Christopher Strong – the movie, not the novel

Review by Val H.  Movies are new on this blog but there are strong middlebrow links. In 1933 Hollywood released Christopher Strong, based on Gilbert Frankau’s 1931 novel of the same name.  (Here is the trailer and here the DVD.)  They tell of the affair between respected MP Christopher Strong and a family friend Cynthia … Continue reading →

Mothers and Children by Frank Danby (1918)

Continuing our reading of novels by the Frankau family, this is the first review of a novel by Frank Danby, the pseudonym of Julia Frankau (1859-1916). Julia can be considered the beginning of this literary family: she was a successful novelist, who also wrote scholarly books about eighteenth-century engraving, and had a circle of artistic friends … Continue reading →

The Dangerous Years by Gilbert Frankau (1937)

Review by Daniel Grieve: Written by Gilbert Frankau in his later years, The Dangerous Years is a novel split into three sections, Pre-War, Post-War and Present Day, beginning two years before WWI (1912) and ending two years before WWII (1937). With a title such as The Dangerous Years I was expecting good deal of action … Continue reading →

One of Us: A Novel in Verse by Gilbert Frankau (1912)

Review by George Simmers. See his Great War Fiction blog here. One of Us is a 1912 novel in verse, written by the young Gilbert Frankau. A direct imitation of Byron’s Don Juan, it tells the story of Jack, a wealthy young Englishman, as he travels around some of the world’s most luxurious locations, meeting … Continue reading →

Some New Planet by Pamela Frankau (1937)

Review by John S: This is the story of Hugh Shell, on his own admission a rather boring young chap, and his relationships with three people: his worldly and successful brother Bertrand who works for the Foreign Office, a writer called Mark Orburn (who is in fact a woman) with whom he conducts a lengthy … Continue reading →

Christopher Strong by Gilbert Frankau (1931)

This is our second review of Christopher Strong by Gilbert Frankau (compare with the first here). Review by a Reading Group Member: Plot Summary: Sir Christopher Strong is a wealthy, Conservative member of Parliament, the Controlling Partner in the ‘John Strong, Grocer’ chain of shops & a middle-aged family man. He finds himself irresistibly attracted … Continue reading →

Frankau month at the special collection

This month at the special collection reading group we are all reading a novel by a member of the Frankau family. Thanks to a donation from the grandson of Gilbert Frankau, Timothy Smith, we now have novels in the collection by: Julia Frankau (writing under the pseudonym Frank Danby, 1859-1916) Her son, Gilbert Frankau (1884-1952) Gilbert’s … Continue reading →

Christopher Strong by Gilbert Frankau (1931)

We’ve had one review of a Gilbert Frankau novel on here before, and let’s just say that it wouldn’t tempt many people to read him. The full hatchet job on Peter Jackson, Cigar Merchant is here. However, our new recruit Daniel is made of stern stuff, and he has found things to enjoy in Christopher … Continue reading →

‘If only the Huns could have shot straight…’: ‘Peter Jackson, Cigar Merchant’ by Gilbert Frankau (1919)

Review by John S: When I selected this book – it seemed comparatively short – a colleague told me that it is in part autobiographical. Peter Jackson was written between 1917 and 1919 and published shortly after the war. It was one of the early Great War novels and one of the first literary treatments … Continue reading →