I should have like this one more. The premise is excellent but somehow the story fell flat. Poirot sounded less likeFirst Read: July 10, 2024
3.5 stars
I should have like this one more. The premise is excellent but somehow the story fell flat. Poirot sounded less like himself and more English. There weren't as many humorous digs that the author likes to make with regard to Poirot's own self-importance. And somehow the characters didn't come as alive as in other novels. Perhaps it was because she was writing it for her brother-in-law who requested a mystery with lots of blood. At times, it felt like she was just churning it out. In any case, I wish my rating was higher....more
And they weren't. Â To begin with, Roberta, Peter and Phyllis lived with their parents in London in a ni"They were not railway children to begin with."
And they weren't. Â To begin with, Roberta, Peter and Phyllis lived with their parents in London in a nice house with servants and virtually anything they desired. Â But one day there is a knock on the door and the whole family's life is turned upside down.
Father disappears and Mother is left to work hard at her writing of stories to sell. Â They immediately leave for the country and end up lodging in a house called The Three Chimneys, located close to a railway station. Â The children are mesmerized by the trains passing by and spend much of their days roaming around the countryside, meeting many of the people of the community while involving themselves in many compelling adventures.
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Nesbit does a spectacular job of giving each of the children their own distinct personality. Â In this excerpt, she inserts herself right into the story to tell us about Roberta:
"I hope you don't mind my telling you a good deal about Roberta. Â The fact is I am growing very fond of her. Â The more I observe her the more I love her. Â And I notice all sorts of things about her that I like.
For instance, she was quite oddly anxious to make other people happy. Â And she could keep a secret, a tolerably rare accomplishment. Â Also she had the power of silent sympathy. Â That sounds rather dull, I know, but it's not so dull as it sounds. Â It just means that a person is able to know that you are unhappy, and to love you extra on that account, without bothering you by telling you all the time how sorry she is for you. Â That was what Bobbie was like. Â She knew that Mother was unhappy ---- and that Mother had not told her the reason. Â So she just loved Mother more and never said a single word that could let Mother know how earnestly her little girl wondered what Mother was unhappy about. This need practice. Â It is not so easy as you might think."
Nesbit also is adept at weaving lots of humour into the story. Â I was highly amused by Peter's take on marriage:
"I suppose I shall have to get married someday," said Peter, "but it will be an awful bother having her round all the time. Â I'd like to marry a lady who had trances, and only woke up once or twice a year."
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Every one of the children's adventures is captivating, from reuniting a Russian expatriot with his family to saving a baby from a barge fire; from preventing a disastrous train wreck to planning a birthday for the train porter who, because his family is poor, never had one before and involving the whole community. While there is misfortune and conflict both internal and external, there is also warmth and caring and an appealing responsibility in the children's lives and their behaviours. Â Often others are more important than self-interest, and happiness is not to be kept and guarded but shared. Â And this is why, while they were put into poverty by circumstances beyond their control, their adjustment is reasonably simple and they grasp life with just as much joy as previously.
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Nesbit uses the writing technique of inserting herself into the story occasionally and speaking directly with the reader. Â This style only adds to the enjoyment of the story as you feel that she is sharing the story with you, and not merely telling it.
I was so sad when this story ended but thrilled that I finally read it. Â To think that it could have slipped away without me every being introduced to the railway children is a thought not to be borne....more
I loved this premise of this novel, the plot was certainly excellent and the characters were engaging. Yet somehow the pacing First read: June 18/2024
I loved this premise of this novel, the plot was certainly excellent and the characters were engaging. Yet somehow the pacing of the novel was bumpy and the characters at time behaved in ways that weren't always believable only because of lack of development. What was it that made Pip so in love with Estella, a girl who only tormented him and was as cold as an ice statue? We can only guess. With Pip's obsession at improving his circumstances, why didn't it occur to him to turn Magwitch in? I'm glad he didn't, but .....
I have to remember these novels were disseminated through serialization. There was a wide audience that Dickens was trying to capture and so perhaps style and tight planning were sacrificed to drama and at times a messy progress to move the plot forward. In any case, I quite enjoyed the novel but it wasn't as developed as I expected....more
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