Publisher's Synopsis
Diary of a Provincial Lady (1930)E. M. Delafield (1890-1943)THE ORIGINAL TEXT OF THIS RECORDING IS IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN IN COUNTRIES WHERE COPYRIGHT EXPIRES 70 YEARS OR LESS AFTER THE AUTHOR'S DEATH, BUT IS STILL PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT IN THE USA AND SOME OTHER COUNTRIES. PLEASE CHECK THE COPYRIGHT LAW OF YOUR COUNTRY BEFORE PURCHASINGABOUT THE story: First published in 1930, this charming, funny book is a warm portrait of a middle-class English family and their village life. Our heroine recounts the mundane delights and disasters of her household, dealing with constant money worries, the challenges of finding & keeping a really good parlourmaid, and how best to retain grace towards her fellow humans in the face of their astonishing range of foibles. It's also a wonderfully genuine description of a marriage, with all the little ups and downs of rubbing along with the same person for so many years.About the author: Edmée Elizabeth Monica Dashwood, née de la Pasture (9 June 1890 - 2 December 1943), commonly known as E. M. Delafield, was a prolific English author who is best-known for her largely autobiographical Diary of a Provincial Lady, which took the form of a journal of the life of an upper-middle class Englishwoman living mostly in a Devon village of the 1930s, and its sequels in which the Provincial Lady buys a flat in London and travels to America. Other sequels of note are her experiences looking for war-work during the Phoney War in 1939, and her experiences as a tourist in the Soviet Union."Notice, and am gratified by, large clump of crocuses near the front gate. Should like to make whimsical and charming reference to these and try to fancy myself as 'Elizabeth of the German Garden', but am interrupted by Cook, saying that the Fish is here, but he's only bought cod and haddock, and the haddock doesn't smell any too fresh, so what about cod? Have often noticed that Life is like that."ReviewsGlorious, simply glorious―DAILY TELEGRAPHShe converts the small and familiar dullness of life into laughter―The TIMESI reread, for the nth time, E. M. Delafield's dry, caustic Diary of a Provincial Lady, and howled with laughter―India KnightI finished the book in one sitting, leaving the children unbathed, dogs unwalked, a husband unfed, and giving alternate cries of joy and recognition throughout―Jully CooperFrom the PublisherThe Provincial Lady has a nice house, a nice husband (usually asleep behind The Times) and nice children. In fact, maintaining Niceness is the Provincial Lady's goal in life - her raison d'être. She never raises her voice, rarely ventures outside Devon (why would she?), only occasionally allows herself to become vexed by the ongoing servant problem, and would be truly appalled by the confessional mode that has gripped the late 20th century. The Provincial Lady, after all, is part of what made Britain great.
