Bagthorpes Liberated: Being the 7th Part of the Bagthorpe Saga

The Bagthorpe Saga #7

by Helen Cresswell

Upon returning from a vacation, the members of the eccentric Bagthorpe family find chaos as a tramp takes over their house, their maid disappears, and the demonic cousin Daisy arrives with her pet goat.

Genres: Fiction, Childrens

186 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Helen Cresswell (1934–2005) was an English television scriptwriter and author of more than 100 children's books, best known for comedy and supernatural fiction. Her most popular book series, Lizzie Dripping and The Bagthorpe Saga, were also the basis for television series.

Reviews

[William Leight · Rating 4 out of 5]

With “Bagthorpes Liberated”, the series continues to be hilarious, at the expense of ratcheting up the zaniness quotient to an almost unsustainable level. Cresswell introduces a new character, a benignly alcoholic Irish tramp who has camped out in Unicorn House while the Bathorpes were away (this book commences immediately upon their return from Wales), who seems left over from an even earlier time than the early ‘70s in which the first books were written. The title, meanwhile, comes from Mrs. Bagthorpe’s plan to even out the chores by distributing some of them to the male members of the family, especially her husband. But most of the plot is driven by the simple desire of members of the family — naturally, Daisy and Grandma are the most prominent in this regard — to cause chaos, and Mrs. Bagthorpe’s corresponding slide away from sanity. It’s hard to blame her, of course: the question is rather how she has stood it for all these years. And that’s the problem: as soon as you start asking yourself that question, the suspension of disbelief starts slipping away. Still, if you’re willing to hold onto it for a little longer, “Bagthorpes Liberated” yields nothing to the earlier books in terms of humor. Cresswell is just as sharp and funny as ever: it’s just that this book isn’t quite as grounded in reality as the previous ones were.

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this saga, the Bagthorpes host a tramp, whom Grandma claims is a secret millionaire. Daisy throws curdled milk into the goldfish pond and kills all the fish. Jack wants to revive them, so puts them in a bucket and pours in some brandy, then leaves then in the kitchen for Mrs. Fosdyke to run across (she ends up in hysterics). Mrs. Bagthorpe decides it is time for the Bagthorpe females to be liberated, and that the males in the household must pull their own weight. Many other crazy happenings.

[Seeraj Shaikh]

It might not be too profound, but I got hooked immediately. And apparently I'm not the only one. All in all, this was one of the most entertaining books that I've read.