Mr Olim

by Ernest Raymond

This semi-autobiographical coming-of-age novel is set in London in the early years of the 20th century. Twelve year old Davey La Tour lives with his irascible, narrow-minded great aunt and her meek unmarried daughter. His stultifying home life is the least of his worries, for he is about to start a new school - the prestigious St. Erkenwald's - where he will be under the tutelage of the alarmingly eccentric Mr Olim...

216 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1961

About the author

Ernest Raymond (1888–1974) was a British novelist, best known for his first novel, Tell England (1922), set in World War I. His next biggest success was We, The Accused (1935), generally thought to be a reworking of the Hawley Harvey Crippen case, which was made into a BBC drama starring Ian Holm in 1980. He wrote over fifty novels. Raymond's autobiography was published in two volumes; the first, The Story of My Days, 1888-1922, was published in 1968; the second, Please You, Draw Near, 1922-1968, in 1969. He was awarded an OBE in 1972, and died in 1974.

Raymond was educated at St Paul's and at Chichester Theological College. He was ordained in the Anglican Church in 1914 and served on six fronts in the First World War. He resigned Holy Orders in 1923. He wrote many books, including the novels Damascus Gate (1923), A Chorus Ending (1951), The City and the Dream (1958, which concluded his London Gallery series of novels portraying London life in the first half of the twentieth century), Mr Olim (1961), and The Bethany Road (1967). Other titles include Two Gentlemen of Rome:The Story of Keats and Shelley (1952), and Paris, City of Enchantment (1961).

George Orwell in 1945 praised Raymond as a "natural novelist" who could portray convincingly the lives of ordinary people. In particular he praised We, the Accused for its emotional power, while criticizing the clumsy and long-winded way it is written.

(Source: Wikipedia).

Reviews

[Matthew Eyre · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favourites, Davy lives with his aunt in South London He starts at a very traditional grammar school His aunt asks their next door neighbour , a lofty 6th former to take Davey to school, and has to walk 50 yards behind! At my school 1st years were called Yunes Mr Olim is a traditional much respected master Years after they have all left, they arrange a tribute dinner to Mr Olim, but the crusty old bachelor springs a surprise....