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Barsetshire #8
Before Lunch
As the title of this bright, unashamedly nostalgic novel suggests, Angela Thirkell had a genius for the quotidian. Published in 1939, Before Lunch was the last of Thirkell's books published before the darkening shadow of World War II made her glittering, reassuring portrait of the English countryside (embodied in "Barsetshire," her own Yoknapatawpha County) seem more and more anachronistic. The minor Thirkell renaissance currently proceeding has produced no more blessedly uplifting heroine than Lilian Stoner, the heroine of Before Lunch .
288 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1939
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702 people want to read
About the author
Angela Thirkell
79books249followers Angela Margaret Mackail was born on January 30, 1890 at 27 Young Street, Kensington Square, London. Her grandfather was Sir Edward Burne-Jones the pre-Raphaelite painter and partner in the design firm of Morris and Company for whom he designed many stained glass windows - seven of which are in St Margaret's Church in Rottingdean, West Sussex. Her grandmother was Georgiana Macdonald, one of a precocious family which included among others, Stanley Baldwin, the Prime Minister, and Rudyard Kipling. Angela's brother, Denis Mackail, was also a prolific and successful novelist. Angela's mother, Margaret Burne-Jones, married John Mackail - an administrator at the Ministry of Education and Professor of Poetry at Oxford University.
Angela married James Campbell McInnes in 1911. James was a professional Baritone and performed at concert halls throughout the UK. In 1912 their first son Graham was born and in 1914 a second son, Colin. A daughter was born in 1917 at the same time her marriage was breaking up. In November 1917 a divorce was granted and Angela and the children went to live with her parents in Pembroke Gardens in London. The child, Mary, died the next year.
Angela then met and married George Lancelot Thirkell in 1918 and in 1920 they traveled on a troop ship to George's hometown in Australia. Their adventures on the "Friedricksruh" are recounted in her Trooper to the Southern Cross published in 1934. In 1921, in Melbourne Australia, her youngest son Lancelot George was born. Angela left Australia in 1929 with 8 year old Lance and never returned. Although living with her parents in London she badly needed to earn a living so she set forth on the difficult road of the professional writer. Her first book, Three Houses, a memoir of her happy childhood was published in 1931 and was an immediate success. The first of her novels set in Trollope's mythical county of Barsetshire was Demon in the House, followed by 28 others, one each year.
Angela also wrote a book of children's stories entitled The Grateful Sparrow using Ludwig Richter's illustrations; a biography of Harriette Wilson, The Fortunes of Harriette; an historical novel, Coronation Summer, an account of the events in London during Queen Victoria's Coronation in 1838; and three semi-autobiographical novels, Ankle Deep and Oh, These Men, These Men and Trooper to the Southern Cross. When Angela died on the 29th of January 1961 she left unfinished the last of her books, Three Score and Ten which was completed by her friend, Caroline LeJeune. Angela is buried in Rottingdean alongside her daughter Mary and her Burne-Jones grandparents.
Angela married James Campbell McInnes in 1911. James was a professional Baritone and performed at concert halls throughout the UK. In 1912 their first son Graham was born and in 1914 a second son, Colin. A daughter was born in 1917 at the same time her marriage was breaking up. In November 1917 a divorce was granted and Angela and the children went to live with her parents in Pembroke Gardens in London. The child, Mary, died the next year.
Angela then met and married George Lancelot Thirkell in 1918 and in 1920 they traveled on a troop ship to George's hometown in Australia. Their adventures on the "Friedricksruh" are recounted in her Trooper to the Southern Cross published in 1934. In 1921, in Melbourne Australia, her youngest son Lancelot George was born. Angela left Australia in 1929 with 8 year old Lance and never returned. Although living with her parents in London she badly needed to earn a living so she set forth on the difficult road of the professional writer. Her first book, Three Houses, a memoir of her happy childhood was published in 1931 and was an immediate success. The first of her novels set in Trollope's mythical county of Barsetshire was Demon in the House, followed by 28 others, one each year.
Angela also wrote a book of children's stories entitled The Grateful Sparrow using Ludwig Richter's illustrations; a biography of Harriette Wilson, The Fortunes of Harriette; an historical novel, Coronation Summer, an account of the events in London during Queen Victoria's Coronation in 1838; and three semi-autobiographical novels, Ankle Deep and Oh, These Men, These Men and Trooper to the Southern Cross. When Angela died on the 29th of January 1961 she left unfinished the last of her books, Three Score and Ten which was completed by her friend, Caroline LeJeune. Angela is buried in Rottingdean alongside her daughter Mary and her Burne-Jones grandparents.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 105 reviews
August 7, 2021
It was underwhelming and slightly colourless compared to the sparkling & witty Pomfret Towers, but a light entertainment, nevertheless.
December 12, 2016
A delightful read.
Told with wit and charm.
If you ever need cheering up this one is perfect.
Who will end up with who I wonder?
I loved it!
Told with wit and charm.
If you ever need cheering up this one is perfect.
Who will end up with who I wonder?
I loved it!
February 8, 2025
I'll admit up front that I sometimes complain about books that don't have enough going on. Most novels require a fair amount of plot, I think, and some are very lacking. I wouldn't make that complaint about a Thirkell novel, however. In her novels not much happens, slowly, with humor and insight and great delight.
Take this book, for instance. The locals are upset about the proposed development of a certain plot of land, so they plan to protest. First they need to hold a meeting to organize the meeting where they will discuss the problem. Half way through the book they are just holding the first get-together. What happens at it? Absolutely nothing. Did I find myself grumbling about not enough going on? Absolutely not. I'm having too much fun with clueless husbands who natter on about how they can never get a word in edgewise, the local dairy cow rivalry, and generally wondering exactly who is falling for whom and how it will all work out.
It's not easy to lampoon people's frailties without coming across as sour or judgmental, but Thirkell succeeds. And I get a kick out of books where the men fall hopelessly in love but the women are often more interested in livestock, or dogs, or gardening. (It's refreshing after so many modern books where the girls act like they can't live without a man.)
Also in this book the author shows her ability to portray life's sadness and shortcomings without melodrama. Her books are full of characters who are in love, but they still manage to let down or hurt each other. Thirkell clearly realized that marriage isn't all happiness and love isn't without sadness, disappointment or pain. I think the Middleton's relationship shows this really well, but it's not the only one that does. There's some heartache mixed in with the happiness. I like this approach so much more than writers who beat you over the head with life's sorrows and ignore the joys.
This may be one of the best Barchester novels, and would be a good one for a first-time reader to try. There's a lovely balance of description and plot, humor and pathos. Thirkell was a genius. :)
Which one is this?
NB - Tastes vary, of course, but one thing I love about Thirkell is her apparent affection for her characters. I envision her living among them, seeing their shortcomings but, realizing she has those too, genuinely enjoying her neighbors. She may smile at them, but she's never mean-spirited.
Take this book, for instance. The locals are upset about the proposed development of a certain plot of land, so they plan to protest. First they need to hold a meeting to organize the meeting where they will discuss the problem. Half way through the book they are just holding the first get-together. What happens at it? Absolutely nothing. Did I find myself grumbling about not enough going on? Absolutely not. I'm having too much fun with clueless husbands who natter on about how they can never get a word in edgewise, the local dairy cow rivalry, and generally wondering exactly who is falling for whom and how it will all work out.
It's not easy to lampoon people's frailties without coming across as sour or judgmental, but Thirkell succeeds. And I get a kick out of books where the men fall hopelessly in love but the women are often more interested in livestock, or dogs, or gardening. (It's refreshing after so many modern books where the girls act like they can't live without a man.)
Also in this book the author shows her ability to portray life's sadness and shortcomings without melodrama. Her books are full of characters who are in love, but they still manage to let down or hurt each other. Thirkell clearly realized that marriage isn't all happiness and love isn't without sadness, disappointment or pain. I think the Middleton's relationship shows this really well, but it's not the only one that does. There's some heartache mixed in with the happiness. I like this approach so much more than writers who beat you over the head with life's sorrows and ignore the joys.
This may be one of the best Barchester novels, and would be a good one for a first-time reader to try. There's a lovely balance of description and plot, humor and pathos. Thirkell was a genius. :)
Which one is this?
NB - Tastes vary, of course, but one thing I love about Thirkell is her apparent affection for her characters. I envision her living among them, seeing their shortcomings but, realizing she has those too, genuinely enjoying her neighbors. She may smile at them, but she's never mean-spirited.
January 9, 2018
2.5
My least favorite of the Thirkells I've read thus far, and indeed I found most of the book crushingly boring. It had some charm (I liked the youthful composer of modern music so good naturedly playing Gilbert and Sullivan to old Lord Bond by the hour), but really, so little happened, even by Thirkell's standards. Also, I was further disgruntled on coming on the goodreads to rate the book, to see that I inadvertently jumped two books ahead in the (admittedly, rather loose) series. This is not this book's fault, but then who ever said life was fair.
My least favorite of the Thirkells I've read thus far, and indeed I found most of the book crushingly boring. It had some charm (I liked the youthful composer of modern music so good naturedly playing Gilbert and Sullivan to old Lord Bond by the hour), but really, so little happened, even by Thirkell's standards. Also, I was further disgruntled on coming on the goodreads to rate the book, to see that I inadvertently jumped two books ahead in the (admittedly, rather loose) series. This is not this book's fault, but then who ever said life was fair.
November 9, 2022
Yes. It is extraordinary how many things can happen before lunch.
This book had/was:
--> British charm
--> witty dialogues
--> wise, observant eye of Angela Thirkell
--> smart and funny satire of British society living in countryside
--> perfectly chosen and described characters
--> unusual, original love stories (I mean, Mrs. Thirkell connected people who most writers wouldn't have connected).
These (mentioned above) things you can find in her other books. In this one, they created an almost perfect novel. I really appreciate that Thirkell's characters had a real job. That they had an ordinary life.
In "Before lunch" I loved especially:
--> young Bond's witty tongue,
--> the way Daphne's confidence and character stability crumbled because of love,
--> relationship between Mrs. and Mr. Middleton and between Mrs. Middleton and Denis,
--> the bittersweet note that was hanging in the story.
I admit also that there was (as for me) a bit too much talking about cows, arrangements for the meeting and food. But I can forgive it. ;-)
So, in summary, I still value a bit more and than . But, I think also that I will remember all Thirkell's books for a long time, at least some aspects of each of them.
August 17, 2017
Mrs. Stoner and her grown step-children, Denis and Daphne have come to spend the summer with Mrs. Stoner's brother, Mrs. Middleton. Mrs. Stoner and her sister-in-law, Catherine (Catherine Middleton!) soon become fast friends. Denis also befriends Mrs. Middleton, whom he believes to be long-suffering and also becomes close with Lord Bond, who IS long-suffering. Daphne makes new friends too: Mr. Cameron, the law partner of Mr. Middleton and C.W., the son of Lord and Lady Bond. She soon makes herself indispensable to the local gentry and falls in love... with cows. Lady Bond and Mr. Middleton are incensed that someone would build a garage on a historic piece of land and are determined to DO something about it. As the summer goes on, no one wants anything to change; but change must happen sooner or later.
This story is relatively simple for Angela Thirkell. It took a few pages to figure out all the characters but once I knew who they were, I got into it. The romantic plot is slightly more complicated than I expected. I dislike love triangles as a rule but this one was interesting and I wasn't sure who would end up with who. There is one romance that borders on emotional affair but it is never acted on.
The social satire of the novel centers around Mr. Middleton and isn't laugh out loud funny, but it is the sort of thing Jane Austen would have picked up on and made fun of in her novels. Angela Thirkell also skewered the gluten-free health craze. I know certain people CAN'T tolerate gluten but here we have a hypochondriac who can't eat starch or ice or anything else really. She has a special diet bread that she eats and makes her hosts track it down for her. Miss Starter would be right at home in Jane Austen's unfinished Sanditon.
I loved the bucolic countryside and the quirky people of the neighborhood, except Mr. Middleton. He's a prosy bore and completely self-centered-most of the time. Once in awhile he would surprise me by being very sweet. He's sort of a more intelligent Mr. Collins (Pride and Prejudice) while his wife is too kind and good to be married to such a man. They make it work somehow and are very fond of each other. I simply adored all the old men in this book. Lord Bond is especially sweet and I felt very sorry for him to first be lorded over by his mother and then his wife (at one point BOTH). He seems a very dear man who has few pleasures in life. Another funny character is Ed, who is a bit simple but knows everything about cars and naughty old folk songs. His driving made me cringe, want to be sick and laugh all at the same time. Mr. Pucken is also hilarious with his cows and his knowing eye.
The secondary women were also great characters. Lady Bond is frightening! Lu Pucken, the maid named for Lady Bond (Lucasta) is silly, romantic and clumsy but somehow endearing. I felt bad for her having to work under her mother's hyper-observant eye. Mrs. Pucken is pretty funny, unintentionally on her part. Flora the dog even manages to be funny despite her master's insistence on her devotion to him.
As for the main female characters, I wasn't crazy about any of them. I did not like Daphne at first. She seemed ditzy and sounded like she was going to be an annoying twit like Rose, the Dean's daughter. Daphne surprised me. I loved the way she handled bullies. I grew to like her because of it and because of her fondness for the country (and cows). Mrs. Stoner (Lillian) is gentle and kind but kind of silly at times and her speeches were always rambling and incoherent. I wasn't crazy about the way she smothered Denis though she did what she felt was right. Her story ends in a surprising way. I didn't see that coming. Mrs. Middleton is in a tough spot but she went into her marriage as an adult and knew it wasn't ideal. She's the Charlotte Lucas character of this book. Catherine is kind and caring but her nerves wear down listening to her pompous idiot husband. I could not stand being married to him but she is fond of him in her own way and he of her.
The main male characters were not quite as appealing. Denis is a musician and also a semi-invalid. I wanted to tell him to throw away the doctor's medicine, eat healthy and exercise and he would be fine. He's not a hypochondriac, he's just been fussed over too much and made to believe he's sickly and sensitive. He's more astute than the rest of his family and a little more gentle and kind. Mr. Cameron is a nice enough chap but completely blind to anything except what he thinks he is feeling. C.W. is a wonder considering his mother. He is not at all spoiled or affected and will make a great lord of the manor someday- if he survives. I liked him best of the younger men.
This is a simple, sweet book. It's not quite Angela Thirkell's best but it's a very typically English countryside set novel. I plan to read more of the series.
This story is relatively simple for Angela Thirkell. It took a few pages to figure out all the characters but once I knew who they were, I got into it. The romantic plot is slightly more complicated than I expected. I dislike love triangles as a rule but this one was interesting and I wasn't sure who would end up with who. There is one romance that borders on emotional affair but it is never acted on.
The social satire of the novel centers around Mr. Middleton and isn't laugh out loud funny, but it is the sort of thing Jane Austen would have picked up on and made fun of in her novels. Angela Thirkell also skewered the gluten-free health craze. I know certain people CAN'T tolerate gluten but here we have a hypochondriac who can't eat starch or ice or anything else really. She has a special diet bread that she eats and makes her hosts track it down for her. Miss Starter would be right at home in Jane Austen's unfinished Sanditon.
I loved the bucolic countryside and the quirky people of the neighborhood, except Mr. Middleton. He's a prosy bore and completely self-centered-most of the time. Once in awhile he would surprise me by being very sweet. He's sort of a more intelligent Mr. Collins (Pride and Prejudice) while his wife is too kind and good to be married to such a man. They make it work somehow and are very fond of each other. I simply adored all the old men in this book. Lord Bond is especially sweet and I felt very sorry for him to first be lorded over by his mother and then his wife (at one point BOTH). He seems a very dear man who has few pleasures in life. Another funny character is Ed, who is a bit simple but knows everything about cars and naughty old folk songs. His driving made me cringe, want to be sick and laugh all at the same time. Mr. Pucken is also hilarious with his cows and his knowing eye.
The secondary women were also great characters. Lady Bond is frightening! Lu Pucken, the maid named for Lady Bond (Lucasta) is silly, romantic and clumsy but somehow endearing. I felt bad for her having to work under her mother's hyper-observant eye. Mrs. Pucken is pretty funny, unintentionally on her part. Flora the dog even manages to be funny despite her master's insistence on her devotion to him.
As for the main female characters, I wasn't crazy about any of them. I did not like Daphne at first. She seemed ditzy and sounded like she was going to be an annoying twit like Rose, the Dean's daughter. Daphne surprised me. I loved the way she handled bullies. I grew to like her because of it and because of her fondness for the country (and cows). Mrs. Stoner (Lillian) is gentle and kind but kind of silly at times and her speeches were always rambling and incoherent. I wasn't crazy about the way she smothered Denis though she did what she felt was right. Her story ends in a surprising way. I didn't see that coming. Mrs. Middleton is in a tough spot but she went into her marriage as an adult and knew it wasn't ideal. She's the Charlotte Lucas character of this book. Catherine is kind and caring but her nerves wear down listening to her pompous idiot husband. I could not stand being married to him but she is fond of him in her own way and he of her.
The main male characters were not quite as appealing. Denis is a musician and also a semi-invalid. I wanted to tell him to throw away the doctor's medicine, eat healthy and exercise and he would be fine. He's not a hypochondriac, he's just been fussed over too much and made to believe he's sickly and sensitive. He's more astute than the rest of his family and a little more gentle and kind. Mr. Cameron is a nice enough chap but completely blind to anything except what he thinks he is feeling. C.W. is a wonder considering his mother. He is not at all spoiled or affected and will make a great lord of the manor someday- if he survives. I liked him best of the younger men.
This is a simple, sweet book. It's not quite Angela Thirkell's best but it's a very typically English countryside set novel. I plan to read more of the series.
June 3, 2024
2024 reread - 3.5 stars, lowered from my usual 5 stars for a Thirkell social comedy, set among the rural landed English gentlefolk of the 1930s and usually very entertaining. I first read this in 2011, left only a star review, wanted to review it for future reference- Thirkell is a comfort reread for me! She was prolific, producing a Barsetshire novel almost yearly, and as with any lengthy series, the quality varies.
Now I know why I couldn’t remember a thing from my first read many years ago. This one is set on the cusp of World War II, only vaguely referenced here; in future books it takes center stage as beloved characters go off to fight, and those at home valiantly suffer blackouts, rationing and endless war work. I look forward to rereading those excellent books, some of her best, I think.
This lighter than lightweight plot, about trying to stop development on a rural piece of county land, had several of Thirkell’s favorite characters - the pompous, self-centered windbag of an older man; the tired yet adoring younger wife around whom what action there is, revolves; the younger professional man and even younger handsome young swain, both imagining love for the wrong woman. There were funny, raucous meetings where county characters came together to gossip, make speeches and drink tea (and accomplish nothing). The young swain writes music, and willingly comes to play Gilbert & Sullivan for downtrodden Lord Bond, whose wife is one of those force-of-nature aristocratic women Thirkell does so well, who rule everyone around them with an iron fist.
There are some very funny scenes, as one can expect from any Thirkell novel, all set in the rural, imaginary Barsetshire created by Victorian novelist Anthony Trollope.
Anyway, knocked off a star and a half for not getting the usual Thirkell happy buzz I expect.
Now I know why I couldn’t remember a thing from my first read many years ago. This one is set on the cusp of World War II, only vaguely referenced here; in future books it takes center stage as beloved characters go off to fight, and those at home valiantly suffer blackouts, rationing and endless war work. I look forward to rereading those excellent books, some of her best, I think.
This lighter than lightweight plot, about trying to stop development on a rural piece of county land, had several of Thirkell’s favorite characters - the pompous, self-centered windbag of an older man; the tired yet adoring younger wife around whom what action there is, revolves; the younger professional man and even younger handsome young swain, both imagining love for the wrong woman. There were funny, raucous meetings where county characters came together to gossip, make speeches and drink tea (and accomplish nothing). The young swain writes music, and willingly comes to play Gilbert & Sullivan for downtrodden Lord Bond, whose wife is one of those force-of-nature aristocratic women Thirkell does so well, who rule everyone around them with an iron fist.
There are some very funny scenes, as one can expect from any Thirkell novel, all set in the rural, imaginary Barsetshire created by Victorian novelist Anthony Trollope.
Anyway, knocked off a star and a half for not getting the usual Thirkell happy buzz I expect.
August 18, 2021
FINALLY finished Before Lunch by Angela Thirkell. There were many reasons it took me so long. First was that I was listening to it on a platform (Hoopla) that made it difficult to just turn on whenever I wanted. Usually this would be on my walks (weather's been too cold) and in the car on my way to and from work. Secondly, the book did not keep my interest most of the way through. It is a little disconcerting to me how similar all 4 of the books I have read by her have been. The characters have all been very much the same, and also the plot points. Young callow man, in love with a considerably older married woman and young and old partnered with the wrong people that eventually get sorted out by the end. The end of this one was a little bittersweet and a tad melancholy for one couple.
Before Lunch features many mentions and brief appearances of several characters from the other 2 novels I have read by her. This would normally charm and interest me, but I couldn’t remember the revisited characters well enough to care much. I probably could have stayed engaged better if this has not been an audiobook. For me, it really didn’t pick up until about halfway through. I still had some chuckles over Thirkell's wry observations and witty turns of phrase, but I think I am going to take a little break from her for a while. Too many books, so little time, and all that. Also, I would have to pay for any more I read: I think I’ve exhausted all of the titles my library has available.
Before Lunch features many mentions and brief appearances of several characters from the other 2 novels I have read by her. This would normally charm and interest me, but I couldn’t remember the revisited characters well enough to care much. I probably could have stayed engaged better if this has not been an audiobook. For me, it really didn’t pick up until about halfway through. I still had some chuckles over Thirkell's wry observations and witty turns of phrase, but I think I am going to take a little break from her for a while. Too many books, so little time, and all that. Also, I would have to pay for any more I read: I think I’ve exhausted all of the titles my library has available.
October 20, 2019
Appeared to be very easy to read, simple to understand and straightforward to form an overall picture in the head book about software architecture. A lot of wisdom, good examples, celar structure. This book is good for a wide range of audience. I would even recommend it to managers. It will help to avoid some stupid technical decisions.
April 6, 2017
Not my favourite Thirkell, but still sweet and funny. I love Daphne and Cedric, Denis, Lilian, Cameron, even Lady Bond.
But poor Catherine Middleton!
(Never thought I'd ever write those words! ;))
But poor Catherine Middleton!
(Never thought I'd ever write those words! ;))
June 26, 2013
Poor Mrs Middleton....
March 26, 2013
Mr. Middleton's sister Lilian Stonor and her stepchildren Daphne and Denis are coming to live next door for the summer.
Daphne soon finds herself the object of attentions from two men. C.W. Bond is a neighbor, a young man with extremely suitable prospects in life and good family. Alister Cameron is a much older man who nonetheless finds himself completely taken by Daphne. Stepmother Lilian frets over the situation, certain that Alister is going to get his heart broken. The fact that he is actually closer to her own age and that they are very sympathetic friends has nothing to do with it.
Then there is Denis, a sickly young man with musical talent and a dream of writing a new ballet, but no money to produce it. His kindness to Lord Bond, a slightly henpecked gentleman with a fondness for Gilbert & Sullivan, may just open up some new possibilities for Denis' future. Denis also develops a friendship with Mrs. Middleton, the weary but sympathetic wife of his stepmother's brother. This friendship is a vaguely unsettling vibe in the book, but it is allowed to drop at the end.
Angela Thirkell: I think I've said it before. She falls somewhere in between the traditional and the modern, and her books vary in how recommendable they are to people who love the traditional, old-fashioned stuff.
Also she seems to have some stock characters that kind of get moved from one book to another. The vapid-but-ultimately-intelligent middle-aged woman is one. Also the young, idealistic man who respectfully worships from afar an older, unattainable woman. Also the boisterous, capable young woman who is enthusiastically interested in either A) cows, B) pigs, or C) severe injury and sickness.
Weird stock characters, no?
There are some real laugh-worthy lines in this one, though.
Daphne soon finds herself the object of attentions from two men. C.W. Bond is a neighbor, a young man with extremely suitable prospects in life and good family. Alister Cameron is a much older man who nonetheless finds himself completely taken by Daphne. Stepmother Lilian frets over the situation, certain that Alister is going to get his heart broken. The fact that he is actually closer to her own age and that they are very sympathetic friends has nothing to do with it.
Then there is Denis, a sickly young man with musical talent and a dream of writing a new ballet, but no money to produce it. His kindness to Lord Bond, a slightly henpecked gentleman with a fondness for Gilbert & Sullivan, may just open up some new possibilities for Denis' future. Denis also develops a friendship with Mrs. Middleton, the weary but sympathetic wife of his stepmother's brother. This friendship is a vaguely unsettling vibe in the book, but it is allowed to drop at the end.
Angela Thirkell: I think I've said it before. She falls somewhere in between the traditional and the modern, and her books vary in how recommendable they are to people who love the traditional, old-fashioned stuff.
Also she seems to have some stock characters that kind of get moved from one book to another. The vapid-but-ultimately-intelligent middle-aged woman is one. Also the young, idealistic man who respectfully worships from afar an older, unattainable woman. Also the boisterous, capable young woman who is enthusiastically interested in either A) cows, B) pigs, or C) severe injury and sickness.
Weird stock characters, no?
There are some real laugh-worthy lines in this one, though.
September 19, 2017
These Carol & Graf reprints had much better editing than the more recent editions.
May 28, 2019
Not my favourite Barsetshire novel, but I'm trying to read them in order and this was next on the list. There were definitely a few great scenes and the usual sparkling dialogue, but I found myself confused between the two middle-aged neighbour women, both of whom fell in love unexpectedly. It's unusual that anybody winds up unhappy in Angela Thirkell's novels so I felt a little badly for the one couple whose passion was doomed. However, I did enjoy the emergence of some minor characters from previous novels.
November 21, 2021
Somehow, I managed to delete my review so I’m having to rewrite it with less enthusiasm.
Anyhow - a slight novel that feels like a cross between the worlds of Nancy Mitford, Cranford and Mapp & Lucia, with a suspiciously high density of Lords and Ladies all obsessed with cows and trying to stop an upstart nouveau riche businessman buying a local beauty spot and building a garage on it (it’s never clear if they mean somewhere to store his car, a petrol station, or a business where car mechanics work). Alongside this NIMBY crusade various people fall in love with the wrong people and one couple who can never be together become hopelessly besotted in a silent and never-vocalised way.
In the end, the garage doesn’t get built, the cow calves and the various couple sort their puzzles and fall for the right people (apart from the hopelessly besotted silent couple who have to part).
Overall this was light and fluffy and entertaining while never quite gripping and, unfortunately, I was never convinced by the hopelessly besotted couple. Dennis was described early on as too much of a skinny, weedy, self pitying hypochondriac, so I couldn’t understand how the competent, loved-by-all, always helping others Catherine Middleton would ever have fallen for yet another man whom she’d end up needing to constantly look after like a man baby.
Anyhow - a slight novel that feels like a cross between the worlds of Nancy Mitford, Cranford and Mapp & Lucia, with a suspiciously high density of Lords and Ladies all obsessed with cows and trying to stop an upstart nouveau riche businessman buying a local beauty spot and building a garage on it (it’s never clear if they mean somewhere to store his car, a petrol station, or a business where car mechanics work). Alongside this NIMBY crusade various people fall in love with the wrong people and one couple who can never be together become hopelessly besotted in a silent and never-vocalised way.
In the end, the garage doesn’t get built, the cow calves and the various couple sort their puzzles and fall for the right people (apart from the hopelessly besotted silent couple who have to part).
Overall this was light and fluffy and entertaining while never quite gripping and, unfortunately, I was never convinced by the hopelessly besotted couple. Dennis was described early on as too much of a skinny, weedy, self pitying hypochondriac, so I couldn’t understand how the competent, loved-by-all, always helping others Catherine Middleton would ever have fallen for yet another man whom she’d end up needing to constantly look after like a man baby.
September 9, 2020
I really enjoyed this on audio. It was another one set in summer in Barsetshire. It was interesting to see the similarities and differences in three sets of siblings. I loved indignation of the country folk over a rumored garage being built where it shouldn't be! And therefore a meeting about having a meeting had to take place at the home of whomever served the best tea. It was wonderful. And I am happy to report, as always, someone got engaged in the end. In fact, three engagements in the end! And, quite possibly, an unexpected gentle nod to a love that cannot be with a married woman occurs. So unlike the Thirkell novels I've read this summer. And yet, also so aptly in keeping with the tone of the Thirkell novels I've read this summer.
May 13, 2018
Неожиданно глубокий роман. Пожалуй, пока что наиболее _стоящий_ из всех, что я у нее читала. Бонусом, как всегда у Тиркелл, эпизодически возникают герои предыдущих книг, и мы узнаем, как у них дела.
July 10, 2014
Angela Thirkell's pre-WW II novel explores the strange undercurrents that can exist between even the most civilized and reserved Britishers.
Mr. Middleton, a loquacious architect who likes to imagine himself a country squire in the weekend, is having his widowed sister and her two stepchildren Daphne and Denis as renters in the neighboring house. Mr. Middleton's long-term business associate, Mr. Cameron, is a frequent guest. Before long, all of them are deeply involved in county business, especially the vexing question of some upstart planning to build houses on a beloved field. Denis, fragile, artistic, perhaps a little overprotected by his doting step-mother, develops an attachment to the quiet Mrs. Middleton, even though nothing is ever said between them. Daphne seems to waffle between the attentions of young Mr. Bond, son of Lord and Lady Bond, and those of Mr. Cameron. Mrs. Middleton and Lilion Stonor watch all these fluctuating attachments without saying much but while feeling all the more. Daphne gets briefly engaged to the wrong man, the imperious Lady Bond is subtly outmanoeuvered, and Denis gets to realize a professional dream. Mrs. Middleton, who loves her husband but is not blind to his faults, suffers in silence as the two friends who are dearest to her must inevitably detach themselves a little. In the end, disaster is averted, two couples get engaged, the endangered field is miraculously salvaged, and the prize heifer delivers a beautiful calf. And all that before lunch!
Mr. Middleton, a loquacious architect who likes to imagine himself a country squire in the weekend, is having his widowed sister and her two stepchildren Daphne and Denis as renters in the neighboring house. Mr. Middleton's long-term business associate, Mr. Cameron, is a frequent guest. Before long, all of them are deeply involved in county business, especially the vexing question of some upstart planning to build houses on a beloved field. Denis, fragile, artistic, perhaps a little overprotected by his doting step-mother, develops an attachment to the quiet Mrs. Middleton, even though nothing is ever said between them. Daphne seems to waffle between the attentions of young Mr. Bond, son of Lord and Lady Bond, and those of Mr. Cameron. Mrs. Middleton and Lilion Stonor watch all these fluctuating attachments without saying much but while feeling all the more. Daphne gets briefly engaged to the wrong man, the imperious Lady Bond is subtly outmanoeuvered, and Denis gets to realize a professional dream. Mrs. Middleton, who loves her husband but is not blind to his faults, suffers in silence as the two friends who are dearest to her must inevitably detach themselves a little. In the end, disaster is averted, two couples get engaged, the endangered field is miraculously salvaged, and the prize heifer delivers a beautiful calf. And all that before lunch!
September 17, 2017
4.5*
Wanda McCaddon does a marvelous narration.
Wanda McCaddon does a marvelous narration.
December 28, 2024
Before Lunch by Angela Thirkell
10 out of 10
The exaltation felt when reading a Magnum opus like Before Lunch has no limits � at least for the under signed � and it offers one a means for Serenity Now � as in the famous line from Seinfeld � there is also the sublime discovery that Angela Thirkell, Kingsley Amis, William Boyd, to name just a few, can write divine books and they offer much more than just solace, this is ecstasy, a means to escape a world ravaged by a pandemic, tyrants and fools, like the ‘ex media influencer� and insurrectionist in chief�
There are plenty of engaging, amusing, mesmerizing characters in this chef d’oeuvre � included on the list of 1,000 Novels Everyone Must Read, in the Comedy Section � indeed, one could argue that with a few exceptions, they all are and even the personages that are rather oppressing, they still offer a few laughs, like the large, overpowering autocrat and architect, John Middleton, a man that talks so much that he speaks To people, not with them, and most often there is no chance for interlocutors to utter a word in his presence…this would normally make for a quite obnoxious figure � some readers might think of the ‘insurrectionist in chief� and his now world wife infamous narcissism, leading to an effort to have him installed as dictator in one of the oldest democracies in the world and until recently, maybe the most respected.
He is married to Catherine Middleton, a superior, patient, brave, resilient, generous woman, who is nearly twenty years his junior…they were married when she was a little over thirty, he was nearly fifty and twelve years on, she has dedicated her life to supporting a self-absorbed, selfish individual, who is the partner in an architecture firm, his junior being Alister Cameron, a good friend of both husband and wife, but very close to the latter, as they share a deep understanding of what the little despot is, they have some fun anticipating all the coming situations and what happened in reality when the endless talker mentions a ‘conversation� he has had with someone.
They are about to receive visitors at Laverings, where they reside, though the sister of the little dictator � little figuratively speaking, for physically the man is extremely tall and large � will stay at the…White House, a house neighboring the mansion, where she will stay for some months with her step children, Daphne and Denis, both of them scare the dictator, for the latter is to weak and sickly, and thus the germaphobe is afraid he might catch some disease, and the former is too healthy and vibrant and that is also not good for John Middleton.
Denis Stonor is twenty five and a talented musician and composer, disadvantaged by his physical weakness, albeit there is hope that moving in the countryside would change this situation and improve his health � the signs are very good after some time, in spite of the fact that the young man appears to fall in love with Catherine Middleton, who might be called his step aunt, I guess, and this hopeless affection, or perhaps passionate feeling could send the recuperating composer in a twirl of emotion that could have psychological and hence physical implications � the visiting Betty, a preposterous character that lives in America, would invoke psychoanalysis and all sorts of wrongs and cures for them�
Dominant in the area is Lady Bond, an aristocrat with leonine presence, used to control reunions, servants, neighbors and well, anybody, the one who is the master in her mansion � indeed, the butler, Spencer, only answers to her and there are some hilarious scenes wherein Lord Bond is alone at the residence, with her ladyship gone for a week to London, he invites Denis to play his most expensive piano in Britain, and one of the biggest, in the company of his sister, Alister and C.W. � his name is actually Cedric and he is Lord Bond’s son and heir � and his lordship does not have the keys to the piano.
The butler looks with contempt and arrogance at someone he does not see as in control of things and he has kept annoying Lord Bond, keeping the key away, in his pantry and embarrassing the supposed master of the household, asking him insinuating questions and creating a fuss, until very determined, strong willed, extravagant, imperious, frank to the edge of rudeness Daphne Stonor puts Spencer in his place, demands vehemently to have the key to the piano and she generally shows leadership skills, a self-control that is extraordinary, expect in the instance when she becomes accidentally engaged with Alister Cameron.
Daphne likes Alister and thinks him one of the best people she has met, but at the same time, she feels an attraction for young Mr. Bond � perhaps it is or will become infatuation and then love…or is it the same thing…what is love anyway…Thomas Mann said that this is something we find only in books and it is so serious that we should not play with the overused word as we always do and mean much less than the fabulous emotion that we claim cannot be expressed in words…it can be and words mean more than what we feel.
Daphne Stonor is overwhelmed to find that C.W. is going to married to Betty, or so she thinks, given that she has seen an engaging ring on the finger of the rival and there is talk about the close bond that Cedric had with her and in her fury and madness � there is no engagement there � she is overcome by emotion, albeit she is not really sure what the problem is � she has photos of people and one of Alister in a prominent position in her bedroom, but then one of Cedric would be under the pillow and found by a servant that would reveal the aspect and there would be consequences, funny and serious ones.
When Alister finds Daphne among the peas in the garden, she falls in his arms more or less and they think this means engagement and they would marry, only in reality she may actually feel much more for C.W. Bond � we must listen to Thomas Mann and be cautious about misunderstanding words and emotions � while Alister might be much more suitable, seeing as he is maybe more than a decade older than Daphne, for the step mother, brilliant, delicate, devoted Lilian Stonor, the one who feels sympathy for her brother’s partner, then this is augmented to friendship and might finally become love…the only deep emotion that might remain unsatisfied could be the one shared by Catherine Middleton and the much younger Denis, though the readers certainly hope that they could elope and thus end the misery of the abused woman � surely reading this in 2021 that would be the reaction of men and women learning about this � and change it for bliss…this is a glorious masterpiece that offers the joy of knowing that there are many extremely talented, gifted people, among the fools that make the headlines�
10 out of 10
The exaltation felt when reading a Magnum opus like Before Lunch has no limits � at least for the under signed � and it offers one a means for Serenity Now � as in the famous line from Seinfeld � there is also the sublime discovery that Angela Thirkell, Kingsley Amis, William Boyd, to name just a few, can write divine books and they offer much more than just solace, this is ecstasy, a means to escape a world ravaged by a pandemic, tyrants and fools, like the ‘ex media influencer� and insurrectionist in chief�
There are plenty of engaging, amusing, mesmerizing characters in this chef d’oeuvre � included on the list of 1,000 Novels Everyone Must Read, in the Comedy Section � indeed, one could argue that with a few exceptions, they all are and even the personages that are rather oppressing, they still offer a few laughs, like the large, overpowering autocrat and architect, John Middleton, a man that talks so much that he speaks To people, not with them, and most often there is no chance for interlocutors to utter a word in his presence…this would normally make for a quite obnoxious figure � some readers might think of the ‘insurrectionist in chief� and his now world wife infamous narcissism, leading to an effort to have him installed as dictator in one of the oldest democracies in the world and until recently, maybe the most respected.
He is married to Catherine Middleton, a superior, patient, brave, resilient, generous woman, who is nearly twenty years his junior…they were married when she was a little over thirty, he was nearly fifty and twelve years on, she has dedicated her life to supporting a self-absorbed, selfish individual, who is the partner in an architecture firm, his junior being Alister Cameron, a good friend of both husband and wife, but very close to the latter, as they share a deep understanding of what the little despot is, they have some fun anticipating all the coming situations and what happened in reality when the endless talker mentions a ‘conversation� he has had with someone.
They are about to receive visitors at Laverings, where they reside, though the sister of the little dictator � little figuratively speaking, for physically the man is extremely tall and large � will stay at the…White House, a house neighboring the mansion, where she will stay for some months with her step children, Daphne and Denis, both of them scare the dictator, for the latter is to weak and sickly, and thus the germaphobe is afraid he might catch some disease, and the former is too healthy and vibrant and that is also not good for John Middleton.
Denis Stonor is twenty five and a talented musician and composer, disadvantaged by his physical weakness, albeit there is hope that moving in the countryside would change this situation and improve his health � the signs are very good after some time, in spite of the fact that the young man appears to fall in love with Catherine Middleton, who might be called his step aunt, I guess, and this hopeless affection, or perhaps passionate feeling could send the recuperating composer in a twirl of emotion that could have psychological and hence physical implications � the visiting Betty, a preposterous character that lives in America, would invoke psychoanalysis and all sorts of wrongs and cures for them�
Dominant in the area is Lady Bond, an aristocrat with leonine presence, used to control reunions, servants, neighbors and well, anybody, the one who is the master in her mansion � indeed, the butler, Spencer, only answers to her and there are some hilarious scenes wherein Lord Bond is alone at the residence, with her ladyship gone for a week to London, he invites Denis to play his most expensive piano in Britain, and one of the biggest, in the company of his sister, Alister and C.W. � his name is actually Cedric and he is Lord Bond’s son and heir � and his lordship does not have the keys to the piano.
The butler looks with contempt and arrogance at someone he does not see as in control of things and he has kept annoying Lord Bond, keeping the key away, in his pantry and embarrassing the supposed master of the household, asking him insinuating questions and creating a fuss, until very determined, strong willed, extravagant, imperious, frank to the edge of rudeness Daphne Stonor puts Spencer in his place, demands vehemently to have the key to the piano and she generally shows leadership skills, a self-control that is extraordinary, expect in the instance when she becomes accidentally engaged with Alister Cameron.
Daphne likes Alister and thinks him one of the best people she has met, but at the same time, she feels an attraction for young Mr. Bond � perhaps it is or will become infatuation and then love…or is it the same thing…what is love anyway…Thomas Mann said that this is something we find only in books and it is so serious that we should not play with the overused word as we always do and mean much less than the fabulous emotion that we claim cannot be expressed in words…it can be and words mean more than what we feel.
Daphne Stonor is overwhelmed to find that C.W. is going to married to Betty, or so she thinks, given that she has seen an engaging ring on the finger of the rival and there is talk about the close bond that Cedric had with her and in her fury and madness � there is no engagement there � she is overcome by emotion, albeit she is not really sure what the problem is � she has photos of people and one of Alister in a prominent position in her bedroom, but then one of Cedric would be under the pillow and found by a servant that would reveal the aspect and there would be consequences, funny and serious ones.
When Alister finds Daphne among the peas in the garden, she falls in his arms more or less and they think this means engagement and they would marry, only in reality she may actually feel much more for C.W. Bond � we must listen to Thomas Mann and be cautious about misunderstanding words and emotions � while Alister might be much more suitable, seeing as he is maybe more than a decade older than Daphne, for the step mother, brilliant, delicate, devoted Lilian Stonor, the one who feels sympathy for her brother’s partner, then this is augmented to friendship and might finally become love…the only deep emotion that might remain unsatisfied could be the one shared by Catherine Middleton and the much younger Denis, though the readers certainly hope that they could elope and thus end the misery of the abused woman � surely reading this in 2021 that would be the reaction of men and women learning about this � and change it for bliss…this is a glorious masterpiece that offers the joy of knowing that there are many extremely talented, gifted people, among the fools that make the headlines�
April 12, 2025
The person who wrote the blurb on the back of the book did this book a favour by making it sound as though the book has a plot. The last half or so of the book has a plot. The plot arrived on p. 170, and I wouldn't have recognised it as such, necessarily, if I hadn't read the blurb on the back of the book.
Don't read this book if you like plots. Read it if you like P. G. Wodehouse-type descriptions and banter. Thirkell is particularly good at interrupting quotations with thoughts that ironise what the speaker is saying. Read it if you like smiling at pages, or sentences. I do.
There is a lot of silliness in this novel, froth. But suddenly & unexpectedly near the end of the book Mrs. Middleton acquires seriousness and dignity, and the book becomes not just empty narrative or characterisation or whimsy calories but something that more deeply addresses the human heart.
Don't read this book if you like plots. Read it if you like P. G. Wodehouse-type descriptions and banter. Thirkell is particularly good at interrupting quotations with thoughts that ironise what the speaker is saying. Read it if you like smiling at pages, or sentences. I do.
There is a lot of silliness in this novel, froth. But suddenly & unexpectedly near the end of the book Mrs. Middleton acquires seriousness and dignity, and the book becomes not just empty narrative or characterisation or whimsy calories but something that more deeply addresses the human heart.
January 30, 2025
Novel equivalent of "light entertainment" TV or "easy listening" music, with nothing exciting/dramatic happening, but with lots of pleasant characters bumbling around being pleasant to each other . Very well written/observed and with well-drawn characters/dialogue and got increasingly humorous (but not too humorous!), so that if you like this kind of thing you might easily give it 4 or 5 stars, but for me it topped out at 3.5 rounded down.
April 16, 2024
This sort of novel is right up my alley! I love books set in the English countryside that focus on the social interactions of the residents. There aren't huge plot points, nothing crazy happens. No murders or torrid affairs or foreign intrigue. It's just a snapshot of life. People's conversations, their relationships with each other. I can see how some people would absolutely hate this book but I adored it. Sad it's over and ready to read another Thirkell.
November 7, 2021
What a talent it takes to bring the reader into the lives of a coterie of countrified, over-privileged, and none too bright Englishmen and women and make me care about what happens to each of them (as the author clearly does). Thirkell is often satirical but never harsh; comic throughout, but with real dramatic tension; amusing, but unexpectedly deep at the end. Even though probably every single character would look down on me because I'm Jewish and because I don't know my Debrett's, I enjoyed their company on the page.
June 18, 2019
After finishing the next one in the series, I wanted to come back and comment. I rather liked it right up until the very end. But, moving on to Cheerfulness so soon puts this one into better perspective: ah, here is the melancholy tone coming along underneath the very happy ending.
Library copy
Library copy
August 24, 2016
Troppo carini questi romanzi della Thirkell, ambientati in deliziose contee inglesi, ricchi di personaggi eccentrici, pittoreschi, british fino sl midollo, vivaci e comiche schermaglie verbali, vicende amorose. Insomma letture godibilissime per chi ama calarsi in atmosfere tipicamente inglesi ed estraniarsi un po' dalla realtà...
August 16, 2015
Probably the third time I've read this one. I read Thirkell to live in her world of High Risings, Winter Overcoates and Pomfret Madrigal. Her bullying Ladies and her sensitive loving long suffering wives. I see myself in all of them, well, except possibly Mr. Middleton, a huge bag of wind.
October 16, 2012
This entry in Thirkell's Barsetshire series is more bittersweet than the previous ones...
May 13, 2018
I think I'm over Angela Thirkell now. Her books are formulaic, but I've found them funny up till now. This one is just tedious with a rather tiresome cast of characters. Even Daphne is just a pale shadow compared to the awesome Lydia, my favourite of all Thirkell's characters. It had its amusing moments, but I soon lost interest in who was going to marry who and how, and only finished it for completeness. If you haven't read any Thirkell, try or , two of her best.
February 4, 2021
Another enjoyable outing in Thirkell’s 1930s Barsetshire. I know I read this a very long time ago, but all I retained was a memory of two people who were falling in love with each other and having to leave each other because one was married. I found that part of the story very poignant - reminiscent of “Brief Encounter�.
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