russell barnes's Reviews > As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning

This is one of two books I inherited from my mum's parents, the other being Anna Karenina. I remember going up to my grandpa's house after he died and reading this, by an open fire, drinking Stones Ginger Wine the night of his funeral. I must have been about 16-17, and me and my brother were the only people in the house as our parents stayed with my aunt.

Anyway, maybe it was the age thing, being hyper-sensitive because of the funeral, it being a windy, stormy night, or the ginger wine, but I read the whole thing in a night. Instantly it became one of my favourite books, and I read it loads leading up to, and at, college.

Fifteen-odd years later, it's still as vivid and vibrant as I remember it. If anything it's got better, in that my understanding of the Spanish Civil War has (marginally) improved, and his early days in Putney now have a new resonance due to our six year residency there since the last time I read it.

Limpid, clear, empathetic prose, an amusing story and an easy to like (real life) hero, exploring a world that existed only a generation ago but has completely disappeared, and one which subsequent literary heroes fought to maintain, this is a journey that really has stood the test of time. I'm delighted to discover it remains one of my favourite books...