Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Talk
What we're reading

Find your new favourite book or recommend one on our Book forum.

Original poster

📚 'Rather Dated' August: Nancy Mitford's 'The Pursuit of Love'📚

26 replies

FuzzyCaoraDhubh · 01/08/2024 08:58

Welcome to the Mumsnet 'Rather Dated' bookclub. This month we are reading and discussing Nancy Mitford's 'The Pursuit of Love'. Please do add your thoughts when you are ready. Everyone welcome :)

OP posts:
Original poster
FuzzyCaoraDhubh · 01/08/2024 09:13

Hello all! I'll start off our discussion with a few observations.

I hadn't read anything by Nancy Mitford before and I enjoyed this very much.
I thought the characters were well drawn and entertaining. I particularly liked Davey and the description of all his ailments. He could have been a useless lump of a hypochondriac, but he was very helpful to Linda and the family. I also loved Lord Merlin and his extravagant manor. Such decadence! Diamond necklaces on whippets! I didn't particularly like Lord Radlett, but he was quite a character.

There was a great deal of humour throughout, even when describing difficult situations such as the displacement of the Spanish in France. Mitford wrote about this with a light hand, but not in a trivial way, I don't think. I loved the relationship between Linda and Fabrice. The question of whether he was the true love of her life was dismissed by 'The Bolter's' comment at the close of the book. I think, however, he was. While it was a short relationship, it was a near perfect one all the same.

Back later!

OP posts:
Swipe left for the next trending thread