The time is the summer after the First World War. In ‘ A Month in the Country‘, the narrator, Tom Birkin, goes to a village in the English countryside. I got the book a few days back and finished reading it just now. Join 273 other subscribers Archives Archives Categories Categories Book Reviews abuse africa aging alzheimers animals Anthony Powell ARC australia biography book about books canada china classic colonialism comedy of manners denmark drugs dystopian e.f.I discovered J.L.Carr’s ‘ A Month in the Country‘ recently when I read a quote from it. As the restoration nears completion, he can envision a “life after Oxgodby” that he would never have thought possible. He begins to take part more actively in village life, and takes great pleasure in the seemingly endless summer weather. As the painting’s brilliant hues emerge from beneath the whitewash that kept it hidden for centuries, the weight falls from Birkin’s shoulders. Alice Keach, the vicar’s young and attractive wife, is a regular visitor, and their attraction to each other is palpable, and quite touching.īirkin’s art restoration serves as a metaphor for his psychological healing. Others think Birkin something of a curiosity (he’s from the south, after all), and still others value his friendship. Some are unhappy with his presence - like the vicar himself, who resents the intrusion in his sanctuary. Birkin is also visited by several villagers. Moon has been hired to find a grave both men’s jobs are required by the estate of a recently departed village resident.Īs the two men settle into their work they find a certain rhythm, sharing meals, coffee and the occasional pint. He soon meets Charles Moon, a fellow veteran camping in the adjacent meadow. He has no money, so he establishes a small camp in the belfry. When the book opens in 1920, he has just arrived in the north English village of Oxgoodby, where he is to restore a 14th-century wall painting in the church. Tom Birkin survived life at the front and returned home with a facial tic and serious emotional scars.
Its impact sneaks up on you in fact, I think I’ve divined greater meaning in my post-reading reflections than I did in the act of reading itself. A Month in the Country is a quiet, contemplative novella of just over 100 pages.
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