| Capture the Castle |  | Author: Dodie Smith
Creator: Janet Maw
Publisher: Cover to Cover Cassettes
Category: Book
This item is no longer available
Avg. Customer Rating:  227 reviews
Sales Rank: 6803301
Format: Audiobook, Unabridged
Media: Audio Cassette
Edition: Unabridged
Number Of Items: 10
ISBN: 1855499509
EAN: 9781855499508
ASIN: 1855499509
Publication Date: February 1998
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Amazon.com
Seventeen-year-old Cassandra Mortmain wants to become a writer. Trouble is, she's the daughter of a once-famous author with a severe case of writer's block. Her family--beautiful sister Rose, brooding father James, ethereal stepmother Topaz--is barely scraping by in a crumbling English castle they leased when times were good. Now there's very little furniture, hardly any food, and just a few pages of notebook paper left to write on. Bravely making the best of things, Cassandra gets hold of a journal and begins her literary apprenticeship by refusing to face the facts. She writes, "I have just remarked to Rose that our situation is really rather romantic, two girls in this strange and lonely house. She replied that she saw nothing romantic about being shut up in a crumbling ruin surrounded by a sea of mud." Rose longs for suitors and new tea dresses while Cassandra scorns romance: "I know all about the facts of life. And I don't think much of them." But romantic isolation comes to an end both for the family and for Cassandra's heart when the wealthy, adventurous Cotton family takes over the nearby estate. Cassandra is a witty, pensive, observant heroine, just the right voice for chronicling the perilous cusp of adulthood. Some people have compared I Capture the Castle to the novels of Jane Austen, and it's just as well-plotted and witty. But the Mortmains are more bohemian--as much like the Addams Family as like any of Austen's characters. Dodie Smith, author of 101 Dalmations, wrote this novel in 1948. And though the story is set in the 1930s, it still feels fresh, and well deserves its reputation as a modern classic. --Maria Dolan
Book Description
This enchanting novel tells the story of seventeen-year-old Cassandra and her unusual family who live in not-so-genteel poverty in a ramshackle old English castle. Cassandra’s eccentric father is a writer whose first book took the literary world by storm but he has since failed to write a single word and now spends his time reading detective fiction. Cassandra’s sister, Rose, despairs of her family’s circumstances and determines to marry their affluent American landlord. She is helped and, sometimes, hindered in this by their bohemian stepmother, an artists’ model who likes to commune with nature. Finally there is Stephen who is hopelessly in love with Cassandra. Amid this maelstrom Cassandra hones her writing skills, candidly capturing the events that take place within the castle’s walls, and her own first descent into love.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 222 more reviews...
 One of my ALL TIME FAVORITE Novels!!! August 18, 2008
This is a literary gem that should, at the very least, be read by everyone who has a love for historical novels. It is a fantastic/appropriate read for both teens and adults, and I recommend it so much that I have had to buy several copies over the years - unsure of who has my last one when I find myself recommending it to yet another friend.
I'm ordering two more copies today.
The main character, Cassandra, is my favorite narrator of all time. She is witty, yet not overdone, and tells the story with an honest teen perspective. She is humiliated when a normal 17-year-old would feel so, and finds herself in completely realistic situations, rather than overly dramatic versions of reality. And yet there is SO much to laugh at, and feel agony over. The balance of wit and angst is perfect in my opinion.
The ending is as surprising as any in literature, and still so real. It is not at all a novel where the story is wrapped up with a neat red bow, but rather one which makes you smile and say, "Ah, Cassandra, you are going to go places, my dear friend." That is exactly how I feel about Cassandra - she is a dear friend who I wish could have told me story after story as her life progressed!
This was a book that could have had many exciting sequels, but apparently wasn't as appreciated in its day as it should have been.
Hooray for Dodie Smith - I wish she would have written 101 more novels :)
 I loved it!! August 5, 2008
The setting of the book is wonderfull I was quickly absorbed in the story a MUST buy.
Enchanting! August 4, 2008
I have rarely read a book that I found so entrancing--one of those that I really didn't want to end! It has great whimsey without becoming silly and a point of view both innocent and wise. The narrator/diarist is one that I'll never forget. I am anxious to pass it on to friends to see if they fall head over heels with her as I did.
I want more by Ms. Smith, but it doesn't sound as if her other novels are in the same arena as this one. I can think of nothing to compare it to.
it captivated me July 13, 2008
I loved the book. It made me laugh and cry. I must admit i love Happy endings so the fact that this didn't have a truly happy ending it made me very sad. In my head Cassandra and Simon are together and even Stephen is happy with someone! So all in all it was a great read but it left me feeling very sad.
Courtesy of Mother Daughter Book Club.com July 2, 2008
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith is an interesting book with multiple layers that can be appreciated by readers aged 13 an up. The book takes place in the 1930s, and it tells the story of a family living in a crumbling castle in England. The dad is a well-known author who hasn't written since his first book was released to critical acclaim in both England and the U.S. The narrator is Cassandra, the 17-year-old daughter. Rose, 21, Thomas, 15 and stepmother Topaz, completes the family.
With no income coming in, the family has gradually sold off all its furniture and other valuables until they are on the brink of crisis. When two young men from America inherit the castle next door, it's no surprise that the family sees the men as their salvation in more ways than one.
The characters are all very complex, and as Cassandra writes in her journal, the reader watches them grow in many different ways. We see Cassandra grow from childhood to adulthood and take on more responsibilities. Some of the many things that can be discussed in a book club after reading this book: the changing role of women in society, love and marriage, the role of religion in our lives, money, children and their parents
I served tea sandwiches and scones for dinner to my mother-daughter book club, and everyone seemed to think it was a fun tie-in to the book. We talked about our favorite scenes in the book, and all twelve of us had a different one. I think that's amazing depth for one book. As we talked about what we liked about the characters, I also felt like I learned a lot more about each one.
The only criticism is that the book was a little wordy, and some people had a hard time getting into it. It also uses fairly sophisticated, complex language. With that in mind, I still highly recommend it.
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