Rare Rumer Godden CHINA COURT First US edition 1961 English Country Historical Novel [Hardcover] Rumer Godden

Rumer Godden

Published by Generic, 1961

About this Item

1961 first American edition, Viking Press (New York), 5 5/8 x 8 1/8 inches tall hardcover in publisher's price-clipped dust jacket, red lettering to spine, timeline endpapers, [10], 306 pp. Slight edgewear and marginal sun-fading to covers. Very slight staining tpo fore page edges. Otherwise, a very good copy - clean, bright and unmarked - in a slightly chipped and edgeworn dust jacket which is nicely preserved and displayed in a clear archival Brodart sleeve. ~SP08~ [2.0P] A multi-generational family saga set in a country house in Cornwall, England. Instead of a traditional linear timeline, the author uses a sophisticated structure that layers five generations of family history on top of one another. The novel is divided into sections named after the canonical hours of the Divine Office (the daily prayer cycle of medieval monks), such as Lauds, Prime, and Vespers. This structure allows Godden to shift seamlessly between centuries; an action taken by a character in the 1860s might immediately 'answer' or reflect an action taken by their descendant in the 1960s within the same paragraph. The story opens with the death of the matriarch, Mrs. Quinn (old 'Ripsie'). Her American granddaughter, Tracy, returns to the house, China Court, and fights to save it from being sold. As Tracy navigates the present-day estate issues, the narrative reveals the loves, betrayals, and secrets of the ancestors who walked the same halls. The house itself is the protagonist; it holds the memory of everyone who has lived there. The author suggests that the past is not 'gone' but is happening simultaneously with the present, just out of sight. A subplot involves a search for a rare book within the house, which serves as a literal and metaphorical treasure hunt for the family's legacy. Rumer Godden (1907?1998) was a distinguished British author known for her ability to weave complex themes of time, memory, and displacement into accessible, atmospheric storytelling. China Court (1961) stands as one of her most technically ambitious novels, famous for its unique narrative structure that mimics a medieval prayer book.

Seller Inventory # SP08-0562-15603

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Rare Rumer Godden CHINA COURT First US edition 1961 English Country Historical Novel [Hardcover] Rumer Godden
• Publisher: Generic
• Publication Date: 1961
• Language: English
• Binding: hardcover
• Condition: Very Good
• Dust Jacket Condition: Good
• Weight: 32 ounces