Steeplechase

Homer Kelly #18

by Jane Langton

 

"A lost church?" said Homer Kelly. "How could a church get itself lost? You mean it just pointed its steeple at the horizon and took off?"

His wife sucked her pencil. "I know it sounds strange."

 

Strange or not, Homer and Mary are soon engaged in a steeplechase, a pursuit of the mysterious lost church.

 

Luckily, the reader is in on the mystery. This sequel to The Deserter: Murder at Gettysburg is set in 1868 in the town of Nashoba, Massachusetts, where the daughter of the Reverend Josiah Gideon cares for her husband, James, brutally disfigured in the last battle of the Civil War. In the parsonage across the town green, the Reverend Horatio Biddle fumes at what he considers to be Josiah's brazen ways, while Mrs. Biddle spies on the outhouse in Josiah's backyard.

 

Central to the story is a gigantic tree, the Great Nashoba Chestnut. Crucially intermingled with its fate are a poem by Oliver Wendell Holmes, the story "The Three Billy Goats Gruff," and the nonsense rhymes of Mother Goose. Homer and Mary Kelly will once again delve deep into the past to unravel puzzles in the present.

 

This novel includes charming drawings by the author and a number of nineteenth-century photographs.

Genres: Mystery, Historical Fiction

304 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 2005

About the author

Langton was born in Boston, Massachusetts. She studied astronomy at Wellesley College and the University of Michigan, receiving a bachelor's degree in 1944. She received an M.A. in art history from the University of Michigan in 1945, and another M.A. from Radcliffe College in 1948. She studied at the Boston Museum School from 1958 to 1959.

In 1961 Langton wrote and illustrated her first book for children, The Majesty of Grace, a story about a young girl during the Depression who is certain she will some day be Queen of England. Langton has since written a children's series, The Hall Family Chronicles, and the Homer Kelly murder mystery novels. She has also written several stand-alone novels and picture books.

Langton's novel The Fledgling is a Newbery Honor book. Her novel Emily Dickinson is Dead was nominated for an Edgar Award and received a Nero Award. The Face on the Wall was an editors' choice selection by The Drood Review of Mystery for 1998.

Langton lives in Lincoln, Massachusetts, near the town of Concord, the setting of many of her novels. Her husband, Bill, died in 1997. Langton has three adult sons: Chris, David and Andy.

Series:
* Hall Family
* Homer Kelly Mystery

Reviews

[Hapzydeco · Rating 3 out of 5]

In Steeplechase, Jane Langston presents the past and present in alternating sections. Plus, Langton's own drawings add a touch of whimsy. Read this book as if viewing an antique album with the past being the mystery.

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was introduced to Jane Langton's writing in the 1980's by a colleague who knew she was giving me a gift. An author new to me, writing about Boston and Concord and Harvard, diving deeply into local history, crafting intelligent mysteries, and creating a delightful protagonist, Homer Kelly, I read Langton's novels through the late 1990's until there were no more. Last week I discovered this book, actually a sequel, at my local library, written in 2005. How did I miss it when it was first published?

One of the hallmarks of Jane Langton's novels is her careful historical research, embedded in the plot along with Latin and literary quotes and her original line drawings. Homer Kelly and his wife, Mary, are Harvard professors, and as down-to-earth as they are, they are intelligent, articulate, curious, and sometimes a bit skeptical of where we are in the world.

The novel alternates between the present, in which Homer Kelly searches for some scandal among the churches west of Boston in the 1850's to satisfy his editor, and 1868, in the fictional town of Nashoba, Massachusetts, where families are trying to settle into a different life after the Civil War. Two of the families, the Flints and the Gideons, have been grievously affected by the war, and yet, they pursue their lives with integrity, rising above the pettiness of some of the townspeople. The differences between two ministers, Horatio Biddle, rash, impulsive, angry, revengeful and Josiah Gideon, a good man, committed to his family and principles, a supervisor of almshouses, drive the plot. Of course, there are several other plot lines (and characters) to follow in the past, equally interesting, a glimpse into the past.

I was delighted that my recently acquired knowledge from a graduate course of the split of the Congregationalists from the Unitarians matched Homer and Mary's research, and appreciated Langton's tying the past to the present with a tangled path to a descendent of the Flints behind a down-at-the-heels pizza place. I think that is where our histories lurk, amidst faded photographs and weeds.

A difference that stood out from Jane Langton's previous books is a thread of political commentary. Homer comments, "...but they never see the worst that can happen to the young men they so blithely send off to war. Otherwise, they might refuse to send them." Mary responds, "But sometimes we have to send them." Homer growls in response, "Only when the particular war we send to them is chosen pretty damn carefully."

Jane Langton is 95 years old now. I thank her for years of reading enjoyment and hope she is at peace wherever she is.

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sigh. I’ve finally read the last of the Homer Kelly mysteries by Jane Langton. I still remember the first novel of hers that I read when I was a child, ‘The Diamond in the Window’. It was always one of my favorites, combining poetry, Transcendentalists, and a world in which children found themselves in a magical mystery with moral choices and not much adult supervision. I found ‘The Diamond in the Window’ again when my own children were young, and discovered that not only were there sequels, but also an adult series of mysteries with Homer Kelly and Mary Kelly. My library had one of them, and over the years, I have sought out the rest, with many purchased from Powell’s or other second hand bookstores. I have worked my way through them slowly, usually saving them for vacation reading.

Each book delves into a different cultural/geographic/literary setting. My overall sense is that whatever new topic Jane Langton became interested in, she incorporated it into a gentle, humorous mystery story. While the crime is investigated, historical information about the setting (Concord, Harvard, The British Museum, Venice, Florence, Nantucket), literary work (Emily Dickinson, Moby Dick), artist (Escher), or historical figure (Thomas Jefferson), is woven throughout the tale.

This last novel, ‘Steeplechase’, includes a post-Civil War storyline, and a modern hunt for a mystery dating back to that time, with a little Oliver Wendell Holmes, early balloonists, and a giant chestnut tree thrown in. By coincidence, I had just previously read ‘The Overstory’, a novel that also features a giant chestnut tree. This set me to looking for a living chestnut tree. It turns out there is one in my town which I am planning to visit soon. Jane Langton also pokes fun at the need for authors to produce a ‘sexy’ story to get on the best seller list - I have to imagine that is something she came up against in her literary life.

I have so enjoyed reading these books over the years, and I am glad that I have collected them. Most of my copies are small paperback editions, the perfect size for a suitcase. I am going read them all again when we emerge from the pandemic and can travel again.

[Peter A · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the book section of a recent New York Times, I read an obituary of Jane Langton, who wrote (historical) mysteries, based in and around Concord. I had never heard of her. I asked my Mom, who is an avid mystery reader, whether she had – another “no”. So, based on her comment to borrow from the library, that is what I did. I had only a couple of choices, and this book was the one immediately available.

As most reviews of the book will mention, the narration jumps between the 1868, in the aftermath of the Civil War, and the so-called present day (roughly 2005 when the book was published). The bulk of the narration is in 1868, with a colorful and full cast of characters. In the current day narrative, the detective/historian Homer Kelly and his wife Mary, going from church to church (or steeple to steeple) chasing down “juicy” stories about the church to spice up a book he is writing, and giving the current book its title. During that process he comes across vague stories of a missing church, chopped-down, huge chestnut tree and a feud.

The author has done a great deal of work trying to find images of people from 1868 that could portray the characters in her book She also has done a good deal of background work on the times.

By the end of the book I will admit to being pleasantly surprised, not so much about the “mystery” as about the storytelling, and the wit and gentle humor the author uses in the book to tell the story. For those readers who are looking for a “detective mystery”, you may be disappointed. However, if you are interested in good story telling, peeling back a type of mystery, gaining insights into human behavior, and having a bit of fun, then this is a book to consider. If I find one of the author’s other books, I will read it. This book is the 18th and the last involving Homer Kelly (the series spans 40 years of writing), but the author has also written several children books and other series (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_La...).

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Homer and Mary are visiting New England churches (mostly local Massachusetts) doing research for Homer's next book, after his current book surprisingly turned out to be a best-seller. There are several story lines all going on at once. The giant chestnut tree that is murdered, the church built from chestnut boards, the feuding ministers of two of the churches, the disfigured war veteran and his wife. and many other characters all of whom impinge on the Kellys at some point. The photos of the characters and the drawings of some of the churches added to the enjoyment. It held my interest, although I was able to put it down easily to do other things. An interesting story, and I've read several of the Homer Kelly books and always enjoy them.

[Jeanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quaint little mystery packed into an historical novel. Part of a series I was not familiar with, I thoroughly enjoyed this book, even without knowing any of the previous books in the series.
Homer and Mary Kelly are charming old coots, researching a "lost church" to spice up Homer's next book after making it onto the bestsellers list with his last, a nonfiction titled "Hen and Chicks".
Going back and forth between the Kelly's discoveries in the NOW and the characters who lived out their lives during the aftermath of the Civil War, this is a pleasant and fulfilling read.
I hope to read more from this author and series.

[Susan Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable book where the action rotates between present day and the late 1860's. The events take place in a small New England town and center around, a modern author on the hunt for "interesting" stories about old churches and the tension between a traditional pastor and a more forward-thinking pastor. In the "past story" a large chestnut tree. This was an interesting tale, even though I read this series out of order.

Borrowed from the Berkley Public Library.

[Phillip Mclaughlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

churches and clergy in 1868 what a fertile subject

More of Jane Langton painting a picture of Middlesex county…Homer and Mary Kelly are the best. Twentieth century detection of events post civil war.
Highly recommend

[Jukka]

Steeplechase (2005) - Jane Langton
I had read Diamond in the Window by Jane Langton when i was in sixth grade. That adventure, and the children in the book are fresh and alive for me. I wondered what else Langton may have written? She is still writing, she was born in 1922, and she's quite prolific, another book soon to be published. A Langton characteristic is to combine her story with some striking and unique historic place, event, or person. Here in her most recent, it's a great tree, a horribly disfigured civil war survivor, the confrontation between two preachers, one conservative one liberal, and a poem by Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

Like the other book that's part of me, this book combines both her adult and childlike qualities. Langton did the illustrations in both, her latest includes historic photo-portraits she chose matching people alive in the story. These books are light, fun adventures. Some of her other titles: The Escher Twist, Emily Dickinson is Dead, The Dante Game, Dead as Dodo (involving Charles Darwin), and The Transcendental Murders.

From Steeplechase pg 120:
So the whole thing was hopeless. The past was weird and unknowable. How could he presume to know anything whatever about a time when every gesture of a hand, every habit of talk, every simple unconscious action was shrouded by curtains of the years that lay between, each a darker and thicker veil, until everything was blotted out?

www.janelangton.com

[Scilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

My mother would have loved this book. It jumps between the current time when Homer Kelley is writing a book about old New England churches and just after the Civil War Massachusetts, north-west of Boston. Homer's editor wants some juicy details to spice up the book. Homer and his wife Mary are visiting churches outside Boston to try to find some details to interest the editor. In the post civil war era, we meet a rambuctuous little boy, a disfigured Civil War veteran, his devoted wife and her pastor father, a proud pastor and his determined wife, a young architect and the woman who is trying to catch him, twin brothers doing arial photography from a hot air balloon, and a huge venerable Chestnut Tree.

[Linda Lipko · Rating 1 out of 5]

This disappointing book does not merit a review. I worked my way through 3/4 of it and then gave up. Still, I'm counting it simply because I spent too much frustration in trying to make sense of it all.

I enjoyed Emily Dickinson is dead and thus thought another of Langton's books would be fun. I was wrong.

This is a boring tale of Homer Kelly who suddenly becomes a best selling author of a book people confess to not reading. His publisher insists he write a follow up book, this one about New England churches and scandals.

The story meanders between the past and the present, switching without transitions. The plot is slow and dull.

Highly NOT recommended.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good way to pass a snowy afternoon. Langton's alternating chapters between post-Civil War New England and Homer Kelly's search for a juicy story about a church is a quick read. Dueling pastors, a mischievous young boy, a huge chestnut tree, church buildings and congregations, and likable characters make for an engaging story. If you read Langton's earlier "The Deserter" you may enjoy meeting some of those characters again; I found "Steeplechase" much more enjoyable (the Civil War battlefield scenes in "Deserter" were too graphic for me).

[Ed · Rating 4 out of 5]

#18 in the Homer Kelly series. Final book in the series.

Homer Kelly is writing a book about the churches around his Concord, MA home. The narrative flips back and forth to a tale of some of his wife's distant ancestors around 1870, with a story of war injuries, feuding clergymen, and a huge chestnut tree in a fictional Nashoba graveyard. The present day research features descendants of the 1870 story. Sequel to "The Deserter".

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always enjoy Jane Langton's Homer Kelly mysteries. I was a little apprehensive about this one because it took place in the past as well as the present, but Langton came through again. (And the title of the book is a clever play on words; Homer is going around New England looking at old churches to write a book on them.)

[Carolyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although this is categorized as a mystery, it's more a historical novel, with the narrative jumping back and forth between 1868 and the present day as Homer & Mary Kelly go in search of a missing church. Added bonus of period photos which the author found to illustrate her fictional historical characters. Thank you to my friend Laura B for giving this to me for my birthday!

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Homer and Mary, and enjoyed the added interest of the modern-day historian sleuths alternating with the post-Civil War era events. Plot got a bit contrived towards the end but it was still very satisfying. Characters are great....

[Candy Wood]

More about 19th-century New England village folk than Homer and Mary, but still interesting. It's one of those weird phenomena associated with aging that one resists the idea that series writers and characters also get older with time.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A decent book. Not really a mystery but an interesting story none-the-less.

[Cindy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a bit difficult to follow. I have ordered the first in the series to see if that helps bring things up to speed. I liked the photo's of the characters.....nice touch.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of my favorite Homer Kelly stories. The end was predictable, but the journey there was interesting and enjoyable.

[June]

Flits back and forth in time between now and a Civil War era mystery story ... hard to put it down!