This author is celebrated for an autobiographical trilogy that intimately chronicles childhood in an idyllic valley. His writing then follows the experience of leaving home for the wider world, exploring new landscapes and the self. The final volume captures a return to a foreign land during a period of conflict, where the author actively participates in significant events. His work is cherished for its lyrical prose and profound sense of place and history.
Set in a world filled with mystical creatures like unicorns and dragons, this book explores enchanting legends that transport readers to extraordinary realms. The narrative weaves together fantastical elements and rich storytelling, inviting readers to immerse themselves in adventures where imagination knows no bounds.
This collection features a variety of fairy tales inspired by classic faerie lore, blending both whimsical and darker narratives. Echoing the style of the Brothers Grimm, it offers a mix of lighthearted stories alongside more sinister ones, showcasing the rich tapestry of themes and emotions found in traditional fairy tales. Readers can expect a captivating journey through familiar tales reimagined with unique twists.
Cinderella, despite finding her prince, yearns for more than a traditional fairy tale conclusion. The story explores her desire for independence and self-discovery, challenging the expectations of happily-ever-after. As she navigates her new life, Cinderella seeks to define her own happiness beyond royal duties and societal norms, presenting a fresh take on a beloved classic.
'If ever I saw blessing in the air I see it now in this still early day...' Laurie Lee is beloved for his writing on a lost rural world. His Collected Poems open a new window on this community, as Lee tracks the seasons changing and the years turning over. Written from the 1930s to the 1960s, these heady works find the poet grappling with war, love, travel and his awe in the nature surrounding him. In 'Music in a Spanish Town', we see Lee playing his fiddle in in 1936; in 'April Rise', ecstatic in the Slad valley springtime; or in 'Twelfth Night', digging for faith in the depths of winter. Brought together in one volume for the first time, and including previously unseen material, these timeless verses reveal Laurie Lee finding a newly intimate voice as a poet.
A moving portrait of the landscape that shaped the life of Laurie Lee, the beloved author of Cider With Rosie 'Before I left the valley I thought everywhere was like this. Then I went away for 40 years and when I came back I realized that nowhere was like this.' Laurie Lee walked out of his childhood village one summer morning to travel the world, but he was always drawn back to his beloved Slad Valley, eventually returning to make it his home. In this portrait of his Cotswold home, Laurie Lee guides us through its landscapes, and shares memories of his village youth - from his favourite pub to winter skating on the pond, the church through the seasons, local legends, learning the violin and playing jazz records in the privy on a wind-up gramophone. Filled with wry humour and a love of place, Down in the Valley is a writer's tribute to the landscape that shaped him, and where he found peace.
An enchanting book, an exquisite farewell, not only to childhood, and boyhood, but also to an England that has vanished J. B. Priestly
Village Christmas is a moving, lyrical portrait of England through the changing years and seasons. Laurie Lee left his childhood home in the Cotswolds when he was nineteen, but it remained with him throughout his life until, many years later, he returned for good. This collection brings to life the sights, sounds, landscapes and traditions of his home - from centuries-old May Day rituals to his own patch of garden, from carol singing in crunching snow to pub conversations and songs. Here too he writes about the mysteries of love, living in wartime Chelsea, Winston Churchill's wintry funeral and his battle, in old age, to save his beloved Slad Valley from developers. Told with a warm sense of humour and a powerful sense of history, Village Christmas brings us a picture of a vanished world
Contains 40 of his best poems. June 2014 marks the Centenary of Laurie Lee's birth - this will be marked with new editions of his most famous literary works.
Laurie Lee greeted his daughter Jessy's arrival into the world with a small, but in his trademark style, lyrical essay, originally published in 1963. This is a republication of that enchanting essay - filling just 40 pages, and published in hardback with a soft and subtle-coloured ribbon marker.