Risultati di "E. M. Delafield" in Tutte le categorie

In this early work by the author of Diary Of A Provincial Lady, set against the backdrop of World War I in the Midlands, we encounter a unique establishment where soldiers find solace in the form of sandwiches and a semblance of comfort. Run by the formidable Miss Vivian, an upper-class woman whose controlling and manipulative nature belies her seemingly unwavering dedication, the place is revered by many. Yet, beneath the surface of admiration lies a web of emotional manipulation that only Grace Jones, a newcomer, can unravel. As Grace seeks to help Miss Vivian confront her flaws, the story ...

Set in the English countryside in the 1930s, The Provincial Lady introduces us to a protagonist with a sharp eye, but even sharper wit. Through various diary entries, she records the quiet chaos of her everyday life, as well as her attempts to keep her footing in the genteel yet absurd world of upper-middle-class domesticity. Featuring a loyal (if aloof) husband, two reasonably behaving children, a cook who consistently threatens to quit and a garden that refuses to grow what it ought to, The Provincial Lady evokes a hilarious yet exhausting balancing act of budgets, egos and expectations which resonates and amuses in equal measure.

The Modern Age is one of information overload. Bombarded, surrounded, and battered by facts, figures, opinions and seemingly whatever else comes out of anyone’s head from all directions at all hours of the day and night. It’s exhausting. In the pens of such luminaries as Henry James, E M Delafield, C E Montague, Charlotte Perkins Gilman and many others we connect with old fashioned media from publishing and advertising to telegrams and radio and everything in between in ways that are surprising, enlightening but always entertaining.

Laura Temple faces the predicaments of many British middle-class wives and mothers living in country villages between the World Wars. Her too-large house, inherited by her husband Alfred, requires three servants to keep it running: generally unsatisfactory servants whom she is perpetually concerned will leave her employ for greener pastures, which they inevitably do. Her modest success as a short story writer helps augment their income but still, there is never enough money. She is a devoted mother to her two sons, although she shamelessly prefers one over the other. And she is deeply unhappy.

The Provincial Lady finds herself in London, looking for voluntary work to support the war effort, which proves an unexpectedly difficult thing to achieve. Her interactions with a varied host of companions, also caught up in a strange frenzy, reflect so clearly the mood and tension of the time, yet the account is witty, apposite - and so very English, with the stiff upper lip underpinning it all.

No one could have been more surprised than our Provincial Lady to receive an invitation from her American agent to travel transatlantic and embark upon a programme of lectures and signings. She was particularly amazed because, having received an overture sometime before and feeling that she would rather stay in the English countryside, she requested that they meet quite a few ‘requirements’ before she would agree to go. They met every stipulation. ‘

Brought to you by Penguin. This Penguin Classic is performed by Kirsty Besterman, an experienced TV and theatre actress known for her leading role as Lady Macbeth in the National Theatre Tour, as well as a number of roles with Shakespeare's Globe and the RSC. 'January 22nd - Robert startles me...