The first volume in the magnificent Cazalet Chronicles, recently adapted for BBC Radio 4
The Light Years (The Cazalet Chronicle)
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Review
'Vivid and compulsively readable' Sunday Telegraph; 'A superb novel...strangely hypnotic...very funny...surpasses even the best of what Elizabeth Jane Howard has written' The Spectator; 'The creation of a vanished historical world...engrossing' Village Voice
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Book Description
Home Place, Sussex, 1937. The English family at home . . . For two unforgettable summers they gathered together, safe from the advancing storm clouds of war. In the heart of the Sussex countryside these were still sunlit days of childish games, lavish family meals and picnics on the beach. Three generations of the Cazalet family. Their relatives, their children and their servants - and the fascinating triangle of their affairs . . . The Light Years is the first volume in The Cazalet Chronicle. The next novel in the series is Marking Time.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
23 of 24 people found the following review helpful
By churchpolly
Format:Paperback
if you do nothing else this year, buy the four books in the Cazalet Chronicles, they are absolutely fantastic - I deliberately tried to read the fourth and last one slowly because I didnt want it to end, but Jane Howard is such a good writer that I couldnt help myself. I have kept them and will read them again in a year or so, they are set to become "old friends" - definitely not a set that will be passed onto the PDSA shop (sorry PDSA)....
47 of 51 people found the following review helpful
By Monique
Format:Paperback
Not having been born until 1973, and growing up in another country, I can't say whether Elizabeth Jane Howard's fictitious account of the life and lives of an English family during WWII and beyond is historically accurate or not, but with this much detail, she must be writing either from her own experience or from extensive research. It certainly felt very real to me.
Told from the points of view of different members of this large, extended upper-class family and its household, The Light Years gives an account of English life in the lead up to the second world war. The author gives fine details of the running of the household inside the family's country manor, the social conditions of that time and the political situation as seen through the eyes of young, middle-aged and elderly, male and female, upper, middle and lower classes, providing a fantastic tapestry of life at that time.
All of this detail could have the potential to be dry and boring, but the characters are so beautifully and realistically drawn that the reader can't help but be drawn right inside the novel and feel a part of the family. These characters begin to affect the reader in a way that is rarely seen, and after finishing "The Light Years", I couldn't wait to begin the second instalment, "Marking Time".
17 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I read this book following seeing some of the TV production recently. I found that it 'grabbed' me as soon as I started reading it and proved to be a thoroughly enjoyable read, so much so that I proceeded straight on to the next of the series, "Marking Time".
The book gives an excellent picture of life immediately pre-WWII and is an effective social statement of the state of the 'classes' at that time.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Cazalets Chronicle
Well written pre war saga covering several generations dealing with intrigues and problems, reminded me of the era of the Forsyth Saga
Published 19 hours ago by Sandra Young
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good read
I was half-listening to this book on Radio 4, but found it hard to follow as there were too many characters to follow. Read more
Published 22 hours ago by A reviewer
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful insight into life just before the war
Her insight into characters, perticularly the children is wonderful. So funny in places you need to read it in private. Very moving.
Published 5 days ago by Kate
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the best family chronicles.
It's worth writing down the separate family groups in the beginning to get the relationships right in your head. Read more
Published 7 days ago by M.G.
1.0 out of 5 stars
Print too small
Print is so small that although the story may be great I had to give up trying to readf it.
Published 9 days ago by mary dumbleton
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent read.
I loved all the books in this series and have now lent them out one by one. My friends are clamouring for them.
Published 11 days ago by Ms M A Lackey
4.0 out of 5 stars
Hooked on Cazalets saga
Loved this book and will read the sequels however spoilt by large section duplicated spoiling continuity of story line in order to find where duplication ended and follow up of... Read more
Published 15 days ago by george young
4.0 out of 5 stars
Such a well thought out story...
If you hate finishing a book you really enjoy, wish it would continue on to a second novel and love a slow-burning story, this will totally suit. Read more
Published 22 days ago by Maddy Holden
4.0 out of 5 stars
Family saga
I enjoyed this and will probably read the rest of the series at some point. There are a lot of characters to meet but they are well drawn and there is sufficient plot to keep it... Read more
Published 24 days ago by lindac
5.0 out of 5 stars
A window onto a bygone era
... aspects of which, as a woman I am only too happy to have passed.
This is the first of a series of novels about the experiences of various members of an extended... Read more
This is the first of a series of novels about the experiences of various members of an extended... Read more
Published 26 days ago by L. Clarkson
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