8 h 10 minAudiobook8 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if progress brings more noise than happiness—and the best arguments happen over dinner?
At Gryll Grange, Squire Gryll welcomes friends and neighbours into a country house where old customs still matter. His clever young relation and heiress, Morgana Gryll, draws suitors to the gathering. Conversation, pleasant quarrels and courtship give this gentle comedy its movement, while the company weighs what makes a life worth living.
Mr Falconer retreats to a tower with his books, while Lord Curryfin embraces new science and useful knowledge. Between them stands Dr Opimian, a clergyman with an appetite for dinner, wine and Greek. In Thomas Love Peacock's last novel, steam, newspapers and improvement meet a searching question: what might the rush forward leave behind?
What you’ll discover
- A table full of wit Join clever, eccentric guests whose dinner talk turns disagreement into the pleasure of good company.
- A scholar's quiet tower Meet Mr Falconer, whose life among books keeps the busy modern world at a distance.
- An appetite for argument Enjoy Dr Opimian's learned humour as he defends old ways over food and wine.
- Courtship among the company Follow the gentle romantic currents around Morgana Gryll, a clever heiress who draws admiring suitors.
- Progress put to question Consider whether new knowledge and constant improvement can replace the comforts of settled country life.
Who will love it
For readers who love witty conversation, Jane Austen's manners or Dickens's humour with a scholar's edge. Lovers of Greek jokes, country dinners and courtship will enjoy its comedy of old customs and modern progress.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A country house and its company
- A scholar builds a life apart
- A clergyman who loves dinner and Greek
- A lord enchanted by modern science
- Progress against the good life
- Talk, song and the old comedy
Who’s who
- Squire GryllThe kind master of Gryll Grange, who loves old customs and keeps his house open to friends and neighbours.
- Morgana GryllThe squire's young relation and heiress, clever and admired, who draws suitors to the house.
- Dr OpimianA learned clergyman who loves good food, wine and Greek, and defends the old ways with humour.
- Mr FalconerA scholar who lives in a tower with his books and his household, wishing to keep the modern world away.
- Lord CurryfinAn amiable young nobleman, keen on sport and new science, who wants to bring useful knowledge to the people.
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- Paperback
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- Hardcover
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- Large print paperback
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- Large print hardcover
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Gryll Grange
by Thomas Love Peacock · 1860
At a country house, courtships bloom as a squire, a scholar and a young lord debate what makes a good life.
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In short
Gryll Grange is the last novel of Thomas Love Peacock. It appeared in 1860 and 1861, first in a magazine and then as a book, when its author was in his seventies.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A country house and its company
The book opens in a quiet part of the English countryside, far from the noise of London. At the centre stands Gryll Grange, the home of Squire Gryll. He is a kind, hospitable man who likes old customs and open doors. His house is where neighbours come to eat well, talk freely and keep the old festivals of the year.
The squire has a young relation of great charm and fortune, Morgana Gryll. She is the heiress, and she is clever, high spirited and much admired. Peacock gives her the name of a fairy, and the family is said to have a very old line. In the story, her suitors and her own mind are part of what holds the house together.
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What is Gryll Grange about?
It is a comic novel of country-house talk. A squire, a clergyman, a scholar and a young lord meet and argue about old customs and modern progress, while courtships develop among the younger guests.
Who wrote Gryll Grange and when?
Thomas Love Peacock wrote it. It first appeared in a magazine in 1860 and came out as a book in 1861. It was his last novel, written when he was in his seventies.
Who is Dr Opimian in Gryll Grange?
He is a country clergyman who loves good food, wine and Greek and Latin learning. He is the book's liveliest talker and defends old comforts against fashionable new ideas.
The author
Thomas Love Peacock
1785–1866 · English satirical novelist and poet
Thomas Love Peacock (1785–1866) was an English novelist and poet. He was born in Weymouth, Dorset, and died at Lower Halliford, Surrey. His novels include Maid Marian (1822) and Gryll Grange (1861). He worked for the East India Company from 1819 until his retirement in 1856.
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