The Pursuit of Love & Love in a Cold Climate: Two Novels

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Binding: Paperback Dewey Decimal Number: 823.914 EAN: 9780375718991 ISBN: 0375718990 Label: Vintage Manufacturer: Vintage Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 480 Publication Date: 2001-12-04 Publisher: Vintage Release Date: 2001-12-04 Studio: Vintage
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Editorial Reviews: Few aristocratic English families of the twentieth century enjoyed the glamorous notoriety of the infamous Mitford sisters. Nancy Mitford's most famous novels, The Pursuit of Love and Love in a Cold Climate, satirize British aristocracy in the twenties and thirties through the amorous adventures of the Radletts, an exuberantly unconventional family closely modelled on Mitford's own. The Radletts of Alconleigh occupy the heights of genteel eccentricity, from terrifying Lord Alconleigh (who, like Mitford's father, used to hunt his children with bloodhounds when foxes were not available), to his gentle wife, Sadie, their wayward daughter Linda, and the other six lively Radlett children. Mitford's wickedly funny prose follows these characters through misguided marriages and dramatic love affairs, as the shadow of World War II begins to close in on their rapidly vanishing world.
Spotlight customer reviews: Customer Rating: Summary: The Pursuit of Love Comment: If you like novels of British life and quirky characters, you'll like this book. The story involves siblings and cousins, focusing primarily on the women, their marriages, affairs and work. The book is all the more interesting because it is written by Nancy Mitford, one of the Mitford sisters who have had some noteriety. In the forward, Nancy's sister, Jessica Mitford, claims that the book is closely fashioned after her family and their personalities. It isn't my favorite book, but I would recommend it for summer reading. Customer Rating: Summary: Hilariously funny books! Comment: The Pursuit of Love and Love in a Cole Climate are actually two short novels, centered around the same set of characters. In the Pursuit of Love, we are introduced to Linda Radlett, one of the seven children of Matthew and Sadie. Told through the eyes of Fanny Logan, a cousin with "wicked" parents (her mother has been nicknamed "the Bolter," not for nothing), the book is mostly autobiographical (how much so, I don't know). Linda marries at least twice and has love affairs about which she is surprisingly blasé, given the time in which this novel is set (between the wars and during World War II). Love in a Cold Climate, featuring the ill-fated marriage of Polly Hampton, is also told from the point of view of Fanny Logan. Both novels are a social commentary of marriage and the English class system. They're both novels of a bygone era (women's lives today certainly aren't, for the most part, defined by marriage), but Mitford did a wonderful job satirizing and picking apart the norm. These two novels are best read one right after the other; it's best to read Love in a Cold Climate after The Pursuit of Love. Customer Rating: Summary: Renewing an old acquaintance Comment: I first read "The Pursuit of Love" many years ago, but the humorous escapades of Fa and the Bolter have always remained in my mind. Reminded of the Mitford family by the recent publication of the sisters' letters, I reread "The Pursuit of Love." I found it as thoroughly entertaining as I found it the first time. And reading "Love in a Cold Climate" was another enjoyable experience as I wanted to know more about this zany extended family. Watching the current PBS "Complete Jane Austen" series, I find it amusing how many things did not change among the English upper classes in the over 100 years between Jane Austen's novels and Nancy Mitford's novels. -- Phyllis Zimbler Miller, author of "Mrs. Lieutenant" and co-author of "Seasons for Celebration" Customer Rating: Summary: These books are a must-read Comment: Love In A Cold Climate and The Pursuit of Love omnibus is a must-read for anyone who loves a wonderful turn of phrase, witty conversation and a peek into the past. Customer Rating: Summary: Interesting Read. Comment: I knew nothing of these two novels until just a few short days ago when I fell for the charms of Nancy Mitford. It was really interesting to learn that both The Pursuit of Love and Love in a Cold Climate are semi-autobiographical. Both novels were a classic read. Maybe they were a little boring in parts, but then so is life at times. Anyway, I am a huge sucker for love stories, and that's exactly what these were. I absolutely love how Ms. Mitford shows the two different sides of the narrator, Fanny in each novel. It definitely makes the entire book much more heart warming. Overall, it was a challenging, and interesting read. (I even had to consult my dictionary several times for new and interesting words.) More Reviews