Rites of Passage

“The book is in the form of a journal, or series of letters written as a journal, in a book destined for the hero’s godfather. The hero is a callow young man called Edmund Talbot, on the edges of the aristocracy—his godfather is a Lord. He’s hoping for his godfather’s patronage. Out in Australia, he is supposed to become an assistant to the governor and therefore rise through the colonial government, and presumably ultimately return to Britain to take up a place in public life. My father had a lot of fun writing this book. He said that was part of the reason why he then wrote two more books on the subject; he kept on thinking of silly things for Edmund to say. It’s a very subtle piece of writing that you can appreciate in terms of its craft.” Read more...

The Best William Golding Books

Judy Golding, Memoirist