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Excellent Women
'I'm a huge fan of Barbara Pym' Richard Osman
Series: VMC
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Check link for latest rating. ( 19,907 ratings, 2,907 reviews)
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Excellent Women
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?
'One of the most endearingly amusing English novels of the twentieth century' Alexander McCall Smith
Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and
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Description
INTRODUCED BY ALEXANDER McCALL SMITH
'I'm a huge fan of Barbara Pym' - RICHARD OSMAN
Mildred Lathbury is one of those excellent women who are often taken for granted. She is a godsend, 'capable of dealing with most of the stock situations or even the great moments of life - birth, marriage, death, the successful jumble sale, the garden fete spoilt by bad weather'.
Her glamorous new neighbours, the Napiers, seem to be facing a marital crisis. One cannot take sides in these matters, though it is tricky, especially as Mildred has a soft spot for dashing young Rockingham Napier. This is Barbara Pym's world at its funniest and most touching.
'One of the most endearingly amusing English novels of the twentieth century' - ALEXANDER MCCALL SMITH
'Barbara Pym is the rarest of treasures; she reminds us of the heartbreaking silliness of everyday life' - ANNE TYLER
'Not only was Pym a comic genius but she was ever so wise' - THE TIMES
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Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?
Barbara Pym's Excellent Women is lauded for its high comedy and endearing nature. Critics celebrate its portrayal of seemingly mundane lives, finding joy and depth in the everyday interactions of cardigan-wearing spinsters and bachelors. Renowned authors admire Pym's wise and comic genius, considering this novel one of the finest examples of twentieth-century English humour.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9780349016078
Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 02 June 2022
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Virago Press Ltd
Contributors:
- Introduction by Alexander McCall Smith
- Introduction by Alexander McCall Smith
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 22.0mm
Width: 126.0mm
Height: 196.0mm
Weight: 240g
Pages: 304
Collections
About the Author
Barbara Pym (1913-1980) was born in Oswestry, Shropshire. She was educated at Huyton College, Liverpool, and St Hilda's College, Oxford, where she gained an Honours Degree in English Language and Literature. From 1958-1974, she worked as an editorial secretary at the International African Institute. Her first novel, Some Tame Gazelle, was published in 1950, and was followed by Excellent Women (1952), Jane and Prudence (1953), Less than Angels (1955), A Glass of Blessings (1958) and No Fond Return of Love (1961). During the sixties and early seventies her writing suffered a partial eclipse and, discouraged, she concentrated on her work for the Institute, from which she retired in 1974 to live in Oxfordshire. A renaissance in her fortunes came in 1977, when both Philip Larkin and Lord David Cecil chose her as one of the most underrated novelists of the century. With astonishing speed, she emerged, after sixteen years of obscurity, to almost instant fame and recognition. Quartet in Autumn was published in 1977 and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. The Sweet Dove Died followed in 1978, and A Few Green Leaves was published posthumously. Barbara Pym died in January 1980.
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Excellent Women
Cover design by Orla Kiely Mildred Lathbury is one of those excellent women who is often taken for granted. She is a godsend, capable of dealing with most of the stock situations of life - birth, marriage, death, the successful jumble sales, the garden fete spoilt by bad weather. As such, though, she often gets herself embroiled in other peopleβs...Hardback$4999Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
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