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A review by meghan111
Saplings by Noel Streatfeild, Jeremy Holmes
3.0
Persephone Press republishes forgotten popular classics from women authors, mostly from the early 20th century. It's a neat idea, and the books are put together carefully; they all feature endpapers of forgotten vintage fabric patterns created by women designers.
Saplings by Noel Streatfeild was one of the works republished by Persephone. Streatfeild is famous for [b:Ballet Shoes|10444|Ballet Shoes|Noel Streatfeild|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1166205099s/10444.jpg|1505465] and its sequels, children's book originally written in the 1930s. Before she started writing children's books, however, she wrote novels for adults, and Saplings is one of her adult novels. Written in 1945, it deals with the effects of World War II on a nice, middle-class British family with four children. She does an incredible job of documenting the minute-by-minute mood swings that happen among siblings on holiday at the seashore, and in establishing the characters of the four siblings - two boys and two girls - and their parents and extended relatives.
Anyway, they're a nice family, and the war wrecks them, in small ways and large. It's sad when people die, but it's also sad when the small dreams and hopes of children aren't allowed to flourish because of the neglect and sacrifice required by the war. The title of the book reflects the weird tenderness of how children blossom and flourish, and how easy it is for that hopefulness and creativity to be stamped out.
Saplings by Noel Streatfeild was one of the works republished by Persephone. Streatfeild is famous for [b:Ballet Shoes|10444|Ballet Shoes|Noel Streatfeild|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1166205099s/10444.jpg|1505465] and its sequels, children's book originally written in the 1930s. Before she started writing children's books, however, she wrote novels for adults, and Saplings is one of her adult novels. Written in 1945, it deals with the effects of World War II on a nice, middle-class British family with four children. She does an incredible job of documenting the minute-by-minute mood swings that happen among siblings on holiday at the seashore, and in establishing the characters of the four siblings - two boys and two girls - and their parents and extended relatives.
Anyway, they're a nice family, and the war wrecks them, in small ways and large. It's sad when people die, but it's also sad when the small dreams and hopes of children aren't allowed to flourish because of the neglect and sacrifice required by the war. The title of the book reflects the weird tenderness of how children blossom and flourish, and how easy it is for that hopefulness and creativity to be stamped out.