⋙ Read In This House of Brede Rumer Godden Amy Welborn Phyllis Tickle 9780829421286 Books

In This House of Brede Rumer Godden Amy Welborn Phyllis Tickle 9780829421286 Books

Download As PDF : In This House of Brede Rumer Godden Amy Welborn Phyllis Tickle 9780829421286 Books

In This House of Brede Rumer Godden Amy Welborn Phyllis Tickle 9780829421286 Books

I read this lovely book decades ago when it first came out, but couldn't remember much about the story, so I couldn't pass it up when it showed up as a Kindle selection for next to nothing. The premise sounds kind of boring, especially if you are not Catholic or of a religious bent - a story about daily life in an isolated convent in mid-20th century rural, coastal England - but it is so beautifully rendered that the overall feeling is one of peace and calm, kind of like lounging around beside a lazily-meandering river on a warm, sunny day, just listening to the water and the sounds of birds and other small creatures, trailing one's hand lazily through the cool water while relaxing.

There is a surprising amount of activity in the story, but there is something about how Rumor Godden writes that conveys both the interest and intrigues that do actually exist even in convents, and weaves various story lines together, that just plain satisfies. There is some suspense of a fairly quotidien sort - nothing traditionally dramatic like a murder mystery or prime time detective story, but just about the ebb and flow of life over the course of decades in a community of women who are very interdependent and committed to one another and their religion and its ideals, as well as their interactions with the community, including their own friends and families.

I found this book even more appealing than when I read it as a young woman when it first came out for reasons I'm still trying to sort out. I think the difference in perspective that increased age and maturity have brought make a real difference. It was a pleasant story of a woman who retired from a high-powered career in London to spend the rest of her life in a convent close to half a century ago; now, as a mature adult with vast life experience that the teen lacked, it reveals many more richly layered nuances and details I am quite sure I did not fully understand well at all back then.


Tags : In This House of Brede [Rumer Godden, Amy Welborn, Phyllis Tickle] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <DIV><DIV>“A novel of sensitive dedication.” —<I>The Atlantic Monthly</I></div><DIV>“Rumer Godden deals precisely with the theme of the religious life . . . as representing ‘the heart of holiness of the Church.’ It is at once a life of great peace and often equally intense struggle.” —<I>America</I> magazine</div><DIV>This extraordinarily sensitive and insightful portrait of religious life centers on Philippa Talbot,Rumer Godden, Amy Welborn, Phyllis Tickle,In This House of Brede,Loyola Classics,0829421289,Literary,Catholic women;Fiction.,England;Fiction.,Monastic and religious life of women;Fiction.,Catholic women,Fiction,Fiction Christian Classic & Allegory,Fiction Christian General,Fiction Literary,Fiction Religious,Modern fiction,Monastic and religious life of women,Nuns,England,Monastic and religious life of

In This House of Brede Rumer Godden Amy Welborn Phyllis Tickle 9780829421286 Books Reviews

This is one of my all time favourite novels. I never tire of rereading it. Having it in e-book form (as well as my cherished hardcover) is a great convenience. I love the sympathetic, but realistic, picture of traditional Benedictine religious life. You feel as if you really know the nuns.
Aug. 13, 2018 This book tells of the journey of a successful business woman who feels dissatisfied with her life and seeks the 'more' which she finds at a Benedictine Abbey. Her struggles with having been in control of her business and her life to having no control as a Postulant and then as a Novice is presented humanely and authentically. The author presents the life of the community in a beautiful and endearing way - but with all the flaws and failings of a woman who is seeking the more while remaining in the 'not yet' is magnificent. The descriptions of the characters bring them to life and those of the surroundings the Abbey, the Abbess and the Nuns, the visitors, families, former suitors, the liturgical life, sinners and saints, struggles, victories and redemption ... I felt drawn into the life of the community as I read this book and was glad of the down to earth and yet sublime representation of what life in an Abbey is like...I would heartily recommend this book - especially to those who are seeking the 'more'...
Rumer Godden's best novel in her long prolific career is a complex, powerful novel of a strong adult woman's surprising vocation to life in an enclosed convent. Phillippa's career as a successful business manager and leader suddenly seems hollow and unimportant, and she finds herself drawn to learning about faith, and then "to try her vocation in this House of Brede." As her past is made known to the reader, and her struggles occur to "bend her ferocious will" to the rigors of covent life, the reader wants her to succeed, however foreign the whole idea is to the reader. Both the psychology and events of Phillippa's new life are throughly persuasive and deeply touching. Phillippa becomes a real person to every reader, one who lives in memory as a companion and acquaintance, and one who shares in life's emotions and growth.
A simplified version of the novel was "made for tv" with Diana Rigg as Phillippa, and it is fine too
Rumer Godden takes us into an abbey of 96 silent nun - and couldn't make their story more riveting! I read this book at least once a year, the characters have become friends and their voices, their stories, their wisdom and humour are often in my mind. Brede has also inspired me to contact the Abbey where Rumer Godden wrote this, Stanbrooke, and I feel like I've met old friends.
Rumer Godden had an unusual education, which in latter years involved her writing a precis of the editorial of the Times every day (A house with 4 rooms). Her choice of each word is apparent here. She says it took her 5 years to write this book, with her every-day fountain pen, and after finally writing The End, the pen split in half. It is complete. Luckily, I could just start reading from the beginning again.
During her time in the Kashmiri mountains in WWII, Rumer Godden found a way to write where past and present are overlaid and inter-twined. She uses this here, writing in themes and circles as well as events and personality. Save this book for an absorbing deep read.
I read this book for the first time many years ago and, because it was so immersive, had trouble tearing myself away from story. I have read it more than a few times since then. I read it when I feel overwhelmed by too much busyness in my life. It calms me and I seem to find something I had overlooked or forgotten from previous readings. This book is like a "comfort food" a person reaches for to soothe.
I read this lovely book decades ago when it first came out, but couldn't remember much about the story, so I couldn't pass it up when it showed up as a selection for next to nothing. The premise sounds kind of boring, especially if you are not Catholic or of a religious bent - a story about daily life in an isolated convent in mid-20th century rural, coastal England - but it is so beautifully rendered that the overall feeling is one of peace and calm, kind of like lounging around beside a lazily-meandering river on a warm, sunny day, just listening to the water and the sounds of birds and other small creatures, trailing one's hand lazily through the cool water while relaxing.

There is a surprising amount of activity in the story, but there is something about how Rumor Godden writes that conveys both the interest and intrigues that do actually exist even in convents, and weaves various story lines together, that just plain satisfies. There is some suspense of a fairly quotidien sort - nothing traditionally dramatic like a murder mystery or prime time detective story, but just about the ebb and flow of life over the course of decades in a community of women who are very interdependent and committed to one another and their religion and its ideals, as well as their interactions with the community, including their own friends and families.

I found this book even more appealing than when I read it as a young woman when it first came out for reasons I'm still trying to sort out. I think the difference in perspective that increased age and maturity have brought make a real difference. It was a pleasant story of a woman who retired from a high-powered career in London to spend the rest of her life in a convent close to half a century ago; now, as a mature adult with vast life experience that the teen lacked, it reveals many more richly layered nuances and details I am quite sure I did not fully understand well at all back then.