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With this novel Margery Sharp surpasses her own record for warmhearted, entertaining stories. She has used her light touch, her gentle wisdom about human nature, not in a comedy but in a sympathetic chronicle of a life spanning three generations. Here is a book about people who will take their places among the living in literature. Joining the select numbers of Margery Sharp heroines is Adelaide, who went to live in Britannia Mews in defiance and utter disregard of her family. Like Julia in THE NUTMEG TREE, and like Cluny Brown, Adelaide had several brains in her head, and a firm, not to say imperious, hand on her own destiny. She also had, as a girl growing up in would-be fashionable Victorian society, absolutely no preparation for what could happen when she broke away from the family shelter, but this was only the introduction to what actually did happen. Her own forthright reactions were responsible for the rest of the amazing story.
Adelaide’s decision to abandon her restrictive Victorian upbringing for a life in Britannia Mews sets off a multi-generational chronicle of defiance and personal reinvention. Adelaide navigates the social constraints of her era by asserting her independence, often clashing with the rigid expectations of her family and the shifting landscape of London society. The narrative follows her trajectory from a sheltered girl to a woman of firm resolve, detailing the consequences of her choices across several decades. The story employs a third-person perspective to observe the evolution of Adelaide’s character and the changing world around her.
This novel is characterized by its focus on the internal development of its protagonist against the backdrop of a changing Victorian society. The narrative style suggests a blend of social commentary and character study, typical of Sharp’s approach to domestic fiction. Readers likely engage with the book for its observational depth and the steady, chronological progression of Adelaide’s life. The work stands as a testament to the author's ability to weave personal growth into the broader fabric of historical transition, offering a measured look at the consequences of non-conformity.
Page Count:
320
Publication Date:
1969-05-01
Publisher:
HarperCollins Distribution Services
ISBN-10:
000221069X
ISBN-13:
9780002210690
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