How well do you know Brit Garden Lit?

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15 comments

Test your knowledge of books set in, or inspired by, gardens. All the books are listed on the EnCompass database, so you could do a bit of clever searching to find the answers!” I only knew one answer without searching the database. I hadn’t even heard of most of the authors or titles. How about you?

About the Author

Kathy Purdy is a colchicum evangelist, converting unsuspecting gardeners into colchicophiles. She gardens in rural upstate NY, which used to be USDA Hardiness Zone 4 but is now Zone 5. Kathy’s been writing since 4th grade, gardening since high school, and blogging since 2002. Find her on Instagram as kopurdy.

In the end, this may be the most important thing about frost: Frost slows us down. In spring, it tempers our eagerness. In fall, it brings closure and rest. In our gotta-go world–where every nanosecond seems to count–slowness can be a great gift. So rather than see Jack Frost as an adversary, you could choose to greet him as a friend.

~Philip Harnden in A Gardener’s Guide to Frost: Outwit the Weather and Extend the Spring and Fall Seasons

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Soilman January 17, 2008, 2:00 pm

I knew only half of them, and I AM a Brit!
Tell you what, though: if you’re only going to read one of these books, make it The Go Between. Wonderful book – and the movie’s not bad either.

Kathy Purdy January 16, 2008, 7:06 pm

Jodi, I stand corrected. I found the quiz on a British site, so I assumed they were all British authors. But I freely admitted I didn’t do too well myself, so I hope my ignorance can be forgiven.

jodi January 16, 2008, 2:17 pm

I got seven out of ten…but I haven’t read them all. And to clarify, Carol Sheilds (author of Larry’s Party) is Canadian; it might be more accurate to call this Commonwealth literature.
(okay, I confess….I have two degrees in English, mostly focused on CanLit. tee hee)

eliz January 13, 2008, 7:11 pm

I got five but I’d be hesitant to call a few of those literature, in the way I generally think of the term.

Don January 12, 2008, 1:08 pm

I got six; but I’ve always been a good guesser ( as my Mom always used to say; “You can be good or lucky, and lucky’s better.)
Don

kerri January 11, 2008, 8:45 pm

I only got 2 right..one being the Secret Garden author. Hadn’t heard of any of the others…the 2nd right answer was a good guess 🙂
This was a fun quiz.
Happy 2008 Kathy, and here’s to fun (and hard work) in the gardens!

Jessica January 7, 2008, 5:44 pm

oy, the only one I actually knew was about The Secret Garden!

CommonWeeder January 7, 2008, 3:26 pm

This was great fun. I only got four -but I got the titles for some new books to look at. Thanks.

CurtissAnn January 7, 2008, 12:42 pm

I had the answer to one– I have ‘The Secret Garden’ on my shelf. Frances Burnett. What I remember most is that Margaret O’Brien stared in the vintage film. It is wonderful.

Knew nothing else on that entire list.

mss @ Zanthan Gardens January 6, 2008, 8:58 pm

I answered 3 out of 10 and got 2 of them right. I’ve never heard of most of those books. Now I’m thinking…I bet I could come up with my own obscure book quiz. It also made me realize just how little fiction I read.

Mr. McGregor's Daughter January 5, 2008, 2:15 pm

I knew the answer to only the “Secret Garden” question. Hah! I’m not the Anglophile-gardening freak that DH keeps insisting I am. (I don’t usually feel this good about being ignorant.)

Jane January 4, 2008, 10:54 am

I got 7 out of 10, but some of it was dumb luck because I’d never heard of some of those books/authors. I think I knew about 4.

Very enjoyable – thanks!

Dee/reddirtramblings January 4, 2008, 9:15 am

I knew two. Just two. I guessed on the others and got one more. That was fun.

Carol January 4, 2008, 5:28 am

I knew two answers without looking. I guessed on the others and got four out of ten. Thanks, that was a fun quiz.