furrowedmiddlebrowclub

Miss Granby's Secret: Or, The Bastard of Pinsk | Eleanor Farjeon

As a teen I adored the romance in Farjeon's Martin Pippin in the Apple Orchard, but also appreciated the book‘s distinction between romanticism and love, so it was interesting to see her exploring similar themes here. The question is left more open-ended, but I ultimately found the book pretty sad, despite its humor.

#FurrowedMiddlebrowClub

rubyslippersreads, quietjenn, Jess_Read_This, Kimzey, erzascarletbookgasm, catebutler, CarolynM, LeahBergen, Lizpixie, elkeOriginal, Aimeesue, batsy, Tamra, bookandbedandtea, Teresereading, kwmg40, Cathythoughts, Ruthiella, julieclair, MrsK

Ruthiella Interesting that you have read this author before. I gather she is pretty well known as a children‘s author. 3h

LeahBergen I‘ve somehow not read her before either, @Ruthiella ! now

18 likes2 comments

willaful

Miss Granby's Secret: Or, The Bastard of Pinsk | Eleanor Farjeon

“You name will be branded in society. Women will draw their skirts aside as you pass. Men will refuse your hand at baccarat. You will be ruined, financially and socially. You will be dis-Almacked!“

Oh my, the end of “The Bastard...“ makes all the rest worthwhile!

#FurrowedMiddlebrowClub

Ruthiella Glad you liked it! 😃 It was certainly different from other DSP novels we‘ve read together. 1d

willaful @Ruthiella I'm not actually quite finished. I was referring to the novel within the novel. 😁 1d

LeahBergen It did! 😆 1d

29 likes1 stack add3 comments

willaful

Miss Granby's Secret: Or, The Bastard of Pinsk | Eleanor Farjeon

So the current situation, if I have it correctly, is three men in love with one woman, and one man in love with three women. 😂

#FurrowedMiddlebrowClub

Ruthiella You got it! 😂 (edited) 2d

LeahBergen Haha! 👍 1d

24 likes2 comments

willaful

Miss Granby's Secret: Or, The Bastard of Pinsk | Eleanor Farjeon

Racing and game, dicing and dancing, feasting and opera-going left him little time for sleep. His appetite was insatiable, his vitality enormous. He amazed even Casimir, accustomed to all debauches, and none of the entertainments to which he was bidden outrivalled Tarletan's in splendour. They frequently went on till after midnight.

willaful Damn, after midnight! What debauchery! #FurrowedMiddlebrowClub (edited) 3d

Faranae Midnight! Gasp! When is this supposed to be taking place? 😂 3d

willaful @Faranae I'm not sure its author even knows. 😂 (It's a story within a story, written by a 16 year old girl.) 3d

LeahBergen I laughed at that sentence when I read it! 3d

22 likes4 comments

LeahBergen

Miss Granby's Secret: Or, The Bastard of Pinsk | Eleanor Farjeon

pick

It might just be my mood right now but I found this to be an absolutely charming and touching read. I even enjoyed the silliness of the novel-within-a-novel written by 16-year-old (recently thwarted in love) Miss Granby although, as others mentioned, it does perhaps go on a bit too long. A frothy confection as sweet and old-fashioned as a china patchbox full of lilac cachoux. 😉

#FurrowedMiddlebrowClub

rubyslippersreads, quietjenn, Jess_Read_This, Kimzey, erzascarletbookgasm, catebutler, CarolynM, LeahBergen, JenlovesJT47, Lizpixie, elkeOriginal, Aimeesue, batsy, Tamra, bookandbedandtea, Teresereading, Cathythoughts, Ruthiella, julieclair, willaful, MrsK

Ruthiella I‘m glad you liked it! It was touching, but somehow I also felt a little sad about the unrequited love aspect of it. 1w

Tamra Terrific review! Of course as a 16 year old nothing resembling love is silly! I couldn‘t be paid any amount of money to go back. 😅 (edited) 1w

willaful @Tamra You remind me of this scene from Gaudy Night:

“Would you have your youth back if you could, Harriet?”

“Not for the world.”

“Nor I. Not for anything you could give me.

Gaudy Night

See All 21 Comments

Tamra @willaful 😂 I just stacked it - perfect! 👍🏾 1w

Cathythoughts Gorgeous review Leah ❤️ 1w

LeahBergen @Ruthiella It seemed unrequited but then it also seemed like they carried on this idealized version of youthful love purely for the nostalgia of it (and carried on with their best lives). Alicia was the one most invested in their love affair (sending S the poems to send to A each year) and I think that‘s why Adeline sent the Venus and Adonis statue to her at the old age home. You think? 1w

LeahBergen @Tamra @willaful Oh, how DEEPLY I felt my love as a 16 year old. 😆😆 1w

LeahBergen @Cathythoughts Thanks, Cathy! 😘 1w

Ruthiella Interesting perspective! Yes, I can see that and it makes me feel better. Thanks! 😊 1w

Tamra @LeahBergen 💔💔 1w

Tamra @LeahBergen yes, nice description! Preserving that pure adoration & devotion of a first love. Adeline cashed in on it in fact with her writing career. Yay Adeline! 😆 1w

elkeOriginal THOSE BOOKSHELVES OF YOURS ARE RIDICULOUS. le sigh 📚💕😻 1w

LeahBergen @Ruthiella It still makes me feel a little wistful, though 😆 1w

LeahBergen @Tamra I love that she cashed in on it so well! 😆 1w

LeahBergen @elkeOriginal Haha! Thank you! 😘 1w

rubyslippersreads A charming and touching read is exactly what I need right now. 1w

LeahBergen @rubyslippersreads Are you affected by the fires at all?? Are they close to where you live?? 😬 1w

rubyslippersreads @LeahBergen My area is okay, but I have a friend staying with me because she had to evacuate. But we‘re safe, so that‘s the main thing. 1w

LeahBergen @rubyslippersreads How awfully stressful! Sending you love! ❤️ 1w

rubyslippersreads @LeahBergen 😘 1w

julieclair Can‘t wait to start this! 3d

79 likes2 stack adds21 comments

bookandbedandtea

Miss Granby's Secret: Or, The Bastard of Pinsk | Eleanor Farjeon

pick

I enjoyed Farjean's social commentary and the revelations at the end were hilarious but I found the novel within the novel to be quite a slog. It turns out to be necessary to the plot but I kept wanting to get through it and get back to the "real" story. A soft pick for me. #FurrowedMiddlebrowClub

Ruthiella Nice review! 2w

LeahBergen I‘m just working my way through the “novel inside a novel” part right now! 1w

bookandbedandtea @Ruthiella Thank you 💖 1w

bookandbedandtea @LeahBergen It was entertaining but it felt too long. Just keep in mind that it's relevant! 1w

LeahBergen Very relevant! 😆 1w

35 likes5 comments

Tamra

Miss Granby's Secret: Or, The Bastard of Pinsk | Eleanor Farjeon

pick

Agree with @Ruthiella this one is a soft pick mainly because I didn‘t find the 16 year old Addie‘s novel entertaining. It would have been better had only excerpts been included. But, the comedy at the end had me laughing and guffawing out loud. High melodrama! #FurrowedMiddlebrowClub

Ruthiella I wonder if this is a modern reader thing . We don‘t have the patience for the long joke? 2w

Tamra @Ruthiella great question! It may very well be the case. It was quite comical for a modern reader and perhaps Farjeon‘s commentary on the necessity of proper (factual) education of young people. 2w

CarolynM Still waiting to get my copy, getting more impatient with every review I read😆 2w

Tamra @CarolynM I‘m anxious to read what you and everyone else makes of it! 2w

52 likes4 comments

Ruthiella

Miss Granby's Secret: Or, The Bastard of Pinsk | Eleanor Farjeon

pick

In 1912, young Pamela inherits her romance novelist Aunt Addie‘s unpublished first novel. 20 years later she discovers the truth behind the manuscript and Victorian melodrama and the real reason Addie never married.

A soft pick for this month‘s #FurrowedMiddlebrowClub selection. It was humorous, though “The Bastard of Pinsk” went a little too long for my patience. But mostly I found it sad, and I don‘t know if that was the author‘s intention?

rubyslippersreads, quietjenn, Jess_Read_This, Kimzey, erzascarletbookgasm, catebutler, CarolynM, LeahBergen, Lizpixie, elkeOriginal, Gissy, Aimeesue, batsy, Tamra, bookandbedandtea, Teresereading, Sace, kwmg40, Sparklemn, julieclair, willaful, MrsK

CarolynM Great review. Still waiting impatiently for my copy to arrive... 2w

LeahBergen I haven‘t quite got to the “Bastard” novel section yet. I‘ll come back when I‘m done! 2w

Ruthiella @CarolynM Hopefully it will arrive soon. 🤞 2w

See All 13 Comments

Ruthiella @LeahBergen Some of young Adelaide‘s malapropisms and misunderstandings in it are a hoot! 😅 2w

willaful @LeahBergen I've just gotten to it but confess to very little interest. I'd like to get back to the main story. 2w

LeahBergen @willaful oh oh! 😬 2w

Tamra Hahaha! I‘m 3/4 in and I was saying the same thing to myself about Adelaide‘s first novel. Definitely hit the mark as a 16 year old writer of the era. 😜 2w

Ruthiella @willaful Her “novel” has a bearing on the rest of the book , so stay with it. 2w

Ruthiella @Tamra It‘s hard to think a girl could be that sheltered, but of course it happens. 2w

Tamra @Ruthiella yes it does! My grandmother said she still believed storks brought babies when she got married! 😳 2w

willaful @Ruthiella ✅ 2w

willaful I found it sad too, and am also unsure about whether it was intentional or not. I think it's left somewhat open to interpretation. 1d

Ruthiella @willaful My initial reaction was one of sadness, for sure. 1d

69 likes13 comments

Tamra

Miss Granby's Secret: Or, The Bastard of Pinsk | Eleanor Farjeon

I puzzled over Pamela walking in on the lawyer searching the “davenport” for valuable assets. 🤔 Why would he and how long could it take to poke through the cushions of a couch? 😆

In America “davenport” is an old fashioned word for couch/sofa, which my grandmother used and is the only reason I am familiar with it. Apparently in the UK a davenport is a writing desk. I would have recognized it as a “secretary.”

#FurrowedMiddleBrowClub

Lcsmcat 😂🤣😂 Sometimes UK va US English can be very funny! 3w

Mollyanna My grandmother used Davenport too. I also would have thought of a couch. 😆 3w

Ruthiella I looked it up as well. Apparently a “davenport” can be both a sofa and a writing desk. In the case of the sofa, the company that manufactured that particular style was named “Davenport”. In the case of the writing desk, it was the designer‘s name. 3w

See All 7 Comments

Tamra @Ruthiella the plot thickens! 😆 3w

LeahBergen We used the word “chesterfield” for a couch in our family and I seldom hear it now. 😆 3w

Tamra @LeahBergen oh yes, I‘ve heard that too! That‘s a rare gem. 😁 3w

CarolynM Variations in language usage are always interesting. I‘ve only known “Davenport” as a small writing desk like the one in the picture or a town in Tasmania, but place names don‘t really count, do they🤣 To me a “Chesterfield” is a particular type of sofa - low backed leather studded with buttons @LeahBergen 2w

44 likes7 comments

Tamra

Miss Granby's Secret: Or, The Bastard of Pinsk | Eleanor Farjeon