Rating: 
Summary: Lighter than Deptford, and more fun
Review: In the Deptford Trilogy, Davies weaves stories through concept: the characters are vivid, but they also exist to reveal facets of Davies' Jungian philosophy. The Salterton Trilogy, on the other hand, takes a healthy dose of humorous, memorable (and often stereotypical) characters, tosses them in the pot with a dash of conflict, and lets them simmer.The first two books--Tempest Tost and Leaven of Malice--carry this formula forward with great success and humor. Tempest Tost brings amateur players with varying degrees of ineptitude together for a community performance of The Tempest. The characters introduced here continue on in Leaven of Malice to quarrel over a practical joke: a faulty marriage announcement in a local newspaper. The third book (A Mixture of Frailties) departs from this formula, leaving the small town for the London classical music scene, and though preexisting characters play a minor role, the focus rests on a single new character. The book reads as a rite-of-passage tale for its protagonist, Monica Gall, who develops into something of a renaissance woman under the tutelage of her three magi (a conceit which I could have done without, but about which little is made). The first two books are light reads, and quite fun. The second especially is wonderfully comic, and I'd recommend it as a starting place for anyone wanting a gentle introduction to Davies. The third book is far more reflective, reminding me at times of "The Fifth Business", and echoing the binding conflict of The Deptford Trilogy in a scene near the end. As with all Davies' writing I have experienced so far, the breadth of his knowledge in the subjects he chooses to write about is humbling. Music, newswriting, play production: if it's an art, Davies seems to know what there is to know.
Rating:
Summary: Lighter than Deptford, and more fun
Review: In the Deptford Trilogy, Davies weaves stories through concept: the characters are vivid, but they also exist to reveal facets of Davies' Jungian philosophy. The Salterton Trilogy, on the other hand, takes a healthy dose of humorous, memorable (and often stereotypical) characters, tosses them in the pot with a dash of conflict, and lets them simmer. The first two books--Tempest Tost and Leaven of Malice--carry this formula forward with great success and humor. Tempest Tost brings amateur players with varying degrees of ineptitude together for a community performance of The Tempest. The characters introduced here continue on in Leaven of Malice to quarrel over a practical joke: a faulty marriage announcement in a local newspaper. The third book (A Mixture of Frailties) departs from this formula, leaving the small town for the London classical music scene, and though preexisting characters play a minor role, the focus rests on a single new character. The book reads as a rite-of-passage tale for its protagonist, Monica Gall, who develops into something of a renaissance woman under the tutelage of her three magi (a conceit which I could have done without, but about which little is made). The first two books are light reads, and quite fun. The second especially is wonderfully comic, and I'd recommend it as a starting place for anyone wanting a gentle introduction to Davies. The third book is far more reflective, reminding me at times of "The Fifth Business", and echoing the binding conflict of The Deptford Trilogy in a scene near the end. As with all Davies' writing I have experienced so far, the breadth of his knowledge in the subjects he chooses to write about is humbling. Music, newswriting, play production: if it's an art, Davies seems to know what there is to know.
Rating:
Summary: The books of Robertson Davies in my opinion.
Review: It is not often that I get to give my opinion on a book, let alone to write one. I, however, felt a great need for writing this and sharing it with whomever wants to read it.
I came across Davies's writings by mere accident. Sometime in the early 1990's I was on a train going from London to Edinburgh. I was to attend there an astronomical meeting at which I was going to present some of my original research and, since I am not a native English speaker I was worrying about the way my presentation would go. Suddenly I noticed that the passenger sitting in front of me was reading a book, which by its title; Murther and Walking Spirits, attracted my attention. Firstly, because I thought there was a mispelling, later I decided that either murther meant something different from murder, or it was an ancient way of spelling the word. At my arrival in Edinburgh I consulted a dictionary and was very pleased to realise that murther meant indeed murder and that my second guess had been correct.I went immediately to the first book shop I could find and acquired the book, which I read voraciously, finding it one of the best books I had read in my life. This little book had whetted my apetite and I was determined to read more by this Davies fellow whom I had never before encountered, in spite of being quite a fan of reading books in English I read High Spirits, then Fifth Business. Having found these books extraordinary, I bought The Deptford Trilogy, The Cornish Trilogy, The Salterton Trilogy and read them all finding every time magnificent stories, written with a pleasant and most delicate style. Something which was very worthwhile, not only because of what it said, but because of the way it was said. Sometime later I saw there was a new book The Cunning Man, and having read it my opinion of Davies grew more and more with every word read. I undertook a long quietus, hoping to see more books by Davies appear, I did not know he had died in December 1995. Early this year I came across Happy Alchemy. This book contains a series of most delightful essays. Reading it brought back to me the exquisite memories I have about the other books by him that I have read. Robertson Davies is, in my opinion, one of the greatest English writers of the 20th century.
Rating: 
Summary: I liked Leaven of Malice the best
Review: Of the three trilogies Davies created, I think the Deptford Trilogy is the best. The Salterton Trilogy I would rank a distant second and the Cornish Trilogy third (though the first novel, Rebel Angels, is as good as anything Davies ever wrote.) From the Salterton Trilogy, I especially enjoyed the quotes at the beginning of each book which explain the source for each book's title: Tempest Tost coming from Shakespeare, Leaven of Malice from the Book of Common Prayer, and A Mixture of Frailties from Halifax. As for the novels themselves, I thought Leaven of Malice the best, both in terms of the story and the characters. Lots of humor, good plot, and a very believable demonstration of how malice, like leaven in bread, can grow within the breast of the person who bears it, eating away at their peace of mind.
Rating:
Summary: Quaint? I think not
Review: Robertson Davies' "Salterton Trilogy" is a well-written, often funny and sometimes poignant look at the realistically odd occupants of Salterton, the deceptively quaint Canadian city with two cathedrals and one university. "Tempest-Tost" opens with the organization of an amateur production of Shakespeare's "The Tempest." A motley crew of actors join it, including an exuberent professor, his quiet daughter, a quiet mama's boy, a beautiful rich girl, a womanizing soldier, and an infatuated schoolteacher. Love, ambition, jealousy and infatuation rapidly tangle together, climaxing in an unusually dramatic opening night. "Leaven of Malice" is half satire and half mystery. The Salterton Bellman announces that Solly Bridgetower and Pearl Vambrace are engaged -- the only problem is that it isn't true. Professor Vambrace sees it as a personal affront, and sues the paper. Pearl and Solly are haunted by false rumors, reports, and claims about who faked the announcement. All they can do is try to find out themselves. "Mixture of Frailties" opens with the death of Solly's domineering mother. Her will leaves money to Solly's family only if he produces a male heir with his wife Veronica (previously known as Pearl); until then, her money is to be used in a trust for a young female artistic hopeful, who will go to Europe for a few years to study whatever she is good at. And finding the right girl is only the start of Solly's problems. The tone of the Salterton Trilogy is lighter and less introspective than Davies' other books. Sometimes it's outright hilarious (there's a girl called The Torso, for crying out loud!). The first book is perhaps the funniest and most real-seeming, but it's also rather unfocused because there is no plot. The second and third books are tighter, but a little more rarified in humor and a little more surreal in tone. Solly Bridgetower is the unacknowledged center of the trilogy. He barely registers in "Tempest-Tost," but becomes the central figure of the second and third books. He's not a strong person, but he is a likable one. Pearl is only a little more prominent at first, but it's great to see her break out of her shell and become her own person. And without a doubt, Humphrey Cobbler is Davies' best character -- a vivid, devil-may-care artistic genius who winks and nudges in every book. The Salterton Trilogy is often eclipsed by Davies' better-known Deptford Trilogy, but that doesn't mean it's bad. By no means. It's a pleasant and warmly amusing trio of interconnected stories, and ones you won't forget in a hurry. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Quaint? I think not
Review: Robertson Davies' "Salterton Trilogy" is a well-written, often funny and sometimes poignant look at the realistically odd occupants of Salterton, the deceptively quaint Canadian city with two cathedrals and one university. "Tempest-Tost" opens with the organization of an amateur production of Shakespeare's "The Tempest." A motley crew of actors join it, including an exuberent professor, his quiet daughter, a quiet mama's boy, a beautiful rich girl, a womanizing soldier, and an infatuated schoolteacher. Love, ambition, jealousy and infatuation rapidly tangle together, climaxing in an unusually dramatic opening night. "Leaven of Malice" is half satire and half mystery. The Salterton Bellman announces that Solly Bridgetower and Pearl Vambrace are engaged -- the only problem is that it isn't true. Professor Vambrace sees it as a personal affront, and sues the paper. Pearl and Solly are haunted by false rumors, reports, and claims about who faked the announcement. All they can do is try to find out themselves. "Mixture of Frailties" opens with the death of Solly's domineering mother. Her will leaves money to Solly's family only if he produces a male heir with his wife Veronica (previously known as Pearl); until then, her money is to be used in a trust for a young female artistic hopeful, who will go to Europe for a few years to study whatever she is good at. And finding the right girl is only the start of Solly's problems. The tone of the Salterton Trilogy is lighter and less introspective than Davies' other books. Sometimes it's outright hilarious (there's a girl called The Torso, for crying out loud!). The first book is perhaps the funniest and most real-seeming, but it's also rather unfocused because there is no plot. The second and third books are tighter, but a little more rarified in humor and a little more surreal in tone. Solly Bridgetower is the unacknowledged center of the trilogy. He barely registers in "Tempest-Tost," but becomes the central figure of the second and third books. He's not a strong person, but he is a likable one. Pearl is only a little more prominent at first, but it's great to see her break out of her shell and become her own person. And without a doubt, Humphrey Cobbler is Davies' best character -- a vivid, devil-may-care artistic genius who winks and nudges in every book. The Salterton Trilogy is often eclipsed by Davies' better-known Deptford Trilogy, but that doesn't mean it's bad. By no means. It's a pleasant and warmly amusing trio of interconnected stories, and ones you won't forget in a hurry. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: CAUTION: may cause addiction to Davies!
Review: Starts off great and just keeps getting better and better... far and away, the best of these three gems is A Mixture Of Frailties. How did Davies do it? He took such seemingly innocuous molehills, and fashioned grand mountains out of them. As with the innocently thrown snowball in his Deptford Trilogy, here he uses a false engagement notice (in Leaven of Malice) to grease the gears of a roaring good yarn. Tempest-Tost is the book of this trilogy that can stand the surest on its own; the other two being more sequentially tied to each other in their characterization and story-line. The three together shout a resounding LET'S HEAR IT FOR CANADIAN LITERATURE ! Time well spent in a book... imagine that ! I refrain from offering synoptic comments on what I got out of each book, for fear of robbing anyone the pleasure of finding these gifts for themself as they read. I have rarely encountered in fiction a more thoroughly developed character than that of Davies' Monica Gall in AMOF. In her, he brilliantly shows us the inner workings of the creation of the artistic temperament, and the MAKING of an individual. Anthony Burgess commented that Davies displayed "all the qualities of a latter day Trollope." I would agree, with the addendum that Davies doesn't need the verbosity of a Trollope to achieve equal (or greater) depths. The genius of Davies is that he ends his books before we want him to. Arguably, there will be those who feel this series (written in the 50's) to be somewhat "dated"... i.e., nobody in these stories gets e-mail... or writes online reviews! Davies stuff is the antithesis of pulp fiction. Websters defines literature as "written works having excellence of form or expression and dealing with ideas of permanent interest." There are lots of great Canadian novels out there... but Davies proves that there is such a thing as a Canadian "literature".
Rating:
Summary: Charming and Funny
Review: The Salterton trilogy is "lighter" than Davies' other work, but I hesitate to call it "lesser." While the Deptford Trilogy is unquestionably his finest work, I personally prefer the lighthearted humor of the Salterton trilogy to the disjointed and uneven Cornish Trilogy. The first two books -- "Tempest-Tost" and "Leaven of Malice" -- are both incredibly witty; dozens of different characters are described with incredible insight and relish. However, "A Mixture of Frailties" represents Davies' first "serious" novel -- and remains one of the best descriptions of the making of an artist that I have read. The first time I read the trilogy, the change in tone disappointed me; however, "A Mixture of Frailties" has since become my favorite of the three. These are books that can be enjoyed in one long rapturous sitting, or in small chapters over time; they continue to entertain in reading after reading.
Rating:
Summary: Charming and Funny
Review: The Salterton trilogy is "lighter" than Davies' other work, but I hesitate to call it "lesser." While the Deptford Trilogy is unquestionably his finest work, I personally prefer the lighthearted humor of the Salterton trilogy to the disjointed and uneven Cornish Trilogy. The first two books -- "Tempest-Tost" and "Leaven of Malice" -- are both incredibly witty; dozens of different characters are described with incredible insight and relish. However, "A Mixture of Frailties" represents Davies' first "serious" novel -- and remains one of the best descriptions of the making of an artist that I have read. The first time I read the trilogy, the change in tone disappointed me; however, "A Mixture of Frailties" has since become my favorite of the three. These are books that can be enjoyed in one long rapturous sitting, or in small chapters over time; they continue to entertain in reading after reading.
Rating:
Summary: The wonder and fun starts here
Review: This is Davies first trilogy, and, if I remember correct, his first novel was the lead-off to this, Tempest-Tost. Before writing novels, however, Davies had written several plays, so his first novel is quite accomplished. The Salterton trilogy is almost misnamed--yes, it does center around the town of Salterton, but the real center of the three books is Solomon Bridgetower. Although he is almost a minor character in the first book, he and his family are front stage in books two and three. Tempest-Tost is about an amateur production of Shakespeare's The Tempest. The Salterton players assume they can have the use of the garden of their most famous citizen, and it is this assumption of community use that leads them into trouble. While no characters in the book undergo a sea-change, several characters do awaken from passive slumber to new lives, sometimes with mixed results. For anyone who has ever been involved in amateur theater, this is an extremely amusing tale. Others might find it belabored. Not so with the second novel, which is about class and prejudice, but told in a Wodehousian manner. Winner of the Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour (a Canadian award for best humor novel--I wish I could find a list of past award winners), Leaven of Malice concerns an engagement announcement in the local paper that was placed by neither bride nor groom. The resulting conflict between the two families brings up old academic rivalry, the worst of the new goody-two-shoe couple in town, and an escalation of lawyers. In some ways it is a mystery, too, as the two "lovers" attempt to find who had the malice to link their names in the public eye. The concluding volume, A Mixture of Frailties, is about a trust established by Solomon's mother, and how it must be awarded to a specific individual. But finding the individual is only the start of Solomon's trouble, and the story follows two separate lines: one regarding Solomon and his need for a heir to rid himself of his mother's legacy, and one regarding the lucky trust recipient, and her entry into the world of opera. There were certain things near to Davies' experience, it seems: theater, academic life, and trusts. Trusts can be found in both A Mixture of Frailties and the second and third books of the Cornish trilogy, academic life is featured in Leaven of Malice and The Rebel Angels, and theater productions in Tempest-Tost and The Lyre of Orpheus. I can easily see myself rereading Davies in ten years, and rediscovering all of this once again.
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