Mary Webb – författare

''Brighter and better than Thomas Hardy . . . a marvellous writer'' Eloise Millar, GuardianPrudence Sarn was born with a cleft palate, her ''precious bane'', for which she is persecuted as a witch by her superstitious neighbours. Hiding from daily ridicule, she takes refuge in the wild Shropshire countryside, developing a profound love of nature. Furtively, Prue longs to be loved and harbours a hopeless passion for Kester Woodseaves, the weaver.Prue''s brother, Gideon, is engaged to her only friend, but in his ambition for wealth at any cost, he incurs the wrath of his would-be father-in-law whose act of vengeance results in Prue being accused of murder. Only Kester, who has perceived her true worth, can defend her from the wrath of her accusers. Winner of the 1926 Prix Femina Vie Heureuse Prize, Precious Bane is a novel that enchants with its beauty and its timeless truths.''With the publication of Precious Bane, a substantial readership came to respect Mary Webb''s quiet genius . . . When she died at the age of 46, literature lost a voice that promised to speak for Shropshire as poignantly as Thomas Hardy had spoken for Wessex, Emily Bronte for Yorkshire - New York Times

In Webb’s first (1916) novel, the poor Shropshire youths Stephen and Deb search for a mythical arrow said to bind couples together—if they can find it on a Palm Sunday. But another local legend, the ill-omened Devil’s Rock, broods over the countryside, promising evil. The deep psychological portrayal of Stephen and Deb is noteworthy.

Hazel Woodus has a father who plays the harp and builds coffins. Her closest friend is a pet fox. Even so, this beautiful child of nature can’t help but draw men to her, including the minister who she marries and the fox-hunter who relentlessly pursues her. Hazel’s naïveté allows Mary Webb’s themes of human cruelty, savagery, and sacrifice to come through.

Dedicated “to the weary and wounded in the battle of life,” this 1917 collection of devotional and meditative writings on nature’s variety includes “The Joy of Motion,” “The Joy of Music,” “The Joy of Fragrance,” “Laughter,”  “The Beauty of Form,” “The Beauty of Colour,” “The Beauty of Shadow,” and others.

Precious Bane is Mary Webb's celebrated rural novel set in the Shropshire countryside during the Napoleonic era.

Narrated by Prue Sarn, a young woman marked by a physical deformity and by the suspicion of her neighbours, the novel unfolds within a tightly observed agricultural community shaped by superstition, hardship, and quiet endurance. Webb renders the rhythms of rural life with precision: harvest and hunger, village loyalties, and the persistent tension between cruelty and compassion.

At its centre lies Prue's struggle for dignity and love in a society quick to condemn what it does not understand. Webb's prose, marked by lyrical description and careful attention to dialect, situates the narrative within both landscape and moral atmosphere. The Shropshire hills are not merely backdrop but active presence, reflecting the inward lives of her characters.

Awarded the Prix Femina Vie Heureuse after Webb's death, Precious Bane remains one of the notable English rural novels of the early twentieth century, combining psychological depth with restrained emotional force.