manorclassics's review
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This is the first sequel to The Diary of a Provincial Lady, and is also known as The Provincial Lady Goes Further. It's more of the same, the misadventures of a wife, mother and author that are hilarious to read about. I personally think this one is just as good as the first even though the London sections are maybe a little bit less interesting. Overall a really fun read and I'm looking forward to the next in the series.
kmg365's review against another edition
3.0
I wish I liked this series more. I'm an inveterate Britophile, and even I can't help seeing the nameless voice of these books as a snob. She does engage in a fair bit of self-deprecation, which helps. Still, it's difficult to empathize with someone whose biggest problem is finding and keeping good domestic help. At one point, she mentions how nice it would be to be rich. Her husband doesn't appear to do anything, other than eat, read the newspaper, and grumble about everything. Perhaps if he sought gainful employment, his wife wouldn't have to earn all the income and worry about her frequent overdrafts at the bank. I can't reconcile the purchase of a flat in London, sending two children to boarding school, and vacations at the seaside in France with poverty, which the author frequently pleads.
Despite this obviously being meant as humorous, I did not laugh at all. It was more a matter of recognizing a punch line, and thinking “Yeah, I understand why other women of her time and socioeconomic stature might find that funny.”
Despite this, I will most likely read the third in the series, if only to see if she ever earns enough with her writing to buy all the dresses she wants.
ashleylm's review against another edition
4.0
I'm waffling a bit on my score. Four seems high, but it was, like its predecessor, such an easy pleasure to read, and that's worth something. It's just not quite as good as the first one—there was something especially funny/touching about the main subplot in the first (will the put-upon daughter escape her hilariously dreadful mother and marry?), and the current main subplot (what will the triple divorcee do next?) isn't as interesting and isnt' resolved.
So as a work of art, 3 stars. But as something to looking forward to reading before lights out, definitely 4 stars--and that's how I read it, so that's how I judge it.
(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s). I feel a lot of readers automatically render any book they enjoy 5, but I grade on a curve!
So as a work of art, 3 stars. But as something to looking forward to reading before lights out, definitely 4 stars--and that's how I read it, so that's how I judge it.
(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s). I feel a lot of readers automatically render any book they enjoy 5, but I grade on a curve!
julieclair's review
funny
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Second in a series. I enjoy Delafield’s writing and dry sense of humor. And her books give a fascinating picture of the life of an upper middle class English family between the wars. But I didn’t connect with this book as much as I did the first one, Diary of a Provincial Lady. I’m not sure why… perhaps because her writing style was already familiar to me so I didn’t find it as novel and refreshing.
lagobond's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 stars. Not quite as hilarious as [b:Diary of a Provincial Lady|249823|Diary of a Provincial Lady|E.M. Delafield|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1408938782l/249823._SX50_.jpg|242076], but still plenty funny, intelligent, and entertaining. Great fun for reading out loud.
I plan to check out some of the books mentioned by the Provincial Lady, because I want to read whatever E.M. Delafield liked to read. She was a spectacularly talented writer, and I feel so lucky that I came across her work. The authors who inspired her writing must have been very much worth seeking out. But first, [b:The Provincial Lady in America|860193|The Provincial Lady in America|E.M. Delafield|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1348341571l/860193._SY75_.jpg|845633]!
A free online/e-reader version of this book is available at https://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks08/0800701h.html
I plan to check out some of the books mentioned by the Provincial Lady, because I want to read whatever E.M. Delafield liked to read. She was a spectacularly talented writer, and I feel so lucky that I came across her work. The authors who inspired her writing must have been very much worth seeking out. But first, [b:The Provincial Lady in America|860193|The Provincial Lady in America|E.M. Delafield|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1348341571l/860193._SY75_.jpg|845633]!
A free online/e-reader version of this book is available at https://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks08/0800701h.html
sirius_feanor's review
3.75
My favourite part is the parties where nobody knows who anybody else is, but pretends they do.
bookpossum's review against another edition
4.0
Quite delicious. I enjoyed it just as much as the first volume, but will read other things before continuing the Provincial Lady's saga so that I can continue to appreciate E M Delafield's quirky sense of humour. My favourite quote from this volume comes while she is in London and is joined by her husband Robert. During the course of a conversation over lunch:
"That reminds Robert: there is to be a concert in the Village next month for most deserving local object, and he has been asked to promise my services as performer, which he has done. Definite conviction here that reference ought to be made to Married Women's Property Act or something like that, but exact phraseology eludes me, and Robert seems so confident that heart fails me, and I weakly agree to do what I can. (This, if taken literally, will amount to extraordinarily little, as have long ceased to play piano seriously, have never at any time been able to sing, and have completely forgotten few and amateurish recitations that have occasionally been forced upon me on local platforms.)
Highly recommended for a light-hearted look at life in an English village between the wars.
"That reminds Robert: there is to be a concert in the Village next month for most deserving local object, and he has been asked to promise my services as performer, which he has done. Definite conviction here that reference ought to be made to Married Women's Property Act or something like that, but exact phraseology eludes me, and Robert seems so confident that heart fails me, and I weakly agree to do what I can. (This, if taken literally, will amount to extraordinarily little, as have long ceased to play piano seriously, have never at any time been able to sing, and have completely forgotten few and amateurish recitations that have occasionally been forced upon me on local platforms.)
Highly recommended for a light-hearted look at life in an English village between the wars.
discount_viscount's review against another edition
4.0
This books finds The Provincial Lady, now a celebrated author, taking a flat in London, ostensibly to get some writing done but instead mostly reluctantly socializing with a variety of amusing friends and acquaintances including scandalous old school chum Pamela Pringle and Emma the Bloomsbury Group hanger-on. If the original Diary of a Provincial lady were chocolate cake, this would be day old chocolate cake - almost as good but not quite, but you still wouldn't mind another piece.