Joy and Josephine (1948) by Monica Dickens

Book review by Sylvia D: What a shock it must be suddenly to discover in your teens that the people you thought were your parents are only your adoptive parents. And what a much greater shock it must be to discover that no-one actually knows who you are. You must be overwhelmed by a sense … Continue reading →

Poor Caroline (1931) by Winifred Holtby

Book review by Sylvia D:  Poor Caroline is a satire in which Holtby pokes fun at the worlds of philanthropy and religion but also introduces other themes: the loneliness and frustrations of old age, the position of women in interwar society, and the lingering impact of the First World War on those who fought in … Continue reading →

The Vanity Girl (1920) by Compton Mackenzie

Book review by Sylvia D: When Compton Mackenzie’s The Vanity Girl (the copy I read being the Remploy reprint of 1973) was first published in 1920 by Macdonald, it was dedicated to Mackenzie’s sister, Fay Compton, the actress. When it was republished in 1954, Mackenzie (1883-1972) re-wrote the original dedication, with the words ‘Dearest Fay, … Continue reading →

Just Like Aunt Bertha by W. Pett Ridge (1925)

Review by Helen N: The book centres round Aunt Bertha, a woman of resource who deals with both a professional life and sorting out all of her friends and acquaintances. They get into scrapes and she sorts them out, while being constantly criticised for interfering. It is a good-humoured book and written to entertain. Just … Continue reading →

Miss Mannering by W. Pett Ridge (1923)

Review by Sylvia D: I enjoyed W Pett Ridge’s Miss Mannering (1923) for three reasons.  First, the novel had an unlikely theme, focusing as it does for much on the time on the proprietor, staff and customers of a basement cafe in the City of London at the beginning of the twentieth century.  Second, I … Continue reading →

The Sailor’s Holiday by Eric Linklater (1937)

Another damning review of Eric Linklater! Oh dear! Review by Sophie H: The Sailor’s Holiday is made up of a series of short vignettes relating the adventures of sailor Henry Tippus during his time on shore between sea voyages. Throughout the novel Henry finds himself involved in a variety of surreal encounters, from being arrested … Continue reading →

Mike and Psmith, by PG Wodehouse (1953)

Review by Val H. Mike and Psmith is a hugely enjoyable, old-fashioned school story, with mischievous boys, bamboozled teachers and heroic stands at the crease.  But it is much more than that.  With Wodehouse, you get the comic timing and language and the touch of genius that is Psmith. As a child, I loved school … Continue reading →

The Heart of a Goof by P G Wodehouse (1926)

Review by Jane V: The Heart of a Goof consists of nine stories related by the Oldest Member of a golf club.  He sits aside from the action puffing a cigar and observing the joys and the sorrows, the triumphs and the defeats in matters of golf and the heart enjoyed and suffered by the … Continue reading →

Eggs, Beans and Crumpets by P G Wodehouse (1940)

Review by George Simmers: This collection of short stories features several familiar Wodehouse characters. Four centre on Bingo Little, familiar from stories in The Inimitable Jeeves (1923). That book’s stories showed him madly in love with a succession of girls, with Bertie Wooster roped in to help him. In the last of the stories he … Continue reading →

Elizabeth and her German Garden (1898)

Next we have a run of Elizabeth von Arnim reviews. I’ve now read Elizabeth von Arnim with both my reading groups, because I simply love hearing people’s reactions to reading her. This time was particularly enjoyable as everyone was struck by the quality of the writing and wanted to read more. I was a very … Continue reading →