Book review: Period Piece

[holli]

After the Giant Fashion Book, Period Piece is probably the book I was most excited to get from my gift card haul. I'm not sure who first brought the book to my attention, though I suspect it was probably jonquil, but I've been wanting to read it for a long while. Now that I have, I can't get the authorial voice out of my head.

This is not a bad thing! The authorial voice is delightful: Gwen Raverat is wry and funny and wonderful to read. I loved her reminiscences of her childhood in Cambridge, the descriptions of the houses and people she knew, and way she gently poked fun at the silliness and self-importance of Victorian society. The book was full of throwaway bits of humor that made me laugh much more than you'd expect them to-- one line, about fishing seven top-hats out of the river in a single day, still makes me giggle when I think about it.

For anyone interested in the Victorians, this is highly recommended. I love Raverat's perspective-- someone who saw the tail-end of the Victorians and also lived through the start of the modern era, looking back with fondness and wit.

Comments

[crantz]

well, now I'm curious how the hats were getting there in the first place. I'm picturing angry little victorian gentlemen beneath them, stuck in the muck of the Thames.

[holli]

There are a bunch of anecdotes about Raverat's various relatives and friends falling into the river. It doesn't say whether they were fished out again with their hats!

(Also, omg, fellow Muppet Christmas Carol fan! hi! I was just watching it the other day!)

[crantz]

I was watching the Sherlock movie with a friend and after a while the friend commented that it must be incredibly common for people to fall into the Thames, since it happens in nearly every movie that's ever near it. "Sure, I'll go get you a coff--oops! Into the thames!"

I do not even know if your book takes place in london (edit: It takes place in Cambridge, I jut reread to notice. I am... so smart), but that is the river I always think of.

Muppet Christmas Carol is excellent. I'm so impressed that Michael Caine managed to look emotionally moved by muppets singing.

[holli]

Period Piece is mostly set in Cambridge, so it's... whatever river they have in Cambridge, idk.

I am only surprised when people *aren't* emotionally moved by muppets singing, honestly.

[crantz]

Thames 2: The Thamesening is their river.

I confess, when they're all 'yeah, Tiny Tim is gonna bite it' and then when they're all discussing his burial I get pretty teary.

[ankaret]

Ooh, I have Period Piece on my to be read list. I will move it to the top at once.