On my TBR because I've heard this is wonderful. From the publisher: "For most of her adult life, Philippa Talbot has been a successful British professional. Now in her forties, the World War II–widow has made a startling decision: She’s giving up her civil service career and elite social standing to join a convent as a postulant Roman Catholic nun."

This classic coming of age tale from the author of In This House of Brede was first published in 1958. When 13 year old Cecil’s mother gets sick while the family is vacationing in France, she and her four siblings are sent to stay with an entertaining Englishman at a second-rate hotel in the Champagne region, where they wander and explore the countryside as the summer idles by. The book is written from Cecil's point of view, as she recounts the adventures of that unusual and memorable summer.

From the publisher: "A different kind of ghost story, Rumer Godden’s poignant, stylistically brilliant story is rich in wonder, imagination, and heart. Sir Roland Ironmonger Dane is the last of his family to occupy the house at Number 99 Wiltshire Place in London. Now, in the early days of World War II, the elderly former general has been told that he must vacate the premises when the ninety-nine-year lease is up, leaving the only home he has ever known. But Sir Rolls and his longtime butler, Proutie, are not the only remaining residents. A century of a family’s history remains alive and vibrant within these walls, the events that defined their lives unfolding over and over again."