tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5040657217275018769.post3130479630597086575..comments2023-11-03T04:28:57.670-05:00Comments on Books and Cooks: A few book reviewsTarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07208766776468157501noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5040657217275018769.post-77432442295356219202007-09-17T19:55:00.000-05:002007-09-17T19:55:00.000-05:00Hello GeraniumCat! Thanks so much for sharing you...Hello GeraniumCat! Thanks so much for sharing your memories of tea, I loved reading them. Barbara Pym's 'quietly acid humour' - you've described it so,so well. I also have Jane and Prudence and I look forward to reading more of Pym's work.Tarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07208766776468157501noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5040657217275018769.post-13307773169588123952007-09-17T19:53:00.000-05:002007-09-17T19:53:00.000-05:00Angali, I was really looking forward to this book ...Angali, I was really looking forward to this book and had had it on my list for some time. It was a disappointment and I've already swapped it at Paperbackswap.Tarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07208766776468157501noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5040657217275018769.post-21704391277542025872007-09-17T12:18:00.000-05:002007-09-17T12:18:00.000-05:00When I was very small we used to have tea in the a...When I was very small we used to have tea in the afternoon, I loved it, especially muffins (we didn't call them English muffins because we didn't know there was any other kind!) toasted on a brass fork at an open fire. And during journeys we would often have tea at a hotel; hot buttered toast, delicious!<BR/><BR/>I'm glad you liked Barbara Pym - her quietly acid humour is a delight, and she exactly expresses the air of faded gentility and dowdiness which characterised England for quite a long time after the war. Jane and Prudence is very good too - well, they all are, really.Jodie Robsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02442935205880334932noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5040657217275018769.post-42126376389168648852007-09-17T08:42:00.000-05:002007-09-17T08:42:00.000-05:00Hi, Tara!"Singing Bird" has a really nice premise,...Hi, Tara!<BR/><BR/>"Singing Bird" has a really nice premise, what a pity the author wasn't able to do more with it. If I had seen this book at the bookstore I might have picked it up, so I am really thankful for your review...I will put my money towards some other book instead.Lotus Readshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02081192215823615529noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5040657217275018769.post-21724562214658752262007-09-13T20:07:00.000-05:002007-09-13T20:07:00.000-05:00Heather, exactly. While I tend to romanticize lif...Heather, exactly. While I tend to romanticize life 'in the past' I know I am quite lucky to live now with all the opportunities I have. And you comment brought my typo to my attention - I hate it when I do that!<BR/><BR/>Bybee, Yes, I used to read them until I realized I was ruining the book for myself.Tarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07208766776468157501noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5040657217275018769.post-34981150266328725362007-09-13T06:31:00.000-05:002007-09-13T06:31:00.000-05:00I know what you mean, I hate those spoiler introdu...I know what you mean, I hate those spoiler introductions, too.Bybeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10061186489010154661noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5040657217275018769.post-91157519025158895752007-09-12T11:39:00.000-05:002007-09-12T11:39:00.000-05:00When our heroine, Mildred, is invited for dinner a...<I>When our heroine, Mildred, is invited for dinner at a man's home she declines - because she know she would be expected to cook it.</I><BR/><BR/>Wow. I just never would have expected a detail like that; it really sets the tone.heather (errantdreams)https://www.blogger.com/profile/08867100188239630970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5040657217275018769.post-73479983314051656072007-09-12T09:24:00.000-05:002007-09-12T09:24:00.000-05:00Danielle, I also really enjoyed EW. I agree that ...Danielle, I also really enjoyed EW. I agree that she was quite self-sufficient but there were moments I did feel she felt a bit lonely, though being an 'Excellent Woman' she just pushed those feelings aside.<BR/><BR/>Cath, Quartet in Autumn is one I don't have and will have to look for in the used shops. I have been wondering if all the books are variations on the same theme.<BR/><BR/>Carrie, I've answered you privately so as to not ruin the ending for anyone else.Tarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07208766776468157501noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5040657217275018769.post-24212514713340739352007-09-11T17:40:00.000-05:002007-09-11T17:40:00.000-05:00So how did the Pym novel end? Women had it really ...So how did the Pym novel end? Women had it really rough in those days. <BR/><BR/>The blue eye thing is basic genetics although there are recessives that mix it all up. Singing Bird sounds a bit silly.Carrie Khttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15585975894624687972noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5040657217275018769.post-2153000846597946642007-09-11T17:19:00.000-05:002007-09-11T17:19:00.000-05:00Quartet in Autumn is the only Barbara Pym I've rea...Quartet in Autumn is the only Barbara Pym I've read and I liked it a lot. Sad, but at the same time 'hopeful'. Pym obviously specialised in the stories of unmarried women. I'll add Excellent Women to my 'keep an eye out for' list... I have a feeling our library has it.Cathhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06371069000185280668noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5040657217275018769.post-87127695498384400332007-09-11T15:33:00.000-05:002007-09-11T15:33:00.000-05:00I also have Singing Bird, but I haven't read it ye...I also have Singing Bird, but I haven't read it yet. It sounds pretty so-so. I'm glad you liked the Pym novel. It's been one of my favorite books this year. I really liked Mildred. Even though she was alone she really seemed pretty self sufficient and not really lonely. I loved the humor in the novel and I am looking forward to reading more ofher work1Daniellehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06415242678720695754noreply@blogger.com