Pages:
250
Original
date of publication: 1980
My
edition: 1980 (Harper Perennial Library)
Why
I decided to read:
How
I acquired my copy: The Philadelphia Book Trader, August 2010
Barbara
Pym’s novels are comfort reads. They follow pretty much the same format and
have very much the same elements; in fact, some of her characters overlap
between novels. This novel is set in an Oxfordshire village in the 1970s and
features a typically Pym-esque cast of characters: an academic, a rector, village
doctors, spinsters, and possible love interests.
One
of the main characters, Emma, is an anthropologist, and her activities reflect
the overall purpose of the book, because the story is more or less an
anthropological study of the people who live in the village.Some of Pym’s characters
are truly funny: the rector who’s so wrapped up in searching for his
mythological DMV (deserted medieval village) that he scarcely pays attention to
the present; the local spinster cat lady; the ex boyfriend who accidentally
stumbles back into Emma’s life. Watching her reaction to his reappearance was
intriguing, but her end decision was hardly surprising.
As
with all of Pym’s novels, she gently pokes fun at the inhabitants of the town
and contrasts the present with events of the past. I thought that this last
element could have been expanded upon a little bit more; I wanted to find out
more about the aristocratic family who lived in the old manor house back in the
1920s. But in all, this is arguably one of Barbara Pym’s strongest novels,
primarily because she explores and handles the complexity of human
interpersonal relationships so well in her books.
Comments
I spotted your review and thought you might like to see all the great posts he has put together about her life and books.