Ronald Blythe (1922–2023)

Wonderful book. So many insights to Suffolk village life between the wars. The remnants of the feudal system; deference of the working class, arrogance of the landed class. At times brutal and unsympathetic. Suffolk folk were tradionally reluctant to express true feelings but these characters so insightful and articulate. Reminded me of Dad's suspicion of middle-class professional newcomers to the village! Destroys the illusion of a golden age of village life. But so many memorable characters and stories.… (more)

Wonderful evocation of country life. A direct follow-on from Akenfield. Follows the calendar like his grear hero John Clare. Perhaps a bit too much religion for some tastes, but never heavy. Many insights into life and death, including solvitur ambulando, 'You can work it out by walking'. Ronnie Blythe is a great walker, like many of the Romantic poets. Encyclopaedic knowledge of traditional country ways, plants and animals. Never overly sentimental. He seems always busy. He found the secret to a contented life, like many of his friends and neighbours, also approaching 100.… (more)

This is a pen-portrait of a Suffolk village in the late 1960s. As well as an introduction to the village, its population and working life, the author includes descriptions of many of the people who live in the village, from farm-workers to teachers, blacksmiths to retired army captains, thatchers and shepherds to farmers and members of the Women's Institute, plus other important characters like the district nurse, the vet, the magistrate and the gravedigger.
Blythe's descriptions of the characters of village life are often two-tone, which is to say that he provides a narrative about how the person fits in to village life and what sort of person they are, and that is followed by a passage, reportage-style, in their own words, of that person's thoughts and views on their lives and their place in society.
Taken together, these two styles of narrative make interesting reading, as this collection of rural voices make themselves heard via an introductory piece by the author about their position and status in the village.
This is a lovely portrayal of rural life in East Anglia midway through the last century.… (more)