Love for Lydia (1952) by H.E. Bates #1952Club

💙 This was my first introduction to H.E. Bates, and I read from the synopsis that this was "his own favourite among his Northamptonshire novels", and that this was a semi-autobiographical account of Bates' own life. So, I was excited to read it for my third and final entry for #1952Club - and it's not disappointing! The story was narrated by Richardson, who, at the beginning of the novel, worked as a newspaper reporter. However, he seems to be too dreamy and imaginative, shy and reserved, to be a journalist. On one of his errands, he gets to know a girl called Lydia Aspen, who has just arrived to stay with her two spinster aunts. His first impression of Lydia, is a tall, dark, awkward, and shy girl. Her two aunts wanted him to take Lydia out for skating, to meet people, instead of being isolated with two elderly people.

💙 As Lydia learns to skate, little by little she is out from her shell, so to speak, revealing more of her true nature, which is self-centered, flirty, enjoying her power over men. In short, Lydia is a femme fatale. Richardson was soon fascinated and falling in love with her, so were three other young men, though in different ways and not at the same time. After all the dancing and partying that the group had a lot, Lydia grew farther from Richardson, that when he finally proposed, she rejected him. And at this point, a tragedy occurred - you could actually see it coming, just like in The Great Gatsby - and Richardson, sick of it all, left for London.

💙 After his return two years later, Richardson found that things had changed. How is it changed? Would he meet Lydia again? And what would happen when he actually met her; would he still love her? And what about Lydia, could she finally grasp the pain she had caused the man who really loved her? Will the story be a happy-ending romance, or a devastating tragedy?

💙 What I loved most about the book is Bates' beautiful narration, especially his portrayal of the small English tannery town, located inside a valley. Whether in winter, spring, summer, or fall, Richardson, our narrator, could always describe the scenery picturesquely. Here's one of my favorites: 

"The sun went down a moment later in a plunge of wintry magnified fire that left on the ice, the snowy meadows and the cold sky a wonderful after-glow. A lichen-like green hung above the sunset, and the shadows, all across the snow, became of indigo brilliance before finally dissolving. A biting moment of dispersing day, exhilarating and almost cruel, hung in the pure start air before the first star sparked into green sky above the sunset."

💙 All in all, it is a beautiful romantic coming of age story. A bit sad, perhaps, but beautiful on the whole.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2

Read this book for:

The 1952 Club

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