Precious Bane

Precious Bane won the Prix Femina Vie Heureuse Prize. In 1957 and 1989 it was made into a BBC television drama. The story is narrated by the central character Prue Sarn, whose life is blighted by having a harelip. Only the weaver, Kester Woodseaves, perceives her inner beauty but Prue cannot believe herself worthy of him. Prue is wrongly accused of murder and only one man can save her and take her away to the happiness she believes she can never possess because of her harelip. Author Mary Webb had many readers in her lifetime but was not otherwise greatly esteemed by critics. It was only after her death that Stanley Baldwin, then Britain's Prime Minister, brought about her commercial success, referring to her as a neglected genius. Consequently her collected works were republished and became best sellers in the 1930s, running into many editions. Her work is still widely admired, and Precious Bane has survived as her imperishable and most popular work.