Summary
The Snow Goose
Part 1: This story is set in England in 1930. Philip
Rhayader is a hunchback whose physical deformity has
isolated him from other people. He now lives alone in an
abandoned lighthouse on the southeast coast of England.
He is an artist who paints the birds that inhabit the
desolate marshland by the sea. He also provides the birds
with food and shelter. One day a girl named Fritha, who
lives in the local village, comes to see him, carrying an
injured bird. She is afraid of Philip, but she has heard that
he knows how to take care of wild creatures. He examines
the bird and tells Fritha that it is a Canadian snow goose
that must have flown off course. After their first meeting,
Fritha often visits the lighthouse to see the bird. When
the bird flies north in the spring, Fritha’s visits stop. Every
October when the snow goose returns Fritha comes to the
lighthouse, and when the snow goose leaves, Fritha’s visits
stop.
Part 2: Fritha and Philip’s relationship develops, although
they never speak of the love they feel for each other. Each
year the snow goose spends longer and longer periods at
the lighthouse until it never leaves. In 1940 Britain is at
war. Germany has invaded Belgium and France and now
thousands of Allied troops are trapped on the beaches of
Dunkirk in France. Philip sails across the Channel and
rescues many soldiers, taking them to the bigger boats in
deeper water that will bring them back to England. All
the time he is accompanied by the snow goose. In the
lighthouse Fritha finds a painting that Philip has done of
her and the snow goose and she realises the love that exists
between them. One evening the snow goose returns to
the lighthouse. Fritha knows in her heart that Philip will
not return. Then one night an enemy plane targets the
lighthouse and destroys it.
The Doll
Part 1: In London, Dr Amony buys a beautiful doll for
his niece’s birthday. He wants to meet the person who
makes the dolls. He discovers that it is a young woman,
Mary, who is in her aunt’s care. Mary has a twisted leg and
is very ill. Dr Amony suspects that Mary’s aunt may have
something to do with her illness.
Part 2: Dr Amony discover that Mary is dominated by
her aunt, Rose Callamit, who forces her to make the
dolls, then sells them and keeps the money. Mary is dying
because no-one loves her; her dolls are her only children.
The doctor falls in love with her, rescues her from Rose
Callamit and finally marries her.
The Silver Swans
Part 1: Doctor Fundoby, who has an important job at
the British Museum, meets a young woman who lives on
a houseboat on the River Thames in London. She calls
herself Thetis (a character from an old Greek story who
lived under the sea). She is really called Alice and she is
a professional actress. She asks Dr Fundoby: ‘How will
I know when I’m really in love?’ He suggests a test.
Part 2: Alice puts the test into practice with a handsome
ocean scientist, Richard Hadley, whose boat is on the river.
The test is successful and Alice marries Richard.
