by Nancy Mitford
Marvelous for Mitford's exquisite devotion to France and French society, but the characters begin to grate, ever so slightly. Whereas her frivolous society girls in The Pursuit of Love and Love in a Cold Climate come across as charming despite their ridiculousness, I spent most of this novel wanting...
Grace Allingham, a young and unassuming Englishwoman from an affluent background, makes the acquaintance of Charles-Edouard de Valhubert, a French Air Force officer, during the early years of the Second World War. Charming, suave, and utterly self-assured, he sweeps Grace off her feet, they quickl...
On one level, this is a frivolous, entertaining story about a couple, their marital difficulties, and the little heathen they call their son (the "blessing" of the title). On a deeper level, Mitford skillfully tells of culture clash, love, and family dysfunction, using her own situation (and clear-...
I picked this one from a metafilter list of happy books. It was a nice bit of dated fluff about wealthy folk in France and England just after WWII. Grace had impetuously married a charming Frenchman just before the war and 7 years later finally moves in with him and their son. All are wondering h...
Log in with Facebook 
