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3.79 AVERAGE
3.79 AVERAGE
This 1955 novel is an incisive social satire that opens a window onto the insular world of London’s anthropologic community & its students.
Tongue firmly in check, Pym writes:
"Felix had explained so clearly what it was that anthropologists did (. . .) They went out to remote places and studied the customs and languages of the peoples living there. Then they came back and wrote books and articles about what they had observed (. . .) It was as simple as that. And it was a very good thing that these languages and customs should be known, firstly because they were interesting in themselves and in danger of being forgotten, and secondly because it was helpful to missionaries and government officials to know as much as possible about the people they sought to evangelize or govern."
In addition to the observations of those returned from Africa, Pym observes the townies observing their suburbanite brothers, women observing men, students observing graduates . . . all the world’s a foreign culture to someone.
Read this if: you want to try one of Pym’s gentle satires that doesn’t concern the Anglican (or any other) church.
4 stars
Tongue firmly in check, Pym writes:
"Felix had explained so clearly what it was that anthropologists did (. . .) They went out to remote places and studied the customs and languages of the peoples living there. Then they came back and wrote books and articles about what they had observed (. . .) It was as simple as that. And it was a very good thing that these languages and customs should be known, firstly because they were interesting in themselves and in danger of being forgotten, and secondly because it was helpful to missionaries and government officials to know as much as possible about the people they sought to evangelize or govern."
In addition to the observations of those returned from Africa, Pym observes the townies observing their suburbanite brothers, women observing men, students observing graduates . . . all the world’s a foreign culture to someone.
Read this if: you want to try one of Pym’s gentle satires that doesn’t concern the Anglican (or any other) church.
4 stars
It took a while to get into this story; there were so many names and characters and their connections were unclear at first.
This was marvellous (must be said in RP...). Some moving and exceptional writing along with decent characters and plot. And knowing Barbara Pym back story made it more interesting. Will reach for others when looking for something of an easy, amusing and smart read.
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
Just as quiet as all the others but a little less funny. Perhaps too concerned with anthropology for my tastes. I think I prefer the Pym novels with more church ladies in them..
Mark and Digby, the anthropologist friends of the lead character of Tom were quite good.
I definitely see why this is part of the back catalogue. Would not recommend to someone who isn’t already a Pym fan.
Mark and Digby, the anthropologist friends of the lead character of Tom were quite good.
I definitely see why this is part of the back catalogue. Would not recommend to someone who isn’t already a Pym fan.
Really enjoyed it! A pleasure from start to finish. She reminds me a bit of Rosamunde Pilcher but wittier. Also Pym's focus in on the solidly middle class sort rather than Pilcher's landed gentry. I will definitely read more of Pym.
Re-read on October 16, 2016. Tempted to upgrade it to 5 stars.
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“And so it came about that, like many other well-meaning people, they worried not so much about the dreadful things themselves as about their own inability to worry about them.”
“She had imagined that the presence of what she thought of as clever people would bring about some subtle change in the usual small talk. The sentences would be like bright jugglers’ balls, spinning through the air and being deftly caught and thrown up again. But she saw now that conversation could also be compared to a series of incongruous objects, scrubbing-brushes, dish-cloths, knives, being flung or hurtling rather than spinning, which were sometimes not caught at all but fell to the ground with resounding thuds.”
---
“And so it came about that, like many other well-meaning people, they worried not so much about the dreadful things themselves as about their own inability to worry about them.”
“She had imagined that the presence of what she thought of as clever people would bring about some subtle change in the usual small talk. The sentences would be like bright jugglers’ balls, spinning through the air and being deftly caught and thrown up again. But she saw now that conversation could also be compared to a series of incongruous objects, scrubbing-brushes, dish-cloths, knives, being flung or hurtling rather than spinning, which were sometimes not caught at all but fell to the ground with resounding thuds.”
More people should be reading Pym! I just heard of her this year and am now eager to read everything she wrote. Her plots are about small romances and domestic struggles and always seem to have a few church ladies serving tea. Yet, her character studies are both wry and cutting, and her observations about contemporary mores are often spot on and sometimes heartbreaking. It's as if Jane Austen was writing in the 1950s. Read this novel and you'll get a sense of why Philip Larkin nominated her as the most underrated writer of the century.