Synopses & Reviews
In 1947 Tillys grandmother bought an island. Its name is Småhølmene and it sits just off the coast of Norway. At first sight, the island seems bare, hardly more than a collection of rocks rising determinedly out of the water. But Mor-mor, as she was known, could see that Småhølmene was more than that when she purchased it in exchange for a mink coat.
She built a two-storeyed wooden cabin on the island, an enclave against the sea water that would dash against the outlying rocks, galloping up the lagoon to slap against the moored boats. This is where Mor-mor and her young family would come every summer, escaping their mollycoddled life in the English countryside to run wild, get burnt, forage for juniper berries, thieve for gull eggs and swim in the shining sea. Lean and chic, Mor-mor smoked voraciously and scandalised the local villagers by cycling to the shops in nothing but a healthy tan. She loved the island fiercely; in her otherwise turbulent life, its rugged outcrops, messy abundance and promise of absolute solitude were constants that lasted throughout the years.
This is the inheritance that Tilly embraced many years later when her own mother brought her family to Småhølmene. And when the island was in danger of being sold, she was spurred to do something that no one else had done before - she decided to spend a winter there, alone with her boyfriend. Fending for themselves, they were utterly cut off from outside help. But, in the silence of the cold, they gradually discovered that even in the bleakest of times, the island could take on new life.
Glittering and bittersweet, Island Summers lovingly portrays three generations of women and the island that became so irrevocably part of their lives. Now Mor-mors great-grandchildren are taking their turn, enjoying endless summers on Småhølmene, continuing the story that was begun over fifty years ago.
Review
"Utterly captivating . . . Reminiscent at times of Roald Dahl's Boy. At moments she touches genius." —Donald Sturrock
"Perfectly evokes the calm and content that comes with a modest, self-sufficient way of life . . . Charming." —Daily Telegraph
"A paean to simple pleasures." —Harper's Bazaar
"Somehow, it also captures all of our timeless childhood summers, all of our treasuring of family traditions, all of our relationships with siblings and cousins, parents and grandparents, all of our careful passing on of pastimes from one generation to the next, all of our love of nature and of homemade food, all of our hopes and dreams about continuity. So captivating are Miss Culme-Seymours vignettes and descriptions that I was totally drawn in and, like her, came to dread the end-of-August departures. An instinctively seductive and sensual writer, she hooks you with all the senses." —Country Life
"A prose poem to a private idyll." —The Times
"A lovely blend of biography, topography and gastronomy . . . She has created a lip-smacking lexicon of dishes inviting elongated vowels and dead-headed consonants . . . And a cardiac-arrest threatening approach to ingredients . . . Sensual foodie prose." —Independent on Sunday
Synopsis
A luminescent memoir about a Norwegian island and three generations of women.
Synopsis
The enchanting true story of three generations of women, and the tiny Norwegian island that became part of their lives.
Synopsis
My grandmother bought the island. The year was 1947 and she was thirty-three, a couple of years older than I am now. She was the visionary sort of person who can make something magical out of very little.
From the moment that Tilly's grandmother, Mor-mor, set eyes on the rocky outline of Småhølmene, it captured her imagination. Legend has it that she bought the island in exchange for a mink coat.
Every summer from then on, she and her young family would escape from their life in the English countryside to its rugged outcrops and sparkling waters. Mor-mor loved Småhølmene fiercely. Lean and chic, she smoked voraciously and would scandalise the local islanders by roaming around naked, flanked by her standard black poodle, Cheri. Her children spent their days running wild, thieving for gull eggs, rowing on the lagoon, and foraging for island raspberries, which Mor-mor would sandwich together with whipped cream to make into a sukkerkake.
Thirty-five years later, Tilly spent her first summer on Småhølmene. Her Mamma kept up the rituals that she herself had learnt from Mor-mor, and Tilly discovered in the island a living link between her family's past and its present. Glittering and bittersweet, this is the captivating story of the women who made Småhølmene their own: a land of childhood adventures, of magical summers, and of Tilly's first romance.
About the Author
Tilly Culme-Seymour studied English at Trinity College, Dublin. She is now based in London, where she writes on food and travel. This is her first book.