This short novella from the author of the beloved Green Knowe Chronicles follows young Libby as she goes to spend a week in the country with a family friend. When the local river overflows its bounds, and the house gardens are flooded by underground springs, Libby's holiday is transformed into an enchanted idyll, during which she gains a greater appreciation of the beauties of nature. But the week reaches its peak during an unexpected encounter with a lovely creature of myth...

Boston's luminously descriptive prose is in full force here, with some beautiful passages devoted to the river Babble, the garden, and the waterfalls on the mountain. Nothing Said has strong ecological themes, with some sharp comments made about development and the destruction of the environment. Its greatest strength though, lies in its author's understanding of a young person's need for privacy, and the necessity of secrecy for true enchantment.

Like so many of Boston's work, this was illustrated by her son, Peter Boston. ( )