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The Enchanted April

by Elizabeth Von Arnim

There are Aprils that arrive politely, with a little rain and a little mud, and there are Aprils that take one firmly by the hand and lead one out of one’s life altogether. Mrs. Wilkins and Mrs. Arbuthnot are two London women who have become, by slow degrees, almost invisible inside their own marriages, duties, economies, and good behavior. Then, on a gray and dripping afternoon, they see an advertisement for a small Italian castle to let for the month of April — a place of sunshine, flowers, sea, and impossible extravagance. The idea is absurd, improper, selfish, and therefore, perhaps, exactly necessary. They go. Two other women go with them: the beautiful Lady Caroline, who wishes to escape being admired, and Mrs. Fisher, who prefers the past because it is better behaved than the present. At San Salvatore, under wisteria and warm light, each discovers that happiness is not quite so sinful as she had been taught, and that people are often less disagreeable when they are allowed room to bloom. The Enchanted April is a comedy of release: from damp rooms, tired affections, social stiffness, and the terrible habit of living too small a life. It is a book about sunshine as a moral force, gardens as quiet conspirators, and the unexpected mercy of beauty. Its enchantment is gentle, but not weak; it works by making the heart remember that it was once young, and may yet be kind.

Language

EN

Genres

fiction, classics, romance, women's fiction

Published

2026-09-03