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annemariep68's review against another edition
3.0
I read this because I had seen the new movie version at the Calgary International Film Fest and I already had a copy on my tbr pile! It was a written in an interesting style with no chapters just breaks in thought. I liked the way it slipped between the events of that Mothering Sunday and the times that narrator looked back on it and through another lens. The story evolves slowly but you know or sense that this is a pivotal day for Jane and for the other characters and that slowly builds throughout this slim novel.
essjay1's review against another edition
4.0
I like a novella - the length requires a discipline often missing in longer novels. This is a masterclass in weaving a story, gradually drawing the scene for the reader.
roxyc's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.5
tensy's review against another edition
5.0
Mothering Sunday refers to an European custom of wealthy households where servants were given a day off to visit their families (or visit their "mother church".) This novella takes one such Sunday in 1924 and impeccably describes the events that transpire to change the life of one young servant named Jane Fairchild. This is the first book I have read by Swift and it has the same atmospheric effect as watching an episode of Downton Abbey. He packs so much about the life of this woman into its pages that you forget how short it actually is. The pacing is languid, yet fully develops the characters, the English setting and customs of the period. There are many passages I would love to quote, but here is one of my favorites:
Words were like an invisible skin, enwrapping the world and giving it reality. Yet you could not say the world would not be there, would not be real if you took away the words. At best it seemed that things might bless the words that distinguished them, and that words might bless everything.
thechroniclesofsiania's review against another edition
Wasn't compelled by the characters!
bianca89279's review against another edition
3.0
Another author ticked off of my (non-existent) list of authors I need to read.
Mothering Sunday is aimlessly meandering through one day - 30th of March, 1924 - in the life of the twenty-two-year-old Jane Fairchild, who's a maid. She's been having a seven-year amorous relationship with Paul Sheringham, an upper-class young man, who's soon to marry for convenience. On that particular day, a day when servants were given the day off to go visit their mothers or families, Jane goes into Paul's house, for yet another hanky panky session, this time in his bedroom. This book is all about Jane's thoughts on her lover, their love-making, her situation, and a few observation on her employers. I wouldn't be able to say if Jane loved Paul, although she was aware that their relationship was mostly carnal.
Nothing much happens.
Except that, on Mothering Sunday, a tragic event occurs that will change the course of Jane's life, who'll become much more successful than ever thought possible, especially for a woman who was an orphan.
The last third of this very short novel is about Jane waxing lyrically about her own life, few memories here and there, and the importance of books - especially of Joseph Conrad in her discovery journey of good literature, that ultimately pushed her into wanting to become a writer herself.
This was a pleasant enough novel, but nothing mind blowing or life altering. I'm not sure what the message of this little book was. Swift can write very well. Despite all that, I was kept at a distance, never really feeling much or empathising with Jane, who was the narrator.
3.5 stars
Audiobook: excellent!
Mothering Sunday is aimlessly meandering through one day - 30th of March, 1924 - in the life of the twenty-two-year-old Jane Fairchild, who's a maid. She's been having a seven-year amorous relationship with Paul Sheringham, an upper-class young man, who's soon to marry for convenience. On that particular day, a day when servants were given the day off to go visit their mothers or families, Jane goes into Paul's house, for yet another hanky panky session, this time in his bedroom. This book is all about Jane's thoughts on her lover, their love-making, her situation, and a few observation on her employers. I wouldn't be able to say if Jane loved Paul, although she was aware that their relationship was mostly carnal.
Nothing much happens.
Except that, on Mothering Sunday, a tragic event occurs that will change the course of Jane's life, who'll become much more successful than ever thought possible, especially for a woman who was an orphan.
The last third of this very short novel is about Jane waxing lyrically about her own life, few memories here and there, and the importance of books - especially of Joseph Conrad in her discovery journey of good literature, that ultimately pushed her into wanting to become a writer herself.
This was a pleasant enough novel, but nothing mind blowing or life altering. I'm not sure what the message of this little book was. Swift can write very well. Despite all that, I was kept at a distance, never really feeling much or empathising with Jane, who was the narrator.
3.5 stars
Audiobook: excellent!
commiebeatle's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
igel80's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0