Intro to A City of Bells

Our Goudge Readalong for November

A City of Bells by Elizabeth Goudge for our November read.

“If this was not Paradise [Henrietta] would have liked to be told what was.

The dreaming city, the west front of the Cathedral with its rows of kings and queens and saints, the wooded Tor, the gardens full of flowers, the singing birds and chiming bells, the old house with its carved angels, the humming High Street and its holy well…

these things did not belong to the world as Henrietta had hitherto known it… and she felt like one born anew on a different planet.”

🍂 Elizabeth Goudge, A City of Bells, ch 2

Welcome to our November Goudge Readalong!

This month we are beginning the Torminster series, and it has an interesting tale all its own. It begins with Goudge’s beloved third novel, A City of Bells, and continues with Sister of the Angels & Henrietta’s House.

We will talk today about where this series is set in location and time period, the Vicar’s Close, and why these books have never been sold as a trilogy.

Hope you can join us!

From Wells Cathedral:"It's sometimes hard to believe that it's nearly 850 years since construction began in 1175, but we think Tom has perfectly captured the history and longevity of the Cathedral in this stunning shot.” Photos by Tom Davies

Is it a trilogy?