The Common Years

by Jilly Cooper

During the ten years she lived at the edge of Putney Common Jilly Cooper walked daily on this expanse of green. For most of the time she lived there she kept a diary, noting the effects of the changing seasons and writing about her encounters with dogs and humans. The book is a distillation of those diaries: an affectionate and enthralling portrait - warts and all - of life on Putney Common. Never has Jilly Cooper written more lyrically about flowers, trees, birds and the natural world; more tellingly about the sorrows - as well as the joys - of caring for dogs and children; or more outrageously about the gossip, illicit romances and jealousies of life in a small community.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, Nature, London

319 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1994

About the author

Dame Jilly Cooper, OBE (born February 21, 1937) was an English author. She started her career as a journalist and wrote numerous works of non-fiction before writing several romance novels, the first of which appeared in 1975. She was most famous for writing the six blockbuster novels the Rutshire Chronicles.

Reviews

[Louise Culmer · Rating 2 out of 5]

jilly cooper's account of the decade she spent living in a house near putney common, of the people she met there, and the problems with her various dogs. While i generally find jilly Cooper quite amusing, and started off enjoying this, I found myself increasingly irritated by her hopelessness about her dogs. Apparently incapable of controlling them, she let them run amuck, figting other dogs, killing cats etc, and eventually had to have two of them put down. To have to have one dog put down due to bad behaviour may be a mistortune, to have two put down looks like carelessness. there are other oddities. For instance, at Christmas 1978 she tells us she hasn't got enough money to buy Christmas presents for her children, yet the following spring she is sending one of them to boarding school. How can she afford Boarding school but not christmas presents? At the end, when she remarks on leaving Putney for the country that some of the people she leaves behind will heave a sigh of relief, I couldn't help feeling that if I'd been one of her neighbours I'd probably have been one of those sighing with relief, especially if her horrid dogs had killed one of my cats.

[Mira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jilly is at her best when waxing lyrical about nature. This is an autobiographical read about the ten years she spent as a dog walking resident of Putney. It lacks the racy nature of her novels but is a delicious read and I loved it!

You will love reading about Putney and Richmond parks as her prose takes you through summer heatwaves to a frosty snow covered common. I also loved all the poetry that is scattered through the text.

[Pvillehol · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jilly Cooper is UK's Jackie Collins, but this is a nice diary of her life on the Commons in the country in the UK

[Jane Gregg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amusing and mostly enjoyable, but the casual culture of animal care back in the 80s in the UK is not that much fun to be privy to. Crikey!

[Agnesxnitt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I shouldn't like this book at all, but I do. Its such a comfort read.
It covers the 10 years from the early 70s to early 80 when Jilly Cooper and her family lived in Putney facing Barnes Common. She walked her two dogs round the large area, making friends, acquaintances, enemies and detractors on a daily basis from the diary entries here!
Down side - she takes no responsibility for training or discipling her animals at all. The two, then three, dogs run amok, untrained and off the lead. This inevitably leads to run ins with other dog owners and *SPOILER ALERT*
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At least three cats and a yorkshire terrier puppy. Whilst she is grief and guilt ridden by the latter, Jilly never really learns from the events in the diary, though one of her dogs does have to be destroyed as a result.
Lighter moments of every day life abound - the awful neighbours, the noisy people who walk their dogs you can't escape, the random events that start off as something to look forward to and degenerate into times to escape to another geographical location, - the stuff of life.
I read this book some years ago and loved it. Discovering this copy for 10p on a charity book stall earlier this Summer, I snapped it up and this is now on loan to my Mum with strict instructions I want it back!!

[Rhys · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charming, punning and gossipy, this book deals with the ups and downs of life with boisterous dogs, as well as life in a small community (in this case the dog-walking denizens of Putney). This is the second time I have read this book, the first when I myself have dogs and the bonding effect of having a dog is well captured in this book, as is the fact that walking a dog does give you time to contemplate the world around you. This is a well observed and well written slice of
Iife.

[Sue Brienza · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely book - one to read if you are a dog owner

[Linda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Enjoyed to begin with but it did go on with little change

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

Inconsiderate dog owners

Dog lovers just don't realise or care how scared and disgusted those who are not really are, more consideration please.

[Artie LeBlanc · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is now very much a period piece - it makes the 1980s seems a long, long time ago. The descriptions of the natural world on these semi-urban commons are lovely.

BUT

I cannot believe what an irresponsible dog-owner this woman was/is. Her dogs were undoubtedly loved, but her lack of discipline led to the deaths of several cats and a dog, and to two of her dogs being put down. This is inexcusable.

I was also annoyed about seeming fecklessness with money

There are lots of similes - so many that I became fed up- the word "like" started to really irritate me.

I shall only keep the book because I know the area well, and it is in a way a slice of my life (but not the dog part).

[Alison.A.Bellbtinternet.Com · Rating 2 out of 5]

In the past 1980s or so really enjoyed J Cooper sexy romps. I read on audio and there were beautiful descriptions of nature through the seasons. This was very informative and mood lifting. What drove me mad as a life long lover of dogs was her years of dog ownership with no control or training and didn't think other dogs bitten needing switches or cats been killed. She remained to think other people's views were wrong and none of her dogs needed castration or training or keeping on the lead.
Felt like ringing the Rspca.! ¡!! 😁

[Sue Cross · Rating 1 out of 5]

My book club assigned “a Jilly Cooper book” as our extra read this month following the author’s death. I chose this because I have no interest whatsoever in horses, polo, racing or the graphic and “steamy” exploits of somewhere called Rutfordshire 🙄. Turns out in real life Ms cooper was as odious as her books. Anyone who has a housekeeper they constantly refer to as “my Irish housekeeper” within the pages of a diary instead of using their name deserves no respect themselves. I shelved this book after reading about 10%.

[Claudine · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a trite book...
I do not intend to keep my copy of that book, and I do not intend to give it away. I intend to drop it into the nearest paper recycling bin.
Why ? because that book gives a poor image of dog owners, and even of the British in general. It makes them sound childish, narrow-minded and even irresponsible.
As a dog person, being born into a dog-people family, I was appalled at the way the author (mis)managed her dogs...

[Edna · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you like dogs and nature and amusing comments this is your book. I hated to finish it ...But, spoiler this is a woman who loves her dogs but they are not trained and often do things that appall me,,,but, the whole book is so good...I highly rec...gave one copy to a friend and ordered another for another friend. It is charming...

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars
Listened to this on Audio book. Was an enjoyable glimpse into time and place. Loved Jillys descriptions of the common and her neighbours. Way too much discussion of dogs for my liking. She was a terribly irresponsible dog owner. I would have been one of the neighbours glad to see the back of her, i'm afraid.

[Stuart · Rating 5 out of 5]

"beautiful day. Eiderdown of thick mist lying just above the grass, echoed by a thick band of dark hyacinth blue cloud against a sky of very pale Cambridge blue. Cobwebs hanging in dew drenched hammocks from the thistles. Michaelmas daisies a mauve haze on the Flower garden. Their centres start yellow then slowly turn dark crimson like a crumb filled jam tart"

[Rosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

A sweet and easy read about Cooper's time in Putney in the 70s and 80s. Amusingly dated now, and would be sternly edited to remove some dubious references, but ultimately the thing I enjoyed most were the wonderful descriptions of nature that featured on practically every page; some really lovely details.

[Tracee · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really no point in continuing to read this one; gave up at 59. It’s someone’s journal scratchings over a 10yr period about walking her dogs. The pictures were lame, too

[Jo Birkett · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won't be keeping my copy but only because it fell apart as I read - a fun read, nice balance of nature observations and local interest, good to read again in another 20 years.

[Lucy Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much more readable than her fiction!

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful account of family life.

[M-N · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow this book has nature , dogs , walks and everything life ca n offer for the ten years The Cooper liked on the common.

[Jane Clarkson · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of those books I read every few years. Charming, warm and funny, like Jilly Cooper herself.

[Ms Jayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love reading diaries and these were no exception. Vastly entertaining, sometimes moving, and a window on a lovely life of creativity and humour. Despite the changing practices of dog ownership (neutering, long leads, training classes) which make Cooper's laissez-faire approach a bit shocking for the disapproving Modern Reader, her love of animals shines through on every page. This book is wonderful for its depiction of the dogs.

Secondly, her nature writing is spectacular as well as inspirational. I look forward to identifying various different strangely named wild flowers that she's inspired me to look up.

Lastly, the beautiful extracts of poetry which are quoted in every situation. They are terrific. Jilly Cooper's work was so much more than the Rutshire Chronicles so it's a real pleasure to get to know her non-fiction too.

[Isla · Rating 1 out of 5]

During the first pages, I found myself enjoying both the diary format and the ambiance of the book. Nevertheless, it got monotonous; the interactions with the neighbors weren't that interesting, the park's descriptions got endless, and at one point I ran out of imagination to even conjure the images in my mind. I admit I didn't know half the plants mentioned, probably because English is not my first language, but I got tired of having to continuously search them up.

The main reason I didn't like the book though was the whole dog thing. It really baffled me the level of neglect and irresponsibility towards the care of the dogs to the point she had to put two down (and the fact she continued adopting more...). The worst part was the victimization. After their dogs ran free biting, fighting, humping, and killing the other animals in the park she never tried to remedy the situation (training, castration, not letting them roam free,..) and when someone tried to call her out (or even tried to help her!) she would immediately go into victim mode painting them as irrational and bitchy people. The level of disrespect left me speechless honestly. There are a few more reasons as to why I ended up fed up with the book, but I won't go into detail.

I really wanted this to be a light cozy reading, but it irritated me instead.

[Gill McKinlay · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favourite books.