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Originally published in 1945, The Green Years is one of A J Cronin's best-loved novels. It tells the story of Robert Shannon, a young Irish Catholic boy, who, orphaned at the age of seven, is brought to live with his mother's estranged family in Scotland. As he grows up in a dour Presbyterian town, only his great-grandfather, an incorrigible, swaggering, charming, larger-than-life character, seems able to rescue him from the narrow interests of the people who try to shape his life in their show more own image. Disappointed in love and in his burning ambition to study medicine, the eighteen-year-old Robert sees his future as a blank wall. But, once again, he is saved from despair by his fiery relative, much to the chagrin of the rest of the family. This compassionate story of a boy's growth to manhood, set against the harsh reality of life at the turn of the century, shows A J Cronin at his masterly best, creating a vivid gallery of characters with his customary blend of imagination, insight ... show lessTags
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meloncholic
255. The Green Years, by A. J. Cronin (read 1 June 1946) On May 30, 1946, I said: "Read in Green Years today. Fairly good , but not Cronin at his best."
38-Ο Cronin ενθουσιάζει τον αναγνώστη με την αθωότητα της παιδικής ηλικίας σε έναν κόσμο ενηλίκων και στη συνέχεια με την αγωνία της νεότητας. Καλύπτει άψογα την αμηχανία και την αγωνία των πρώτων εφηβικών του χρόνων και την έντονη επιθυμία να πάει στο πανεπιστήμιο.
Τα θέματα της φιλίας, της αγάπης, της αμηχανίας, της φτώχειας, της αντοχής, της αγανάκτησης και της ελπίδας είναι όμορφα συνυφασμένα.
Το βιβλίο έχει show more μια φρεσκάδα και απλότητα.
Εξερευνά τις οικογενειακές σχέσεις, τη θρησκεία, την εκπαίδευση, τη ζωή στην πόλη και τη φτώχεια της εργατικής τάξης.
Αγάπησα το παππού !!!
Έχω λίγους αγαπημένους συγγραφείς. Ο A.J. Cronin είναι ένας από αυτούς. show less
Τα θέματα της φιλίας, της αγάπης, της αμηχανίας, της φτώχειας, της αντοχής, της αγανάκτησης και της ελπίδας είναι όμορφα συνυφασμένα.
Το βιβλίο έχει show more μια φρεσκάδα και απλότητα.
Εξερευνά τις οικογενειακές σχέσεις, τη θρησκεία, την εκπαίδευση, τη ζωή στην πόλη και τη φτώχεια της εργατικής τάξης.
Αγάπησα το παππού !!!
Έχω λίγους αγαπημένους συγγραφείς. Ο A.J. Cronin είναι ένας από αυτούς. show less
Jun 6, 2025 (Edited)Greek
Non bisognerebbe mai rileggere i libri, o almeno la penso così.
La rilettura ti permette di comprendere meglio determinati passaggi,di scoprire punti non compresi nella prima lettura, di approfodnire: tutto vero. Ma quello che ti da una prima lettura, in un determinato momento, non te lo toglie nessuno. Quello che si "sente" leggendo un libro per la prima volta, magari di un autore mai letto, non te lo toglie nessuno: nel bene e nel male.
Un bel libro in un momento brutto sarà un libro discreto. E un brutto libro in un bellissimo mento sarà un libro sufficiente. Capisco che questo assunto non porti ad una critica libraria seria, ma purtroppo non riesco a staccarmi dalla quotidianità.
La rilettura ti permette di comprendere meglio determinati passaggi,di scoprire punti non compresi nella prima lettura, di approfodnire: tutto vero. Ma quello che ti da una prima lettura, in un determinato momento, non te lo toglie nessuno. Quello che si "sente" leggendo un libro per la prima volta, magari di un autore mai letto, non te lo toglie nessuno: nel bene e nel male.
Un bel libro in un momento brutto sarà un libro discreto. E un brutto libro in un bellissimo mento sarà un libro sufficiente. Capisco che questo assunto non porti ad una critica libraria seria, ma purtroppo non riesco a staccarmi dalla quotidianità.
Oct 19, 2020Italian
The Green Years is a 1944 novel by A. J. Cronin which traces the formative years of an Irish orphan, Robert Shannon, who is sent to live with his draconian maternal grandparents in Scotland. An introspective child, Robert forms an attachment to his roguish great-grandfather, who draws the youngster out of his shell with his raucous ways.
Oct 5, 2021Spanish
La nueva vida del huérfano que cambia de casa es uno de los temas más permanentes de la novelística de todos los tiempos. Las experiencias de la niñez se vuelven particularmente importantes en esas condiciones, a veces ásperas y mas dolorosas, pero en otras, llenas de esa ternura que sólo puede apreciar la hipersensibilidad del niño que vuelve a encontrar un hogar.
Aug 14, 2020Spanish
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Publisher's Weekly Bestsellers - Part II - 1940 - 1979
355 works; 5 members
Author Information
127+ Works 6,585 Members
A.J. (Archibald Joseph) Cronin was born in Cardross, Scotland on July 19, 1896. He was educated at the University of Glasgow Medical School and served as a surgeon in the Royal Navy during World War I. After the war, he investigated occupational diseases in the coal industry and worked as a general practitioner in Wales and London. His first show more novel, Hatter's Castle, written in 1931, was an immediate success, and Cronin gave up the practice of medicine to become a full-time author. Hatter's Castle was adapted into a film in 1941. His other works include Shannon's Way, The Judas Tree, A Song of Sixpence, and A Thing of Beauty. He drew on his medical background in writing his books, and his most popular character was Doctor Finlay, which provided the background for the television series, Doctor Finlay's Casebook. Many of his books were made into films including The Stars Look Down, The Citadel, The Keys of the Kingdom, and The Green Years. He died on January 6, 1981. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- The Green Years
- Original title
- The Green Years
- Original publication date
- 1944
- People/Characters
- Robert Shannon
- Related movies
- The Green Years (1946 | IMDb)
- First words
- Holding Mama's hand tightly, I came out of the dark arches of the railway station and into the bright streets of the strange town.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)When he emerges, dazzled a little by the lucid stars and the Northern Lights now searching the polar sky, he sets off more briskly, his footsteps ringing clear in the empty street.
- Original language
- English
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- Members
- 459
- Popularity
- 66,352
- Reviews
- 6
- Rating
- (3.98)
- Languages
- 14 — Albanian, Czech, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Norwegian (Bokmål), Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 26
- ASINs
- 35
