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The Windfall
Christopher Milne's fourth book to be published takes the form of a fable - a retelling and reinterpretation of the story of Adam and Eve. Beginning in the Garden and ending with the Flood, here is the rise and fall of the kingdom of man as Eve sees it.
And since this is a story that embraces not only human life but all life, the author has set it in and around his own garden in Devon so that he can call upon a supporting cast from among the flowers, the trees and the wild creatures that he knows so well.
Christopher Milne, who has written vividly of his life in Devon in The Path Through the Trees and of his beliefs in The Hollow on the Hill, here offers the reader a fable as subtle as it is moving. The evocative simplicity of his prose is matched by Kenneth Lindley's richly austere wood engravings.
Christopher Milne lives with his wife Lesley, his daughter Clare, four cats and a coming and going of smaller creatures at the bottom of a green valley in South Devon. His pleasures include planting trees, scything grass, watching insects, shaping things out of wood, brewing his own cider, eating his wife's home-baked bread, re-reading his favourite books, listening to his favourite music and wandering over hills and under trees, especially at night.
The Windfall is Christopher Milne's fourth book. In 1974 he wrote The Enchanted Places about his boyhood in Sussex and in 1979 he described in The Path Through the Trees his migration from Sussex to Devon, where for many years he ran the Harbour Bookshop in Dartmouth in partnership with his
wife. His third book, The Hollow on the Hill, was published in 1982 and concludes the trilogy, this time giving an inward journey, tracing the development of his commitment to a world where man can learn to live in harmony, not just with his fellow men but with the whole of creation.
Kenneth Lindley, a Londoner by birth and upbringing, now lives by choice in Hereford, where he is Principal of the College of Art and Design. Author of 13 books and illustrator of many more, he also designs and prints his own Pointing Finger Press limited edition books and produces a succession of prints; drawings and paintings. As an artist his favourite medium has, for several decades, been wood engraving. He exhibits regularly with the Royal Society of Painter Etchers and Engravers, of which he is a Fellow. His enthusiasms are for exploring and recording in words and images English and Welsh landscapes, overlooked details and forgotten places.
And since this is a story that embraces not only human life but all life, the author has set it in and around his own garden in Devon so that he can call upon a supporting cast from among the flowers, the trees and the wild creatures that he knows so well.
Christopher Milne, who has written vividly of his life in Devon in The Path Through the Trees and of his beliefs in The Hollow on the Hill, here offers the reader a fable as subtle as it is moving. The evocative simplicity of his prose is matched by Kenneth Lindley's richly austere wood engravings.
Christopher Milne lives with his wife Lesley, his daughter Clare, four cats and a coming and going of smaller creatures at the bottom of a green valley in South Devon. His pleasures include planting trees, scything grass, watching insects, shaping things out of wood, brewing his own cider, eating his wife's home-baked bread, re-reading his favourite books, listening to his favourite music and wandering over hills and under trees, especially at night.
The Windfall is Christopher Milne's fourth book. In 1974 he wrote The Enchanted Places about his boyhood in Sussex and in 1979 he described in The Path Through the Trees his migration from Sussex to Devon, where for many years he ran the Harbour Bookshop in Dartmouth in partnership with his
wife. His third book, The Hollow on the Hill, was published in 1982 and concludes the trilogy, this time giving an inward journey, tracing the development of his commitment to a world where man can learn to live in harmony, not just with his fellow men but with the whole of creation.
Kenneth Lindley, a Londoner by birth and upbringing, now lives by choice in Hereford, where he is Principal of the College of Art and Design. Author of 13 books and illustrator of many more, he also designs and prints his own Pointing Finger Press limited edition books and produces a succession of prints; drawings and paintings. As an artist his favourite medium has, for several decades, been wood engraving. He exhibits regularly with the Royal Society of Painter Etchers and Engravers, of which he is a Fellow. His enthusiasms are for exploring and recording in words and images English and Welsh landscapes, overlooked details and forgotten places.
64 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 1985
18 people want to read
About the author
Christopher Milne
6 books17 followersSon of A.A. Milne.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 3, 2021
"Christopher Milne's fourth book to be published takes the form of a fable -- a retelling and reinterpretation of the story of Adam and Eve. Beginning in the Garden and ending with the Flood, here is the rise and fall of the kingdom of man as Eve sees it.
"And since this a story that embraces not only human life but all life, the author has set it in and around his own garden in Devon so that he can call upon a supporting cast from among the flowers, the trees and the wild creatures that he knows so well."
~~front flap
Parts of this fable retell the story as written in the Bible, but then it branches off to become more about Eve, and the future of man until the Flood. It was interesting, but not compelling, in my opinion.
"And since this a story that embraces not only human life but all life, the author has set it in and around his own garden in Devon so that he can call upon a supporting cast from among the flowers, the trees and the wild creatures that he knows so well."
~~front flap
Parts of this fable retell the story as written in the Bible, but then it branches off to become more about Eve, and the future of man until the Flood. It was interesting, but not compelling, in my opinion.
October 19, 2023
The fourth of five books by the talented and thoughtful Christopher Milne (the son of author A.A. Milne and the inspiration for the Winnie the Pooh character "Christopher Robin")—I read all five of his books in the order in which he wrote them. I was inspired to do so after I watched the rather apocryphal movie Goodbye Christopher Robin (2017). Sadly, Milne and his father adopted an atheist worldview related to their admiration of the work of William Winwood Reade. This book and his other stories reflect that dismal, pseudoscientific worldview. I gave two stars instead of one because Milne writes well and held my interest. (Sorry for the similarity to my review of Milne's final book; I read these five years ago and don't have fresh impressions of them.)
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews