This episode is all about married and unmarried people – in general, and two ‘spinsters’ in particular. Buckle up!
(Apologies if the podcast in your app overlaps the intro music with the intro chat… this one doesn’t, but I don’t know how it’ll appear elsewhere!)
In the first half, we look at books with married or unmarried characters. Yes, I’m aware that that is all books. We do narrow down a little! And in the second half we narrow down to two particular unmarried women – in Winifred Watson’s Miss Pettigrew Lives For a Day and Herbert Jenkins’ Patricia Brent, Spinster. Very many thanks to Karen for suggesting the topic. It is perhaps our most controversial one ever!
The episode with me on my brother’s podcast, C to Z of Movies, is now live! Listen to us discuss films beginning with S – either on Soundcloud or via your podcast app of choice. Other links – you can support the podcast on Patreon, or visit our iTunes page, or rate and review through various apps.
The books and authors we mention in this episode are:
A Lost Lady by Willa Cather
The Professor’s House by Willa Cather
Turtle Diary by Russell Hoban
Mansfield and Me called Sarah Laing
Brecht Evens
Peter Pan and Wendy by J.M. Barrie
Cry, The Beloved Country by Alan Paton
Dear Mrs Bird by A.J. Pearce
Greenery Street by Denis Mackail
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
Diary of a Provincial Lady by E.M. Delafield
Hostages to Fortune by Elizabeth Cambridge
They Knew Mr Knight by Dorothy Whipple
Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
Mr Bridge by Evan S. Connell
Mrs Bridge by Evan S. Connell
Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner
Mr Pim Passes By / Mr Pim by A.A. Milne
Lolly Willowes by Sylvia Townsend Warner
The Love Child by Edith Olivier
The Rector’s Daughter by F.M. Mayor
Alas, Poor Lady by Rachel Ferguson
Consequences by E.M. Delafield
Thanks Heaven Fasting by E.M. Delafield
Life and Death of Harriett Frean by May Sinclair
The Odd Women by George Gissing
Emma by Jane Austen
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
Invitation to the Waltz by Rosamond Lehmann
Frost in May by Antonia White
The Way Things Are – E.M. Delafield
Fell Top by Winifred Watson
Mary Webb
Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons
The Return of Albert by Herbert Jenkins
Bindle by Herbert Jenkins
Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier
The French Lieutenant’s Woman by John Fowles
Wow! I need to make time to listen to this.
Have to admit I’m Team Rachel re: Patricia Brent, Spinster, and after the love this has gotten in the blogosphere, it was nice to hear another point of view.
I’ve always been desperately fond of Nick and Nora Charles in The Thin Man! As for Miss Pettigrew vs Patricia Brent, the former is definitely the best book of the two. It just is pure joy in a way that Patricia isn’t and I think it’s because of the harder edge. But also it just makes you feel all warm and lovely, and I can understand what Rachel means about the annoyances of Patricia!
I agree with you Rachel about Dear Mrs Bird. It started off so well for me (with that cover especially!) but the chapter where everything comes to a head is one of the most dreadful copouts I have read. Such a shame.
You have “left out” my favourite novel about spinsters.
I am delighted that you liked my topic suggestion but so surprised that Rachel had such a visceral reaction to Patricia Brent! I really enjoyed it and I can see why you did — but I can’t believe I missed all the sexism. I do agree with Rachel regarding Patricia and why she kept pushing Peter away. But I loved some of the side characters especially the MP’s father-in-law. It was the right book at the right time for me, but I do agree that Miss Pettigrew is superior.
And I’d read a book about a spinster over a married couple any day, I think their stories are far more interesting. There has to be conflict to make a story interesting and I suppose that’s why you don’t see many happy marriages in fiction — unhappy marriages are too depressing to read about very often.