Mystery in Geneva (1922) by Rose Macaulay

Book Review by Kathryn R: Mystery at Geneva – An Improbable Tale of Singular Happenings is a short novel, telling the story of Henry Beechtree, a newspaper correspondent for the British Bolshevist who is in Geneva for a meeting of the League of Nations in the early 1920s. The book opens with the following note … Continue reading →

Crewe Train (1926) by Rose Macaulay (another review)

Book review by Sylvia D: This novel has the most wonderful dedication: ‘To the Philistines, The Barbarians, The Unsociables and those who do not care to take any trouble’. This immediately appealed to the rebel in me and although Denham Dobie (named after her mother’s favourite village in Buckinghamshire) is one of the most odd … Continue reading →

Potterism (1920) by Rose Macaulay

Book review by George Simmers: In this novel, Rose Macaulay gives her diagnosis of what is wrong with Britain after the end of the First World War. She sums this up in one word: ‘Potterism’. Which means sentimentality, materialism, mental laziness, and the avoidance of awkward truths. Mr Potter is a press baron; ‘a small, … Continue reading →

They Were Defeated (1932) by Rose Macaulay

Book Review by Mary Grover: They were Defeated was said to be Rose Macaulay’s favorite novel. Published in 1932, this historical novel about intellectual life during the mid seventeenth century was well reviewed but never proved as popular as her contemporary novels. There is a double focus: the poetry and opinions of the real poet … Continue reading →

Crewe Train (1926) by Rose Macaulay

Book review by Frances S: ‘We have some very bright evenings. There’s a nice reading circle, too.’‘A what?’ Denham was apprehensive.‘A reading circle. You all study some book together, and meet and talk about it’‘What for?’‘What funny questions you do ask, to be sure.’ Crewe Train (apparently a reference to the 19th century music hall … Continue reading →

Madam, Will You Talk? (1955) by Mary Stewart (another review)

Will you accept of the key of my heart To bind us together and to never never part? Madam, will you walk? Madam, will you talk with me? No, I won’t accept of the key of your heart To bind us together and to never never part. Neither will I walk, Neither will I talk … Continue reading →

Living Alone (1919) by Stella Benson

Book review by Sophie H: Stella Benson’s 1919 novel Living Alone opens with an eccentric young woman (who is later revealed to have magical powers) bursting into a meeting of the ‘Committee for War Savings’, after being chased for stealing a bun. The witch, who through a misunderstanding eventually becomes known as Angela although she … Continue reading →