The Flowering Thorn - by Margery Sharp (Paperback)

About the Book

"In 1929 London, twenty-eight-year-old Lesley Frewen lives a privileged, cultured life. But one thing is missing: love. When her aunt's female companion dies suddenly, leaving behind a young son, Lesley decides on a whim to adopt four-year-old Patrick--which is odd, because she doesn't have any particular affection for children. As soon as Patrick moves in with her, Lesley gets to work using her connections to enroll him in the finest boys' school. But she soon discovers that London is no place to raise a child. Relocating to the country, however, comes with its own set of daunting challenges"--Publisher marketing.

Book Synopsis

A Jazz Age socialite impulsively adopts an orphaned boy in this humorous, heartwarming tale

In 1929 London, twenty-eight-year-old Lesley Frewen lives a privileged, cultured life. But one thing is missing: love. When her aunt's female companion suddenly dies, leaving behind a young son, Lesley decides on a whim to adopt four-year-old Patrick--though she doesn't have any particular affection for children.

As soon as Patrick moves in with her, Lesley gets to work using her connections to enroll him in the finest boys' school. But she quickly discovers London is no place to raise a child, and they relocate to the tiny village of High Westover.

The hamlet boasts a post office, a church, and a vicarage. There's an apple orchard and children for Patrick to play with. However, the country comes with its own set of daunting challenges: Lesley can't imagine how she'll entertain her friends there! But ultimately life with Patrick will change her, bringing out her capacity to love and showing her the difference between pleasure and happiness.

Review Quotes

"To those who 'discovered' Margery Sharp with The Nutmeg Tree, the reissue of this earlier novel . . . will be good news. The city-bred-country-won theme is handled with gay humor and enough of sentiment for general appeal." --Kirkus Reviews

Praise for Margery Sharp
"Sharp has a touch all her own when it comes to taking on social class, sex and its consequences, and the changes that the 20th century brought to both those arenas, most especially for women. She remained, always, both polite and biting, looking at the intoxications and delusions of life and love with wit and clear-eyed sympathy." --The New York Times

"One of the most gifted writers of comedy in the civilized world today." --Chicago Daily News

"Highly gifted . . . a wonderful entertainer." --The New Yorker

"[Sharp's] dialogue is brilliant, uncannily true. . . . She is an excellent storyteller." --Elizabeth Bowen

"It is as natural for Miss Sharp to be witty as for a brook trout to have spots." --The Saturday Review of Literature

About the Author

Margery Sharp is renowned for her sparkling wit and insight into human nature, both of which are liberally displayed in her critically acclaimed social comedies of class and manners. Born in Yorkshire, England, Sharp wrote pieces for Punch magazine after attending college and art school. In 1930, she published her first novel, Rhododendron Pie, and in 1938, married Maj. Geoffrey Castle. Sharp wrote twenty-six novels, three of which--Britannia Mews, Cluny Brown, and The Nutmeg Tree--were made into feature films, and fourteen children's books, including The Rescuers, which was adapted into two Disney animated films.