Bowen's Court & Seven Winters

by Elizabeth Bowen

"Bowen's Court" describes the history of the author's Anglo-Irish family in County Cork, from the Cromwellian sttlement until 1959. In "Seven Winters", Elizabeth Bowen recalls, with endearing candour, her family and Dublin childhood.

Genres: Nonfiction, Ireland, Memoir, Biography, Biography Memoir, History

527 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1984

About the author

Elizabeth Dorothea Cole Bowen, CBE was an Anglo-Irish novelist and short story writer and short story writer notable for her books about the "big house" of Irish landed Protestants as well her fiction about life in wartime London.

Reviews

[Adri]

Bocadillo de cemento

[Sora O'Doherty]

A very personal history of Ireland, told through the medium of the author's home and relations. It inspired me to go and wander the site and the neighborhood, which is a trip very well worth taking.

[John Beall]

An intimate view into the life and history of a past period of Irish history. The author's clear sometimes unexpectedly frank appraisal of her family and it's place in context is in some ways a monument to the permanence of memory in the face of time and upheaval.

[Barbara]

This is a long book, and often dense. The great Irish writer, Elizabeth Bowen, wrote this history of her family in Ireland (the first family member arrived with Cromwells army and the family was from Wales) and the family "Big House", Bowen's Court. It is a portrayal of the Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland and the Anglo-Irish population. These were well off people who were direct descendants of English (and Welsh) elite, sent by the Crown to "colonize" Ireland. There will be no doubt after reading this that Ireland was indeed a British colony. Many say that it was the first laboratory for British colonization, predating even America.

Full at times of endless details (these can be skimmed), such as the endless lawsuits between these elite families. For fans of Bowen, and readers interested in the legacy of Big Houses in Ireland, this is a recommended read.

[Kathleen C]

MoLI exhibiton cabinet, June 2026

[Millicent]

With all due respect to Elizabeth Bowen's other good work, I think Bowen's Court & Seven Winters requires a prior interest in the history of the Anglo-Irish. The writing style does not make the subject compelling for a general reader.

[Rachel]

Mentioned in this interview with Edna O'Brien: http://www.theparisreview.org/intervi...

[Anna]

Only read Seven Winters.