Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Preview
  • Down in the Valley

  • Penguin Modern Classics
  • By: Laurie Lee
  • Narrated by: David Sibley
  • Length: 2 hrs and 20 mins
  • 4.8 out of 5 stars (34 ratings)

£0.00 for first 30 days

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Down in the Valley

By: Laurie Lee
Narrated by: David Sibley
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £7.99

Buy Now for £7.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Summary

Brought to you by Penguin. An enhanced audio edition containing original audio interviews with the author, Laurie Lee.

A moving, never-before-published portrait of the landscape that shaped the life of Laurie Lee, the beloved author of Cider With Rosie

'Before I left the valley I thought everywhere was like this. Then I went away for 40 years and when I came back I realized that nowhere was like this.'

Laurie Lee walked out of his childhood village one summer morning to travel the world, but he was always drawn back to his beloved Slad Valley, eventually returning to make it his home.

In this portrait of his Cotswold home, Laurie Lee guides us through its landscapes, and shares memories of his village youth - from his favourite pub, The Woolpack, to winter skating on the pond, the church through the seasons, local legends, learning the violin and playing jazz records in the privy on a wind-up gramophone.

Filled with wry humour and a love of place, Down in the Valley is a writer's tribute to the landscape that shaped him, and where he found peace.

©2019 Laurie Lee. Original interviews and afterword © David Parker 2019 (P)2019 Penguin Audio
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

Cider with Rosie cover art
Wainwright: The Biography cover art
The Stubborn Light of Things cover art
Next to Nature cover art
Everyman's England cover art
The Girl on the Ferryboat cover art
Orwell: The Essays cover art
Staying On cover art
Rain and Other Stories cover art
Cultural Amnesia cover art
The Great Fortune cover art
Crow cover art
A Time of Gifts cover art
Something Fresh cover art
Heavy Weather cover art
Lark Rise cover art

Critic reviews

It is a fine thing to revisit this writer's landscape and hear his amiable voice in it again. (Michael Caines)
Down in the Valley is truly evocative of time and place. A beautiful illustration of how, in some way, we are all indelibly influenced by the landscape of our childhood. (Raynor Winn, author of The Salt Path)

What listeners say about Down in the Valley

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    27
  • 4 Stars
    7
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    24
  • 4 Stars
    7
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    23
  • 4 Stars
    8
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Fond memories

I enjoyed this remembrance and also the film. Laurie Lee's writing remains timeless for me.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

a gentle wander through his life.

a wonderfully gentle book that potters through the authors life and draws beautiful pictures.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Nostalgic

Overall a lovely little glimpse into the thoughts and musings of Laurie Lee in his later years.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A trip down memory la

As one born and raised in the Cotswolds in the 1940s to 1960s this recording struck many chords. Oh how I yearned to be back there, and then. Such a happy growing up with the freedom to roam and the countryside alive with a wealth of all things natural. Thank you Laurie and those who brought this ray of bright sunshine into many a readers life.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Beautiful

Brilliant insight into life in the Cotswolds. A different era. Better in many ways. Especially for children

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!