Gone to Earth.

Jean and I managed an hour and 40 minutes on the work on Tuesday morning.  And I visited Maggie - had a long chat with one of the young nurses, who is very fond of her.  And on Wednesday there was a glowing numinous light on Green and Sea as the sun began to set.  The gulls on the Channel glowed pink and gold.

When the Captain can find a moment in a long weekend of intense Metal Detectoring, I shall ask him to add a photo to this blog as he was out on the balcony, camera'd up, doing his best to capture it.

What a lovely lovely world Jehovah made for us.

But what a state it is in.  I have been re-reading Mary Webb's "Gone to Earth" - a long time favourite of mine. She sees clearly both the beauty and glory of the world and the cruelty of the current system of things. And cannot understand or reconcile them.

But, when Jehovah wakes her from the dreamless sleep of death, she will understand. She will learn what the Bible was telling her all along.   And she will open her eyes in an earth ruled by the law of loving-kindness, not the "red in tooth and claw" world she depicts so heartbreakingly in "Gone to Earth".

I have never heard anyone point out that while she is a very intense, didactic writer, she can also be very funny when she wants.  If I can find a moment I might type a couple of excerpts in to demonstrate.   Not in this blog though.

Has anyone ever done a dissertation on the humour in Mary Webb's novels?