This was on their new books shelf, but it turns out this is a re-issue of a novel published about 40 years ago. Jessica Vye, our "heroine"/narrator is not likable at all to me. This venerable British author is best known in the U.S. for her Old Filth trilogy, completed this year. READ NOW READ NOW READ NOW. The focus of the novel is a poetry competition, but its importance only becomes apparent about half-way through the novel. 1940, 1971, or 2018, nothing changes when it comes to navigating school, boys, and family. If you like I Capture the Castle you'll love this. Take these ingredients and put her in a whole lot of different situations, like interactions with the teachers at her school, going to a tea shop with her friends when they don't have enough money and the people in the tea shop are completely oddball, being sent to the home of someone in the upperclass and falling in love with a boy she meets there, and all sorts of other adventures while WWII air raids are going on and every once in a while bombs are dropped, and you get this delightful, enjoyable book. A Long Way From Verona: Amazon.de: Gardam, Jane: … © Europa Editions 1 Penn Plaza, Suite 6282 New York, N.Y. 10119 | Find A Long Way From Verona by Gardam, Jane at Biblio. She also reviews for the Spectator and the Telegraph, and writes for BBC radio. Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. A librarian recommended this book as part of a column for NPR–books you missed in x year. Maybe reading this would have helped me through my own daughters young teens, as I certainly felt bewildered about them. While her audience was intended to be middle school readers, the novel can certainly be appreciated by adults. February 19, 2017 ~ lifefromthestep ~ Leave a comment. This was considered a historical when it came out in 1971, and 40+ years later it still perfectly captures the passionate insanity of early teenhood. Then we follow her through school where she writes a poem and has various escapades, and is finally disillusioned about the famous writer, but finds her own way. What a pleasant surprise! Jessica Vye is "a writer beyond all possible doubt" -- or so she is told by an author she meets in her school. I listened to all of this on a long car journey, and it was really enjoyable (I really liked the narration). Thank you, public library! The Flight of the Maidens by Jane Gardam Paperback $14.59. Published in 1971, it feels utterly different from most children's books of this period, and extremely vivid and relevant today. There are references to the play throughout, Jessica is loaned the book whilst she's sick, e.g. She's 13 in 1940 / 41 and looking back first to when she was 9 and met a famous writer. “His mistakes are my inheritance. How I got sucked into reading about a 12 year old girl during the war in England would normally be a mystery but the character and writing are so compelling it just happened and now I'm sad the book is over. Hope you can find a copy. yes I do believe it was, did I enjoy it, not particularly. I am a sucker for a book about authors -- even one who is only 13-years-old. After this Gardam went on to write many other books. Jessica Vye, our "heroine"/narrator is not likable at all to me. Or is that just me? I was happy to find this older book. What listeners say about A Long Way from Verona. by Jane Gardam ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 5, 2013. I've read three others (The Old Filth trilogy), and they are excellent. This little book captures her early adolescence during the first years of the Second World War. Having had the great luck to discover Jane Gardam earlier this year, I was happy to pick up this book, which I've learned was her first novel. “Far more than just another coming-of-age story” from the award-winning author of the Old Filth trilogy (Bustle). Uncommonly good collectible and rare books from uncommonly good booksellers I just finished A long way from Verona. She is spunky, smart and nearly fearless. Now. The author, Jane Gardam, was born in 1928 and must have been the same age as the main character. The sad thing is that this is my very first Gardam novel. July 1973. A charming yet profound short novel about what makes a writer. Jane Gardam's novel is set not in the Italian city but in the North Riding of Yorkshire. 208, e-Book ISBN: 9781609451554 Region: Britain. Refresh and try again. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of, Published What a talent! They tell me this is a children's book -- could've fooled me. Overall. The Glasgow drug trade is... Shortlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger Award and the European Union Prize for Literature 2019. 208, Paperback ISBN: 9781609451417 Region: Britain Available as ebook Available as ebook Available as ebook Wikipedia Citation. and as Rebecca notes, the aged actress in the tearoom refers to the girls as "little Juliets". Told with grace and inimitable wit, A Long Way from Verona is a wise and vivid portrait of adolescent discovery and impending adulthood. This book was written in 1971, narrated by a 12 going on 13 year old girl in 1940. Mad, sad Italian or boy‐child, a long way from Verona; though the title may not speak volumes to the young, the implications are inescapable. Young Jessica has been told by a revered author that she is “beyond all possible doubts” a born writer. 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