 15, 2017
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    Pitched as a children's book, this short collection provides wonderful generational stories about a country village family. The first story is by far the most engaging, while all of the others require the reader to make connections that will produce smiles in adult readers. It is unlikely that children will grasp those, often subtle connections.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Tom Voaden
    4.0 out of 5 stars A well crafted read . . .
    Reviewed in the United States on October 3, 2000
    Alan Garner's quartet of novellas follows a working class family through four generations in Cheshire, (northern England). The stories are written in regional dialect, however, they are very accesible and enjoyable. Garner is, primarily, a writer of children's literature and it is perhaps, therefore, no surprise that his stories focus on the child characters in each generation. A little serious and quaint, however, the stories are engaging and intensely well crafted.
    5 people found this helpful
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  • Jan Wolter
    5.0 out of 5 stars Magical Writing
    Reviewed in the United States on June 29, 2013
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    Four snapshots taken over lifetimes. Each centers on a child, who may (or may not) appear as an adult in the later books. Not much in the way of plot, and the language is difficult, so if this is a children's story at all, then it is a children's story for exceptional children. But it's a beautiful portrait of time and change and the knowledge of craftsmen.
    5 people found this helpful
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  • Michell I. Mahan
    5.0 out of 5 stars The Stone Book Quartet
    Reviewed in the United States on March 6, 2013
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    Words and their meanings mesh and fold into nature and its meanings in this amazingly sparsely written work by Garner. The stories appear simple but the truths this small book portrays are layered in the living myths of our time.
    7 people found this helpful
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  • Birch Creek
    5.0 out of 5 stars Alan Garner is a favorite author
    Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2015
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    a good addition to my Alan Garner collection
    3 people found this helpful
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  • Sharon Hampton
    2.0 out of 5 stars not what I expected
    Reviewed in the United States on October 29, 2019
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    Not what I expected from the review Could not relate.
    One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

  • sharon loeppky
    5.0 out of 5 stars Stone Book Quartet by Alan Garner
    Reviewed in Canada on October 14, 2013
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    A truly wonderful little collection of stories to be enjoyed by anyone who loves words and a well crafted tale. The writer explores family, place, and coming of age in in 4 separate yet connected stories. Magical. Immature or struggling jr. high readers might need help with this, but it might be accessible to a precocious 10 yr old. Poetry lovers, this is for you! This is not just a book to read, it is a book to own and re-read.
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  • Leitha
    5.0 out of 5 stars Superb masterpiece of young adults' literature for all ages
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 4, 2015
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    Masterly writing, a classic of young adults' literature which, like all classics, can and must be read by all ages. This is a generational family history, its leitmotif the craftsmanship and legacies transmitted over years (and over ages). It describes poignant to heart-breaking moments of contact between generations when something almost sacred is passed on or understood and something changes. Beautifully crafted, like the work it describes, the writing resembles a perfectly executed piece of stone carving. Economical to the point of obscurity on occasion, but 100 times worth the reread: the book yields more each time. I have read the Stone Book Quartet three times and expect to read it again.
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  • Jean T
    5.0 out of 5 stars If you love Alan Garner you will love this book
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 15, 2023
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    Always has been and still is a fabulous poetic writer - read my first book of his aged nine and now I'm in my 60's - you have to be aware that the language used is colloquial and be prepared to work out the meaning of certain words and phrases but so worth the effort
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  • ARD13
    4.0 out of 5 stars The heart of Garner
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 14, 2010
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    This is perhaps Alan Garner's defining masterpiece. He has moved on from his early plot-led fantasies and in these jewel-like miniatures, almost prose poems, he has found a way to concentrate on language and atmosphere without being as impenetrable as his later novels.

    Is it all about craftsmanship? Is it about continuity through the generations? Does it have to be about anything? To me it sounds like the voice of his native land, expressing what his people are. Sometimes I felt that a glossary would have been helpful, but on reflection it would have detracted from the immersion in the lives that he describes.

    This PS edition (Harper Perennial Modern Classics) includes some helpful ancillary material, including an interview with the author and suggested further reading.
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  • jackie
    5.0 out of 5 stars Fictional historical look at the future set in Alderney Egge
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 4, 2024
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    A very gentle book focusing on tradition moving onto new horizons for the next generation as trades die out at the end of a century but happily the family looking forward to what the future unfolds. A tale of set in a few parts cleverly woven between the generations.
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