But then so does that powerful, land-owning (and married) Norman baron. While the Celts can be disdained (they could be hanged, or lose a limb in retributive amputation, at a word from her), the dispossessed son of a Saxon earl looks very attractive. She has to find a husband and fast, in order to have any influence at all over her future. Adela de la Roche is the French speaking noblewoman learning this the hard way. The Hunt: A generation after the Norman Conquest, it really does matter whether you are Celtic, Saxon or Norman in the New Forest. Seven wonderful novellas in the middle have brought us to this place. We could practically be her tour guide which is a bit of a shame in context. There's a quiet sense of superiority, as we now know more than the lady flying in it. By then, we certainly do know all about it. The final tale takes us from the moment that plane touches down in 2000. The preface takes us on a plane ride over the whole terrain, noting places of interest, which we know we'll soon recognize with an old familiarity.

There are nine stories in Edward Rutherfurd's The Forest. You don't have to be a historian, or even be too interested in history, to warm to these moments of human drama. Wonderfully researched and precise in their historical detail, but all are read as the tales of people whom you quickly care about. The royal and noble lodges and estates are there too, but they aren't the whole story.Īnd they are stories. Commoners and the middle classes form the fundamental human life in this corner of Hampshire. Nor is this the tale of aristocrats, which too many historical novels are. The farming, the smuggling, the shipbuilding and the coastal defenses are mere punctuations along the way. Now I've witnessed the transformation of the New Forest from royal hunting ground to rural tourist attraction. I've watched Dublin, London and Salisbury turn into cities and thrive under this literary device. The descendants have a slightly altered backdrop, as the area is developed, built or merely evolves. It might be the same family or a neighboring one.

The next story occurs after a jump of a generation or two. As their tale is told, the area forms the backdrop. We start at the beginning and there will be a family, or a person, there. He takes a place - a city, an area, a country - and fixes it with the long view.

I see the name Edward Rutherfurd and I buy it. These days, I don't even need to know what the book is about.

Rutherfurd the forest