best comfort books

[poppy34]

Votes for

Gerogette heyer -any but esp grand sophy
Jilly cooper (rivals and polo being particular favourites)
Katharine -anya seton
gone with the wind - margaret mitchell
the pursuit of love - nancy mitford
the course of honour- lindsey davis

any other ideas (as always open to more esp in run up to summer holidays)

Cold Comfort Farm - love it love it love it

My comfort books are the EF Benson 'Mapp and Lucia' series. I also like the Darling Buds of May (which I liked before the TV adaptation, she says defensively).

Wuthering Heights

OH yes, meant to say - I completely agree with Cold Comfort Farm, Jilly Cooper (but the really old ones - bought Imogen in a charity shop the other day - haven't read it since I was 14 probably), and The Pursuit of Love, also Love in a Cold Climate.

Ooh, another vote for Jilly Cooper and Rivals here

Does anyone else read the Mary Stewart novels - Nine Coaches Waiting etc - always about some impoverished young girl travelling abroad and meeting some tall dark and handsome stranger. These are my ultimate comfort reads now and have been since I was a teenager.

If anyone is interested, India Knight has a fairly comprehensive list of comfort reads in one of her books, which is a good starting point for new comfort reading. I can fish the list out if anyone is interested

Nice thread! Mine is a James Thurber omnibus which makes me laugh and laugh. Even thinking about some of the Pet Department cartoons and the autobiographical writing makes me laugh.

And anything by Nigella Lawson or Nigel Slater.

When I was slightly younger, and not married and without kids, my comfort read was "The Barren Patch" by Sally Burton (Richard Burton's widow). The only book I have ever read more than twice.

Another vote for Rivals and for Nigel Slater.

But my favorites - read lots of times- are Pride and Prejudice, The Falconer's Lure, by Antonia Forest and Thendara House, by Marion Zimmer Bradley

Oh, I had forgotten Cold Comfort Farm - will search the book boxes for it tomorrow!

Another vote for Mapp & Lucia, and one for Nancy Mitford and one for Cold Comfort Farm.
Must be something about the 1930/40s.

madlabowner-that india knight list is good but does include forever amber which is very upsetting at the end plus she is a bit slappable as a heroine.

Also more recent one is the wedding officer by anthony capella - lots of lovely italian food references

Room With a View

Anything by K M Peyton

School stories inc Antonia Forest and Malory Towers

Noel Streatfeild (entire oeuvre)

E. Nesbit ditto

The Mists of Avalon - Marion Zimmer Bradley - marvellous escapism

Armistead Maupin - so witty, gossipy and cosy

Anne Tyler

Children's books in general, I think - as long as they're ones you read when you were a child.

And yes to most Jane Austen. Also Vanity Fair (though sad in places).

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
I also used to love The Darling Buds of May, which I used to read every spring until it was ruined for me by the stupid fecking tv series
Bernard Cornwell's Warlord Chronicles (the Arthur ones)
Falco series
oh and I have a private liking for Maeve Binchy books too

oh and P&P of course

Agatha Christies. YOu can read them in about half an hour.

for kids books -love chalet school books but sadly have given most of mine away (or thrown them away as fell apart)

Agree with the votes for Anya Seton's "Katherine", and for Georgette Heyers, Pride and Prejudice, and ALL the Laura Ingalls Wilder books (Little House on the prairie etc) I could come up with loads more, as I do re-read the books I enjoy quite a bit, and was big on reading particularly when I was a kid (had more time, and less interruptions). For years I haven't had time to read more than the Reader's Digest - at last getting back to more reading now my youngest is 4!

Why do my posts keep disappearing?

Anyway, Midnightexpress - I love James Thurber too!

Dubliners is my comfort book. Plus anything by Miss Read - anyone else know her books?

Oh god HC did you deregister too? Wtf is happening? Are you ok I feel like I haven't spoken to you for about a month?

I agree with lots of the other nominations - particularly Georgette Heyer, Noel Streatfeild and Chalet School! but also love Angela Thirkell although I accept that she is a minority interest (and hard to get hold of these days).

Betty Macdonald

(Oh no I didn't deregisterm I just changed to welcome Pruuuuuuuuni back I quite like it though, it makes me feel all Scandinavian. in a good way)