📚 "Rather Dated" bookclub choice for January: Elizabeth Jane Howard, The Beautiful Visit 📚

[frustratedacademic]

Happy New Year!

Welcome to the Mumsnet 'Rather Dated' Book Group, where we will be reading and discussing fiction from the 1930s to the 1990s that would have been described as 'contemporary' in its day.

We are reading one book a month. Spoilers are permitted.

We started the chat thanks to a thread started by @ImJustMadAboutSaffron (www.mumsnet.com/talk/what_were_reading/4624300-the-mumsnet-rather-dated-book-group-all-welcome-to-join?reply=122686322) where we kicked off with a discussion of Penelope Lively, The Road to Lichfield.

Currently we have these separate threads:

November: Anita Brookner, A Start in Life
December: Margaret Drabble: A Summer Bird-Cage
And this current one for January: Elizabeth Jane Howard, The Beautiful Visit.

Here's an excerpt from the book to whet your appetite (very reminiscent of the author's Cazalet Chronicles, I think:

"We walked back through the arch, pushed open the green front door, and were in the large hall. I shall never forget the smell of that house. Logs, lavender and damp, the old scent was of a house that has been full of flowers for so many years that the very pollen and flower pots stay behind intangibly enchanting - candles and grapes - weak aged taffeta stretched on the chairs - drops of sherry left in fragile shallow glasses - nectarines and strawberries - the warm earthy confidential odour of enormous books and butterfly smell of the pages, a combination of leather and moth - dense glassy mahogany ripe with polishing and the sun - guns and old coats - smooth dead fur on the glaring sentimental deers' heads - beeswax, brown sugar and smoke - it smelled of everything I first remember seeing there, and I shall never forget it."

This sounds good. I'm looking forward to it. Thanks frustratedacademic.

I finished this this morning and here’s the review I posted on the 50 books thread:

I have already finished my first book of 2023 (I had hoped to finish yesterday but didn’t quite manage it!). This was The Beautiful Visit, which was Elizabeth Jane Howard’s first novel. Her Cazalet Chronicles are among my favourite books and I’m gradually working my way through her others. I hadn’t read this so when it was suggested as January’s book on the Rather Dated thread I was pleased. I enjoyed this, although you can see it’s not as developed as her later works. This is set in the 1910s and told from the point of view of an unnamed heroine, who lives a very dull life until she pays a visit to the Lancing family where she realises life could be much more interesting. The heroine reminded me of the heroine in Rebecca (partly because they’re both unnamed but also both very passive). The ending was a bit odd but other than that this was a good start to the year!

Hello, my first time with the book club, thanks for having me.

I finished The Beautiful Visit two days ago and I enjoyed it very much. Elizabeth Howard’s writing style is poetic and vivid, I could see the people, the buildings and the landscapes in my mind.

SPOILER ALERT BELOW

The episode with Ian didn’t ring true. I had to flick back to early in the book to remember him (turns out he is a rich friend of Rupert’s who drives him down to the Lancing’s on the first visit and then is never mentioned again past the first night’s dinner. He doesn’t dance with the heroine, his departure doesn’t get a mention and yet he turns up four years or so later already ‘in love’. He can’t be that young either as it sounds like he’s already left Cambridge when he visits the Lancings, so already mid 20s at least. I don’t get why there wasn’t a bit more background before his reappearance, so would welcome any views on that one.

A key theme of the book for me was the claustrophobia, boredom and waste of women’s lives at this period. It has occurred to me before and this bought it home to me that war, horrendous as it is, has done more for women’s rights in this country than anything else. How shocking is that? War is good for women! The heroine’s sister is devastated by her loss of purpose when the war ends.

As for the PP who found the end a bit odd, I thought it worked, it felt like the novel was autobiographical (albeit fictionally, I don’t know anything about Elizabeth Howard’s own life) and gave hope for a new life of purpose for at least two of the women in the novel.

Thank you frustratedacademic. I have this on order from the library and am eagerly awaiting an email to say that it is ready for collection. What date is the discussion date please?

I'd like to join with this one if I may. I enjoyed reading the Cazalet Chronicles a few years ago, and haven't read anything else by the author.

Yes, when do we discuss, please?

Discussion is now!

Now? But it's day one of a January book? Though I see someone has already posted a review and spoilers! I couldn't help seeing some of that I'm afraid. What a shame.

@Whatevergetsyouthroughthenight

I think the lack of background of Ian is kind of the point - this book is told from the heroine’s point of view, and for her Ian was just someone else at the Lancing’s who made very little impression on her, so she didn’t think about him at all until she bumped into him again. Obviously the reverse wasn’t true for Ian as our unnamed heroine clearly made a massive impression on him and if the book was from his
point of view he would have mentioned him a lot.

Absolutely agree that women benefitted a lot from the war in many ways (while of course everyone suffered a lot in many ways too).

I also agree with the ending giving the women a sense of purpose - it was just so at odds with everything that had gone before (which I know was the whole point!) so just felt jarring to me.

The storyline isn’t anything like EJH’s own life (she did that in the Cazalet Chronicles - she’s basically Louise) but the sense of dullness and claustrophobia probably is autobiographical. I highly recommend her autobiography Slipstream as well as Artemis Cooper’s biography of her.

@Helghi it was decided on the main Rather Dated thread at the beginning of December to read this and start discussing in January. The separate threads are set up to avoid spoilers etc on the main thread for those still catching up.

I see. Thank you @ChessieFL That explains a lot that reading started in December and this is a discussion thread. I thought that was keen with the reading and reviews seemingly completed in just a few hours.

Though it says discussion from 25th Jan on the main thread. That's probably what confused me.

Her memoir is excellent.

Previously the discussion started on 25th of the month but for December the start was pushed back to 1st Jan due to the 25th Dec being Christmas Day!

I have put this on my kindle. The extract makes it sound quite long winded, more descriptive than pacey. I found the cazalet chronicles very gripping and would like to read more of EJH books.

Rebecca is one of my favourite books so I'm on board with a nameless narrator.

I also like reading about the early 1900s I feel my historical fiction skews towards WW2 so 1910 would suit me nicely.

I am listening to this on kindle and am finding it hard going. I am up to chapter 3 and thinking of giving up because nothing seems to happen and it’s all a bit inconsequential. Could somebody persuade me to carry on listening as I have paid for it 😄What’s good about it?

I got mixed up with the schedule, so I'm a bit late. I'll start reading it tonight and I'll join in when I'm finished.

Not at all late: we agreed to open each thread at the start of the month for people to contribute as and when they're ready.

I'm about half way through. Keep reminding myself that its set just over 100 years ago. Enjoying it so far.

I'm halfway through now. It's an enjoyable read. While it's a long enough book, the various episodes are quite short.
Do we ever find out the protagonist's name at all?!

No we don’t Fuzzy

Thanks Chessie. I wondered if I had missed it. I've just finished* *the book and I've read others' thoughts on the thread.

I enjoyed it. I really loved the writing. I thought it was very descriptive, evocative and vivid. I think it was long enough, but it held my attention throughout. I also thought it highlighted women's lack of agency at that time, that the only acceptable avenue for an adult woman was marriage. I also thought the feelings of frustration, boredom and claustrophobia were prevalent throughout the book.

The ending was surprising but satisfying. The prologue mirrored the last chapter. I guessed she wasn't going to get married because we had a preview of the voyage. There were two visits to the big house, two episodes with Rupert, one before the war, one after it. It had a nice symmetry.

I agree with Chessie about Ian. I think she made an impression on him and it didn't register with the reader because we viewed that time through her eyes. The encounter with Ian came out of the blue and it was surprising how strong his feelings were for her, but it wasn't unbelievable. He was very romantic, where Rupert was cynical and jaded.

This was my first time reading a book by this author and I would be interested in reading more by her. Thanks to whoever suggested it!

Just finished it! Will get my thoughts in order, then contribute to discussion.

My library has still not received my copy, it only receives one delivery per week on a Tuesday as it is a small branch so fingers crossed it arrives next week. I live in a large county and there is only one copy! Have got on order the Dorothy Whipple - at this rate it might arrive first.

I always enjoy Elizabeth Jane Howard’s beautiful, lyrical writing, so this was a treat although I do agree you can tell it’s an early work. It was almost diary like in the way it was so episodic and so much the unnamed narrators viewpoint. Very acutely observed; the shyness and awkwardness of the terrible double date with Agnes from the library and the strange job with the peculiar Mrs Border. The hundreds of watercolours all over the walls made me laugh, such an EJH detail. I wasn’t sure when it was set initially, because the outside world didn’t seem to intrude at all into the heroine’s consciousness, it was almost claustrophobic. And then when one of her brothers says Archduke Frank Ferdinand has been shot, it was quite a shock.
I agree the love affair with Ian seemed a bit odd. It was mostly long, quite formal speeches, and some hair brushing … and although I was expecting it, I was still moved when we find out he’d died. But the most powerful bits for me were almost throwaway lines: Lucy’s anguish when she tells the narrator Gerald’s friend had to shoot him, and when her poor mother never got to wear the red dress. Lovely, moving, acutely observed book. So glad I’ve read it. I did feel the ending was a bit sudden and perhaps a bit convenient. Was the last line a joke? Does Elspeth’s eccentric uncle believe the earth to be square?