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Sarah #1
Sarah Morris Remembers
With the help of her old diaries, Sarah Morris recounts her life story. The daughter of an English vicar, she begins by telling of her happy childhood with her brothers and sister in their country village. As a teenager, Sarah's brother brings home a friend - Charles, a charming Austrian to whom she quickly becomes close. Over the years they fall in love, but when war breaks out Charles must return to Austria. While she awaits his return, Sarah quietly continues working hard and caring for her family. But she can't stop wondering if she will ever see her sweetheart again.
Audible Audio
First published January 1, 1967
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About the author
D.E. Stevenson
67 books626 followersThere is more than one author with this name
Dorothy Emily Stevenson was a best-selling Scottish author. She published more than 40 romantic novels over a period of more than 40 years. Her father was a cousin of Robert Louis Stevenson.
D.E. Stevenson had an enormously successful writing career: between 1923 and 1970, four million copies of her books were sold in Britain and three million in the States. Like E.F. Benson, Ann Bridge, O. Douglas or Dorothy L. Sayers (to name but a few) her books are funny, intensely readable, engaging and dependable.
Dorothy Emily Stevenson was a best-selling Scottish author. She published more than 40 romantic novels over a period of more than 40 years. Her father was a cousin of Robert Louis Stevenson.
D.E. Stevenson had an enormously successful writing career: between 1923 and 1970, four million copies of her books were sold in Britain and three million in the States. Like E.F. Benson, Ann Bridge, O. Douglas or Dorothy L. Sayers (to name but a few) her books are funny, intensely readable, engaging and dependable.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 77 reviews
August 2, 2025
This is yet another standout book from the wonderful D.E. Stevenson. I think this is the first book of hers that I have read that is set during WWII and it added a level of intensity to the story that felt like a change of pace from her other novels yet the tone is still in keeping with Stevenson’s slice of life narratives. I loved our main character, Sarah Morris, and watching her life and relationships play out was equally heartwarming and heartbreaking. I am immediately picking up the sequel because I cannot wait to spend more time with these characters.
February 27, 2011
I had taken a break from reading a Stevenson novel as I have read about 2/3 of her works and I don't want to ever get to the point where I have no Stevenson novels left to read...oh, I rue that day! :( But, her novels (many are unavailable even through ILL)can be pricey even through online used book vendors...But, I decided to budget a new Stevenson every few months and then perhaps I can stretch out her books for a few more years...:)
Sarah Morris Remembers is a lovely novel set in England in the late 1930's as the nation faces the threat of Hitler. Sarah is the daughter of an Anglican priest and the beginning of the novel remarks upon her happy life growing up in rural England. When war looms on the horizon, she finds herself falling in love with her brother's friend from Oxford, who happens to be an Austrian and suspect as an "enemy alien." Sarah is a very strong, faith-filled, loyal to the end...
There is a very moving scene where someone close to Sarah dies and I found myself crying (rare for me!) at the holy death of this character...for ultimately, I love Stevenson because she loved God...this love permeates all her novels!
Sarah Morris Remembers is a lovely novel set in England in the late 1930's as the nation faces the threat of Hitler. Sarah is the daughter of an Anglican priest and the beginning of the novel remarks upon her happy life growing up in rural England. When war looms on the horizon, she finds herself falling in love with her brother's friend from Oxford, who happens to be an Austrian and suspect as an "enemy alien." Sarah is a very strong, faith-filled, loyal to the end...
There is a very moving scene where someone close to Sarah dies and I found myself crying (rare for me!) at the holy death of this character...for ultimately, I love Stevenson because she loved God...this love permeates all her novels!
December 18, 2018
I liked this much more than I thought I would! Sarah Morris is a really sweet, sweet girl, but her story is not saccharine. I found her values to be an intrinsic part of her personality. In todays world where it is common to see the "me first" thought process and the instant gratification, Sarah exhibits kindness and generosity, perseverance and loyalty, while living through the London bombings of WWII. I definitely will read the sequel!
November 2, 2020
Within the first few pages of this book I knew Sarah Morris would rank with Mrs. Tim Christie and Miss Buncle as one of my favorite D.E. Stevenson characters. I, generally, love all of D.E. Stevenson's books but this one was extra special.
April 20, 2022
D. E. Stevenson is a comfort read for me and I needed that type of story right now. Pleasant, nothing too demanding. However, I found this to be a different sort of D. E. Stevenson. The story had more substance and the characters were developed thoroughly. I came to know these people and care about their lives. And they didn’t lead a happily ever after life. But the story was realistic and enjoyable. So much so that I am currently listening to the second ‘Sarah’ book.
May 1, 2020
I think I read these out of order. They didn’t seem numbered clearly to me and i got the idea I was to read the cottage book first as the other was a look back. Oh well it was just fine this way, but i think i would recommend “Remembers” first and “Cottage” second.
October 28, 2015
Loved this book! D.E. Stevenson has done it again for me!
Sarah Morris is the daughter of an English vicar. She has two brothers, Willy and Lewis, and another sister Charlotte, the youngest in the family, and *quite* spoiled! Written in pre-World War II, the novel progresses and takes the reader on a quick trip through the war from Sarah's perspective.
We see Lewis wanting to be a soldier and Willy, much to his shame,exempted from service. Charlotte becomes more and more flighty and self-absorbed, influenced by her shallow friends, the Meldrum family.
How do two sisters in the same family turn out so differently? Lottie and Sarah are as different as could be... but the reader almost has to laugh at Lottie's immature actions.
There is a vacation trip to Sarah's grandparents in Scotland, with more interesting and quirky characters to meet, and Sarah's horizons are widened when she meets her brother Lewis' schoolfriend, Charles.
"When I went back to Austria, I felt frustrated. I felt like a fish out of water; I couldn't breathe freely. Then came the Anschluss when Austria was betrayed by her government and surrendered without a blow! That decided the matter; I couldn't live in a country dominated by a man like Hitler."
"What do you mean, Charles?" I asked in surprise.
"My mother was a MacDonald, as you know, so already I am half British by birth. I want to become a British subject. I have been in touch with the authorities and have applied to be naturalised..."
Sarah eventually finds herself caught up in a relationship that cuts across two countries at war.
How Sarah copes with night bombings of London, is offered and maintains a job, and cares for her father and brothers during the war, (and the selfish vagaries of an annoying sister), is a very interesting read!
"One day when we were in the garden, Grandpapa said something which made such a deep impression upon me that it affected my whole life… and even now, many years after, I can still see him sitting on the garden seat with the September sunshine falling through the leaves of the apple tree and making a sort of halo of his thick white hair. It was a Sunday afternoon. The grans had been to church in the morning, but they had left me at home because I was still in quarantine. The sermon had been about ‘the lilies of the field’ and Grandpapa had disapproved of it.
“Lilies don’t have to toil and spin, they’re just beautiful,” I had pointed out.
“I know,” agreed Grandpapa, frowning thoughtfully. “But it isn’t enough to be beautiful. I’m a soldier, not a parson, but I read my Bible carefully, and, to me, it’s quite obvious that Jesus liked people who were enthusiastic: people who did things, looked ahead, and weren’t easily turned from their purpose. Zaccheus climbed a tree because he wanted to see Jesus; some men brought their sick friend to be healed and let him down through a hole in the roof; the blind man shouted at Jesus – and wouldn’t stop shouting… All these people, and many others, got what they wanted. They were rewarded for their enthusiasm, foresight, initiative and perseverance. They were go-getters, Sarah.”
“Go-getters?”
“Yes,” said Grandpapa, nodding. “Remember this, Sarah: you’ll never get anything worth having unless you go all out to get it.”
Sarah Morris is the daughter of an English vicar. She has two brothers, Willy and Lewis, and another sister Charlotte, the youngest in the family, and *quite* spoiled! Written in pre-World War II, the novel progresses and takes the reader on a quick trip through the war from Sarah's perspective.
We see Lewis wanting to be a soldier and Willy, much to his shame,exempted from service. Charlotte becomes more and more flighty and self-absorbed, influenced by her shallow friends, the Meldrum family.
How do two sisters in the same family turn out so differently? Lottie and Sarah are as different as could be... but the reader almost has to laugh at Lottie's immature actions.
There is a vacation trip to Sarah's grandparents in Scotland, with more interesting and quirky characters to meet, and Sarah's horizons are widened when she meets her brother Lewis' schoolfriend, Charles.
"When I went back to Austria, I felt frustrated. I felt like a fish out of water; I couldn't breathe freely. Then came the Anschluss when Austria was betrayed by her government and surrendered without a blow! That decided the matter; I couldn't live in a country dominated by a man like Hitler."
"What do you mean, Charles?" I asked in surprise.
"My mother was a MacDonald, as you know, so already I am half British by birth. I want to become a British subject. I have been in touch with the authorities and have applied to be naturalised..."
Sarah eventually finds herself caught up in a relationship that cuts across two countries at war.
How Sarah copes with night bombings of London, is offered and maintains a job, and cares for her father and brothers during the war, (and the selfish vagaries of an annoying sister), is a very interesting read!
"One day when we were in the garden, Grandpapa said something which made such a deep impression upon me that it affected my whole life… and even now, many years after, I can still see him sitting on the garden seat with the September sunshine falling through the leaves of the apple tree and making a sort of halo of his thick white hair. It was a Sunday afternoon. The grans had been to church in the morning, but they had left me at home because I was still in quarantine. The sermon had been about ‘the lilies of the field’ and Grandpapa had disapproved of it.
“Lilies don’t have to toil and spin, they’re just beautiful,” I had pointed out.
“I know,” agreed Grandpapa, frowning thoughtfully. “But it isn’t enough to be beautiful. I’m a soldier, not a parson, but I read my Bible carefully, and, to me, it’s quite obvious that Jesus liked people who were enthusiastic: people who did things, looked ahead, and weren’t easily turned from their purpose. Zaccheus climbed a tree because he wanted to see Jesus; some men brought their sick friend to be healed and let him down through a hole in the roof; the blind man shouted at Jesus – and wouldn’t stop shouting… All these people, and many others, got what they wanted. They were rewarded for their enthusiasm, foresight, initiative and perseverance. They were go-getters, Sarah.”
“Go-getters?”
“Yes,” said Grandpapa, nodding. “Remember this, Sarah: you’ll never get anything worth having unless you go all out to get it.”
November 8, 2025
Although I did anticipate enjoying this very much, the real reason why I chose this one, in the still many Stevenson titles I have left to read, is that it leads up to Sarah’s Cottage, one I have reason to believe might be a favorite. Fingers crossed.
Sarah Morris Remembers traces our heroine’s life as a child growing up with her loving parents, her two brothers, and a younger sister in their country vicarage home. It starts some years prior to WWII and takes us through the end of the war We see her family and the world through her eyes as she is writing down her memories with help from her diaries.
Although not a beauty like her kind and gentle mother and her little sister, Sarah is smart and spirited. And, nurtured by her parents, she has a very highly developed sense of morality. She is a very good girl. Sometimes a little too good to my liking, to be honest. But that is true of all DES heroes and heroines. It's part of their charm and the comfort and joy of the books. Sarah, at least, is spunky and sensible to the last page. She and her siblings have an idyllic childhood: Lewis, the oldest, is handsome, smart, and their parents’ fair haired boy. Willie, like Sarah, is a bit of a rebel, and her little sister Lottie is pretty like a little doll and cossetted as the baby of the family. As the children grow up, Lottie becomes friends with a wealthy schoolmate whose family has her for weekends and vacations and she ends up more influenced by them than her own family. Although Lewis has a hankering to choose a military career, he complies with his mother and father’s wishes (especially his mother) and goes to Oxford. Willie and Sarah stand up against their well-meaning parents and fight for and follow their own dreams. One day, when Sarah is a young teen, Lewis brings home a good friend, Charles, who is Austrian. Although nothing untoward happens or is even hinted at, Sarah is drawn to him and, though he is 5 years older (possibly more), it is mutual. WWII is still a few years away, but Hitler is on the rise. We follow Sarah as she makes her way through her teens, while keeping tabs on the rest of her family and their highs and lows.
Sarah and Charles' connection eventually leads to an engagement, but before they can be married Charles must come to the rescue of his noble and wealthy Austrian family who are threatened by the Nazis. He mysteriously and alarmingly disappears. Sarah bravely carries on with her father in war torn London, doing their bit, while waiting for her beloved Charles to return to her (hopefully).
This Stevenson is very romance-forward even though Charles and Sarah are separated throughout much of the book. Their love and passion (yes, passion in a D.E Stevenson!) are consummated before Charles leaves for Austria albeit with the belief he will return in a few weeks in time for their wedding. That has got to be a first for DES, and I thought it was worth mentioning. True to her original intent, Sarah tells the truth regardless of the foibles and weaknesses of herself, her parents, her brothers, and especially Lottie (Hoo Boy!). Even Charles comes across as a bit of an ass in one part, even though Sarah worships the ground he walks on. And Sarah rarely let me down.
Of course, because this is D.E.S., we spend some time in Scotland where her grandparents live near good ol’ Ryddelton. And yes, a certain ghostly carriage can sometimes be heard by certain people on certain nights. I'm hovering between 4 and 5 stars, so I'll go with 4 1/2, leaving some room in case I like Sarah's Cottage even more.
Sarah Morris Remembers traces our heroine’s life as a child growing up with her loving parents, her two brothers, and a younger sister in their country vicarage home. It starts some years prior to WWII and takes us through the end of the war We see her family and the world through her eyes as she is writing down her memories with help from her diaries.
When I started this story of my life I unpacked the diaries which I had kept in a large tin box and, as I turned over the pages, all sorts of things came back to me – things I had forgotten – and I realised I had plenty of material for a family chronicle. I had intended to write the story to amuse the family but I hadn’t got very far before I saw that I was faced with a difficult choice: either I could write a story about the family, suitable for the family to read, or else I could write a true story about everything that had happened to us all.…I saw quite clearly that the story would be no good unless it was true in every detail. I would write it for myself, for my own satisfaction; no eye but mine should ever see it and perhaps when I had finished it I should be able to see some sort of pattern in my life.
Although not a beauty like her kind and gentle mother and her little sister, Sarah is smart and spirited. And, nurtured by her parents, she has a very highly developed sense of morality. She is a very good girl. Sometimes a little too good to my liking, to be honest. But that is true of all DES heroes and heroines. It's part of their charm and the comfort and joy of the books. Sarah, at least, is spunky and sensible to the last page. She and her siblings have an idyllic childhood: Lewis, the oldest, is handsome, smart, and their parents’ fair haired boy. Willie, like Sarah, is a bit of a rebel, and her little sister Lottie is pretty like a little doll and cossetted as the baby of the family. As the children grow up, Lottie becomes friends with a wealthy schoolmate whose family has her for weekends and vacations and she ends up more influenced by them than her own family. Although Lewis has a hankering to choose a military career, he complies with his mother and father’s wishes (especially his mother) and goes to Oxford. Willie and Sarah stand up against their well-meaning parents and fight for and follow their own dreams. One day, when Sarah is a young teen, Lewis brings home a good friend, Charles, who is Austrian. Although nothing untoward happens or is even hinted at, Sarah is drawn to him and, though he is 5 years older (possibly more), it is mutual. WWII is still a few years away, but Hitler is on the rise. We follow Sarah as she makes her way through her teens, while keeping tabs on the rest of her family and their highs and lows.
Sarah and Charles' connection eventually leads to an engagement, but before they can be married Charles must come to the rescue of his noble and wealthy Austrian family who are threatened by the Nazis. He mysteriously and alarmingly disappears. Sarah bravely carries on with her father in war torn London, doing their bit, while waiting for her beloved Charles to return to her (hopefully).
This Stevenson is very romance-forward even though Charles and Sarah are separated throughout much of the book. Their love and passion (yes, passion in a D.E Stevenson!) are consummated before Charles leaves for Austria albeit with the belief he will return in a few weeks in time for their wedding. That has got to be a first for DES, and I thought it was worth mentioning. True to her original intent, Sarah tells the truth regardless of the foibles and weaknesses of herself, her parents, her brothers, and especially Lottie (Hoo Boy!). Even Charles comes across as a bit of an ass in one part, even though Sarah worships the ground he walks on. And Sarah rarely let me down.
Of course, because this is D.E.S., we spend some time in Scotland where her grandparents live near good ol’ Ryddelton. And yes, a certain ghostly carriage can sometimes be heard by certain people on certain nights. I'm hovering between 4 and 5 stars, so I'll go with 4 1/2, leaving some room in case I like Sarah's Cottage even more.
October 21, 2022
I often go back to the novels of D E Stevenson when I've had my fill of gritty crime thrillers and want something more uplifting and calming. You can always rely on her books to remind you that humanity isn't all bad!
Second time round I listened to the audiobook version. It's true that the first half is very slow, but the second half is much better and worth a good 3.5 stars.
Second time round I listened to the audiobook version. It's true that the first half is very slow, but the second half is much better and worth a good 3.5 stars.
September 25, 2022
This had elements of several other DES novels. The siblings reminded me of Amberwell. The relationship with Sarah and Lottie reminded me of The Young Clementina sister relationship. Charles and Sarah’s relationship reminded me a bit of The English Air. Even with all those similarities, the story felt different and the characters were very much unique.
I always love reading about children in a vicarage, so the first part of the novel was enjoyable for that reason. Sarah’s time in Scotland with her grandparents is a standout as well. Her grandparents are the dearest couple! I liked Charles right away as well as his perspective as an Austrian. The romance between Charles and Sarah is sweet as well. (Felt a bit Eva Ibbotson-like here with Charles’ family estate and townhouse in Vienna and the relationship between an Englishwoman and an Austrian.)
Sarah’s coming of age happens right with the onset of WWII. I loved this second half of the story especially. Sarah’s father gives up his parish in the countryside to serve as a Vicar in London, despite the certain knowledge that London will be dangerous. Sarah and her father keep house together and her brother Willy eventually comes to live with them as well. Sarah really comes into her own in this section. She gets a job at a department store as an interpreter for all the refugees who speak French and German. She works at an air raid shelter that is attached to her father’s church. She becomes the hub of communication for her siblings and makes friends. She longs for Charles, but she doesn’t let his absence stop her from living.
Sarah is an endearing character. There is some drama at the end but it finishes well. I’m so glad there is a sequel because the Morris family is so enjoyable that I want to know what else happens to them now that the war is nearing its end. I love DES’s depictions of WWII because she makes them realistic without dwelling on the tragedy. It’s the keep calm and carry on model, but there is never a lack of emotion. It was just the reality of life. It kept on going.
Definitely going to pick up the sequel right away.
I always love reading about children in a vicarage, so the first part of the novel was enjoyable for that reason. Sarah’s time in Scotland with her grandparents is a standout as well. Her grandparents are the dearest couple! I liked Charles right away as well as his perspective as an Austrian. The romance between Charles and Sarah is sweet as well. (Felt a bit Eva Ibbotson-like here with Charles’ family estate and townhouse in Vienna and the relationship between an Englishwoman and an Austrian.)
Sarah’s coming of age happens right with the onset of WWII. I loved this second half of the story especially. Sarah’s father gives up his parish in the countryside to serve as a Vicar in London, despite the certain knowledge that London will be dangerous. Sarah and her father keep house together and her brother Willy eventually comes to live with them as well. Sarah really comes into her own in this section. She gets a job at a department store as an interpreter for all the refugees who speak French and German. She works at an air raid shelter that is attached to her father’s church. She becomes the hub of communication for her siblings and makes friends. She longs for Charles, but she doesn’t let his absence stop her from living.
Sarah is an endearing character. There is some drama at the end but it finishes well. I’m so glad there is a sequel because the Morris family is so enjoyable that I want to know what else happens to them now that the war is nearing its end. I love DES’s depictions of WWII because she makes them realistic without dwelling on the tragedy. It’s the keep calm and carry on model, but there is never a lack of emotion. It was just the reality of life. It kept on going.
Definitely going to pick up the sequel right away.
May 22, 2013
Story of the first 20-some years of Sarah Morris.
Enjoyable writing and very likeable characters for the most part, although right in the middle is a bit of implied immorality that quite disappointed me. It's not spelled out, and is never referred to again.
As a young teenager, Sarah meets her older brother's college friend, a kind and sympathetic man from Austria named Charles, and while he retains family-friend status for a while and she has a childish affection for him, it's not much of a leap for her to agree to marry him at the age of 19. But World War II gets in the way for a while, and the second half of the book is the story of Sarah's trials and successes in wartime London, where she keeps a flat for her father and brother and works as an interpreter in a department store. I quite liked this part of the book, as well as the couple of episodes where Sarah goes to visit her grandparents in Scotland.
Enjoyable writing and very likeable characters for the most part, although right in the middle is a bit of implied immorality that quite disappointed me. It's not spelled out, and is never referred to again.
As a young teenager, Sarah meets her older brother's college friend, a kind and sympathetic man from Austria named Charles, and while he retains family-friend status for a while and she has a childish affection for him, it's not much of a leap for her to agree to marry him at the age of 19. But World War II gets in the way for a while, and the second half of the book is the story of Sarah's trials and successes in wartime London, where she keeps a flat for her father and brother and works as an interpreter in a department store. I quite liked this part of the book, as well as the couple of episodes where Sarah goes to visit her grandparents in Scotland.
December 29, 2007
One of my favorite D.E. Stevenson books. Sarah grows up in a small town in Britain. Her college age brother brings home an Austrian student who loves the freedom of Britain at a time when Hitler is beginning to overrun Europe. Sarah pledges her allegience to him as he returns home to Austria at the beginning of WW II. Charles disappears for many years and she prepares to live her life without him. One day at work, she sees him again and he rushes away from her. What has happened to Charles?
The sequel is "Sarah's Cottage".
The sequel is "Sarah's Cottage".
March 21, 2020
4.5 stars
March 30, 2016
3.5 stars. I found the beginning just so boring that I almost gave the book up. I suppose Sarah Morris's childhood memories weren't all that interesting. But after a while, I recognized D.E. Stevenson, an author I usually love.
May 30, 2016
2.5 stars. D E Stevenson is an author I usually love, but this is certainly not one of her best novels. I got bored several times and couldn't feel empathy for the characters. Pity.
January 4, 2019
This was my second read and I did enjoy it. Nice story but not as good as some of my favorites like “Celia’s House”.
September 30, 2021
What a disappointment! D.E. Stevenson is one of my favorite authors, but this one was a dud. I found the childlike writing to be completely boring and I started skimming the book from page 141.
November 11, 2018
Tea with and old friend
Reading D.E. Stevenson has always been a delight, and I've collected a shelf full of her books. But to discover a new (to me) book on Kindle was an unexpected treasure! Fortunately I was also able to purchase the sequel to this book on Kindle, so will hurry off now to begin that. I'm glad to recommend her books, I've never read one that I didn't enjoy - in the over 55 years I've been reading!
Reading D.E. Stevenson has always been a delight, and I've collected a shelf full of her books. But to discover a new (to me) book on Kindle was an unexpected treasure! Fortunately I was also able to purchase the sequel to this book on Kindle, so will hurry off now to begin that. I'm glad to recommend her books, I've never read one that I didn't enjoy - in the over 55 years I've been reading!
August 14, 2018
I loved this book. Entertaining, relaxing, easy reading. This is the kind of book I was ready for~ after reading several other books that were hard work, and one that bored me to the point that I gave up. This was a book I may read again in a few years~ just for fun. Also, it may encourage me to write my own memoirs.
December 1, 2017
Re-read as audiobook.
November 5, 2021
Although this was not my favorite of her novels, it still displays Stevenson’s remarkable ability to create characters that are real enough to make you care about what happens to them. I look forward to reading the sequel.
June 28, 2023
⭐️ 3,5/5
November 12, 2021
"Sarah Morris Remembers" was published in 1966, so I had figured that it was a modern story, one from that current time but I found out about a quarter into this novel that it starts pre WW 2. She is writing her story years later, so she might be writing in current times of the past. I was so happy that it was an early times because I find those times more interesting. Once again, D. E. Stevenson gives us a thoughtful romantic read. She is absolutely one of my favorites and look forward to reading the rest of Sarah's story. Looking forward to hearing about the whole family.
Story in short- Sarah looks back at her diaries and decides to write her story. The Morris family and their stories, with the backdrop of WW 2.
"I was like father – everyone said so. Lewis was like mother, with fair wavy hair and cornflower-blue eyes. Willy wasn’t like anyone in particular; he had brown hair (which was always untidy, no matter how often he brushed it) and thin knobbly knees. Lottie was the youngest of the family; she was very pretty with big blue eyes and flaxen curls as soft as silk. Everyone admired Lottie but at that time I wasn’t interested in her, I liked being with the boys. Sometimes they were a bit rough but I didn’t mind – I didn’t mind what they did if I could tag along after them and share in their games."
"St. Mary’s Vicarage was a fine old house with a lovely big garden and we lived there very comfortably for in addition to his stipend father had a small private income."
"Minnie Dell was our cook. She was very small but wonderfully strong for her size. She explained to us that she had had “the fever” when she was eight years old so she had never grown any bigger after that."
"When I was six years old I went to a little private school in Fairfield which was run by Mrs. Powell. She had no degrees or diplomas but she was an excellent teacher and made our lessons interesting. In addition to all the usual subjects she taught us to make little clay models and straw mats and kettle-holders in cross-stitch . . . and when we were older she gave us each a large exercise-book with hard covers and showed us how to keep diaries."
"Lewis and Willy never went to Mrs. Powell’s; they went to Bells Hill, a boarding school near Larchester. On Saturdays they rode home on their bicycles and often stayed the night."
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I was so happy that Charles came back and that Sarah and Charles stayed true to each other. I thought for a little while that Lotte would win him over, but happily that did not happen. Lotte's choice in a husband was money driven. Poor Mac but he was lucky for she makes a terrible mother.
"We all sang quite nicely – when we didn’t shout – but Lewis’s voice was beautiful; it was a boy’s treble, clear as a bell. In the holidays Lewis sang in the choir.
Sarah writes what she remembers of her life, looking back on her diaries. Sarah's father is a minister and they live at the vicarage."
"He nodded. “I’ve seen you climbing over the wall. It was one of those trippers that left the gate open – I’d trip them if I could get hold of them! If you happen to see any trippers about you might tell them to shut the gates. Ask them if they’d like Farmer Rickaby to walk into their house uninvited and leave their front door open.”
“No,” he agreed, smiling. “In any case I can’t, because a gentleman from London came to look at it and said it was ancient. He said the stones were put here by the Druids – the same people that made Stonehenge.” “Then it is magic!” “I don’t know about magic. It’s an old place – that’s what the gentleman said – hundreds of years old. He said I wasn’t to cut down the tree or move the stones. Well, I never thought of it – but it’s a funny thing that you can’t do what you like with your own land.” “But you don’t want to?” “No, I don’t want to. All the same it’s a funny thing.”
"We had expected Lewis to come for the week-end but he had rung up to say that Tom Meldrum had asked him to spend the day at Riverside so he wouldn’t be home until supper-time. The Meldrums lived about five miles from Fairfield and Lewis was great friends with Tom."
“Willy has a headache,” I told him. “A headache? That’s bad, that is! You’ve been working too hard in the sun. Perhaps you’ve got a touch of sunstroke, Willy. Your face is a bit flushed. You’d better go home.”
“Yes,” I said. “Anyhow it’s nearly tea-time.” I called to Lottie and we went home. “Don’t tell mother about my head,” said Willy as we went down the path. “Sunstroke is serious, Willy.” “It isn’t sunstroke. My head was bad when I woke this morning but I didn’t tell Matron because I wanted to come home. I’ll be all right after tea.”
“It will do her a power of good,” declared grandpapa. “People should eat when they want and fast when they’re not hungry. That’s nature.”
“What about the other people?” I asked. “What other people?” “The people who have just arrived in the carriage.” There was a little silence. They were all looking at me. “I heard them arrive,” I explained. “I heard the carriage drive up to the door. Hadn’t we better see who it is?” “The child has been dreaming,” said grandpapa. “Dorrie had better put her to bed. We’d all be better in our beds,” he added, rising and putting the guard on the fire. “But I wasn’t dreaming! I wasn’t really. I heard the carriage and the horses and the wheels on the gravel.” “Come and see,” said grandpapa. He took me into the hall and opened the front door. “Look, child, there’s not a creature in sight! You were dreaming.” I went out to the doorstep and looked about. The moon was bright above the sleeping hills . . . and there was no carriage, no horses, nothing. “Are you satisfied, Sarah?” asked grandpapa, smiling down at me very kindly. “I suppose . . . I must have been . . . dreaming.”
“Oh, they’re very well,” grandmama replied. “The boys are at school, of course. Bob is going to Sandhurst soon; he has always been keen on the Army.” “Bob is a fine lad,” said grandpapa. “He’ll do well in the Service.” “I don’t want our boys to go into the Army,” said mother. “I thought Lewis was——” “No,” said mother firmly. “That was just a childish idea. I want Lewis to go to Oxford. He’s very clever.”
“I don’t know why people think that only morons should enter the Service,” said grandpapa sadly. “I didn’t say that!” “No, but you meant it.” Grandpapa had been in the Army, of course. He was a colonel and “a very distinguished officer” (grandmama had told me that) and he certainly wasn’t a “moron.” He loved a joke and always made his jokes with a perfectly solemn face, so it wasn’t easy to know whether he meant them or not, but if you were doubtful you had only to look at grandmama; she always smiled at his jokes.
“Not really real,” he replied. “But pretending is fun. There’s nothing wrong in pretending as long as it doesn’t harm other people. Sarah Jane is a secret between you and me.”
Willy and Lewis are Sarah's older brothers. She enjoys playing their games whereas Lottie doesn't. The boys go away for school and the girls' school is nearby. After Sarah recovers from the measles, she is still looking ill, her parents decide on Sarah going to Scotland where her grandparents live.
"St. Elizabeth’s was a big school on the way to Larchester; most of the girls were boarders but father arranged that I should go daily in the Larchester bus. At first I was frightened and unhappy – it was so different from Mrs. Powell’s – but fortunately I had been well grounded so I didn’t find the lessons difficult."
"I was thirteen and Willy was two years older, so grandpapa said we were old enough to look after ourselves and we could go wherever we liked provided we stayed together."
"We did some shopping and went to a play at the Lyceum Theatre. Then they put me into the train and I travelled to London. It was the first time I had been anywhere or done anything without mother and it had made me feel much older, it had given me confidence in myself."
Sarah and Willy go to Scotland with their mother to visit their grandparents. Sarah having kissed a little girl with chicken poxs needs to stay behind with her grandparents. She enjoys their time together.
"Willy was clever at sketching so he made a diagram of the picture with coloured chalks before he went back to Barstow and, a fortnight later, on Minnie’s birthday he sent her a little model of a totem pole about six inches high. He had carved and painted it in the school workshop. Minnie was delighted with her present and showed it to everyone and said it was from her “jo.” Willy had always been Minnie’s favourite. Minnie was so grateful and wrote such a nice letter to Willy that he made her another present for Christmas: it was a little wooden stool, very strong and solid, for her to stand on when she was washing up dishes at the sink – and Minnie used it every day of her life."
"While I had been away Lottie had made friends with the Meldrums. Originally they were Lewis’s friends – Tom Meldrum had been at Bells Hill with him and was now at Barstow – but one day Lewis had taken Lottie over to Riverside and they had asked her to come again as often as she liked. Lottie talked a lot about Riverside: about the green-houses and the tennis courts and the boat-house and the punts and about the large music-room which had a parquet floor and beautiful Persian rugs. Mrs. Meldrum was a widow but she liked entertaining so the house was usually full of young people, friends of Madeline and Tom and Ruth. Sometimes they rolled up the rugs in the music-room and danced. Madeline had a radiogram, Tom had a motor- bike, Ruth had a pony and they all had “marvellous clothes.” I heard so much about the Meldrums that I got rather tired of them."
"She fixed her eyes on me and said, “Lottie is too sweet for words . . . and of course you’re frightfully clever, aren’t you, Sarah?” It made me very uncomfortable so I mumbled, “Oh, no, I’m not a bit clever, Mrs. Meldrum.” “Oh, you are! I know you are,” she declared."
"Then she asked me if I didn’t think Madeline was “absolutely beautiful” and of course I had to agree. Madeline was the eldest of the family; she was seventeen, pretty and elegant, but certainly not “beautiful.” She was spoilt by a discontented expression and an off-hand manner. If we had spoken to mother in the way that Madeline spoke to Mrs. Meldrum I don’t know what would have happened. Ruth was the same age as Lottie. She was sitting next to me at lunch so I tried to talk to her but she didn’t seem to be interested in anything."
“Yes, ask Watkins, darling,” said Mrs. Meldrum. “Watkins is absolutely marvellous; he’s sure to know the best place to get a canoe.” She rose and added, “I’ll go and phone about tickets for the play. We could go next week, couldn’t we?”
“Oh, you are silly!” exclaimed Madeline. “Next week is the ball in Larchester and we’re having people to stay. You had better leave it to me; you’ll just muddle the whole thing.” “Yes, darling,” agreed Mrs. Meldrum meekly. She sat down and Madeline drifted away in her usual elegant manner."
“They can have everything they want.” “Yes, but they aren’t happy.” “Not happy? Whatever do you mean, Sarah?” “They aren’t nice to each other.” “Tom is nice,” declared Lottie. “Tom is going to take me out on the river in his canoe.” She sighed again and added, “Oh dear, I wish we had a lovely house like the Meldrums and lots of money! It doesn’t seem fair.”
"I had been going to say that I didn’t think it was very good for Lottie to go to Riverside so often, it was making her discontented with her own home, but I couldn’t say it now because mother would think I was jealous. It was silly, really: I wasn’t the least bit jealous of the Meldrums in spite of all their riches – in fact I felt rather sorry for them, but I couldn’t explain that either."
"Lewis had always wanted to be a soldier – it was in his blood – but mother was so upset at the idea of his going to Sandhurst that he gave in and went to Oxford instead. He went to St. Clement’s College to read Law but he spent most of his time playing cricket and he made a great many friends."
“It was terribly clever, Father. The engine was in little bits and pieces all over the floor, and Willy put it together again. It goes like the wind now. You saw us, didn’t you?” “Where did you learn how to do it, Willy?” “At Barstow,” replied Willy. “Oh, not in school, of course! They never teach you anything useful at school. There’s a very good mechanic in the garage near the station; Romford and I go and work there in our spare time.” “You would be better employed playing cricket.”
"Nothing more was said at the time, but eventually Willy got his own way. Father wrote to Mr. Romford and it was arranged that when Willy had passed his exams he was to leave Barstow and go into Romford’s Works as an apprentice."
Lewis wants to be in the military but his parents insist he go to Oxford. Willy is very handy with his hands and fixed a broken motorcycle for Lewis, he refuses to go to Oxford and wants to go with his friend to an engineering works, his parents finally cave. The Meldrums live nearby and Mrs. Meldrum is a rich widow with three spoiled children, Madeline, Tom and Ruth. Lottie likes go over there and is jealous about their wealth. Sarah does not think it is a good idea for Lottie to go there so much but cannot explain this to her mom. Sarah sees that the family is not happy and are not nice to each other.
“Oh, lovely!” he exclaimed. “This is the real England, Morris! This is Trollope’s England.” “You mean Barchester and all that,” said Lewis. “Yes, indeed! The house is old and beautiful; it has an air of its own. It has a perfume . . .”
“I have several names,” he replied, “It is good to have several names because one is several different people – a different person to each of one’s friends.” Father nodded. “That’s true.” “I am called Ludovic Charles Edward Reeder.” “Charles Edward?” “My mother was a MacDonald.” “An admirable reason.” “Perhaps you would care to call me Charles, sir?” “Nobody calls you Charles!” exclaimed Lewis. “But that is just the reason. I am a different person to-day at Fairfield.”
“Lewis has just told us he says what he likes. I find it difficult to put into words, but this is my thought: civilisation is like the crust of a pie which covers a mass of violence and barbarism. Here, in your island, the crust is so thick that you walk upon it with confidence, as if it were solid stone.”
“You mean we’re living in a fool’s paradise?” “Perhaps not. Perhaps the crust is so thick here, in England, that there is no need for fear.”
“He is a landowner. He has a castle and big estates; there are several farms and there are woods and meadows. One can ride for miles over the property. My mother died some years ago; my elder brother and my young sister live with my father. Rudolph is the heir, you understand, so there was no reason why I should not come to England; it is what my mother wished me to do.”
“All the same I should like it. I should like to make return for the hospitality I have received. Would Mr. Morris care to come?” “Well, no, he wouldn’t really; he doesn’t like going out to lunch . . . but it would be lovely for us, of course. Do you really want us or are you just being polite? Lewis says it’s a frightful bore having relations to lunch.” He laughed. “But you and Mrs. Morris are not my relations, Sarah.” “All the same, it might be a bore.” “It will not be a bore,”
“Yes, that is what I meant,” said Charles. He looked round and added, “Oh, a Bechstein!” “Are you fond of music?” “It is what I have missed more than anything!” “But there’s plenty of music at Oxford,” objected Lewis. “You go to concerts and you’ve got a super radiogram.” “I cannot make music,” explained Charles. “At home we make music; my father plays the violin and Rudi his ’cello. Often we have friends to come in the evening and play with us. It is good to listen to music but better to make it.”
"Mother always talked of Lottie like that; it used to annoy me, for Lottie was only two years younger than I was . . . and even then, at the age of twelve, she was a definite person with her own very definite ideas. She had begun to come to St. Elizabeth’s with me and I had intended to look after her until she found her feet (I remembered what it was like to be “a new girl”) but Lottie dropped on to her feet without any help from me; she loved school and had her own little circle of friends"
Lewis comes home with a friend from Oxford who is an Austrian. Lottie is at the Meldrums so she misses seeing Charles. Charles likes the family and is especially nice to Sarah, he sees a picture of Lottie and was surprised they had another daughter. I wonder if he and Lottie like each other when she is older. He has money.
"I was obliged to smile, though I saw nothing funny about it. Then, quite suddenly, I thought of the reason why he had come: “I’m a new experience for you!” I exclaimed. “Quite new,” he agreed, chuckling. “You don’t know any girls in Vienna.” “I know a dozen girls in Vienna.” “Then why——?” “My sister’s friends are different,” explained Charles. “It is all different. I will tell you, Sarah: One, no father would suggest that I should walk with his daughter in the woods; two, if he were to do so, I should refuse to go; three, if I were so foolish as to accept, we would not talk about history and Druidical stones and cuckoos.”
Sarah comes back to the vicarage and hears someone playing the piano, Charles is playing beautifully. Charles invites Sarah and Mrs. Morris out to lunch for Tuesday. Charles talks of his sister being 17, his age unknown but older than Lewis. He enjoys Sarah's company, she is 14.
Story in short- Sarah looks back at her diaries and decides to write her story. The Morris family and their stories, with the backdrop of WW 2.
"I was like father – everyone said so. Lewis was like mother, with fair wavy hair and cornflower-blue eyes. Willy wasn’t like anyone in particular; he had brown hair (which was always untidy, no matter how often he brushed it) and thin knobbly knees. Lottie was the youngest of the family; she was very pretty with big blue eyes and flaxen curls as soft as silk. Everyone admired Lottie but at that time I wasn’t interested in her, I liked being with the boys. Sometimes they were a bit rough but I didn’t mind – I didn’t mind what they did if I could tag along after them and share in their games."
"St. Mary’s Vicarage was a fine old house with a lovely big garden and we lived there very comfortably for in addition to his stipend father had a small private income."
"Minnie Dell was our cook. She was very small but wonderfully strong for her size. She explained to us that she had had “the fever” when she was eight years old so she had never grown any bigger after that."
"When I was six years old I went to a little private school in Fairfield which was run by Mrs. Powell. She had no degrees or diplomas but she was an excellent teacher and made our lessons interesting. In addition to all the usual subjects she taught us to make little clay models and straw mats and kettle-holders in cross-stitch . . . and when we were older she gave us each a large exercise-book with hard covers and showed us how to keep diaries."
"Lewis and Willy never went to Mrs. Powell’s; they went to Bells Hill, a boarding school near Larchester. On Saturdays they rode home on their bicycles and often stayed the night."
❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌Spoiler alert❌❌❌❌❌❌❌❌
I was so happy that Charles came back and that Sarah and Charles stayed true to each other. I thought for a little while that Lotte would win him over, but happily that did not happen. Lotte's choice in a husband was money driven. Poor Mac but he was lucky for she makes a terrible mother.
"We all sang quite nicely – when we didn’t shout – but Lewis’s voice was beautiful; it was a boy’s treble, clear as a bell. In the holidays Lewis sang in the choir.
Sarah writes what she remembers of her life, looking back on her diaries. Sarah's father is a minister and they live at the vicarage."
"He nodded. “I’ve seen you climbing over the wall. It was one of those trippers that left the gate open – I’d trip them if I could get hold of them! If you happen to see any trippers about you might tell them to shut the gates. Ask them if they’d like Farmer Rickaby to walk into their house uninvited and leave their front door open.”
“No,” he agreed, smiling. “In any case I can’t, because a gentleman from London came to look at it and said it was ancient. He said the stones were put here by the Druids – the same people that made Stonehenge.” “Then it is magic!” “I don’t know about magic. It’s an old place – that’s what the gentleman said – hundreds of years old. He said I wasn’t to cut down the tree or move the stones. Well, I never thought of it – but it’s a funny thing that you can’t do what you like with your own land.” “But you don’t want to?” “No, I don’t want to. All the same it’s a funny thing.”
"We had expected Lewis to come for the week-end but he had rung up to say that Tom Meldrum had asked him to spend the day at Riverside so he wouldn’t be home until supper-time. The Meldrums lived about five miles from Fairfield and Lewis was great friends with Tom."
“Willy has a headache,” I told him. “A headache? That’s bad, that is! You’ve been working too hard in the sun. Perhaps you’ve got a touch of sunstroke, Willy. Your face is a bit flushed. You’d better go home.”
“Yes,” I said. “Anyhow it’s nearly tea-time.” I called to Lottie and we went home. “Don’t tell mother about my head,” said Willy as we went down the path. “Sunstroke is serious, Willy.” “It isn’t sunstroke. My head was bad when I woke this morning but I didn’t tell Matron because I wanted to come home. I’ll be all right after tea.”
“It will do her a power of good,” declared grandpapa. “People should eat when they want and fast when they’re not hungry. That’s nature.”
“What about the other people?” I asked. “What other people?” “The people who have just arrived in the carriage.” There was a little silence. They were all looking at me. “I heard them arrive,” I explained. “I heard the carriage drive up to the door. Hadn’t we better see who it is?” “The child has been dreaming,” said grandpapa. “Dorrie had better put her to bed. We’d all be better in our beds,” he added, rising and putting the guard on the fire. “But I wasn’t dreaming! I wasn’t really. I heard the carriage and the horses and the wheels on the gravel.” “Come and see,” said grandpapa. He took me into the hall and opened the front door. “Look, child, there’s not a creature in sight! You were dreaming.” I went out to the doorstep and looked about. The moon was bright above the sleeping hills . . . and there was no carriage, no horses, nothing. “Are you satisfied, Sarah?” asked grandpapa, smiling down at me very kindly. “I suppose . . . I must have been . . . dreaming.”
“Oh, they’re very well,” grandmama replied. “The boys are at school, of course. Bob is going to Sandhurst soon; he has always been keen on the Army.” “Bob is a fine lad,” said grandpapa. “He’ll do well in the Service.” “I don’t want our boys to go into the Army,” said mother. “I thought Lewis was——” “No,” said mother firmly. “That was just a childish idea. I want Lewis to go to Oxford. He’s very clever.”
“I don’t know why people think that only morons should enter the Service,” said grandpapa sadly. “I didn’t say that!” “No, but you meant it.” Grandpapa had been in the Army, of course. He was a colonel and “a very distinguished officer” (grandmama had told me that) and he certainly wasn’t a “moron.” He loved a joke and always made his jokes with a perfectly solemn face, so it wasn’t easy to know whether he meant them or not, but if you were doubtful you had only to look at grandmama; she always smiled at his jokes.
“Not really real,” he replied. “But pretending is fun. There’s nothing wrong in pretending as long as it doesn’t harm other people. Sarah Jane is a secret between you and me.”
Willy and Lewis are Sarah's older brothers. She enjoys playing their games whereas Lottie doesn't. The boys go away for school and the girls' school is nearby. After Sarah recovers from the measles, she is still looking ill, her parents decide on Sarah going to Scotland where her grandparents live.
"St. Elizabeth’s was a big school on the way to Larchester; most of the girls were boarders but father arranged that I should go daily in the Larchester bus. At first I was frightened and unhappy – it was so different from Mrs. Powell’s – but fortunately I had been well grounded so I didn’t find the lessons difficult."
"I was thirteen and Willy was two years older, so grandpapa said we were old enough to look after ourselves and we could go wherever we liked provided we stayed together."
"We did some shopping and went to a play at the Lyceum Theatre. Then they put me into the train and I travelled to London. It was the first time I had been anywhere or done anything without mother and it had made me feel much older, it had given me confidence in myself."
Sarah and Willy go to Scotland with their mother to visit their grandparents. Sarah having kissed a little girl with chicken poxs needs to stay behind with her grandparents. She enjoys their time together.
"Willy was clever at sketching so he made a diagram of the picture with coloured chalks before he went back to Barstow and, a fortnight later, on Minnie’s birthday he sent her a little model of a totem pole about six inches high. He had carved and painted it in the school workshop. Minnie was delighted with her present and showed it to everyone and said it was from her “jo.” Willy had always been Minnie’s favourite. Minnie was so grateful and wrote such a nice letter to Willy that he made her another present for Christmas: it was a little wooden stool, very strong and solid, for her to stand on when she was washing up dishes at the sink – and Minnie used it every day of her life."
"While I had been away Lottie had made friends with the Meldrums. Originally they were Lewis’s friends – Tom Meldrum had been at Bells Hill with him and was now at Barstow – but one day Lewis had taken Lottie over to Riverside and they had asked her to come again as often as she liked. Lottie talked a lot about Riverside: about the green-houses and the tennis courts and the boat-house and the punts and about the large music-room which had a parquet floor and beautiful Persian rugs. Mrs. Meldrum was a widow but she liked entertaining so the house was usually full of young people, friends of Madeline and Tom and Ruth. Sometimes they rolled up the rugs in the music-room and danced. Madeline had a radiogram, Tom had a motor- bike, Ruth had a pony and they all had “marvellous clothes.” I heard so much about the Meldrums that I got rather tired of them."
"She fixed her eyes on me and said, “Lottie is too sweet for words . . . and of course you’re frightfully clever, aren’t you, Sarah?” It made me very uncomfortable so I mumbled, “Oh, no, I’m not a bit clever, Mrs. Meldrum.” “Oh, you are! I know you are,” she declared."
"Then she asked me if I didn’t think Madeline was “absolutely beautiful” and of course I had to agree. Madeline was the eldest of the family; she was seventeen, pretty and elegant, but certainly not “beautiful.” She was spoilt by a discontented expression and an off-hand manner. If we had spoken to mother in the way that Madeline spoke to Mrs. Meldrum I don’t know what would have happened. Ruth was the same age as Lottie. She was sitting next to me at lunch so I tried to talk to her but she didn’t seem to be interested in anything."
“Yes, ask Watkins, darling,” said Mrs. Meldrum. “Watkins is absolutely marvellous; he’s sure to know the best place to get a canoe.” She rose and added, “I’ll go and phone about tickets for the play. We could go next week, couldn’t we?”
“Oh, you are silly!” exclaimed Madeline. “Next week is the ball in Larchester and we’re having people to stay. You had better leave it to me; you’ll just muddle the whole thing.” “Yes, darling,” agreed Mrs. Meldrum meekly. She sat down and Madeline drifted away in her usual elegant manner."
“They can have everything they want.” “Yes, but they aren’t happy.” “Not happy? Whatever do you mean, Sarah?” “They aren’t nice to each other.” “Tom is nice,” declared Lottie. “Tom is going to take me out on the river in his canoe.” She sighed again and added, “Oh dear, I wish we had a lovely house like the Meldrums and lots of money! It doesn’t seem fair.”
"I had been going to say that I didn’t think it was very good for Lottie to go to Riverside so often, it was making her discontented with her own home, but I couldn’t say it now because mother would think I was jealous. It was silly, really: I wasn’t the least bit jealous of the Meldrums in spite of all their riches – in fact I felt rather sorry for them, but I couldn’t explain that either."
"Lewis had always wanted to be a soldier – it was in his blood – but mother was so upset at the idea of his going to Sandhurst that he gave in and went to Oxford instead. He went to St. Clement’s College to read Law but he spent most of his time playing cricket and he made a great many friends."
“It was terribly clever, Father. The engine was in little bits and pieces all over the floor, and Willy put it together again. It goes like the wind now. You saw us, didn’t you?” “Where did you learn how to do it, Willy?” “At Barstow,” replied Willy. “Oh, not in school, of course! They never teach you anything useful at school. There’s a very good mechanic in the garage near the station; Romford and I go and work there in our spare time.” “You would be better employed playing cricket.”
"Nothing more was said at the time, but eventually Willy got his own way. Father wrote to Mr. Romford and it was arranged that when Willy had passed his exams he was to leave Barstow and go into Romford’s Works as an apprentice."
Lewis wants to be in the military but his parents insist he go to Oxford. Willy is very handy with his hands and fixed a broken motorcycle for Lewis, he refuses to go to Oxford and wants to go with his friend to an engineering works, his parents finally cave. The Meldrums live nearby and Mrs. Meldrum is a rich widow with three spoiled children, Madeline, Tom and Ruth. Lottie likes go over there and is jealous about their wealth. Sarah does not think it is a good idea for Lottie to go there so much but cannot explain this to her mom. Sarah sees that the family is not happy and are not nice to each other.
“Oh, lovely!” he exclaimed. “This is the real England, Morris! This is Trollope’s England.” “You mean Barchester and all that,” said Lewis. “Yes, indeed! The house is old and beautiful; it has an air of its own. It has a perfume . . .”
“I have several names,” he replied, “It is good to have several names because one is several different people – a different person to each of one’s friends.” Father nodded. “That’s true.” “I am called Ludovic Charles Edward Reeder.” “Charles Edward?” “My mother was a MacDonald.” “An admirable reason.” “Perhaps you would care to call me Charles, sir?” “Nobody calls you Charles!” exclaimed Lewis. “But that is just the reason. I am a different person to-day at Fairfield.”
“Lewis has just told us he says what he likes. I find it difficult to put into words, but this is my thought: civilisation is like the crust of a pie which covers a mass of violence and barbarism. Here, in your island, the crust is so thick that you walk upon it with confidence, as if it were solid stone.”
“You mean we’re living in a fool’s paradise?” “Perhaps not. Perhaps the crust is so thick here, in England, that there is no need for fear.”
“He is a landowner. He has a castle and big estates; there are several farms and there are woods and meadows. One can ride for miles over the property. My mother died some years ago; my elder brother and my young sister live with my father. Rudolph is the heir, you understand, so there was no reason why I should not come to England; it is what my mother wished me to do.”
“All the same I should like it. I should like to make return for the hospitality I have received. Would Mr. Morris care to come?” “Well, no, he wouldn’t really; he doesn’t like going out to lunch . . . but it would be lovely for us, of course. Do you really want us or are you just being polite? Lewis says it’s a frightful bore having relations to lunch.” He laughed. “But you and Mrs. Morris are not my relations, Sarah.” “All the same, it might be a bore.” “It will not be a bore,”
“Yes, that is what I meant,” said Charles. He looked round and added, “Oh, a Bechstein!” “Are you fond of music?” “It is what I have missed more than anything!” “But there’s plenty of music at Oxford,” objected Lewis. “You go to concerts and you’ve got a super radiogram.” “I cannot make music,” explained Charles. “At home we make music; my father plays the violin and Rudi his ’cello. Often we have friends to come in the evening and play with us. It is good to listen to music but better to make it.”
"Mother always talked of Lottie like that; it used to annoy me, for Lottie was only two years younger than I was . . . and even then, at the age of twelve, she was a definite person with her own very definite ideas. She had begun to come to St. Elizabeth’s with me and I had intended to look after her until she found her feet (I remembered what it was like to be “a new girl”) but Lottie dropped on to her feet without any help from me; she loved school and had her own little circle of friends"
Lewis comes home with a friend from Oxford who is an Austrian. Lottie is at the Meldrums so she misses seeing Charles. Charles likes the family and is especially nice to Sarah, he sees a picture of Lottie and was surprised they had another daughter. I wonder if he and Lottie like each other when she is older. He has money.
"I was obliged to smile, though I saw nothing funny about it. Then, quite suddenly, I thought of the reason why he had come: “I’m a new experience for you!” I exclaimed. “Quite new,” he agreed, chuckling. “You don’t know any girls in Vienna.” “I know a dozen girls in Vienna.” “Then why——?” “My sister’s friends are different,” explained Charles. “It is all different. I will tell you, Sarah: One, no father would suggest that I should walk with his daughter in the woods; two, if he were to do so, I should refuse to go; three, if I were so foolish as to accept, we would not talk about history and Druidical stones and cuckoos.”
Sarah comes back to the vicarage and hears someone playing the piano, Charles is playing beautifully. Charles invites Sarah and Mrs. Morris out to lunch for Tuesday. Charles talks of his sister being 17, his age unknown but older than Lewis. He enjoys Sarah's company, she is 14.
September 25, 2022
I’ve rated this a 4 not so much for itself as for the way it sets up the wonderful next book in the series, Sarah’s Cottage. I’m writing this review after reading that book; had I been reviewing this otherwise, it would be a 3.5.
Sarah Morris Remembers is one of Stevenson’s novels set during WWII, but unlike the others it was actually written in the mid-1960s. Hints of this appear in the work: A sympathetic Austrian character condemns Hitler’s treatment of “the Jews” (something sadly never mentioned in the books written while the war was taking place). As other reviewers have mentioned, there is a brief scene alluding to intimacy a few days before a couple’s wedding date. (At first I though this was Stevenson moving with the times. Upon further reflection, however, I think she was simply writing about reality, albeit a reality that would not have been spoken about in polite company in the 1940s.) And at one point an unhappily pregnant wife makes veiled allusions to wanting an abortion. Although nothing comes of it, this again is not a subject Stevenson would have been likely to broach during the reign of George VI.
All of this is to say that the modern day creeps in here and there, and while some of the book has the riveting power of Stevensons wartime writing, it’s a bit inconsistent. There is also quite the melodrama near the end, which I found aggravating and not completely believable.
That said, the sections of the book about the Blitz, and about Sarah‘s relationship with her father during the war, are very moving. While the next book in the series also works as a standalone, the experience of reading Sarah’s Cottage will be much deeper and more meaningful with the background that this book provides.
Sarah Morris Remembers is one of Stevenson’s novels set during WWII, but unlike the others it was actually written in the mid-1960s. Hints of this appear in the work: A sympathetic Austrian character condemns Hitler’s treatment of “the Jews” (something sadly never mentioned in the books written while the war was taking place). As other reviewers have mentioned, there is a brief scene alluding to intimacy a few days before a couple’s wedding date. (At first I though this was Stevenson moving with the times. Upon further reflection, however, I think she was simply writing about reality, albeit a reality that would not have been spoken about in polite company in the 1940s.) And at one point an unhappily pregnant wife makes veiled allusions to wanting an abortion. Although nothing comes of it, this again is not a subject Stevenson would have been likely to broach during the reign of George VI.
All of this is to say that the modern day creeps in here and there, and while some of the book has the riveting power of Stevensons wartime writing, it’s a bit inconsistent. There is also quite the melodrama near the end, which I found aggravating and not completely believable.
That said, the sections of the book about the Blitz, and about Sarah‘s relationship with her father during the war, are very moving. While the next book in the series also works as a standalone, the experience of reading Sarah’s Cottage will be much deeper and more meaningful with the background that this book provides.
April 16, 2020
I originally picked up Sarah Morris Remembers for a bit of comfort reading as an antidote to all the depressing COVID-19 media reporting, but the story, partially set in London during World War II, reminded me that life is often hard, and COVID-19 is not even close to the worst that has happened in history. Still, Stevenson delivered her story of Sarah Morris' life with hope and love and humour, and therein was the comfort that I sought. It isn't what happens, but what people do with what happens that makes the difference, and Sarah is an everyday heroine to admire.
She starts keeping diaries as part of a school project when she was 10, and this lifelong habit records the little, daily events as well as the large life-changing ones. Sarah grows up in a vicarage with two brothers, Lewis and Willy, and a sister, Lottie. They have a shared childhood of experiences that enriches their relationships as they become adults and go their separate ways. But after the death of her beloved mother, Sarah remains with her father as a housekeeper, and also works in a large department store, and at an air raid shelter.
Her days are busy, which is what she wants because her fiancé went off at the beginning of the war, and she has had no word. Despite her trials, Sarah remains the emotional centre of her family, the one that they all lean on for support.
It's a wonderful novel of the everyday courage that is required for life. Highly recommended.
She starts keeping diaries as part of a school project when she was 10, and this lifelong habit records the little, daily events as well as the large life-changing ones. Sarah grows up in a vicarage with two brothers, Lewis and Willy, and a sister, Lottie. They have a shared childhood of experiences that enriches their relationships as they become adults and go their separate ways. But after the death of her beloved mother, Sarah remains with her father as a housekeeper, and also works in a large department store, and at an air raid shelter.
Her days are busy, which is what she wants because her fiancé went off at the beginning of the war, and she has had no word. Despite her trials, Sarah remains the emotional centre of her family, the one that they all lean on for support.
It's a wonderful novel of the everyday courage that is required for life. Highly recommended.
October 29, 2018
I haven't read this one in years, so thank you, Endeavor Media, for releasing it on Kindle. Keep the D.E. Stevenson's coming! I love this book (despite the uncharacteristic and surprising pre-marital relations that just mentioned "pretending they were married" before he had to go off to Europe right before WWII and then coming out of the bedroom in the morning and saying goodbye), but it is not a favorite. This is one of Mrs. Stevenson's books that makes me question the British tradition of boarding schools. How can you send your child off to strangers to raise and only have your family values and traditions taught during school breaks? I could never send my child/ren off like that. I know the whole it-takes-a-village thing, but if you have 2 good parents, you don't need much of a village to raise your child/ren. Yes, I know... different culture, but I am an Anglophile of no small repute and this is one area that I have never understood. However, I love this author and it was a lot of fun to re-read this one after a long, long time. There was so much I didn't remember, so it was almost like reading a new one.
April 16, 2019
I love the books by D.E. Stevenson! Charming stories of ordinary people, with enough of an edge to keep them from being saccharine and too sweet.
SARAH MORRIS REMEMBERS might be considered a period piece. Sarah's mother seems almost child-like in her determination to make life fit her script; she is frightened by any idea beyond her own narrow horizons. Sarah and her father quietly work to protect her, but her death and the war sets them on their own paths. Both of them grow stronger in what they experience, as does the younger of her brothers, Willy.
The love story of Sarah and Charles is notable mainly for her steadfastness. She never deviates in her love, even as he falters through a misunderstanding.
Overall, SARAH MORRIS REMEMBERS is a story of ordinary people, both strong and weak, in extraordinary times.
SARAH MORRIS REMEMBERS might be considered a period piece. Sarah's mother seems almost child-like in her determination to make life fit her script; she is frightened by any idea beyond her own narrow horizons. Sarah and her father quietly work to protect her, but her death and the war sets them on their own paths. Both of them grow stronger in what they experience, as does the younger of her brothers, Willy.
The love story of Sarah and Charles is notable mainly for her steadfastness. She never deviates in her love, even as he falters through a misunderstanding.
Overall, SARAH MORRIS REMEMBERS is a story of ordinary people, both strong and weak, in extraordinary times.
April 19, 2021
Oops, went and read another Stevenson! *shrug* And will probably quickly follow it up with a sequel, because I got the e-book bundle pretty cheaply and I did very much enjoy Sarah as a character.
This one did start a bit slowly, with the young childhood bits generally being the least interesting to me. But once she goes to France to study and then, most especially, her experiences in London during the war (working at a Selfridge's-like department store and helping out at the air raid shelter) were pretty terrific. (But also, things that are generally reader cat nip to me, so.) Also features a love-to-hate character in her sister Lottie, and it's been awhile since I had that pleasure.
This one did start a bit slowly, with the young childhood bits generally being the least interesting to me. But once she goes to France to study and then, most especially, her experiences in London during the war (working at a Selfridge's-like department store and helping out at the air raid shelter) were pretty terrific. (But also, things that are generally reader cat nip to me, so.) Also features a love-to-hate character in her sister Lottie, and it's been awhile since I had that pleasure.
November 24, 2025
2025 review: re-read as an audiobook.
2021 review: I am a huge Stevenson fan and loved most of this book for its literary references, its descriptions of England and Scotland and its wonderful characterizations of Sarah's friends and family members. But halfway through the book the heroine decides to give up her virtue before sending her fiancé off to war. Although no details were included, it soured the book for me because it was unnecessary. (It might have added to the drama if she had become pregnant (and it seemed in the next few chapters that Stevenson was heading in that direction), but nothing ever came of it.
2021 review: I am a huge Stevenson fan and loved most of this book for its literary references, its descriptions of England and Scotland and its wonderful characterizations of Sarah's friends and family members. But halfway through the book the heroine decides to give up her virtue before sending her fiancé off to war. Although no details were included, it soured the book for me because it was unnecessary. (It might have added to the drama if she had become pregnant (and it seemed in the next few chapters that Stevenson was heading in that direction), but nothing ever came of it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 31, 2019
I am a D.E. Stevenson fan, and have read many of her books. This one just moved too slowly for me, went on too long, and had subplots and characters that didn't go much of anywhere. I know it's structured as a diary, but it doesn't sound like one. In the end, the only thing I cared about was whether Sarah and Charles would ever get back together and I would have been happy if someone had tapped me on the shoulder and said: "Oh, I read that book. Let me tell you how it ends."
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