So emotional. The cats, leaving your ghost in a place, the garden. It contains things I've been struggling with - the loss of our cat, having to move house from somewhere I love. Thank you for sharing this, I'll be buying the book.
What a magnificent paean to a place, a house, a space of magical time. I loved this. It made me laugh, cry, and reminisce about my own houses and the years in each. And the cats; always there are cats. I love the "dark spot", a perfect between space where magic dwells. And the gardens with their cheeky creeping about and changing themselves. I'm in a mood...this piece found me at the right moment, and I am breathing it. Thank you!
I absolutely love this book. I swear my husband thought I was losing my marbles as I read with inexplicable bursts of infrequent laughter, oohs and aahs. I bought this in the 'Little Toller' Bookstore in Beaminster, Dorset. One of my favourite purchases of recent years.
My 16 year old moggie Oberon sends greetings. He also shouts at walls.
Hello Oberon! How nice to hear all this. Including that you bought it from the fantastic Little Toller. Beaminster is a favourite place of mine and appears a few times in my third novel.
This has made me absolutely sob but what a beautiful, wonderful, moving, quietly thought-provoking bit of writing (thank you, sort of. No, definite thank you) x
I adored Ring The Hill! Your book 21st Century Yokel (first non-cat book I read) is also amazing, as is Notebook. I am a huge fan of your essays about places you walk and your parents :). And I'm about to start Villager.
I recommend your work all the time - it is so visual, imaginative and interesting. Thank you.
Loved reading this, Tom. Totnes is my hometown and the Estate was our playground growing up. They've sold off half the Lescaze houses, sold off some of the other Magic Houses, sold off some of the farmland around it for shit overpriced housing, ruined the Green Table, put all the staff on zero hours contracts, spent loads of money on big signs and seem to be entirely unaware of what they have. The trustees should be made to read your story to understand.
Thanks Dan. It's so depressing, what has happened there lately. I've not been able to go back for a while as I find it a bit painful. I've never had any response at all from anyone at Dartington about this (I think extremely affectionate) section from Ring The Hill about it, apart from the lovely Cliff, who used to run their popular bookshop, which they bafflingly chose to close then reinvent.
The trustees are like the government. Making up increasingly desperate plans while boxing themselves further into a corner (if it's possible to be boxed into a corner) from which they will never escape. I imagine they'd struggle to read a whole book about the countryside.
I howled with laughter when I read this part Ring the Hill. Pooka the dog is so very, very Totnes. What makes it worse is that, when I read it, I was already the owner of a dog named Pooka, and I think I quite seriously believed when I named her that she would be unique. It appears that during my various sojourns in TQ9, I got infected by the Totnes zeitgeist.
Truly wonderful, loved the situation references and the descriptions of the Totnes people. I spent a year working and living at the River Dart Country Park, and within days of moving there was invited to formidably challenging yoga classes, spiritual healing in a yurt, a white witch’s vegetable garden and a salt water flotation tank. Oh and Friday nights at the local pub was line dancing for all comers.
I love your writing. This was just so ... rich. I hate that you had to leave The Bear and Shipley behind, and, well, that you didn't stay at the Magic House. Not sure why I feel so sad.
I read this in bed at 5.00am this morning at first light. Sat watching was my cat, Poppy, who turns 20 tomorrow, and with whom I share the struggles and joys of her life.
The descriptions of the estate took me back what must be 50 years, rolling down the grass in the Tiltyard or walking the river with my parents and brother. It was a regular Sunday afternoon visit when I was young. An oasis, complete with musical accompaniment.
Following your journey in my mind was wonderful, so thank you. I don't go back enough, but I want to go back now. I'd forgotten, and now I remember.
Thanks for your words. I hope your current chapter is as fulfilling.
So emotional. The cats, leaving your ghost in a place, the garden. It contains things I've been struggling with - the loss of our cat, having to move house from somewhere I love. Thank you for sharing this, I'll be buying the book.
This all just lit up my imagination. Because I have been meaning to I just bought 6 of your books from Blackwell's. Cheers Tom.
Wow. Thank you, Ruth. Hope you enjoy them.
What a magnificent paean to a place, a house, a space of magical time. I loved this. It made me laugh, cry, and reminisce about my own houses and the years in each. And the cats; always there are cats. I love the "dark spot", a perfect between space where magic dwells. And the gardens with their cheeky creeping about and changing themselves. I'm in a mood...this piece found me at the right moment, and I am breathing it. Thank you!
I absolutely love this book. I swear my husband thought I was losing my marbles as I read with inexplicable bursts of infrequent laughter, oohs and aahs. I bought this in the 'Little Toller' Bookstore in Beaminster, Dorset. One of my favourite purchases of recent years.
My 16 year old moggie Oberon sends greetings. He also shouts at walls.
Hello Oberon! How nice to hear all this. Including that you bought it from the fantastic Little Toller. Beaminster is a favourite place of mine and appears a few times in my third novel.
This has made me absolutely sob but what a beautiful, wonderful, moving, quietly thought-provoking bit of writing (thank you, sort of. No, definite thank you) x
I adored Ring The Hill! Your book 21st Century Yokel (first non-cat book I read) is also amazing, as is Notebook. I am a huge fan of your essays about places you walk and your parents :). And I'm about to start Villager.
I recommend your work all the time - it is so visual, imaginative and interesting. Thank you.
Thanks Claire. Really appreciate you doing that!
Loved reading this, Tom. Totnes is my hometown and the Estate was our playground growing up. They've sold off half the Lescaze houses, sold off some of the other Magic Houses, sold off some of the farmland around it for shit overpriced housing, ruined the Green Table, put all the staff on zero hours contracts, spent loads of money on big signs and seem to be entirely unaware of what they have. The trustees should be made to read your story to understand.
Thanks Dan. It's so depressing, what has happened there lately. I've not been able to go back for a while as I find it a bit painful. I've never had any response at all from anyone at Dartington about this (I think extremely affectionate) section from Ring The Hill about it, apart from the lovely Cliff, who used to run their popular bookshop, which they bafflingly chose to close then reinvent.
The trustees are like the government. Making up increasingly desperate plans while boxing themselves further into a corner (if it's possible to be boxed into a corner) from which they will never escape. I imagine they'd struggle to read a whole book about the countryside.
I howled with laughter when I read this part Ring the Hill. Pooka the dog is so very, very Totnes. What makes it worse is that, when I read it, I was already the owner of a dog named Pooka, and I think I quite seriously believed when I named her that she would be unique. It appears that during my various sojourns in TQ9, I got infected by the Totnes zeitgeist.
Well, now I have to sit quietly for a bit. That was remarkable.
My daughter was at Dartington around 2003-5 so I visited quite a bit. It was a very strange place but also very beautiful.
Thank you so much Tom. This is utterly glorious.
And as somebody who slightly knows (and adores) Dartington, incredibly interesting!
Oh the cats.
Happy Sad, say no more.
Thanks Laura. It's a very special place. Sad, what's been happening to it lately.
Thank you, Tom. I go through every known emotion and likely even more reading your writing. A beautiful evocation of a magical time.
Thanks Vivienne!
Bittersweet. I loved reading this. I cried a bit. And I love that you love your cats so much. I’m ordering the book now. Thank you
Truly wonderful, loved the situation references and the descriptions of the Totnes people. I spent a year working and living at the River Dart Country Park, and within days of moving there was invited to formidably challenging yoga classes, spiritual healing in a yurt, a white witch’s vegetable garden and a salt water flotation tank. Oh and Friday nights at the local pub was line dancing for all comers.
I love your writing. This was just so ... rich. I hate that you had to leave The Bear and Shipley behind, and, well, that you didn't stay at the Magic House. Not sure why I feel so sad.
I read this in bed at 5.00am this morning at first light. Sat watching was my cat, Poppy, who turns 20 tomorrow, and with whom I share the struggles and joys of her life.
The descriptions of the estate took me back what must be 50 years, rolling down the grass in the Tiltyard or walking the river with my parents and brother. It was a regular Sunday afternoon visit when I was young. An oasis, complete with musical accompaniment.
Following your journey in my mind was wonderful, so thank you. I don't go back enough, but I want to go back now. I'd forgotten, and now I remember.
Thanks for your words. I hope your current chapter is as fulfilling.