One of her first favourite books was Black Beauty, which she loved so much at the age of 8 she “hid in a hayfield and read [it] in an afternoon.” Her two books about Cass are aimed at the slightly younger reader. Silver’s Day is a good read; there’s plenty of variety in the characters, and their reactions have a depth to them that makes the book an appealing read.
Finding the books: both the books are easy to find, though Silver’s Day appeared only in hardback.
Links:
Griselda Gifford’s website
An interview with Griselda Gifford
Cass the Brave
Victor Gollancz Ltd, London, 1980, illus Mary Rayner
Puffin, pb, 1980
Cass and her twin sister Carrie leave London for the country where their father has become Vicar of an ancient
church. On her first evening there, Cass picks a leaf from St Govan’s fig tree despite a warning prophecy that
“he who picks a leaf will need a hearse”. Soon her time is fully occupied with choir practices, a visit from the
Bishop, adjusting to life with a new stepmother, coping with the lodgers and even a haunting! She makes a
new friend, too, a strange boy called Matt who owns an old, white horse. But at the back of her mind, the threat
of the fig tree is constantly present ...
Silver’s Day
Victor Gollancz Ltd, London, 1980, illus Mary Rayner, 91pp.
Cass makes friends with Flora at the beginning of the school term, even though everyone
else laughs at her
because she looks odd. Flora has an unexpected talent with horses,
and helps Cass to train Silver for the
show. There are several mysteries and problems
to be solved along the way.
