View on Biblioguides
I’ve seen The Children of Green Knowe recommended for years, on Charlotte Mason-inspired lists and among lovers of classic British children’s books. When Kristi Stansfield kindly passed along several volumes in library binding, I took it as a sign to finally explore the series. Margi McAllister’s praise for these books nudged them to the top of my preview pile.
Aside from those recommendations, Lucy M. Boston was a new author to me. I entered the book with little context and few expectations, which in some ways made the experience more curious and unpredictable.
While I was reading, I told my daughter Greta that the story reminded me of The Princess and the Goblin, though without the clear moral threads. She laughed and observed, quite rightly, that the English do love a good ghost story. And that’s just what this is—ghosty without being grim, eerie without ever turning dark. A young boy visits an ancient family manor during the holidays and begins to experience the lingering presence of children from the past. These ghostly presences are friendly and childlike, more wistful than chilling. And they befriend him in playful ways.
It’s a peculiar little book—at times I wasn’t entirely sure what was happening, but I enjoyed it all the same. There’s something innocent and strangely charming about the way Boston blends time, memory, and imagination. The Great Grandmother character helps to explain the story to us and her young charge, but she is cryptic and confusing. It’s a quirky sort of book that entertains with its vignettes. Greta wonders whether Margi McAllister’s The Ghost in the Window might have been inspired, at least in broad style, by this series.
That said, it’s not a book I’ll be rushing to recommend widely. I can see its appeal for certain teen readers—especially those who enjoy old English houses, quiet mysteries, and stories with a slow, dreamlike quality. But it wasn’t a favorite for me.
Parents should be aware that the plot involves a family curse brought on by a gypsy woman, references to drunkenness, and a manor “haunted” by the ghosts of children who died young. These elements are handled with grace, but they are present nonetheless.
All in all, I’m glad to have finally read it. I’ll keep it on my shelf for the right reader to stumble across, but I won’t be rushing to recommend it.