La atractiva Mary Preston, una joven perteneciente a una buena familia venida a menos, es invitada a la espléndida y lujosa finca de los Leslie en Rushwater. Allí, Mary perderá la cabeza por el apuesto seductor David Leslie. Sin embargo, su tia Agnes y la madre de David, la excentrica Lady Emily, planean emparejarla con otro hombre al que consideran un buen partido. En el espectacular baile de Rushwater, la felicidad de Mary, suspendida entre los imperativos del corazon y las maquinaciones de su familia, pendera de un hiloFresas silvestres (1934) forma parte de un ciclo de veintinueve novelas ambientadas en el condado ficticio de Barsetshire, que Angela Thirkell tomo prestado de Anthony Trollope. Con una mirada afilada y permanentes alusiones y guiños a los clasicos, desde Lord Byron y R. L. Stevenson hasta Ovidio y Virgilio, Thirkell da vida a una galeria de personajes comicos que se debaten entre lo sublime y lo prosaico, sin abandonar jamas una muy britanica obsesion por el estatus social.La critica ha dicho...Estos libros livianos, ingeniosos y amenos son estudios espeluznantes de la represion britanica. Thirkell saca a relucir los prejuicios, la intolerancia y el sentimiento de clase de sus personajes, sobre todo durante y despues de los años de guerra. Hermione Lee, The New YorkerThirkell tiene un don especial para penetrar hasta el corazon de un personaje con una unica frase inteligente y perversa. Sarra Manning, The Guardian

Una divertidísima comedia de enredos que inaugura la monumental saga de Barsetshire.Laura Morland, una exitosa escritora de «buenos malos libros», se dispone a pasar unas semanas de feliz reposo en s

"There is always in our minds the hope that we may find again those golden unhastening days and wake up and dream." - Angela ThirkellAngela Thirkell, the cousin of Rudyard Kipling and the granddaughter of celebrated Pre-Raphaelite painter Sir Edward Burne-Jones, was an eminent twentieth century literary figure, and wrote avidly until her death in 1961. In her beautifully nostalgic memoirs, she recalls in rich detail the three houses in which she grew up and the childhood memories their walls contain. Thirkells elaborate portraits of the three houses - The Grange in Fulham, 27 Young Street in Kensington Square, and North End House in Rottingdean - offer an invaluable insight into late Victorian life. Her recounting of forbidden explorations, Punch and Judy shows, and adventures in the garden are beautifully evocative of the innocent quality of childhood, and the personal recollections of her famous grandfather present a loving family man behind the renown. The exposure to music, art and literature that Thirkell details in her exploration of her beloved three houses foreshadows her later fictional creations - her Barsetshire novels.Three Houses allows us a snapshot of history from the busy literary centre of London to the English coast. Charmingly expressive, these stunning memoirs are both reminiscent of the golden days of youth and an interesting vision of a writer and the early influences that informed her later work.

Both wry and poignant, Peace Breaks Out was written in the tumultuous year that it was set. It is an unforgettable portrait of the joy and misgivings felt in the final days of the Second World War.

It will not, we hope, surprise our readers to hear that Lady Cora Waring, formerly Lady Cora Palliser, only daughter of the Duke of Omnium, wife of Sir Cecil Waring of Beliers Priory, was expecting what used to be called an interesting event. Not that the event was very imminent, but her Ladyship was so puffed up about it that her husband accused her of being a baby-snob. To which she replied that everyone was a snob about something and why not about babies, and her husband said they really ought to ask the Brandons to dinner and the Marlings too, by which he did not mean Mr. and Mrs. Marling from Marling Hall, but Oliver Marling and the Honourable Mrs. Oliver Marling, who was Lord Luftons elder sister.Va pour les Marlings, said her Ladyship, but why the Brandons, darling? They havent asked us to dinner and I am all for etiquette. Brides expect to be asked, to which her husband replied contemptuously that she wasnt a bride now, she was a matron.

We have at times been accused of putting so many people into our books that no one can remember who they are, in which stricture we entirely concur, as we often cannot remember who they are ourself (or selves). We have often been urged to provide some sort of genealogical chart of Barsetshire families, and several kind and gifted young admirers have even gone so far as to make a rough table of affinities; but, to tell the truth and shame him that shall be nameless, we have allowed matters to get so far out of hand that it is now almost impossible to reconcile the various discrepancies of dates and ages. For this we have no excuse and shall therefore offer two: the first that we find we get just as muddled about generations and relationships in real life as we do in Barsetshire; the secondin the words of The Water Babiesthat it is all a fairy story and you must not believe a word of it even if it is true. Those who are at the grandmother stage will understand how completely addled one is apt to be by the generations.

Barsetshire in the war years. Growing Up is the story of ladies, gentlemen, and their irrepressible children keeping the war at bay in their country town. Trying to do their part as the Second World War ravages Europe, Sir Harry and Lady Waring open their estate to convalescing soldiers - bringing romance, drama, and subtle life lessons to the Warings young niece and her friends.

Angela Thirkell is perhaps the most Pym-like of any twentieth-century author, after Pym herself - Alexander McCall Its August in the Barsetshire village of Worsted, and Richard Tebben, just down from Oxford, is contemplating the gloomy prospect of a long summer in the parental home. But the numerous and impossibly glamorous Dean family - exquisite Rachel, her capable husband and six of their nine brilliant children - have come for the holidays, and their hostess Mrs Palmer plans to rope everyone into performing in her disastrous annual play. Surrounded by the irrepressible Deans, Richard and his sister Margaret cannot help but have their minds broadened, spirits raised and hearts smitten.

Barsetshire in the war years. Miss Bunting, governess of choice to generations of Barsetshire aristocracy, has been coaxed out of retirement by Sir Robert and Lady Fielding to tutor their daughter Anne, delicate, sixteen years old, and totally lacking in confidence. When Anne makes friends with Heather Adams, the gauche daughter of a nouveau riche entrepreneur, her mother is appalled. Miss Bunting, however, shows an instinctive understanding of the younger generation - perhaps, having lost so many of her former pupils to the war, she is more sympathetic to their needs. She may be a part of the old social order, where everyone knows their place, but is wise enough to realise that the war has turned everything on its head and nothing will ever be the same again - even in rural Barsetshire.First published in 1945, Miss Bunting is a charming social comedy of village life during the Second World War.

Pretty, impecunious Mary Preston, newly arrived as a guest of her Aunt Agnes at the magnificent wooded estate of Rushwater, falls head over heels for handsome playboy David Leslie. Meanwhile, Agnes and her mother, the eccentric matriarch Lady Emily, have hopes of a different, more suitable match for Mary. At the lavish Rushwater dance party, her future happiness hangs in the balance . . .

Pomfret Towers, Barsetshire seat of the earls of Pomfret, was constructed, with great pomp and want of concern for creature comforts, in the once-fashionable style of Sir Gilbert Scotts St Pancras station. It makes a grand setting for a house party at which gamine Alice Barton and her brother Guy are honoured guests, mixing with the headstrong Rivers family, the tally-ho Wicklows and, most charming of all, Giles Foster, nephew and heir of the present Lord Pomfret. But whose hand will Mr Foster seek in marriage, and who will win Alices tender heart? Angela Thirkells classic 1930s comedy is lively, witty and deliciously diverting.

Lavinia Brandon is quite the loveliest widow in Barsetshire, blessed with beauty and grace, as well as two handsome grown-up children, Delia and Francis. So thinks their cousin Hilary Grant when he comes to stay and - like many before him - promptly falls for his fragrant hostess. Meanwhile, the Brandons ill-tempered dowager aunt is stirring up controversy over her legacy, and Lavinias attention is further occupied by the challenges of making a match between the vicar and gifted village helpmeet Miss Morris, and elegantly deterring her love-struck suitors. Angela Thirkells 1930s comedy is bright, witty and winning.

Originally published in the 1930s and 1940s and never before collected, these stories by the incomparable Angela Thirkell relate merry scenes of a trip to the pantomime, escapades on ice, a Christmas Day gone awry, and an electrifying afternoon for Laura Morland and friends at Low Rising, not to mention the chatter of the arty set at a London private view. Charming, irreverent and full of mischievous humour, they offer the utmost entertainment in any season of the year.

Charming, very funny indeed ALEXANDER McCALL SMITH Change is in the air in Barsetshire. The country may have a new queen, but Greshambury has a new rector, Canon Fewling, and a returned prodigal daughter: the beautiful, frivolous Rose Fairweather. But for lonely Margot Phelps, caring for her elderly parents in Jutland Cottage, the future holds little promise - until a group of benevolent neighbours, led by Rose, decide to take her under their wing. With a new tweed suit, a little kindness, and not one, but three, potential suitors, could happiness be around the corner at last? Jutland Cottage is a witty and heartwarming classic in Angela Thirkells beloved Barsetshire series.

Successful lady novelist Laura Morland and her boisterous young son Tony set off to spend Christmas at her country home in the sleepy surrounds of High Rising. But Lauras wealthy friend and neighbour George Knox has taken on a scheming secretary whose designs on marriage to her employer threaten the delicate social fabric of the village. Can clever, practical Laura rescue George from Miss Greys clutches and, whats more, help his daughter Miss Sibyl Knox to secure her longed-for engagement?Utterly charming and very funny, High Rising is irresistible comic entertainment.

You read her, laughing, and want to do your best to protect her characters from any reality but their ownNew York TimesThe county of Barsetshire is aflutter with preparations. With the wedding of Lucy Marling and Sam Adams fast approaching, and Lucys brother Oliver brooding over his ill-fated tendre for glamorous Jessica Dean, Mrs Marling calls for reinforcements. Help arrives in the form of charming writer Isabel Dale, still mourning the loss of her fiance on D-Day - who might just be the cure for a bruised heart. Meanwhile, social barriers are crumbling at Omnium Castle, where theatrical rehearsals are bringing together the newly married Brandons and the impoverished Dukes children, Lady Cora and Lord Silverbridge. The stage is set for a season of new alliances, old friends and second chances.A sparkling and deeply affectionate portrait of post-war England, County Chronicle follows The Old Bank House in Angela Thirkells beloved Barsetshire series.

You read her, laughing, and want to do your best to protect her characters from any reality but their ownNew York TimesIt is 1945. When peace breaks out at last, familiar wartime routines are interrupted, and the residents of Barsetshire seem as disconcerted as they are overjoyed. As the countrys eligible young men return home, life regains momentum: before long, everyone is spinning in a flurry of misunderstandings and engagements. The older generation, though, sees that the world will never be the same again.Both wry and poignant, Peace Breaks Out was written in the tumultuous year in which it is set. It is an unforgettable portrait of the joy and misgivings felt in the final days of the Second World War.

As the war continues it brings its own set of trials to the the village of Northbridge. Eight officers of the Barsetshire Regiment have been billeted at the rectory, and Mrs Villars, the Rectors wife, is finding the attentions of Lieutenant Holden (who doesnt seem to mind that she is married to his host) quite exhausting. The middle-aged ladies and gentlemen who undertake roof-spotting from the church tower are more concerned with their own lives than with any possible parachutist raids. There is the love triangle of Mr Downing, his redoubtable hostess Miss Pemberton and the hospitable Mrs Turner at the Hollies. And, to add to Mrs Villars woes, egocentric, imperious Mrs Spender, the Majors wife, is foisted on the rectory when she is bombed out of her London home. First published in 1941, Northbridge Rectory is a captivating comedy of an English village in the War years.

Barsetshire in the latter years of the Second World War is a peaceful and gossipy place, but there has been one lively change. A girls school, evacuated from London, has taken over Harefield Park. Miss Sparling seems to be the perfect headmistress: she dresses as a headmistress should and is an easy and erudite conversationalist. Her new neighbours like her and her pupils respect her, but there is something missing from her life; something which - though she never dreamt it when she arrived - perhaps Barsetshire can provide...

You read her, laughing, and want to do your best to protect her characters from any reality but their ownNew York TimesMr Marling, of Marling Hall, has begun to accept - albeit reluctantly - that he will probably never be able to pass his wonderful old estate on to his children. The Second World War is bringing an end to so many things, but the Marlings carry on as best they can in the face of rationing and a shortage of domestic help. Into their world arrive Geoffrey Harvey and his sister Frances, who have been bombed out of their London home. Bohemian and sophisticated, they rent a local house, and it is not long before they begin to have an effect on their neighbours. Geoffrey begins to court Lettice, the Marlings widowed daughter, but he finds he has rivals for her affections in dashing David Leslie and Captain Barclay. Observing everything and quietly keeping events on an even keel is the Marlings sage old governess, Miss Bunting.The novels are a delight, with touches of E. F. Benson, E. M. Delafield and P. G. WodehouseIndependent on Sunday