The Orchard on Fire

A dark tale which reveals the mores of adult deliquency towards raising children in the 1950s. Beautiful writing, with some astonishing metaphors and similies. Far from uplifting, but highly memeorable.

Little sparkless at the beginning but once I was drawn in I was held. Aching story lines were told in such a gentle, truly childlike way. Quirky and powerful.

A novel of country childhood, steeped in the heady scent of of Kentish meadows in spring, with the sharp undertone of rotting grass.

It is well written, though the aspects of the plot are oddly inconclusive. Bubbles of interests are raised, and left to go flat.

The adulthood of the narrator, which frames the events described, is dealt with too quickly, seeming rushed. I suppose however, that this does leave us free to ruminate on the main material of the novel.

The glories of childhood, deliciously described, are juxtaposed with darker realities. The fact that this does little to dim the poignancy of the narrators reminiscence is intriguing and the mark of a tale sophisticated in its simplicity. Its beauty is real, not idealistic show more fantasy, and thus artfully done. show less

Picked up off the bookshelf in our holiday cottage - by Darren actually who thought I might like it based on the fact that he'd read another of Mackay's books years ago. And I did. Found it all a bit flowery at first (mostly due to reading it hot on the heels of Ian McEwan I think) but it paints a vivid picture of a 1950s village childhood. Some aspects of it I found a bit stereotypical but in the end they didn't distract from the overall tale.

Sheena MacKay conjures up childhood in 1950s Kent very vividly in this story of April, the daughter of the Harlency's who take over the Copper Kettle Tearoom in a village in Kent, and her best friend, Ruby, whose parents run the local pub.