Emma M. Lion

Many have discovered the unique and totally absorbing pleasure to be found in reading the eight volumes (more to come!) of The Unselected Journals of Miss Emma M. Lion by Beth Brower.   I came rather late to the journals, finally obtaining them earlier this year and quickly making my way through the first six volumes in April and May.  I knew a ninth volume was in the works, possibly to be printed this summer.  I held off reading volumes 7 and 8 as long as I possibly could, but finally gave in last week, so now there are none!  Until Volume 9 arrives in the bookstores, that is.   And the long anticipatory waiting begins. . . sigh!

 

A True Story

Currently reading this fascinating, sometimes painful, and also inspiring true story of Hanna Zack Miley, rescued from certain death when she was seven years old thanks to the Kindertransport, "an epic rescue effort that would save 10,000 Jewish children from Hitler's Nazi regime by granting them safe passage to England" during World War II.  

 

 

 

A documentary film (I was 8814) has also been produced.  In 2025 it was awarded Best Documentary at the Berlin Indie Film Festival, Best Documentary Feature at the Austin International Film Festival, and Best Biographical Feature Film at the World Film Festival in Cannes.   I have not seen the film yet but plan to watch it online (via this link) after I finish the book.

Something a Little Different

The past three days have included some lovely hours reading this book.  A look at a way of life and work not familiar to me, having lived all my many years here in Southern California, in cities mostly, where I am not aware of anything like what this book describes.  I found it fascinating and I loved every word!

I first discovered Of Thorn and Briar via Instagram (@westcountry_hedgelayer), where the author, Paul Lamb, shares some lovely posts.  I kept referring to it as I read the book, to see visually what he was describing so well in his book.  He also has a website here detailing what he is doing these days in his effort to encourage further interest and appreciation for the centuries-old craft of hedgelaying and its benefits for the biodiversity and preservation of the environment.   He begins with August and describes, month by month, the work and life of a woodsman, countryman, hedgelayer in the beautiful countryside of southwest England.  It is well written and an easy and pleasant read.  Something a bit different from my usual reading, and no less enjoyable.  

 

An Unaccustomed Flurry of Book Buying

It seems like several years have passed since the last time I chose to invest in any fictional works.  I always try to find what I want at the local libraries, city and county.  I have so often been disappointed in many of the new books I have bought and, as we all know, books are expensive these days.

This rule of thumb has been broached, however, just recently.  All because I could not find this Emma M. Lion series at the library except as audio books.  So I took a leap of faith and purchased Volumes One and Two, as a test. Well, they exceeded my expectations (!) and so I followed up with Volumes Three, Four and Five, which arrived Sunday.  When these have been read, there are still Volumes Six, Seven and Eight to procure, with a Volume Nine reportedly nearing publication.  

In addition, a friend highly recommended Theo of Golden by Allen Levi, which also arrived Sunday.

Looking forward to several days of happy escapism into other places and other times . . . 

2023 Book List

A List of Books Read in 2023

Art by Abraham van Strij (1753-1826)

 

January 2023 - None!

February 2023 - None again.

March 2023

 1.  The Song of Tears, Olivier Clément

 2.  Three Prayers, Olivier Clément 

 3.  Praying in Time:  The Hours & Days in Step with Orthodox Christian Tradition, Vassa Larin

April 2023

 4.  Meditations for Holy Week, Vassilios Papavassiliou

 5.  The Jesus Prayer, A Monk of the Eastern Church

 6.  Tears of Repentance (True Experiences in a Greek Taxi Cab), Athanasios Katigas

May 2023

 7.  Reflections with Morning Coffee, Sister Vassa Larin

June 2023

 8.  Susan Settles Down, Molly Clavering

 9.  The Blue Hills (AKA Henrietta's House), Elizabeth Goudge

10.  Meditations for Pascha, Vassilios Papavassiliou

11.  The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot, Marianne Cronin

12.  The Musgraves, D.E. Stevenson 

13.  The Fair Miss Fortune, D.E. Stevenson

July 2023

14.  Smoky House, Elizabeth Goudge 

15.  Touch Not the Nettle, Molly Clavering

16.  Love Comes Home, Molly Clavering

17.  Because of Sam, Molly Clavering

18.  Near Neighbours, Molly Clavering

August 2023

19.  Five Windows, D.E. Stevenson

20.  Mrs. Lorimer's Quiet Summer, Molly Clavering

21.  Yoked with a Lamb, Molly Clavering

22.  Dear Hugo, Molly Clavering 

23.  Pearl of Great Price, The Life of Mother Maria Skobstova, Sergei Hackel

September 2023

24.  Mediation and the Immediate God, Edith M. Humphrey

25.  Orthodox Study Bible  (it took a couple of years to complete)

26.  Way of the Ascetics, Tito Colliander

October 2023

27.  Orthodox Psychotherapy: The Science of the Fathers,  Metropolitan Hierotheos Vlachos

28.  Anxiety, Trust, and Gratitude, Nun Katherine Weston

November 2023

29.  A Long Walk with Mary, Brandi Willis Schreiber 

30.  Illumining Shame, Anger, and Forgiveness, Nun Katherine Weston

December 2023

31.  Loneliness or Fruitful Longing, Nun Katherine Weston

32.  Meditations for Advent, Vassilios Papavassiliou

33.  The Winter Pascha, Fr. Thomas Hopko

2022 Book List

 2022 Book List

January 2022

1.   Letters to Saint Olympiada, Saint John Chrysostom

2.   A City of Bells, Elizabeth Goudge

February 2022

3.   Prayer (a booklet from Mull Monastery in Scotland), Fr. Seraphim Aldea

4.   On Prayer, Reflections of a Modern Saint, Saint Sophrony the Athonite of Essex 

March 2022

5.   Becoming Human, John Behr

6.  Toolkit for Spiritual Growth:  Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving,  Evan Armatas

7.   Turning the Heart to God, St. Theophan the Recluse

April 2022

8.   The House on an Irish Hillside, Felicity Hayes-McCoy

9.   The Library at the Edge of the World, Felicity Hayes-McCoy 

10.  Summer at the Garden Cafe, Felicity Hayes-McCoy

11.  The Holy Angels, Mother Alexandra (Princess Ileana of Romania)

12. The Mistletoe Matchmaker, Felicity Hayes-McCoy

 May 2022

13. The Transatlantic Book Club, Felicity Hayes-McCoy

14.  Enough is Plenty, Felicity Hayes-McCoy

15.  The Theology of Illness, Jean-Claude Larchet

June 2022 - No Books Completed

July 2022

16.  Courage to Pray, Anthony Bloom and Georges LeFebvre

August 2022

17.  Putting Joy Into Practice, Phoebe Farag Mikhail

September 2022

18.  The Crucifixion of the King of Glory, Eugenia Scarvelis Constantinou

October 2022

19.  May it be Blessed, Archimandrate Symeon Kragiopoulos

20.  The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint Exupery

November 2022

21.  His Life is Mine, St. Sophrony of Essex

December 2022

22.  Meditations for Advent, Vassilios Papavassiliou

23.  I Saw Three Ships, Elizabeth Goudge

24.  Christmas Tales, Miss Read

25.  Holly and Ivy, Rumor Godden

Elizabeth Goudge, An Undervalued Gift

 

Having just stumbled upon a lovely article entitled 'An Undervalued Gift' about the British author Elizabeth Goudge (1900-1984) written by Terrence Handley MacMath for The Church Times in the 18 March 2016 issue.  I had a link here but it doesn't seem to be working anymore, so I have removed it.  The periodical in question is an Anglican weekly newspaper based in London.

A brief quote to whet your appetite:

A review of her work by the poet Muriel Grainger describes her achievement: “She is unique in being a writer of extremely popular romances which are at the same time fundamentally religious. Not that Miss Goudge sets out to ‘put Christianity across’. The love of God; the power of prayer, the reality of the Kingdom of the Spirit — these things are woven into the fabric of her plots with a naturalness and inevitability that come from Miss Goudge’s own convictions and experience, and it is this factor that make them so acceptable and so telling.”

 The author at home in 1935.

And another quote from the article:

Goudge’s autobiography The Joy of the Snow is a self-deprecating assessment of her own life, and shows deep Christian joy and gratitude. But, in a new biography of Goudge by Christine Rawlins, Beyond the Snow, we learn that, beneath the joy, there was considerable suffering: mental and physical illness, lost love, the burden of caring for her mother. She had been an intensely withdrawn only child, with a stammer, and suffered from muscular-skeletal pain throughout her life. She even experienced a nervous breakdown after an operation in 1937.

Her autobiography published in 1974.

 There is also this thoroughly researched biography

if you are so enamored of her and her work (as am I)

that you want to know as much as possible

about the woman who wrote such lovely books.

Regarding her stories, classified as "romances" 

I'll just add my two bits and declare

they are much, much more than romances!

I've been reading her novels since my mother first began

bringing them home from the library over 50 years ago

and with each reading

I find more beauty and spiritual depth

than the time before.

 Mary Magdalene Church by Matthew Andrew of New Milton, Hampshire

While she spent the last thirty years of her life 

at Rose Cottage in Dog Lane, Peppard Common, Oxfordshire,

Elizabeth's final resting place is beside her parents

at Mary Magdalene Church in New Milton, Hampshire.

I wonder if anyone goes there to leave flowers for her.

I would if I could.

And this is why,
quoting again from the Church Times article:

In a preface for a volume of poetry written by the Sisters of Burnham Abbey, Goudge describes the the Sisters’ vision with deep insight: “Because they see all life and creation irradiated by the love of God, they see in depth; a sunrise means more than itself and pain has purpose. Yet the unity of outlook cannot dim the individuality of each separate poem. When love is the creating power, it seems impossible for two sparrows’ feathers, or even two snowflakes, ever to be the same. The stronger the microscope, the less are they alike. This is the way God likes it.”

From a young age, her words opened up this kind of vision to me.

Thank you, Elizabeth, for sharing your special gift of storytelling

which has run like a golden thread through my own life,

and the lives of many others who have come to

appreciate what you had to give.