Title: The Pursuit of Love
Author: Nancy Mitford
Number of pages: 192
Started: 23 October 2009
Finished: 26 October 2009
Opening words:
"There is a photograph in existence of Aunt Sadie and her six children sitting round the tea-table at Alconleigh. The table is situated, as it was, is now, and ever shall be, in the hall, in front of a huge open fire of logs. Over the chimney-piece plainly visible in the photograph, hangs an entrenching tool, with which, in 1915, Uncle Matthew had whacked to death eight Germans one by one as they crawled out of a dug-out. It is still covered with blood and hairs, an object of fascination to us as children."
Plot summary:
Childhood at Alconleigh is scanty preparation for the realities of the outside world and Linda, sweetest and most aimless of the young Radletts, falls prey to a stuffy banker and a rabid communist before she finds her ideal in a Frenchman . . .
What I thought:
I enjoyed this book. Nancy Mitford’s writing has been compared to Jane Austen, Evelyn Waugh and Aldous Huxley (books like Crome Yellow rather than Brave New World), but having read books by each of those authors, I have to say I preferred this book. It tells the tale of a slightly mad aristocratic family and their many adventures – and is the forerunner to the better known book ‘Love in a Cold Climate’. It was quite an amusing read and is actually semi-autobiographical. It’s certainly worth a look and is the sort of book you could curl up with on a wet Sunday afternoon.
2 comments:
This sounds really good... don't know why, but wouldn't have expected it to - not a big fan of the name of the book.
However, I'm well interested in it after reading your review, and will try and find a copy. :)
anothercookiecrumbles - I wouldn't have expected it to be good either! It was a good read if you like 1930s set books.
Give it a go, see what you think...
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