I Capture the Castle

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Dodie Smith, Dodie Smith: I Capture the Castle (Hardcover, 2003, MDS Books)

Hardcover, 317 pages

English language

Published Dec. 3, 2003 by MDS Books.

ISBN:
978-84-9789-241-4
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OCLC Number:
433501744

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5 stars (2 reviews)

Cassandra, the 17-year-old narrator, lives an eccentric existence in a crumbling castle in the English countryside in the 1930s. Her father is a former bestselling novelist now suffering from a chronic case of writer's block and her glamorous but bohemian stepmother Topaz is a sometime artist model. Money is in short supply but Cassandra and her discontented older sister Rose are forced to make the best of things - until some young, wealthy American neighbours arrive and Rose sees an opportunity for them all to escape their impoverished existence.

Even when she is encountering the difficulties of first love and first heartbreak, Cassandra remains a wonderfully likable heroine, with a strong narrative voice and a distinctive sense of humour. Whimsical, charming and beautifully written, this engaging classic novel will appeal equally to both adult and young adult readers.

56 editions

reviewed I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith

The best book I've read this year

5 stars

It's perhaps appropriate that it's taken until book 51 of 52 to reach the book which will really stay with me. I went to bed last night with the ending buzzing around in my head.

This is a coming of age tale written in the first person by a young girl in a somewhat unlikely setting before the second world war. The style really gets you into Cassandra's head as she's very honest as to her feelings ... even if she sometimes hides them from herself.

It's also notable for the things she's missing but you are not. I won't give away the plot but there are undercurrents in the relationships between the other characters that she simply doesn't see or comprehend.

Anyway recommended, for all sorts of reasons.

avatar for Rbeagrie@bookwyrm.social

rated it

4 stars