Rowena Farre wrote this, her second book in 1962. Her first book -'Seal Morning' - had been published in 1957 and had become very popular, translated into several languages.
At one time both 'Seal Morning' and 'A Time From The World' were thought to be works of fiction rather than autobiographies and no one really knows much about the author and her life.
Different people have pieced together some of her story. She was born in India (although one source says London) in 1921 (or 1922 or 1930!), her real name was Daphne Lois McCready and she was the daughter of an Army Medical Officer. She was sent to Britain to live with an aunt when she was about 10 years old. 'Seal Morning' is the story of her life with her Aunt on a remote croft in Sutherland, Scotland. They lived with all sorts of pets including the seal. BUT later when people tried to find the croft or people who had known the Aunt and Niece - nothing was found. When her Aunt married Rowena moved south and became a typist.
During World War II, according to some sources she was in the WAAF, although if she was born in 1930 and not 1921 she would have been too young.
Then at some time in the 1950s she got a grant to go to Art School but spent much more time and all the summers travelling and working with the gypsies around Scotland, Wales and the west counties of England, the story of this time is the subject of 'A Time From the World'. She met a gypsy man and fell in love and moved in with him but after a while felt she couldn't settle to one way of life, she wanted to travel more widely and to write.
She went back to London and moved from job to job, living in lodgings and writing. When 'Seal Morning' was published she left the lodgings and disappeared for almost 4 years to avoid the journalists and the fame. Her publishers eventually tracked her down after advertising in the personal columns of newspapers, she was spotted on a ship and HERE is a newspaper report about her being found.
She wrote one other book 'The Beckoning Land' in 1969 which is about a spiritual pilgrimage to Ceylon and India.
She died in Canterbury in 1979. A very private person and estranged from her family, her life is much of a mystery.
Seal Morning was made into a TV series in 1986 with the location moved to Norfolk.
I first read 'Seal Morning' and 'A Time From the World' way back in the 1970s when I started work in libraries. The copy of 'A Time From the World' that I have now was reprinted in 2013 by Little Toller Books. The front cover photograph is by Bert Hardy from 1951. Inside are illustrations by Alice Pattullo.
The book is a wonderful look at a time completely gone when gypsy travellers were welcomed at farms all through the season for fruit and hop picking.
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Back in the early 1980s a group of traditional horse drawn caravans would arrive at a corner of a large open space on the edge of Peterborough where we were living at the time. They seemed very mysterious to me at the time; they would stay a few weeks and move on leaving very little trace behind them. Like a scene from a book.
ReplyDeleteSome so called travellers moved onto a village playing field last year and it cost £30,000 to clear up and repair the football field after them! Different world.
DeleteThe author seems to have had quite a mysterious life. Would it be possible today ? Looks like very interesting reading anyway !
ReplyDeleteMaguy
It reminded me of the Agatha Christie disappearance -Very curious. A good read though.
DeleteI like reading your book reviews Sue and those sound very interesting.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a teenager I went to Southern Ireland with the Youth Club .We hired horse drawn caravans and had a great time ( probably helped by the fact that we actually had blazing hot sunny weather ) Helen
Enid Blytons Famous Five went off in a caravan like that - loved that story
DeleteI remember reading Seal Morning, and found a copy on the free books table at Tesco so sent it to a friend who loves nature. Didn't now how elusive Rowena Farr was (she doesn't turn up in Find My Past records either but the last census is 1921, so not too surprising, but no death record. She clearly didn't have much time for friends or family.
ReplyDeleteI can't remember Seal Morning story although it's in my books read but not in library and not cheap online now. You had a lucky find
DeleteAn interesting, peripatetic life, not without its difficulties and trials.
ReplyDeleteShe seems to have done all sorts of things - an interesting life for sure
DeleteWhat an interesting book, Sue. Thanks for sharing the details about the author’s life. Catriona
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the re-reading as I'd forgotten it from so long agao
DeleteI do remember reading about her life living in a gypsy caravan, but did not know anything else about her, so I enjoyed your post Sue. How interesting too that her publisher put an ad in newspapers to find her. Yes, I remember the time when gypsy people would come round, selling clothes pegs. We lived in the country and my parents had very little money, but I remember my mum making up bread and jam sandwiches and handing them out. Jean in Winnipeg
ReplyDeleteThe gypsies always came to us too, selling bits of lace or bunches of lucky heather, Mum always bought some
DeleteI checked my library website and they have nothing of hers.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I would want to live like she did but it sounds like she didn't have much choice when she was young.
A very unusual life , she didn't seem able to settle.
DeleteMy mum was born in 1920 and when she was 9 her mum died and she was sent away to a boarding school. She left at 14 and then went straight into lodgings. I think that they were extremely difficult and odd times and it is likely that "Rowena" wrote a book of mainly fiction some from her adventures and some from her imagination. My mother didn't write a book but she did some strange things. From the day she was sent to boarding school she never lived with her father again and was one of the children who didn't go home during the holidays. Odd times and young girls did things that we would be shocked by today especially in terms of unsupervised travel and adventures. Actually it wasn't just girls. We had a talk from an elderly man recently who said that at 14 years old in the 1940s he was living with his aunt who sent him off to Europe for the summer with a tent and a bit of cash and said don't come back until the end of the summer.
ReplyDeleteThey sound like very good books. What an interesting life she had, and thankfully way before the current trend of being able to find everyone and everything out on the internet. Times were so much simpler back then, maybe not always better, but at least simpler.
ReplyDeleteFascinating woman and a talented author. It appears she liked to wander with no ties attached. A very private person. Was she searching for something? She leaves many questions with no answers.
ReplyDeleteThats really interesting. I read Seal Morning at school in the 1960's for our English exam. I will look out for the other books. Thankyou
ReplyDeleteFascinating story. I enjoyed reading the newspaper, too. Imagine buying a house in London for £20,000!
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting life. I wonder if the books are available here.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
Sounds like really interesting reading. I haven't heard of her before.
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