Laurie Lee Libros

Spanning the first twenty-three years of his remarkable life, Laurie Lee's celebrated autobiographical trilogy is presented here in one delightful volume. Beginning with Cider with Rosie, Laurie Lee writes evocatively of his idyllic childhood in the Cotswolds of the twenties, a world of rich sensuousness and native innocence. 'As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning' picks up the story as he leaves his valley for London and then for Spain. There, equipped only with a violin and his wits, he crossed the dramatic landscape of a vibrant and still almost medieval Spain for which he developed an abiding affection. In the winter of 1937 he returned to a country now in the grip of Civil War and joined the International Brigade, describing in A Moment of War his journey into the dark side of Spain with unsparing honesty and poignancy.

When Laurie Lee set out on foot from his home in the Gloucestershire village of Slad one midsummer morning in 1935 he was 19 and off to see the world with only his violin for company. So began a year of wandering that eventually took him from the North to the South of Spain, a country in which life had barely changed since the Middle Ages but which was now on the brink of a bitter civil war. The adventure that began as a romantic dream ended somewhat ignominiously, but it inspired Lee to produce this brilliant and darkly haunting account of a vanished Spain, and return to fight on the Republican side not long after. Illustrated by Leonard Rosoman. ‘There’s a formidable, instant charm in the writing that genuinely makes it difficult to put the book down.’ New Statesman ‘A beautiful piece of writing.’ Observer ‘He writes like an angel and conveys the pride and vitality of the humblest Spanish life with unfailing sharpness, zest and humour.’ Sunday Times

Andalusia is a passion - and fifteen years after his last visit Laurie Lee returned. He found a country broken by the Civil War, but the totems of indestructible Spain survive: the Christ in agony, the thrilling flamenco cry-the pride in poverty, the gypsy intensity in vivid whitewashed slums, the cult of the bullfight, the exultation in death, the humour of hopelessness-the paradoxes deep in the fiery bones of Spain. Rich with kaleidoscopic images, "A Rose for Winter" is as sensual and evocative as the sun-scorched landscape of Andalusia itself.

A re-issue of the evocative and nostalgic account of Lee's country childhood in a secluded Cotswold valley. Lee describes a vanished rural world of village schools and church outings but also touches on the darker side of village life as it comes into contact with murder, rape, suicide and depression.

Concludes the autobiographical trilogy begun in "Cider with Rosie" and "As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning".

'Living in our valley was like broad beans in a pod, so snug and enclosed and protective.' Laurie Lee left his childhood home in the Cotswolds when he was nineteen, but it remained with him throughout his life, until, many years later, he returned for good. In this never before published collection, Laurie Lee guides us through his home landscape around Slad in Gloucestershire, and the memories of his youth there. Down in the Valley bring to life the sights, sounds and traditions of his home - from his favourite pub, The Woolpack, summer bathing and winter skating on the village pond, the church through the seasons, learning the violin and playing jazz records in the privy on a wind-up gramophone. Told with a warm sense of humour and a powerful sense of history, Down in the Valley brings us a picture of a vanished world.

Reading this book is like a holiday - an interlude of pure pleasure. In it Laurie Lee has collected all of his occasional writing that he cares to preserve, and proves himself to be as much a magician in essay form as he is in his full-length prose works. Some of these pieces come from a world which is now well known and loved by almost everyone: that of the Gloucestershire childhood celebrated in Cider with Rosie. One is tragic and deeply moving, inspired by a visit to Aberfan a year after the disaster there. Many were brought home by Laurie Lee the traveller, from Holland, Tuscany, Mexico, Ireland, the West Indies, a film festival in Cannes. In all of them he displays the gifts that make him one of the best-loved writers now at work in Britain. This is a collection to buy in pairs - one for the bedside, and one to give to a friend. Cover design and illustration by John Gorham.

A re-issue of the evocative and nostalgic account of Lee's country childhood in a secluded Cotswold valley. Lee describes a vanished rural world of village schools and church outings but also touches on the darker side of village life as it comes into contact with murder, rape, suicide and depression.

Set in a world filled with mystical creatures like unicorns and dragons, this book explores enchanting legends that transport readers to extraordinary realms. The narrative weaves together fantastical elements and rich storytelling, inviting readers to immerse themselves in adventures where imagination knows no bounds.