The Stone of Chastity

I have loved many of Margery Sharp’s books for many different reasons ; and this book I love for its wonderful mix of satire and silliness.

Professor Pounce, a scholar of literary antiquities held in the highest regard, has always dreamed of publishing a monograph that will dazzle his contemporaries. He thinks that he may have finally found his subject when he learns of the local legend of the ancient village of Gillenham. It is said that there was stepping stone in stream there that would ensure that virgin girls and faithful wives would never slip, while the unchaste would invariably trip into the water.

He formed a wonderfully scientific plan. He would have all of the ladies of the village fill out a questionnaire to ascertain their show more understanding of the local legend and state of their chastity. And then there would be an event by the stream, with all of the ladies in turn stepping on the alleged Stone of Chastity, so that he could properly establish what its powers might or might not be.

Then refreshments would be served.

It doesn’t occur to Professor Pounce that anyone might be reluctant to take part, or that they might be offended by his proposal; because he really was that caught up in his academic bubble.

Life in the sleepy village of Gillenham will never be the same again. The vicar’s wife is outrages by the revival of paganism, and the vicar is inclined to agree. The Pye family at the farm cut off supplies to the manor house that the Professor had rented for the summer. The ladies of the Women’s’ Institute marched out to confront the perpetrator of this outrage ….

The Professor ploughed on, sweetly oblivious.

He had brought his nephew, Nicholas, along to act as his secretary; and he had to deal with all of the practical issues while being horribly aware of what the villagers were likely to think of his uncle’s plan. He had to organise the questionnaires, recover the Stone itself from Mrs Thirkettle’s scullery floor, and publicise the grand testing of said Stone.

He also had to juggle three romantic interests: a statuesque beauty, a bookish blue-stocking, and a bright young thing.

That was fun, but as Nicholas was a rather unremarkable young man I’d rather have had a little less time with his love life and a little more time with the villagers and the main plot.

That’s my main reason for saying that this isn’t Margery Sharp’s best work.

But it is wonderfully entertaining.

Margery Sharp drew humour from her story beautifully, and she judged her material perfectly. She was as acute and as witty as she always was, but she was never judgemental or prurient.

I found it easy to believe in these people, the things they said and the things they did, and that the Stone of Chastity might be sitting somewhere in the very real village of Gillenham; even though I knew that it was the product of the author’s wonderful imagination and that her plot was exceedingly improbable!

I happily turned the pages, with some idea of where things were going but not much idea at all how they would all end up.

I was charmed by a wonderful cast of characters.

Carmen, an artists’ model, was a wonderful comic creation, a typical Sharp heroine who always followed her heart and her instincts. She caused quite a stir in the village.

Mrs Crowner, the vicar’s wife made me think of Trollope’s Mrs Proudie. She wasn’t quite as formidable, but the vicar clearly knew that it was best to nod and agree with her.

Mrs Pounce, the Professor’s widowed sister-in law, was a very nice lady, who always acted properly and wanted to enjoy her summer in the country.

I could pick out others, but maybe its time I just said that Margery Sharp created a wonderful ensemble.

I should also say that there were so many wonderful incidents, that the set pieces were so well done, and that the plotting really was quite clever.

The ending felt a little downbeat at first; but there was a nice, gentle twist that I loved, there was a really pleasing realisation for a particular character and it seemed that something had changed in village.

The more I thought about it, the more I liked it.

And I think I might say that about this book as a whole. show less

Professor Pounce investigates Norse Legends, and has come across references to a stone that forms part of a path across a stream. Chaste women make their way across easily, but unchaste women fall off the stone into the stream. The professor has rented the largest house in the village where the stone is rumoured to be, and is staying there with his sister-in-law, her son Nicholas, who is Pounce's nephew, and an artist's model, Carmen. Pounce's tactless investigations insult the village women.

This is far from Margery Sharp's best. In her other books (I've read 11), she likes her characters and is tolerant of their quirks, but she doesn't extend that broadmindedness to the village women in this book. Amusing in parts, but I didn't like show more the tone, which I thought was, for this author, unusually patronising and judgemental. show less

Professor Pounce has heard of a stone that will cause a woman to trip if she has ever been unchaste. He decides to take his sister-in-law, his nephew, and young Carmen Smith down to the tiny village and test out the theory. What follows are 200 pages of some of the slowest public commotion I've ever skimmed.

There's a lot to think about and critique regarding the book and society's perceptions of women and I thoroughly enjoyed the last several chapters. However, there are gaping holes in Sharp's exploration of the topic(probably related to the time it was written) and too little time is spent with the likeable characters. This issue is compounded by the fact that there are quite a few side-characters and it is incredibly difficult to show more keep them straight. I was disappointed because it had really good reviews here. But I also do have weird opinions sometimes. show less

The Stone of Chastity is a rather silly novel of a kind rarely produced these days. Professor Pounce has brought his widowed sister-in-law, somewhat hapless nephew, and a bombshell young woman supposedly in his employ with him to a small village near Ipswich in search of the truth behind an obscure local legend about a river stone that can test a woman's chastity. He goes about his quest in such a way as to insult nearly every woman in the village and convince all the local girls that the government has taken an interest in their amorous activities. Naturally he never takes notice of this at all, much to his nephew's dismay. Even after a local housewife charges him 10 shillings to removed the supposed stone of chastity from her scullery show more floor, there's still the matter of testing. Because no woman would submit herself to that kind of scrutiny in this day and age, right?

A fun, lark of a novel. For those who enjoy mid-century literary styles or those who want a book that will make them laugh. show less

Professor Pounce stirs up strong feelings in the village of Gillenham when he decides to test his theories about the legendary "Stone of Chastity" - a stepping stone in the brook which no "fallen" woman may set foot on without taking a tumble.

Folklore expert Professor Pounce is evading a bridge game by hiding in the attic of a friend's place when he spies a diary which discusses, he discovers, the Stone of Chastity. Set in a brook, it is a test for females. If they can cross without falling as the step on said stone, they have passed.

For an academic it's a godsend. He decamps to the village in question, with an entourage including his nephew who is to assist him as he finds out more about the stone and sets upon an experiment using the village women to test the veracity of the legend. What could go wrong?

rest is here: https://alittleteaalittlechat.wordpress.com/2018/03/28/the-stone-of-chastity-by-...

Folklore expert Professor Pounce is evading a bridge game by hiding in the attic of a friend's place when he spies a diary which discusses, he discovers, the Stone of Chastity. Set in a brook, it is a test for females. If they can cross without falling as the step on said stone, they have passed.

For an academic it's a godsend. He decamps to the village in question, with an entourage including his nephew who is to assist him as he finds out more about the stone and sets upon an experiment using the village women to test the veracity of the legend. What could go wrong?

rest is here: https://alittleteaalittlechat.wordpress.com/2018/03/28/the-stone-of-chastity-by-...