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Op de klippen roman by Jane Gardam
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Op de klippen roman (original 1978; edition 2019)

by Jane Gardam, Gerda Baardman, Kitty Pouwels

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4182659,732 (3.73)72
Originally published in Great Britain in 1978, the novel describes Margaret Marsh's coming of age one summer between the world wars. Caught in the backwash of a fervently religious father, a mother bitterly nostalgic for what might have been, the tea and sympathy of some thoroughly secular neighbors and the bawdy jokes of her nanny Lydia, Margaret's world hurtles towards a shattering moment of truth. Drama, tragedy and a touch of farce lend themselves to Gardam's typically eloquent prose. With subtlety and precision, God on the Rocks provides an intimate portrait of the tensions that divide men and women, present and past, and the love and sorrow that lingers throughout. --From publisher description.… (more)
Member:Maartje57
Title:Op de klippen roman
Authors:Jane Gardam
Other authors:Gerda Baardman, Kitty Pouwels
Info:Amsterdam Cossee 2019
Collections:Your library
Rating:***
Tags:Relaties, standsverschil, geloof, Engeland

Work Information

God on the Rocks by Jane Gardam (1978)

  1. 00
    Who Was Changed And Who Was Dead by Barbara Comyns (lahochstetler)
    lahochstetler: Two books set in the English countryside, both about the bizarre side of human behavior.
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Showing 1-5 of 25 (next | show all)
Classic Gardam observations of class, religion, and morals. Published in 1978 and nominated for the Booker Prize, God on the Rocks is a coming of age story of 8 year old Margaret as she tries to make sense of her stilted family, bawdy nursemaid, and surrounding community in the years immediately following WWI. ( )
  jemisonreads | Jan 22, 2024 |
An interesting coming of age story driven by the tensions of class, religion, dysfunctional families, and unfulfilled desires, told from multiple perspectives. Wish it was longer. ( )
  Misprint | Aug 31, 2020 |
Margaret is eight, growing up in a super-religious family where her father is the pastor and they're more defined by what they can't have than what they believe. Lydia, the maid, arrives that summer and takes Margaret out on Wednesday afternoons, upending the whole family's life without even trying to, while the minister attempts to convert her.

I think this is one of those stories where for much of it nothing much happens and it goes along so quietly that you don't realize what it's about until the end. I'm not sure I ever fully "got it" to be honest. I spent most of the book trying to figure out if I liked it or not and once I decided I was solidly underwhelmed I was so far into it that I decided I'd rather finish it than not. ( )
  bell7 | Feb 24, 2020 |
A charming and unpredictable coming of age story set between the two world wars in a seaside village in northern England. Gardam switches up the POV and weaves her characters’ lives around each other until the wonderfully satisfying and for me, surprising, conclusion. ( )
  Copperskye | Feb 20, 2020 |
Resembles some of Ian McEwan's most boring works. It was not for me. It's rather slow and the religiously fervent father subplot the book jacket promised is just so bland. I like Gardam's writing but ultimately this novel has neither sufficient plot nor sufficient character drive for me. ( )
  sparemethecensor | Feb 20, 2020 |
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For Paul Scott, in grateful memory
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Because the baby had come, special attention had to be given to Margaret, who was eight.
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Originally published in Great Britain in 1978, the novel describes Margaret Marsh's coming of age one summer between the world wars. Caught in the backwash of a fervently religious father, a mother bitterly nostalgic for what might have been, the tea and sympathy of some thoroughly secular neighbors and the bawdy jokes of her nanny Lydia, Margaret's world hurtles towards a shattering moment of truth. Drama, tragedy and a touch of farce lend themselves to Gardam's typically eloquent prose. With subtlety and precision, God on the Rocks provides an intimate portrait of the tensions that divide men and women, present and past, and the love and sorrow that lingers throughout. --From publisher description.

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Book description
It is with great pleasure that Europa Editions makes this Booker Prize short-listed novel newly available to the legions of Gardam fans.

Originally published in Great Britain in 1978, the novel describes Margaret Marsh¹s coming of age one summer between the world wars. Caught in the backwash of a fervently religious father, a mother bitterly nostalgic for what might have been, the tea and sympathy of some thoroughly secular neighbors and the bawdy jokes of her nanny Lydia, Margaret¹s world hurtles towards a shattering moment of truth. Drama, tragedy and a touch of farce lend themselves to Gardam¹s typically eloquent prose. With subtlety and precision, God on the Rocks provides an intimate portrait of the tensions that divide men and women, present and past, and the love and sorrow that lingers throughout.

Jane Gardam¹s reputation in the United States has been greatly enlarged by the critical acclaim and commercial success garnered by her latest novels, last year¹s Man in the Wooden Hat and her masterpiece Old Filth. Now, newcomers and fans alike can enjoy the pleasure of the splendid writing that established Gardam¹s considerable canon some four decades ago.

~~ From Europa Editions
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