The Merry Hall

Description

First in a trilogy, "Merry Hall" is the account of the restoration of a house and garden in post-war England. Though Mr. Nichols' horticultural undertaking is serious, his writing is high-spirited, riotously funny, and, at times, deliciously malicious.

Beverley Nichols (1898-1983) was a prolific writer on subjects ranging from religion to politics and travel, in addition to authoring six novels, five detective mysteries, four children's stories, six autobiographies, and six plays. He is perhaps best remembered today for his gardening books. The first of them, Down the Garden Path, centered on his home and garden at Glatton and has been in print almost continuously since 1932. Merry Hall (1951) and its sequels Laughter on the Stairs (1953) and Sunlight on the Lawn (1956) document Nichols's travails in renovating a Georgian mansion and its gardens soon after the war. His final garden was at Sudbrook Cottage, which serves as the setting for Garden Open Today (1963) and Garden Open Tomorrow (1968). The progress of all three gardens was followed avidly by readers of his books and weekly magazine columns.

Nichols' particular gift is to entertain, enlighten, and enrich his readers. At the heart of his writing is the passion of a sensitive, intelligent man who has found a creative and emotional outlet in his love of plants and the act of making a garden. -- Stephanie Feeney American Gardener 19980201 You'll love [Nichols'] books. -- John Van de Water Newark Star-Ledger 19980708 Since gardening and humor are timeless, his books are as delightful today as in the early days after World War II when this was written. -- Margaret C. Crooks Asbury Park Press 19980903 You'll be rewarded with laughter and a peek into another world. -- Linnea Due Express Books 19980925 Witty and slightly malicious yet full of wise and wonderful remarks about garden plants. Journal of the Scottish Rock Garden Club 19980601 Merry Hall, first published in 1951 and reissued this year by the redoubtable Timber Press, is the very model of gardening insouciance. -- Verlyn Klinkenborg New York Times Book Review 19981206 Unlike many garden writers who often take themselves too seriously, Beverly Nichols had no problem finding humor in his gardens... his breezy anecdotes are wickedly funny and full of sharp insights into the philosophy and motivations of gardeners. -- Adam Levine Green Scene 19990101 Hilarious for gardeners who love Masterpiece Theatre. Boston Globe 19981203 Nichols brings unrestrained passion for plants and flowers to his story, set in the gossipy framework of quriky cats and eccentric neighbors, of reclaiming the derelict garden of a run-down Georgian mansion. -- Helen Chesnut Vancouver Province 19981206 You'll find laughter on the stairs and everywhere else Nichols takes you as he renovates his old home and garden. Southern Living 19990201 A delight. Iowa Source 19990401 This book is a delicious read, with flavors rich and complex... (a) Treasure of a book. Woodland Garden 19980201 A marvelously hilarious insight into people, plants and places... If you have ever renovated an old house or garden, you'll love these books. Traditional Gardening 19990201 The charm of Merry Hall, Laughter on the Stairs (mostly about the house) and Sunlight on the Lawn is undeniable, a mixture of the lyrical, the teasing, the understatedly witty and the self-mockingly camp. -- Ursula Buchan Daily Telegraph (London) 19991231 "Though written half a century ago, "Merry Hall" captures that longing for the garden and a patch of land to call one's own. Nichols's wit and silly adventures... add a bit of welcome hilarity to the all-too-serious literature of gardening." -- Anne Raver New York Times 20000227 Merry Hall provides excellent and detailed descriptions of plants and gardening as it also provides an intriguing plot... The love of plants and gardening is evident throughout. Reviewer's Bookwatch 19991216 This [Merry Hall] trilogy is consistently delightful, gentle, witty, and charming. Reading these books is like having your back scratched by your best friend ... it's all so pleasant, you wish it will never end." -- Corinne Erly Iowa Source 20000412 Be prepared. Beverley Nichols' garden books are part PG Wodehouse and part James Barrie - full of hilarious Jeeves-like characters and events, with moments of Peter Pan magic. -- Bob Cowden Pacific Horticulture 20000531 Nichols set the style for many of the humorous garden writers who have followed him, but few can measure up to the combination of wicket wit, and utter delight in the beauties of plants and gardens ... Highly recommended. -- Ann Milovsoroff Pappus 19980602 The Nichols books are gardening classics; after reading one volume, you will want to read the others, so it would be best to buy all three at the outset. -- Diane Kostial McGuire Journal of the New England Garden History Society 20001204 Nichols gives us a glimpse of a world that is sustained by the recognition of a civilized life related to and appreciative of the wonder and beauty of the natural world. -- Diane Kostial McGuire Journal of the New England Garden History Society 20010123 When I grab a vintage favorite at this time of year, it's invariably Beverly Nichols' Merry Hall trilogy... These semi-fictional accounts of a large garden restoration are among the wittiest books I've ever read, gardening or otherwise. Nichols isn't just funny-he's wickedly insightful, poking jibes at all the various personality "types" one runs into in the horticulture world. -- Pete Prown Green Scene 20011210 With his typically British, Masterpiece Theater style, over-the-top humor, Nichols is by far my personal choice for all-time best garden writer. -- Michael Weishan GardenworksOnline.com 20020122 Like the Harry Potter series, Merry Hall will have you clamoring for more if you're the least bit interested in how the English have fun and garden too. -- Lillie Dorchak Hunterdon County Democrat 20011220 Exquisitely reprinted by Timber Press... Reading these stories is like taking a trip back to a gentler, more well-mannered time. -- Steve Whysall Vancouver Sun 20020420 My all-time fave among the rich roster of garden writers is Beverley Nichols... Nichols' books are full of wit and wisdom about gardening. -- Sonia Day Canadian Gardening 20030220 Though Nichol's horticultural undertaking is serious, his writing is high-spirited, riotously funny, and, at times, deliciously malicious. Once read, this classic of garden literature is never forgotten. Multnomah County Library 20030324 Merry Hall is probably Nichols at his best. -- Linda Coyner Senior Women Web 20030721 His books are peopled with village characters, with Nichols himself cast as the English squire. He is at turns sentimental, arch and snobbish, but delightfully so. -- Dulcy Mahar Oregonian 20031030 Hilarious and endearing, this book brims with sly British wit and is a great gift to anyone who likes gardening, cats, or both. -- Tina Mast Raleigh News and Observer 20071208 A fun semifictional, semiautobiographical account of the renovation and making of a garden at the English country estate purchased by Nichols. Hilarious and endearing, this book brims with sly British wit and is a great gift to anyone who likes gardening, cats, or both. -- Tina Mast Raleigh News and Observer 20071208