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Green Knowe #1&3
The Children of Green Knowe and The River at Green Knowe
Two classic stories, The Children of Green Knowe and The River at Green Knowe collected in one volume.
'What if my great-grandmother is a witch?' thought Tolly.
Tolly's great-grandmother wasn't a witch, but both she and her old house Green Knowe were full of a very special kind of magic. And Green Knowe turned out not to be the lonely place Tolly had imagined. There were other children living in the house... children who had been happy there centuries before.
'What if my great-grandmother is a witch?' thought Tolly.
Tolly's great-grandmother wasn't a witch, but both she and her old house Green Knowe were full of a very special kind of magic. And Green Knowe turned out not to be the lonely place Tolly had imagined. There were other children living in the house... children who had been happy there centuries before.
364 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1959
145 people are currently reading
235 people want to read
About the author
Lucy M. Boston
34 books112 followersLucy M. Boston (1892–1990), born Lucy Maria Wood, was an English novelist who wrote for children and adults, publishing her work entirely after the age of 60. She is best known for her "Green Knowe" series: six low fantasy children's novels published by Faber between 1954 and 1976. The setting is Green Knowe, an old country manor house based on Boston's Cambridgeshire home at Hemingford Grey. For the fourth book in the series, A Stranger at Green Knowe (1961), she won the annual Carnegie Medal from the Library Association, recognising the year's best children's book by a British subject.[1]
During her long life, she distinguished herself as a writer, mainly of children’s books, and as the creator of a magical garden. She was also an accomplished artist who had studied drawing and painting in Vienna, and a needlewoman who produced a series of patchworks.
During her long life, she distinguished herself as a writer, mainly of children’s books, and as the creator of a magical garden. She was also an accomplished artist who had studied drawing and painting in Vienna, and a needlewoman who produced a series of patchworks.
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
March 11, 2022
siin on kaks raamatut samade kaante vahel, üht olin tegelikult enne lugenud, teisest lootsin esimese järge, aga ainus, mis neid ühendas, oli tegevuskoht.
mõlemad olid omal moel üsna ägedad lood. tegevusajad on, kui hoolega vaadata, kuskil II maailmasõja järgses kümnendis, aga üldine vaib pigem ajatu või siis tükk maad vanaaegsem. esimese loo peategelane Tolly kohtub ja mängib samas majas Tudori-aegadel elanud lastega (ajaränd? vaimud? keegi ei tea); teises loos on maja välja üüritud kahele ekstsentrilisele prouale, kes võtavad suveks kostile ühe daami vennatütre ja kaks "displaced" last, kelle kohta tänapäeval öeldaks põgenikud. vanaaegsele lasteraamatule kohaselt on täiskasvanud heatahtlikud ja jätavad lapsed põhiosas omaette, nii et võimalik on läbida igasuguseid maagilisi seiklusi (ja keegi ei upu ära, sest lastekodule esitati laste valikul kaks tingimust: lapsed peavad oskama inglise keelt ja ujuda).
nagu ikka tolleaegsetes raamatus, leidub detaile, mis praegusest hetkest vaadates on puhas rassism (üks põgenikest on hiina päritolu ja kohe alguses tehakse selgeks, et kuna tema pärisnime Hsu ei suuda keegi hääldada, siis kutsutakse teda Ping). aga ka lihtsalt... ootamatuid detaile (Poolast tulnud Oskar, kelle isa venelased tapsid, sest ta ütles, et mõtted on tähtsamad kui relvad, voolib õhtuti küünlarasvast Hruštšovi kujukesi ja torgib neisse nõelu), mis panevad selle raamatu eristuma kümnetest teistest sarnastest "lapsed lustivad koolivaheajal" lugudest. lisapunkt selle eest, et mingit moraali kellelegi peale ei suruta, ongi lihtsalt armsad lood ja huvitavad tegelased.
"The two old ladies fortunately seemed to think that children were as well able to take care of themselves as cats. You only needed to feed them and turn them out."
mõlemad olid omal moel üsna ägedad lood. tegevusajad on, kui hoolega vaadata, kuskil II maailmasõja järgses kümnendis, aga üldine vaib pigem ajatu või siis tükk maad vanaaegsem. esimese loo peategelane Tolly kohtub ja mängib samas majas Tudori-aegadel elanud lastega (ajaränd? vaimud? keegi ei tea); teises loos on maja välja üüritud kahele ekstsentrilisele prouale, kes võtavad suveks kostile ühe daami vennatütre ja kaks "displaced" last, kelle kohta tänapäeval öeldaks põgenikud. vanaaegsele lasteraamatule kohaselt on täiskasvanud heatahtlikud ja jätavad lapsed põhiosas omaette, nii et võimalik on läbida igasuguseid maagilisi seiklusi (ja keegi ei upu ära, sest lastekodule esitati laste valikul kaks tingimust: lapsed peavad oskama inglise keelt ja ujuda).
nagu ikka tolleaegsetes raamatus, leidub detaile, mis praegusest hetkest vaadates on puhas rassism (üks põgenikest on hiina päritolu ja kohe alguses tehakse selgeks, et kuna tema pärisnime Hsu ei suuda keegi hääldada, siis kutsutakse teda Ping). aga ka lihtsalt... ootamatuid detaile (Poolast tulnud Oskar, kelle isa venelased tapsid, sest ta ütles, et mõtted on tähtsamad kui relvad, voolib õhtuti küünlarasvast Hruštšovi kujukesi ja torgib neisse nõelu), mis panevad selle raamatu eristuma kümnetest teistest sarnastest "lapsed lustivad koolivaheajal" lugudest. lisapunkt selle eest, et mingit moraali kellelegi peale ei suruta, ongi lihtsalt armsad lood ja huvitavad tegelased.
"The two old ladies fortunately seemed to think that children were as well able to take care of themselves as cats. You only needed to feed them and turn them out."
April 21, 2019
Utter delight and enchantment.
December 21, 2021
Two beautiful books
March 10, 2023
Who named their kid Toseland?? I preferred the first book over the second but it was a pain to read. Probably would’ve liked it more if I was 8-ish
February 24, 2021
The Children of Green Knowe is a 1954 children's book reminiscent of other classics of that era - The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, Tom's Midnight Garden and A Box of Delights.
Young Tolly goes to stay with his great-grandmother Oldknowe and adventures with time-travelling children ensue - that's it, in a nutshell. The simplicity of the plot, however, opens the way for a complex exploration of those children from the past, who reveal themselves and their Tudor lives to Tolly, at first in intriguing wisps and stories and later in satisfying three-dimensional visits. There is even an encounter with the King. Special objects abound - a sword, a bracelet , a flute - and there are lovingly-depicted creatures too - a hare called Watt, a horse called Feste, a chattery chaffinch, a mole and a deer.
Author Lucy Boston, who lived at the real Green Knowe, was born in 1892, and there is definitely a Victorian taste to the story. For many young modern readers, this novel will lack pace and action, but I loved the atmosphere of the house and the relationship between Tolly and his great-grandmother, while others will enjoy the beautiful descriptions of the flood and the snow and the animals. As a class reader to enjoy alongside a Tudor topic, it would be a magical choice.
The gardens of the nine hundred year-old Manor at Hemmingford Grey https://www.greenknowe.co.uk/history.... can still be visited today. The Children of Green Knowe is the first in a series of six books and The Stranger at Green Knowe won the 1961 Carnegie Medal.
Young Tolly goes to stay with his great-grandmother Oldknowe and adventures with time-travelling children ensue - that's it, in a nutshell. The simplicity of the plot, however, opens the way for a complex exploration of those children from the past, who reveal themselves and their Tudor lives to Tolly, at first in intriguing wisps and stories and later in satisfying three-dimensional visits. There is even an encounter with the King. Special objects abound - a sword, a bracelet , a flute - and there are lovingly-depicted creatures too - a hare called Watt, a horse called Feste, a chattery chaffinch, a mole and a deer.
Author Lucy Boston, who lived at the real Green Knowe, was born in 1892, and there is definitely a Victorian taste to the story. For many young modern readers, this novel will lack pace and action, but I loved the atmosphere of the house and the relationship between Tolly and his great-grandmother, while others will enjoy the beautiful descriptions of the flood and the snow and the animals. As a class reader to enjoy alongside a Tudor topic, it would be a magical choice.
The gardens of the nine hundred year-old Manor at Hemmingford Grey https://www.greenknowe.co.uk/history.... can still be visited today. The Children of Green Knowe is the first in a series of six books and The Stranger at Green Knowe won the 1961 Carnegie Medal.
May 17, 2020
A beautiful pairing of 2 of the Green Knowe stories. Yes, they are dated in places, but the delight of childhood shines through.
These are stories of imagination, of hope, of joy and are utterly beautiful.
These are stories of imagination, of hope, of joy and are utterly beautiful.
January 21, 2021
The River at Green Knowe.
There is an excellent review of The River at Green Knowe here: https://calmgrove.wordpress.com/2021/...
I reviewed the first book separately. This two volumes in one book for some reason has the first and third of the Green Knowe series.
The house has been rented out for the summer to two spinsters, one an archeologist publishing a book on ancient giants, one her friend who lives to cook. Maude Biggens, the archeologist, decides to have down her niece and two displaced children for a visit, whereupon she leaves them splendidly alone to explore the river and its islands, to fill the sinks with newts and pollywogs, to slip out at midnight to explore by moonlight, and to have the sorts of enchanting and mysterious adventures one expects of children at Green Knowe. They meet a hermit, winged horses, mice, caterpillars, and more.
Boston is never syrupy not sappy, yet there is a poignancy to the plight of displaced children without being maudlin. She manages to accomplish this with only three or four sentences, deftly placed throughout the book, and never once indulges in the easy path of emotional manipulation.
A lovely book.
There is an excellent review of The River at Green Knowe here: https://calmgrove.wordpress.com/2021/...
I reviewed the first book separately. This two volumes in one book for some reason has the first and third of the Green Knowe series.
The house has been rented out for the summer to two spinsters, one an archeologist publishing a book on ancient giants, one her friend who lives to cook. Maude Biggens, the archeologist, decides to have down her niece and two displaced children for a visit, whereupon she leaves them splendidly alone to explore the river and its islands, to fill the sinks with newts and pollywogs, to slip out at midnight to explore by moonlight, and to have the sorts of enchanting and mysterious adventures one expects of children at Green Knowe. They meet a hermit, winged horses, mice, caterpillars, and more.
Boston is never syrupy not sappy, yet there is a poignancy to the plight of displaced children without being maudlin. She manages to accomplish this with only three or four sentences, deftly placed throughout the book, and never once indulges in the easy path of emotional manipulation.
A lovely book.
June 4, 2023
Iam enjoying reading 📚this book again. This time Iam reading 📚the book at old age in my forties. I read the book first when I was eight years old and when I was ten years old. I can remember reading 📚the book when I was in my twenties. I would of liked to read this book 📚to my own children but I haven't got any. I enjoyed reading 📚all the story in the book all over again. My favourite story is about Feste the horse. I can remember watching 👀 on tv 📺along time the children of green know with Jacknoary I think because I remember the tv programme being with people that were famous at the time reading 📚the book. I remember so very well in my head. I liked reading 📚about Linnet again she was my favourite child in the book. I reading 📚about the 🐦again. I haven't got a enough money 💰to but my own horse 🐎 I would like a oldspot or a palomeano horse 🐎. I once upon I sewed in cross stitch my own horse 🐎 which was a chestnut horse 🐎 with its stable in a turkwise green colour. I still the cross stitch pattern and cross stitch too.
October 21, 2024
Dear Publisher,
Why did you think it was such a brilliant idea to release books ONE and THREE in one volume? Here was me just reading the first one, relishing in the magical aspect of it and wishing I’d read it as a child, and BOOM, what I presumed as the second one comes along and bears no correlation to the first.
WHAT JUST HAPPENED.
Why did the first one just end, and then you decide “here’s what our reading public needs, books 1 and 3 in the same edition, doesn’t matter about book 2, it’ll make total sense without book 2.”
Whose bright idea was that.
Book 1 is what I needed in my childhood, alongside Moondial, Tom’s Midnight Garden and all those other wonderful books I devoured. Book 3 has no direct reference to Tolly & Granny Oldknowe and left me frantically turning pages, trying to figure out what I’d missed.
3 stars for the first book.
Do better.
Yours sincerely,
Anyone Who’s Ever Read A Book Series
Why did you think it was such a brilliant idea to release books ONE and THREE in one volume? Here was me just reading the first one, relishing in the magical aspect of it and wishing I’d read it as a child, and BOOM, what I presumed as the second one comes along and bears no correlation to the first.
WHAT JUST HAPPENED.
Why did the first one just end, and then you decide “here’s what our reading public needs, books 1 and 3 in the same edition, doesn’t matter about book 2, it’ll make total sense without book 2.”
Whose bright idea was that.
Book 1 is what I needed in my childhood, alongside Moondial, Tom’s Midnight Garden and all those other wonderful books I devoured. Book 3 has no direct reference to Tolly & Granny Oldknowe and left me frantically turning pages, trying to figure out what I’d missed.
3 stars for the first book.
Do better.
Yours sincerely,
Anyone Who’s Ever Read A Book Series
July 21, 2025
This book felt like a fever dream, honestly. I was so confused so much of the time. It surprised me that it was written in the fifties because it felt more like reading a book from the late 1800s/ early 20th century. Obviously, some of the attitudes are very much outdated, however, it felt like it stuck out more in this book than others of a similar period. I enjoyed the style of writing, and the adventures on the river, but the dreams and weird stuff were all a bit much for me.
March 11, 2024
I've read these before, but can't find them in "real" format anywhere, so was forced to read them on the kindle. Both are great, but I loved them for very different reasons. And why are books 1 & 3 grouped together???? Republish the paperbacks!
Reading these brought me back to my true self, the imagination, faith, adventure and intrepid explorer of childhood dreams.
Reading these brought me back to my true self, the imagination, faith, adventure and intrepid explorer of childhood dreams.
May 6, 2024
Loved this- was everything I wanted the owl service to be and more. Green men, ghosts, old houses and a sense of wonder without much jeopardy. It’s a children’s book but it’s not talking down to readers.
February 9, 2026
Two Stories
The first story, The Children of Green Nowe, was more interesting than the second story, The River at Green Nowe. Each story felt unfinished. The writing itself was poetic, mystical, lyrical even though the narratives were not what I has anticipated.
The first story, The Children of Green Nowe, was more interesting than the second story, The River at Green Nowe. Each story felt unfinished. The writing itself was poetic, mystical, lyrical even though the narratives were not what I has anticipated.
December 3, 2017
I love the entire series of Green Knowe which is based on the house the author lived in; Hemingford Grey Manor.
http://www.greenknowe.co.uk/history.html
http://www.greenknowe.co.uk/history.html
July 1, 2018
Loved the first book immensely, but the second one couldn’t live up to the magic of the first. And both stories end quite abruptly!
January 28, 2019
3* for Children; 4* for River.
March 21, 2021
Weird. A bit dodgy in places, p.c-wise , for 2021, but other than that, super ! 😘
📚❤📚
📚❤📚
December 15, 2022
Not one of my favorites. It seemed to have no endings or meaning. Disjointed to me.
February 7, 2026
Enchanting
March 2, 2017
Pretty old fashioned but I had wanted to read it having recently seen the film with the wonderful Maggie Smith.
Halfway through the book, I realised that I had read this as a child and it was strange to bring those distant memories to the forefront of my mind.
At the end of the day, charming and rather quirky!
Halfway through the book, I realised that I had read this as a child and it was strange to bring those distant memories to the forefront of my mind.
At the end of the day, charming and rather quirky!
December 21, 2021
The book I wanted to read was The Children of the Green Knowe, the River at Green Knowe came along as a bonus.
The Children of the Green Knowe is my all-time favourite ghost story, it has an amazing quality of feeling totally real. You know those children exist. It's almost impossible to write a review without spoiling the enchantment so I won't try.
The River at Green Knowe doesn't have quite the same quality but it is still full of quirky events, some real, some possibly just the product of a child's imagination - but then, maybe not. It's great fun.
Both books are truly evocative of what it was like to be a child in the 1950s, when nature was our source of entertainment rather than screens and we had almost unbounded freedom to explore it. Lucy Boston conjures up a tremendously vivid picture of what it was like to be able to study wildlife with a child's sharpe eyes, an eye level much closer to the ground and a head as yet uncontaminated by adult ideas about how things must be.
The Children of the Green Knowe is my all-time favourite ghost story, it has an amazing quality of feeling totally real. You know those children exist. It's almost impossible to write a review without spoiling the enchantment so I won't try.
The River at Green Knowe doesn't have quite the same quality but it is still full of quirky events, some real, some possibly just the product of a child's imagination - but then, maybe not. It's great fun.
Both books are truly evocative of what it was like to be a child in the 1950s, when nature was our source of entertainment rather than screens and we had almost unbounded freedom to explore it. Lucy Boston conjures up a tremendously vivid picture of what it was like to be able to study wildlife with a child's sharpe eyes, an eye level much closer to the ground and a head as yet uncontaminated by adult ideas about how things must be.
September 29, 2022
This is two books in one: The Children of Green Knowe and The River at Green Knowe. I loved the first one; Tolly comes to stay at Green Knowe and hears and eventually meets the spirits of three children from far back in his family line, who also lived there. The second book is still Green Knowe, but someone else lives there now - two older women, who invite their niece and two "displaced" children (a Russian and a Chinese) to visit. The children have a lot of adventures canoeing on the river and see a lot of wonderful things. But somehow it just didn't have the same feel as the first one; plus I guess I was hoping that the children would be back again (they aren't.) The ending was rather abrupt. I would like to try some others in this series, though - they are so well written.
September 2022 - Reading them again. Ordered the rest of the series.
September 2022 - Reading them again. Ordered the rest of the series.
November 21, 2013
This volume consists of two books: The Children of Green Knowe, and The River at Green Knowe, originally published in the middle of the 20th century.
These books focus on people who are staying at the old mansion known either as Green Knowe or Green Noah, which was apparently based on the author's own home. Ghosts are evident in a very matter-of-fact way, and the genre is an unusual mixture of adventure, history and fantasy. The writing is perhaps a bit rambling in places, but the children seem quite real and the books are very readable.
Children from the age of about nine or ten upwards who enjoy a wide range of reading matter would probably like this, and it would also make an excellent book for family reading aloud.
Three and a half stars, really.
These books focus on people who are staying at the old mansion known either as Green Knowe or Green Noah, which was apparently based on the author's own home. Ghosts are evident in a very matter-of-fact way, and the genre is an unusual mixture of adventure, history and fantasy. The writing is perhaps a bit rambling in places, but the children seem quite real and the books are very readable.
Children from the age of about nine or ten upwards who enjoy a wide range of reading matter would probably like this, and it would also make an excellent book for family reading aloud.
Three and a half stars, really.
December 29, 2021
A book that I found interesting enough to read, but not amazing to continue with after I finished. The first story in this collection was interesting, but also strange. It was appealing, but also had more plot than I like in a book. I prefer to know more about the characters.
I found the second story a bit harder to get into than the first. I might give this series another go in the future. Not my favorite reads, but decent. I’m sure kids would enjoy them more.
I found the second story a bit harder to get into than the first. I might give this series another go in the future. Not my favorite reads, but decent. I’m sure kids would enjoy them more.
December 25, 2013
Our local library opened when I was 11. I had finished all the books that seemed to be of any interest to me when I turned 17.
The Children of Green Knowe was one of the first volumes I read there and it turned into my favourite children's book of many years. It was not published in German for many years so when my two children had the right age I took to translating it for them.
The Children of Green Knowe was one of the first volumes I read there and it turned into my favourite children's book of many years. It was not published in German for many years so when my two children had the right age I took to translating it for them.
January 22, 2015
I always read this just before Christmas - magical x
February 12, 2015
probably one of my favorite set of stories from my childhood...
I still have it and from time to time will read them
I still have it and from time to time will read them
April 7, 2017
Read this many years ago and it stands the test of time. The center piece is the old house and the adventures the children have there. Two books in one there are even more if you can find them.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews