J.L. Carr and Stocken Farm

10 Responses

  1. Ian Marchant says:

    Thank you; that’s an interesting thought, but one which might have surprised Carr. All his novels are signed with a place where and a time when he wrote them, and I suspect his handful of dedicated readers would have expected this, and not read anything into it. And Carr really was at Stocken at the time he uses in the book. So it would have been a leap, on Carr’s part and the readers, to get to your reading, I think. Still interesting though.

  2. Linda says:

    I think you’ve slightly missed the point. That last page on which Presteigne appears is still part of the book. It’s being ‘written’ not by the author but by Birkin, the hero of the book. Birkin is looking back at that month in the country, from his old age. So Presteigne is where he, Birkin, is living at the end of his life. In effect J L Carr is giving us a little bonus, something to think about. What happened to Birkin through the rest of his life? Did he finally get rid of Vinny? What twist of fate took him to Wales?

  3. Olive Bennewith says:

    Thank you for this. I live in Knighton and have just read A Month in The Country as the book of the month for a local book group. We all loved the book and members of the group were intrigued to hear the results of your investigations.

  4. Olive Bennewith says:

    Thank you for passing on the results of your research. I live in Knighton and am a member of two book groups. Coincidentally, this month’s book for both groups is A Month in the Country. It is a really beautiful book.

  5. Jennie B. says:

    I have just read ‘A Month in the Country’ for the first time and really enjoyed it. I think the review I came across was in the Waitrose newspaper last month and I ordered the book from my local library. I am pleased to find the description of Stocken Farm here as it is an interesting story. Thank you for making notes about it.

  6. Gareth B says:

    Just finished re-reading one of my favourite books A Month In The Country, for the umpteenth time, and came here after a google search. Fascinating, thanks for your detective work! Recently visited the church they used for the filming in Radnage, worth a visit if you’re in the area.

  7. Ashley Nunn says:

    Just reread A Month in the Country after quite a few years and still love it. I went to school in Kettering, and have always been a JLC fan. I now live about 3 miles from Presteigne and have just Googled Stocken, after noticing the mention at the conclusion of the story,and found this. I shall hunt the farm out. I did speak to JLC briefly on the phone when ordering books for Ottakar’s in Hereford, asking him to sign a book for me but, as is the way, was too shy really to tell him too much of how I admired his work.
    Cheers

  8. ruth white says:

    HI We now live at Stocken Farm – but I still dont know whether the top orchard is in herefordshire or radnorshire!

  9. David Stanton says:

    One of my favourite books. I reread it every 2-3 years and have “googled’ Stocken. Presteigne every time for the past 8(?) years. Now I have an answer. Thank you very much

  10. Dan says:

    Impressive story, nicely told too Ian. I hope you can update when you have found out which side of the border the field is on. I think you can be confident that you have solved this.

    Reminds me that the film of A Month in the Country was one of my favourites from my mid 80s teenage years

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