Category Archives: funny

Barbara Trapido, “Brother of the More Famous Jack”

Posted on December 8, 2012 by

What if I Capture the Castle were adapted and updated, set in the 1970s and ’80s? What if the narrator, Katherine Browne, were another bookish and naive heroine whose horizons were broadened by a confusing tribe that included several fascinating … Continue reading →

Posted in anglophilia, contemporary fiction, funny | Tagged , | 11 Comments

Stella Gibbons, “Cold Comfort Farm”

Posted on November 29, 2012 by

I have never lived in a dwelling without a copy of Stella Gibbons‘ Cold Comfort Farm. It’s basic equipment, like a tea kettle. You re-read it periodically to experience, once again, the brisk pleasures of Our Heroine Flora Poste’s effect on … Continue reading →

Posted in anglophilia, classic, funny | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Alan Bennett, “Smut”

Posted on February 6, 2012 by

I’ll admit I got a little kick out of sitting on the subway reading a book called Smut. But the cover, with its pattern of tea-cups, its genteel blue background and upright type, goes far to undercut the title. And, … Continue reading →

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P. G. Wodehouse, “My Man Jeeves”

Posted on September 27, 2011 by

I’ll admit I was a little desperate after finishing Emile Zola’s La Débâcle. I needed entertainment — no, I needed jollity! Hence, Wodehouse. Now, I’m pretty new to his work and gosh, there’s a lot of it. Worse, I was … Continue reading →

Posted in anglophilia, classic, funny | Tagged | 4 Comments

Fred Vargas, “Debout les morts”/”The Three Evangelists”

Posted on April 26, 2011 by

I don’t have the temperament of a completist. Not for me the obscure early works, the unfinished manuscripts, the lesser-known short stories of the eminent novelist. But I find myself making an exception for Fred Vargas because she is just … Continue reading →

Posted in funny, mystery | Tagged | 5 Comments

David Lodge, “The British Museum is Falling Down”

Posted on February 13, 2011 by

Well, I’m pretty late arriving at this particular party. Guys, why didn’t you tell me? Now that I think of it, people have been suggesting for ages that I read David Lodge, but it wasn’t until The British Museum is … Continue reading →

Posted in anglophilia, classic, funny | Tagged , | 9 Comments

Molly Keane, “Treasure Hunt”

Posted on December 15, 2010 by

Molly Keane’s Treasure Hunt begins with a funeral. First we see a grand, comfortable country house in Ireland called Ballyroden, dreaming in the sun, completely empty, notable for the number of champagne corks littering the gravel in front. (It’s a … Continue reading →

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Elinor Lipman, “The Family Man”

Posted on November 22, 2010 by

Elinor Lipman is one of my favorite authors, but the problem is that I’ve read all of her books. Sometimes I eye them on the book shelf and mentally test myself — am I ready to reread this one or … Continue reading →

Posted in contemporary fiction, funny | Tagged | 3 Comments

William Dean Howells, “Indian Summer”

Posted on November 13, 2010 by

The jacket copy calls Indian Summer “one of the most charming and memorable romantic comedies in American literature,” so I took the bait, despite skepticism. I have read  William Dean Howells before and he wasn’t charming. But for once the … Continue reading →

Posted in classic, funny | Tagged , , | 7 Comments

Stendhal, “La Chartreuse de Parme”/”The Charterhouse of Parma”

Posted on November 4, 2010 by

Ooooh, Fabrice. That’s what all the ladies think when they see him. And now that I know that Gerard Philipe played him in a 1948 film, I’ve got a face to put to the name — Fabrice del Dongo, the … Continue reading →

Posted in classic, French, funny | Tagged , | 3 Comments