Disappointing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                   With storms raging, I have been reading.  What better time than a storm for doing so?

                                     "Elmet" had been recommended to me by one whose opinion I take, and still take, seriously.  I had picked it up, and read the front and back of the jacket, where I was promised a story that mixed feral living with folklore.

                                         Here is the problem.  The feral living is given clearly, and it is more humane, and loving, than in "My Absolute Darling," which, again, I would advise anyone on here not to go near,

                                           "Elmet" tells the story of Daniel and Cathy Oliver, living with their father, in Elmet, a corner of Yorkshire they come to see, and honestly, believe is their own.  Italicized passages, in Daniel's voice, suggest flashbacks, leading up to some crucial event.  Answers are given, but there is absolutely no folklore in this.  In  fact, Fiona goes in for a little Carson McCullers, as the oversized Cathy seems a combination of Miss Amelia in "The Ballad Of The Sad Café," and Frankie Adams in "The Member Of The Wedding."  Oh, and Josie Hogan, in O'Neill's "A Moon For The Misbegotten."

                                             The novel has a potential it does not live up to. The narrative seems protracted, and I wanted to know more about the children, especially Cathy, who emerges as the most interesting.

                                              Like Hansel and Gretel, I think Miss Mozley got lost along the way. She has talent enough, but lacks direction.

                                               What I missed very much in "Elmet" was a sense of where Miss Mozley thought she was going.

                                                  It was not a completely satisfying journey.