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South Riding

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South Riding is widely considered to be her masterpiece, so if you’re thinking of trying any of her books this is the one to go for! In many ways, it feels as if she was working up to this novel by mapping out some of the groundwork in her debut, Anderby Wold. I can't express just how joyous my experience of reacquainting myself with Winifred Holtby's extraordinary novel was, with its echoes of Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre, set in Yorkshire, I first read this many years ago. The book is set in the fictional South Riding of Yorkshire: the inspiration being the East Riding rather than the modern South Yorkshire; Holtby's mother, Alice, was the first alderwoman on the East Riding County Council. Carne had no social conscience beyond the desire to maintain the station his family had kept for five hundred years.

Also worthy of a mention is Miss Sigglesthwaite, the hopelessly ineffective science teacher, a rather tragic creature who finds herself the object of ridicule at the hands of Midge Carne and her fellow classmates. As you read you will stumble upon beautiful phrases such as "slapped the kettle on the stove" and "fastened it at the throat with a cameo brooch" strewn over a slow narrative. This special edition has a B/W frontis photograph of the author and an introduction by Vera Brittain : 'Ave Atque Vale - An Epitaph', both of which do not appear in the standard trade edition. I think it’s that optimism in the face of poverty and adversity that makes it such an inspirational read. Good-humoured, unpretentious and a bit eccentric, it's more like having a well-read friend than a subscription to a literary review.You can unsubscribe from our list at any point by changing your preferences, or contacting us directly. The leading characters are Sarah Burton, an idealistic young headmistress; Robert Carne of Maythorpe Hall, tormented by his disastrous marriage; Joe Astell, a socialist fighting poverty; and Mrs Beddows, the first woman alderman of the district. Original green cloth, spine lettered in purple and a little faded at tips, top edge green largely faded, a few smalls spots to edges and foxing to preliminary pages, lower edge roughtrimmed, faint partial browning to free endpapers and a few faint spots. When circumstances conspire to force Lydia to leave school, Sarah must find a way of enabling her to come back. Nous suivons la vie de plusieurs personnages, chacun avec ses qualités, ses défauts, ses joies, ses drames.

The novel's Cold Harbour Colony, the ex-servicemen's colony of smallholdings, is based on Sunk Island, the area of Holderness that rose from the waters of the Humber, while Robert Carne's decaying Maythorpe Hall was inspired by the White Hall in Winestead, which Holtby would have observed, shuttered and derelict, as a passenger on the Hull-Withernsea railway. Robert Carne of Maythorpe Hall stands for everything Sarah despises: his family has farmed the South Riding for generations, their position uncontested. The Hogarth Press where I’m working, is in the heart of the literary world, with authors coming in all the time. It’s really good, so involving and inspirational – the sort of book you can sink into and enjoy as the story develops. Burton puts her trust in the power of collective action by local government to create a more beneficent "English landscape".The prize established in Holtby's name by the Royal Society of Literature in 1967 and funded by Brittain, was abolished in 2003, despite the society's promise to Brittain that it would perpetuate Holtby's memory. Completed just before she died, it shows Winifred Holtby at the full height of her remarkable powers and brings home even more forcibly how great a loss current literature has suffered'. Holtby's sixth and finest novel, South Riding, was published six months after her death, aged 37, from Bright's disease. Indeed, she analysed it with critical precision in her study of Virginia Woolf, published in 1932 (the first biographical and critical work on Woolf to appear in Britain). Au final, un livre riche, offrant tout le panorama d'une époque au coeur d'un village (fictif, certes) du Yorkshire.

The book I read from was Virago Modern Classic and of course that is a portent that it is a fine book. I love this book and very much enjoyed reading your thoughts on it, especially as it’s been quite some time since I read it. Centred around a County Council, the novel illustrates how public decisions can mold the individual, at the same time offering a panoramic and unforgettable view of Yorkshire life. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that the material is credited and referenced to JacquiWine’s Journal with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.The councillors/aldermen are a mixed bunch, fallible human beings with mixed motives for what they do, but in general wanting to make a real improvement to the lives of local people and tackle issues head on. After Holtby's death, Brittain attempted to repay the debt by ensuring, as her friend's literary executor, that her final and most significant work saw the light of day. A good education is the best route out of poverty for Lydia, just as it proved to be the making of Sarah herself. Shetakes the mundane workings of local government and makes of them, perhaps surprisingly, an unforgettable fictional world. Description: The community of South Riding, like the rest of the country, lives in the long shadow of war.

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