Elizabeth and Her German Garden
by Elizabeth von Arnim
Originally, it was the title that intrigued me: What is a German garden? A garden with all plants native to Germany? A garden where people speak German? A garden somewhere in Germany?
It turned out to be the last of the three, and although the garden is at the center of the book, it is actually a collection of stories and scenes, sometimes more like vignettes, gathered in the course of a year in the life of Elizabeth.
She tells everything from her own perspective, and chapters begin with a date, like entries in a diary.
Her life is that of a lady of leisure, with three small daughters and an often absent husband who lets her (largely) do as she pleases.
Most
of her days are spent either out in her garden or, when the weather is
inclement, indoors planning what to plant, ordering seeds and so on. She resents everything that takes up time she can not spend in or on her garden, such as visitors or invitations to dinners or dances.
Her little daughters feature regularly, as does her husband and one of her friends; the rest of the cast are servants (largely so one-dimensional they seem hardly human) and visitors.
The book is not without humour, and not without interest. But it is very much rooted in the context of the time it was written in, and more than once, the modern reader will wince at the ideas and conventions people were subject to in those days. If anything, it made me glad to be alive today!
Should you wish to write a novel or the script for a film set in that time, the book is useful for research. Other than that, it is not something I can really recommend. There is not even a proper storyline to speak of.
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| The author at the age of 34 |
According to its own wikipedia entry, the book - first published in 1898 - was very popular with more than 20 reprints within the first year of its publication. I didn't know it is part of a series about Elizabeth (who is, of course, the author herself, although the books are described as being only semi-autobiographical).
From what I gather from her own wikipedia entry, Elizabeth von Arnim had a colourful but not exactly happy life, in spite of her wealth and success as an author. Her name is certainly familiar to me, but I believe it was my first read of any of her works, and to be honest, I don't think I shall be looking for more.
Sounds interesting and different. Social history seen through gardening.
ReplyDeleteIt was all that, L, but as reading material for me, it was a little disappointing.
DeleteI actually really enjoyed this book, and wondered if you had read it. One interesting fact about Elizabeth is that she died in Charleston, South Carolina in 1941. The way she referred to her husband as "the man of wrath" made laugh.
ReplyDeleteMaybe I was not in the right frame of mind for it, but I found the entire book not something I would recommend or totally enjoyed.
DeleteFor me, the funniest bits were when Elizabeth and Irais tease the visiting young journalist who takes note of everything being said and done.
Yes, she move to the US in her later years to be nearer two of her daughters.
A friend gave me an old edition of this book. I have read some of it, on and off but mainly it languishes on my bedside table. She also write The Enchanted April,a novel that I enjoyed more. A very different time for sure.
ReplyDeleteMary
Maybe that is a better approach to this book, reading it bit by bit according to the seasons or one's mood.
DeleteTo be a woman in those times was so restricting from all sides; a little less so if they had money, but even then society would frown upon anyone who did not conform to the set standard.