When my husband died, I found I had no money, or almost none, and I didn’t know what in the world to do! And then I thought, there’s still the house at Tarrigo I can go and live in that! I’d had enough of the world, anyway. The lake dried up, and it is known as Gone-Away Lake now. Then they meet Minnehaha (Min) and Pindar (Pin), an elderly brother and sister who have returned to deserted Tarrigo Lake, where they spent summers as children. Exploring the deep woods and a marsh, they discover an abandoned resort of rickety summer houses. It isn’t a fantasy, but the adventures of the children, Portia and Julian, two cousins, are equally riveting.

It invited us.Įlizabeth Enright’s classic novel, Gone-Away Lake, was another favorite, and I am happy to say it has only taken a year to reread. Maybe I’d find a magic ring in that hollow tree behind the apartment house around the block. I wished I were the character Kathleen and hoped I’d have a magic adventure. The next day, halfway through the book, I fell asleep on the hideaway bed. I must admit I’m very self-centered: I only read children’s books I read long ago, and I am mainly interested in them to see what kind of child I was.įor instance, I first read The Enchanted Castle after my 11th birthday slumber party. Nonetheless, I finished only a chapter every two months, because I have a limited interest in children’s books. The tone is witty, the novel is well-plotted, and I found the children’s adventures with the magic ring riveting and often funny. Nesbit’s The Enchanted Castle (you can download it free at Girlebooks), which was my favorite book as a child. The last time I read a children’s book, it took two years.

Gone away lake by elizabeth enright