A Home for All Seasons

by Gavin Plumley

Gavin considered himself an urban being... until he met his husband, Alastair. Together, they bought Stepps House in Pembridge, Herefordshire - on love at first sight. But then came the question: 'How old is it?' With its ancient beams, the date they'd been given seemed out by centuries. As Gavin traced Stepps House through various hands and eras, he saw a past emerge that resonates powerfully with our present.

Mixing history and art, memoir and landscape, A Home for All Seasons is grand in its sweep and intimate in its account of rural life.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Memoir

336 pages, Paperback

Published May 4, 2023

Reviews

[Daniel Myatt · Rating 4 out of 5]

So this was one of those books that is a 3.5 rather than a 4 but I loved the premise so much that it was a rounder upper (if you know what I mean)

What I loved was the passion of the author about the house that they made a home in, the dedication to the research of the property and also the village of Pembridge (a village I know fairly well)

What I found a bit of a bore was the author (there I have said it) he seemed to drone on a bit if I am honest.

This being said, lovely read but a bit of a long winded one, It could have been two books - The history of the house and the live of the author in my opinion.

[Sue Burgess · Rating 5 out of 5]

The perfect Christmas present for anyone who has ever been curious about the house they live in and who might (or might not) have lived there before them. This wonderful book invites you to enter and move around inside a house that's real, and easy enough to find with a map, and then it compels you to follow the writer’s much more complex journey towards the secret heart of his home. This is an imaginative, and intensely emotional search into the history of the house, the surrounding village of Pembridge and Herefordshire beyond. It’s rare that non-fiction has the power to transport you so completely and catch you up in a world that you have never known, and that you never want to leave. Jan Morris is the only other writer who has entranced me in such a way. I have not stopped thinking about it since.

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t think I’ve binged a book this fast in years! The way the author pulls together so many subjects is incredible. I’m in awe of his knowledge. His writing style is also top tier: the book is written in a way that is at once conversational, poetic and intellectual. Amazing!

[Archie Hamerton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Feeling quite homesick this week, for the smell of winter woodsmoke in the village and English springs, so this was an absolute tonic for that particular mal du pays. Replete with Spenserian references too!

[Ivan Monckton · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really hate giving up on books I start reading, especially expensive hardback books like this one, but after persevering for days, I started skimming for information on the purported subject without luck and decided I’d wasted enough of my life on it..
What is it about city dwellers moving to the countryside (usually temporarily) that makes them, in their own minds at least, experts on all aspects of rural affairs, and keen to share their random Google searches with the wider reading public? The book is supposed to be about the history of a house in Pembridge, Herefordshire, (near where I live), that the author bought with his husband, according to the blurb and insinuated by the title and dust wrapper illustration, but the information assembled is so meagre that, I’m afraid, I felt that I had been conned. The author is a journalist and writes well enough about his preferred subject, art, but pretending that has anything to do with his house becomes farcical at times.
NOT recommended

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a real labour of love for the author. He was able to carry out a huge amount of research during the lockdowns of 2020.
The result of his labours is a fascinating comparison of the 16th and 21st centuries, not the least of which is the plague and its more modern equivalent. All this gleaned while he tried to establish the age of his Tudor-looking property, for which there was no definitive record. His efforts involved bringing in experts to assess the tree rings in the beams as they can accurately date a building.
He also delved extensively into the art of the Tudor period and came across the 16th century immigration issues. Those involved Protestants escaping mainland Europe and the consequent difficulties they had in integrating with the existing population. Thoughts of taking peoples’ jobs etc definitely have a modern day feel too. This was particularly shown in the art of the time which was influenced by the more sophisticated European styles and techniques.
If I’m honest, the art history was less interesting to me than the social history aspect of the book, but it has inspired me to take more interest in historical detail and the bibliography included will be invaluable for this.
As a final thought, while I was reading this the author posted a comment by a reviewer that said they weren’t able to continue reading the book due to the prevalence of references to his alternative lifestyle. I can only assume that this person was referring to his being a gay man. I disagree with this assertion. Yes, there are occasional references, but that is all. Certainly nothing to justify this criticism. Sad that anyone would think like this in the 21st century.

[Mr Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

An enchanting read. From a simple question about the age of a house, this book takes you on a much wider journey, encompassing art, literature, history and nature, as well as the inescapable fragility of life. Rich, rare prose. Highly recommended.

[Sophy H · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars (being generous)

I was disappointed with this one. I assumed (like other reviewers) that this would concentrate on the house and surrounding areas of Herefordshire where author Gavin Plumley lives. Instead the text rambles off into reveries about Bruegel, art collections, museums etc. We get a little of the history of Stepps House in Pembridge but then are too many "filler" sections, presumably to pad out the word count.

If your interest is the Herefordshire aspect of this one, I would say steer clear- it doesn't give anywhere near enough sadly. Not recommended.

[Catie · Rating 4 out of 5]

#TheComfortBookClub - November 2023

[Ben Jeapes · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely and gentle read which makes me want to up sticks and move to Herefordshire now. The author and his husband fell in love with an ancient and enigmatic house in Pembridge. The insurance agents quite reasonably wanted to know how old it is. That simple question set them off on a discovery process, delving into the house's mixed and varied history, and expanding out from that (via a lot of medieval art, especially Breughel; the author is an art historian) into the rhythms and processes of the countryside generally, and how to live within them.

[Rhonda Lomazow · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gavin Plumley has written the most fascinating book about the home he and his husband buy an old home a home full of history.He starts researching those who had lived in the home over the years he researched the neighborhood the town .I was so interested in all the author shared the book itself is so well done with illustrations.I’ve been raving about it too friends and will be gifting it .

[Laurena Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was interested in this book because the house in question is in Pembridge, in the Herefordshire where I live, and I've visited the village several times. I flicked the book open in the bookshop and instantly found out some interesting facts about the drovers (who walked with their animals from Wales and Scotland, and other areas where cattle and sheep were bred, to market towns in order to sell their animals, commanding a better price.) The book varies greatly in content and style: the author talks about his marriage, his family (who originally were farmers from Wales); and the house in Pembridge which he and his husband bought, and their attempts to trace its history. He also describes living in a rural village with its characters and pubs. Running through the book is the theme of the seasons, and also the Flemish artists such as Breughel who celebrated the seasons in their work at about the time the cottage would have been built.

I'm glad I have read the book, because of the fascinating facts which I have picked up. However, I found that the style varied dramatically depending on what was being described. Some parts are written with great affection and there is an instant connection, whether an event from the writer's childhood is being described, an anecdote about life in Pembridge or a description of the garden in summer. But I had to work hard at understanding other chapters, namely the ones about politics, history and art history. I think one reason for this is the length and complexity of the sentences - I constantly found myself breaking down sentences into clauses and sections, asking myself "What is he actually saying here?" From this point of view the book takes on a Jekyll and Hyde quality - some parts are much more dense than others.

I would recommend this book with a caution - it's not one to read in a place where you can't give it total attention

[Carrie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have to say that I was disappointed in this book. From the title of the book and description I assumed it would focus on the house and it’s history. Unfortunately, it veered away from that and turned into an odd sort of history of the English village and a discussion of one particular artist’s set of paintings. While that was interesting, it was not why I was reading the book. I almost felt that I had somehow been tricked into reading it by a “false description” given by the publisher and even those who had reviewed and blurbed it. The author is a talented writer who can truly paint pictures with his words but I felt that at times he was more interested in showing his immense vocabulary rather than communicating with his audience. This I found pretentious and boring. There were moments which felt “socially preachy” and I find that annoying, especially when I already feel that the book was misrepresented to me. The author is entitled to his opinion, but I bought the book for the house not an essay on modern climate change, criticism of government officials’ handling of the pandemic, or the merits of socialism. In the end, I was glad to be done with it.

[Eunice Sousa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the idea but I think it wasn’t as well acomplished as I thougth it would. I really loved the first part of the book. Maybe until the chapters on winter. After that I felt that the author did not had the same line of though as until then. The period from end of summer until winter is much better paced and reported. After that it becomes a little scattered… I learned a lot and loved the use of art to study history but I think the author is focused on his area of expertise and didn't go beyond that. The title also does not match entirely the subject since it does not happens to be about the house, it only begins there. Until the end I thought the author would reveal something more about this house to fill this gap the story leaves at a certain point. Something that will link it all together. However I must say that I loved the idea and the first part!

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gavin Plumley and his husband purchase a curious home in Pembridge called Stepps House. Finding the date of construction takes Gavin down many rabbit holes through the seasons, and cycle of the year as well as the historical context of the home from the 1500s and beyond.
The writing is well done. I love that his home took him on such a deep exploration that he researched and mined a large volume of data from archives and was able to thread it together within a larger framework of history. But I have a love of art, literature, gardening, architecture and history (all represented throughout the book) and yet I still felt long portions overly tedious and at times pretentious. Otherwise, my rating would have been higher.

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5* When you live in a home built in the 1500s, you can't escape the connection to the past. Plumley sets out to learn the history of his new home and the people who made it. Taking us through his process, we bump into one of those hiccups for history scholars - what's recorded and preserved often doesn't capture the day-to-day experiences of the average person. History is the story of the wealthy often and especially in localized history like this. So he goes to another source for insight: art. Specifically, Bruegel's landscapes. It's interesting to witness what Plumley extracts from these paintings and the connections they build in his mind to his present home. This book makes you look at your surroundings differently and want to apply the same treatment to your own town.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

A blissful read, with some carefully devised touches, notably the illustrations that range from the author's photographs to Tudor era woodcuts. Plumley conjures up a vivid narrative of his and his (then future) husband moving into a historical house in Herefordshire, discovering its history and the rites and traditions (often linked to apples) of the border region. Recommended escapism for wintry nights.

[✰matthew✰ · Rating 3 out of 5]

i found this book quite interesting but not as engaging as i’d hoped i would. the parts about the house and village or surrounding areas i found really interesting and wanted to learn more about. the large tangents leading from this about the history of art wasn’t so much for me, i found these sections very dense and somewhat difficult to read through.

[Merry · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF after reading about 50%. I love books about the history of houses, but this was too scattered, with not much about the house. I realize the author didn't have much to go on, so he tried to tell about the house through the history of the years it has existed. But I've read about the history he covers in other books where it was much better reported.

[Teresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I listened to the audible audio edition but it isn't on Goodreads yet and I can't find the asin number to add it.

It had some interesting details but I didn't enjoy Gavin reading it as there was no shading in his narration. I think a hard copy would be better to dip in and out of.

[Sandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

I simply adored this book!

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful. Evocative of the English countryside in all its complexity and contradictions. For readers who love nature history and beautiful prose.