The Little Locksmith: A Memoir

There are many wonderful, very modern-sounding insights - not something you would expect from someone of Katharine's time and class. Because of the way it was structured, however, I kept expecting that we were about to learn the story of how she eventually came to have the rich life she longed for but had originally thought out of reach - that is, how she got from here to there. So it felt like a big letdown when I reached the end of the book and that had not happened. Apparently, this was something of an introduction to a book she planed to write later on but never got to. So - it has many good insights yet like the best part was missing.

This product is a hook which I have not read yet.The condition of the book was as described, and it shipped very quickly.

I heard about this book when a passage was referenced in an article titled: The Power of Mindfulness An Inquiry into the Scope of Bare Attention and the Principal Sources of its Strength byNyanaponika Thera [...]. How could a book published in the 1940's be so relevant to mindfulness? I was curious about the author which eventually led me to purchase the book. As Thera notes, Hathaway was "a moving human document of fortitude and practical wisdom acquired by suffering.." The book is delightful and, in fact, I purchased another copy for a friend to read. There is a lot of wisdom in this book and I highly recommend it. I just wish that she had written more!

This book was a marvelous read. Beautifully written. So many different kinds of people would like this for so many different reasons. It's for any artist. For anyone who has ever loved a house. For anyone trying to come out of the role fate seems to have cast for them. For any woman trying to find independence or longing for love.

While certainly well-written, The Little Locksmith is ultimately disappointing, because the author ends the book abruptly. The postscript fleshed out the later years of what was a remarkable life that is only teased in this book. What we are left with is the inner life of a brilliant young woman forced to endure years of traction and then some disfigurement (spinal TB left her "the height of a ten-year-old" with some curvature). She makes some independent decisions, has a difficult relationship with her mother, and becomes the owner/architect of an unlikely house. She resigns herself to writing and "spinsterhood." But later in life - AFTER this book - she took a number of lovers, married, took up painting, lived in Paris....

Really fast shipping, quick delivery and the book was in perfect condition.

It is a beautifully written book of contemplation. It really has no active plot, but describes the thoughts and perceptual experiences of an unusual children and young adult until the age of about 33. Not a book for everyone, but the fine writing is worth reading.

Katharine Butler shares her inner life in all of its moments. The epilogue is the best I have ever read - not a postscript but revealing the book in a beautiful new light. And thank you Nancy Mairs for sharing more about Katharine's life.

I saw a review for this old book and thought I would get it. Very different style of writing but an interesting read.

This little book is beautifully written, inspiring and sentimental. The author is related to one of the authors of Younger Next Year. A book I do not recommend.

Very well written, but it only covered a small part of the writer's life. Quite a few pivotal events were left out. She's a good writer but very introspective - bordering on abstract about some of the details.