"I Capture the Castle" by Dodie Smith

I have some confusing impressions from this book. It feels like classics but not quite. It feels like a book for teenagers but not quite. Like "Dandelion Wine", "Little Women" or "Tuck Everlasting" this novel, though seemingly childish, provokes many thoughts in the reader's mind. Isn't it what the classics is supposed to do? The only thing I am certain about is that "I Capture the Castle" is very British and very charming.

The novel fascinates you from the first lines, the combination of cosy rural England and enigmatic ancient castle create a special atmosphere , supplying the reader with bright and surprisingly realistic visual images. Half ruined towers, fortifications, the moat around the castle bring you back to medieval times, the landscape, little rural inn "The Keys", beautiful countryside church and friendly neighbours remind of Victorian England while cars, radios and gramophones roughly intrude to turn you back to XXth century where the action takes place. The atmosphere is generally one of the most prominent features of the novel. The author masterly uses music, colours and weather to draw up the mood of each episode.

The novel, narrated by 17-year-old Cassandra Mortmain, tells about her family who lead peaceful and rather poor life in an old castle, rented my Mr. Mortmain for 40 years. The family is rather eccentric and you can't help thinking that only in England could such family appear. The father is a writer of one single novel who suffers from inability to write anything else, like any artist he is very peculiar with all his sudden changes of mood, strange phrases and reluctance to speak about his work. His elder daughter, Rose, has another reason to suffer - the poverty, which she wants to get rid of in any way, however honest or dishonest it might be. Her brother, Thomas, is a schoolboy but already very witty and promising young gentleman. Their mother-in-law, Topaz, who used to be a famous sitter for London artists, now takes her little pleasures in playing the lute and "communing with nature" (which she does in a very peculiar way, I must admit). Stephen, the son of their late housemaid, is regarded as a member of the family, he has a thing for Cassandra. When the landlord of the Mortmains dies and his grandsons come to inherit Scoatney, his estate, situated nearby, the peaceful life in the castle comes to an end.

"I Capture the Castle" is arranged as Cassandra's diary later transformed into a novel. Such weaving of genres allows the author to combine the emotionality of memoires with thrilling plot line of a novel which adds the book some special charm.

Cassandra, the narrator , is also peculiar, in her own way. She is not yet an adult but not a child already, naivety, spontaneity and ability to find pleasure in simplest things are combined with sharp wit and natural wisdom in her character. Her diary describes only a year from her life, but during this year she has a long way to go. She learns how to love, to wait and to help, how to forgive and to ask for forgiveness. She gets to know about religion, morality and art. She opens a whole new grown-up world and leaves another, childhood world behind her.

Except for coming of age, which is the main theme of the novel, the author touches upon other issues. Introducing the images of Americans, Dodie Smith makes two cultures - British and American collide . She shows the possible attitudes of Americans towards British people - some of them are fascinated by British culture, others regard it as something bizarre which is interesting to observe but impossible to live within, some characters even feel utter despise. Whatever the attitude of her characters is, the author tries to show her country in a truthful, but very likeable way, and indeed, notwithstanding all the peculiarities of the characters, you can't help loving the Mortmains, the vicar, the keeper of the inn, the local teacher, you can't help loving the old castle, the half-ruined tower on the hill, the woods around it, the little cosy houses of the village. This place feels like home and you don't want to leave it by the time you finish the book.

Painting the image of Mr. Mortmain in a rather ironic way, Dodie Smith reveals the inner world of a modernist artist and helps us to see the process of creation . The exaggeration the author applies helps to point out all the typical features of an artist.

Religion also plays an important role in the novel. Cassandra's conversations with the vicar and her half-pagan celebrations of Midsummer Eve, strangely enough don't contradict each other, but working together, help her to understand the essence of religion as such.

Another important theme is poverty and richness . The shabby and half-empty rooms of the old castle contrast with the grandeur of London apartments. However the reader shouldn't be deceived by appearance. Not in vain Cassandra feels herself out of place in London, as she herself says. Probably for this reason home holds much more pleasant moments for the girl, than the glorious capital.

This book feels like warm summer wind. It is simple, both in style and plot, but still it gives you a whole palette of emotions and you just fall in love with it, its setting, atmosphere, its queer characters, with Cassandra, who narrates her story so gently, yet so passionately and of course with England, for you feel its englishness in every single word.