Description
'A delightful memoir' Kate Saunders, The Times
'Fabulous . . . dazzling' Tatler
'Enchanting . . . movingly lyrical' Ysenda Maxtone Graham, Country Life
This short volume has turned out to be merely a handful of recollections of well-remembered times and stories - some probably misremembered, too - and a few people who have played a crucial part in my life. And some confessions: I have never before tried to write about my doll phobia, for instance, or about the effect synaesthesia has had over the years. I can only hope that this collection of stories from times past might give some idea of a mostly happy life that has gone, and is going, much too fast.
At the age of five Angela Huth decided she would become a writer. Hers was an idiosyncratic childhood. Her parents were known to be a highly glamorous couple: Harold was a famous actor and film director who possessed legendary charm; Bridget was known for her lively sense of humour, fluency in foreign languages and her penchant for giving memorable parties. But in spite of her parents' initial happiness, they parted after the war. Eleven years later they got back together, happily, though each would have a lover for decades. After her education ended prematurely - Bridget didn't believe in university for women - Angela Huth went from reluctant debutante to professional writer, switching from journalism to short stories, novels, plays for television and the stage.
Praise for Angela Huth:
'A first-class writer' Sunday Telegraph
'There is a very strong case for Huth replacing Jane Austen on the school syllabus' Sunday Times
'Angela Huth knows her own range and writes within it; she is an excellent exponent of the traditional English social comedy . . . she is in perfect control' Daily Telegraph
About the Author
Angela Huth has written thirteen novels and four collections of short stories as well as plays for radio, TV and the stage. She adapted two of her earlier novels for the BBC: Virginia Fly is Drowning and Sun Child. Land Girls was made into the 1998 feature film Land Girls starring Rachel Weisz and Anna Friel. She is also a well-known freelance journalist, critic and broadcaster. Angela is married to a don, lives in Warwickshire (in the 67th house she looked at) and has two daughters.
Reviews
Now pushing 80, Huth has what every aspiring writer most desires: a distinctive voice, dry, witty and utterly clear-eyed -- Marcus Berkmann * Daily Mail *
Enchanting memoir . . . scintillating thumbnail sketches . . . She is also movingly lyrical about some English customs -- Ysenda Maxtone Graham * Country Life *
Enjoyable . . . a series of vividly-written chapters, like snapshots in a high-end album. Most of these are fascinating, some hilarious; all are shot through with sparkling asides . . . a delightful memoir -- Kate Saunders * The Times *
Fabulous . . . dazzling . . . She may be 80, but the wit and keen powers of observation for which Huth's novels are known are not diminished a bit in this elegant and joyful memoir * Tatler *
Though it may not be the whole story, what a story it is . . . vividly described . . . marvellously gossipy . . . sweetly nostalgic . . . no doubt she is a thoroughly good egg: ever cheerful, a wonderfully loyal friend and as amusing and engaging a writer as one could hope to find -- Violet Hudson * Spectator *
This elegantly written, witty memoir tells the story of [Huth's] unconventional and fascinating life . . . A remarkably candid book on a life lived in full, capturing a world as lost as Elizabeth Bowen's novels . . . Unputdownable -- Rebecca Wallersteiner * The Lady *
Deliciously gossipy and amusingly trenchant, this is an entertaining "collection of stories from times past" -- Jane Shilling * Daily Mail *
Book Information
ISBN 9781472127044
Author Angela Huth
Format Paperback
Page Count 320
Imprint Constable
Publisher Little, Brown Book Group
Weight(grams) 260g
Dimensions(mm) 196mm * 126mm * 30mm