Renewed Welsh Women’s Classic SPRING’S GREEN SHADOW remains a magnificent read

A novel based on a true story – that of the author herself, Cecily Mackworth. Dually set in Wales and Paris, Spring’s Green Shadow was published in 1952; this new edition now has a lengthy introduction by historian and biographer Angela John. It has the additional benefit of historical worth, documenting the mores of an era in which long-held beliefs both at home and abroad were questioned as the winds of change blew over Europe.

Mackworth’s descriptive powers give a vivid, even uncomfortable portrayal of life in the early 20th century for an ambitious woman writer. As the story opens, we are introduced to Laura – the confident daughter of a father broken by World War I and a demanding mother. Living in the Monmouthshire family home, Laura’s mother refuses to allow her to pursue her own education; the daughter escapes, to begin a new life with the Howells family.

Berated by her parents for not conforming to the dictats of the time regarding a woman’s role in life and a daughter’s duty – to make a good marriage – Laura’s frustration erupts into action when she comes under the influence of the working-class intellectual Mr Howells. Spring’s Green Shadow’s focus on women’s emancipation lends contemporary relevance to scenes from a century past, in what remains a magnificent read.