Lolly Willowes (1926) by Sylvia Townsend Warner

Book review by Sue R: Sylvia Townsend Warner was a poet, short story writer, novelist and musicologist. She wrote non- fiction works including a biography of T.H. White, and a translation of Proust. She and her partner Valentine Ackland, a poet, were both active in the Communist Party; they worked for Red Cross during the … Continue reading →

Herland (1915) by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Book Review by Jane V: I knew about Charlotte Perkins Gilman from her short autobiographical novel The Yellow Wallpaper but it was not until I searched for a(n?) utopia authored by a woman that I was reminded of Herland and the fact that, felicitously, I had a copy somewhere. The blurb on the back of … Continue reading →

Suffragette Sally (1911) by Gertrude Colmore

Book Review by Sylvia D: Gertrude Colmore (1855-1926) finished writing Suffragette Sally in February 1911 at the height of the women’s militant suffrage campaign. She covers the two years preceding the book’s publication and, through the experiences of three women from very different backgrounds, attempts to explain the way the women’s actions were misrepresented and … Continue reading →

Westwood by Stella Gibbons

Most people only know Stella Gibbons for writing Cold Comfort Farm, her first novel. But she went on to write more than 20 novels and Westwood, published in 1946 was believed to be Gibbons’ own personal favourite. Set in wartime London, Westwood is a coming of age story. It is the story of Margaret Steggles, … Continue reading →

Ann Veronica by H. G. Wells (1909)

Review by Sylvia D: I’d been meaning to read Ann Veronica for some time but have to admit that I found it a little disappointing given it has been cited as a ‘New Woman’ novel.  However, one has to remember that it was written at the beginning of the twentieth century (1909) when there was … Continue reading →

Fraulein Schmidt and Mr Anstruther by Elizabeth von Arnim (1907)

WordPress tell me that today is this blog’s second birthday. So Happy Birthday Reading 1900-1950! Thank you to everyone who has written reviews and everyone who has read and commented on them! It is a real pleasure to run this blog. There’s 180 posts, most of them book reviews. See the page for a full … Continue reading →

The Pastor’s Wife by Elizabeth von Arnim (1914)

Review by Sylvia D: The Pastor’s Wife is a joy to read. It is witty, thought-provoking, full of wonderful descriptive passages and a fine study of human isolation. The main character, Ingeborg Bullivant, moves from the tyranny of an unbending, pompous Bishop of a father to being helpmeet to a stolid German pastor for whom … Continue reading →