Six Books to Read in Spring
Tomorrow is the Spring Equinox, so it seemed like the perfect time to discuss some of the most appropriate books to read at this time of year. Spring has always been my favourite season. I have such happy memories of it, going all the way back to being a very small child when we learned about lambing and chicks at school, made butter in the classroom by taking it in turns to shake milk in a jar, and admired the beautiful pink cherry blossom on the trees in the school field. And then there was my dad, reeling off William Wordsworth’s poem about the daffodils, giving me a lifelong love both of the poem and the flower.
Sigh. Anyway, back to the present, and here are the books I’ve chosen to share with you that make perfect reading for spring.
Uncle Fred in the Springtime by P.G. Wodehouse
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I mostly associate P.G. Wodehouse with the spring and summer more than any other seasons, because his books always seem so light and sunny and fun. Although Wodehouse is perhaps best known for Jeeves and Wooster, I do love his Blandings Castle stories, too, and this one seems highly appropriate.
Uncle Fred is one of the hottest earls who ever donned a coronet. Or as he crisply puts it, 'There are no limits, literally none, to what I can achieve in the springtime.'
Even so, his gifts are stretched to the limit when he is urged by Lord Emsworth to save his prize pig, the Empress of Blandings, from the enforced slimming cure of the haughty Duke of Dunstable. Pongo Twistleton knows his debonair but wild uncle shouldn't really be allowed at large - especially when disguised as a brain surgeon. He fears the worst. And in yet another brilliant novel by the master of English comedy, Pongo will soon find his fears are amply justified.
Honestly, even the names make me laugh! Pongo Twistleton! P.G. Wodehouse is an incredibly funny writer, who creates the most ridiculous yet adorable characters and gets them in and out of the most unbelievable scrapes. Wonderful.
Spring Flowers and April Showers by Beth Rain
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A light, contemporary romance next!
Emmy Martin is sick of working in a stuffy old florist shop that won’t let her do much other than recreate 1980s wedding nightmares. But when she’s unexpectedly cut free, she’s not as happy about it as she thought she’d be…
She was dumped a week ago…
She can’t cover her rent…
And she has absolutely nowhere to go!
That is, until her Aunt Ali announces she’s off on the trip of a lifetime to Australia and offers Emmy the use of Dragonfly Cottage in Little Bamton while she’s gone. The only provisos are that she has to feed pampered puss, Charlie, and tend Ali’s precious walled garden. What could possibly go wrong?
Jon Clark thought that doing up Ali’s cottage while she was away in Australia was going to be the easiest bit of money he’d ever earned - especially as Ali has given him the loan of her spare room. But Emmy’s appearance in Little Bamton throws a spanner in the works and sends him back to square one again…
He’s living in a leaking caravan…
He’s desperate to put down some roots, this little village is his turf…
And Emmy is going to drive him mad if he has to be around her every day!
All Emmy needs to do is figure out what she’s going to do with the rest of her life, and find a way to bloom. All Jon needs to do is learn how to grow some roots. Will they find a way to help each other, or will the surprises Little Bamton has in store for them nip any friendship in the bud?
A joyful, springtime read full of fun, romance and laughter!
You can’t go wrong with lovely Beth Rain’s light and cheerful romances. Whether you’re visiting Little Bamton, Seabury, Crumbleton, Upper Bamton or Crumcarey Island, you’re guaranteed a fun ride!
Sinister Spring by Agatha Christie
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Sometimes, when you haven’t got time to read a full novel, or when you just want something quick to read before or after you head out for the day (keeping everything crossed that we get some lovely spring weather!) then you can’t do better than a short story collection. Agatha Christie’s short stories are always a joy to read, and this collection is spring-themed, so it’s perfect for the season.
With spring comes April showers and blossoming fields – but wickedness is never far from the surface. With the turning of the year, Hercule Poirot, Jane Marple, Tommy and Tuppence and many more of Agatha Christie’s unforgettable creations tangle with a season of sinister schemes and perilous crimes.
INCLUDES THE STORIES:
The Market Basing Mystery
The Case of the Missing Lady
The Herb of Death
How Does Your Garden Grow?
Swan Song
Miss Marple Tells a Story
Have You Got Everything You Want?
The Jewel Robbery at the Grand Metropolitan
Ingots of Gold
The Soul of the Croupier
The Girl in the Train
Greenshaw’s Folly
A lot of these stories were completely new to me, and I’ve wanted to read Greenshaw’s Folly for ages, so I was delighted to find it included in this collection. If you fancy a bit of cosy mystery this spring, don’t miss out on this one.
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
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Although this book starts in the winter, we follow the children and the garden through spring and into summer. As it’s about a garden and nature, it seems as if this is the best season to read it. Colin and Mary have both been emotionally neglected, and Colin has become a virtual prisoner in his home. Dickon is a poor boy, the younger brother of a servant at Misselthwaite Manor, but he is loved and secure, unlike the richer youngsters. Working together on the secret garden the children blossom, grow and change, just like the plants and flowers they tend, as nature works its magic and friendship blooms.
When orphaned Mary Lennox arrives at her uncle's mysterious Misselthwaite Manor on the Yorkshire moors, she is bitter, lonely, and unloved. Everything changes when she discovers a hidden key and a locked garden gate—leading her to a secret garden that has been closed for ten years. As Mary brings the neglected garden back to life with the help of Dickon, a nature-loving local boy, and her sickly cousin Colin, she discovers that healing the garden heals her own heart too. Set against the backdrop of the wild Yorkshire countryside, this timeless tale shows how friendship, fresh air, and the power of nature can transform even the loneliest souls.
A timeless classic that I absolutely love. I’ve linked to a Kindle edition because it’s cheaper, but there are many beautiful editions of this book if you’d like a copy sitting on your bookshelf.
The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim
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Mrs Wilkins is an unhappy woman who is living life on autopilot. When she sees an advert in the local paper her heart leaps with hope. But will she have the courage to follow her dreams?
The women at the centre of The Enchanted April are alike only in their dissatisfaction with their everyday lives. They find each other—and the castle of their dreams—through a classified ad in a London newspaper one rainy February afternoon. The ladies expect a pleasant holiday, but they don’t anticipate that the month they spend in Portofino will reintroduce them to their true natures and reacquaint them with joy. Now, if the same transformation can be worked on their husbands and lovers, the enchantment will be complete.
I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book, but my word, it was wonderful! My heart really went out to Mrs Wilkins, and I was really hoping she’d find the courage to answer the advertisement and rent the medieval castle in Italy for a month. When she meets the initially stuffy Mrs Arbuthnot and the two strike an unlikely deal, I was delighted. Two other women end up sharing the castle with them to save money - the aloof and beautiful Lady Caroline, who just wants everyone to leave her alone, and the grouchy Mrs Fisher, an elderly widow who wants to be by herself with only her memories for company. It’s hard to imagine the four of them ever getting along, and you do wonder where this story is going. But never fear. It’s glorious!
The Darling Buds of May by H.E. Bates
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As April ends, who better to spend the month of May with than H.E. Bates’s fantastic creations, the Larkin family? I first read the Larkin books when the original television series began - I think back in the 1990s - starring David Jason and Pam Ferris. I absolutely loved both the programme and the books. A couple of months ago I bought brand new editions as my old omnibus edition had long since fallen to bits. You just can’t help but feel happy and cheerful in the company of Ma and Pop Larkin and their assorted offspring. It’s a glorious look back at a bit of England that probably never really existed, but who knows? Maybe it did. I like to think so anyway. Joyful, emotional, warmhearted and utterly fabulous!
'Home looks nice. Allus does though, don't it? Perfick'
And so the Larkins - Pop, Ma, Mariette, Zinnia, Petunia, Primrose, Victoria and Montgomery - return from an outing for fish and chips and ice cream one May evening. There, amid the rustic charms of home, they discover a visitor: one Cedric Charlton, Her Majesty's inspector of taxes.
Mr Charlton is visiting to find out why junk-dealer Pop hasn't paid his tax - but nothing's that simple at the Larkins. Mariette takes a shine to 'Charley' - as Pop calls him - and before long the family have introduced the uncomplaining inspector to the delights of country living: the lusty scents of wild flowers, the pleasures of a bottle of Dragon's Blood, cold cream dribbled over a bowl of strawberries and hot, hot summer nights.
In fact, soon Charley can't see any reason to return to the office at all . . .
I think I’m due a re-read already! I need to be in the company of the Larkins right now. In fact, I think we all do.
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading this post, and that you’ve found something you’d really like to try for yourself. Happy spring, and happy reading!
