Lark Rise to Candleford

Lark Rise to Candleford by Mallett, Phillip. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780199601608.

The inspiration for a popular television series that aired on PBS in 2009, Lark Rise to Candleford is Flora Thompsons classic evocation of a vanished world of agricultural customs and rural culture. The trilogy of Lark Rise, Over to Candleford, and Candleford Green tells the story of Thompsons childhood and youth during the 1880s in Lark Rise--in reality Juniper Hill, the hamlet in Oxfordshire where she was born. Through the eyes of Laura, the authors fictional counterpart, Thompson describes the cottages, characters, and way of life of the agricultural laborers and their families with whom she grew up--seasonal celebrations, schooling, church-going, entertainment, and story-telling are described in fond and vivid detail. This new edition of the trilogy, the only hardback edition in print, boasts an attractive format complete with ribbon marker and the original wood-engravings by Julie Neild. The edition includes a new introduction by Phillip Mallett, which looks at the background to the books and their enduring popularity, plus a useful select bibliography and a chronology of Flora Thompsons life and publications.