Excellent Women cover art

Excellent Women

'I'm a huge fan of Barbara Pym' Richard Osman

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Excellent Women

By: Barbara Pym, Alexander McCall Smith - introduction
Narrated by: Gerri Halligan, Jonathan Keeble
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About this listen

 INTRODUCED BY ALEXANDER McCALL SMITH

'I'm a huge fan of Barbara Pym' RICHARD OSMAN

Mildred Lathbury is one of those excellent women who are often taken for granted. She is a godsend, 'capable of dealing with most of the stock situations or even the great moments of life - birth, marriage, death, the successful jumble sale, the garden fête spoilt by bad weather'. Her glamorous new neighbours, the Napiers, seem to be facing a marital crisis. One cannot take sides in these matters, though it is tricky, especially as Mildred has a soft spot for dashing young Rockingham Napier. This is Barbara Pym's world at its funniest and most touching.

'One of the most endearingly amusing English novels of the twentieth century' ALEXANDER MCCALL SMITH

'Barbara Pym is the rarest of treasures; she reminds us of the heartbreaking silliness of everyday life' ANNE TYLER

'Not only was Pym a comic genius but she was ever so wise' THE TIMES©1952 Barbara Pym Classics Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Literature & Fiction Women's Fiction

Critic Reviews

I'm a huge fan of Barbara Pym (Richard Osman)
Why shouldn't the lives of cardigan-wearing spinsters and fussy confirmed bachelors be the engines of some of the finest comic writing in English? Not only was Pym a comic genius but she was ever so wise
Barbara Pym is the rarest of treasures; she reminds us of the heartbreaking silliness of everyday life (Anne Tyler)
One of the most endearingly amusing English novels of the twentieth century (Alexander McCall Smith)
All stars
Most relevant
If you like Jane Austen, you might like Barbara Pym. Pym is brilliant and, as I've said before, even better to listen to than to read. Audible, please release all her novels on your service.

Sophisticated listening

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I loved this book - and chose it because I read The Guardian review saying this was one of the most amusing books written in the twentieth century- or something like that! Fantastic for these challenging times to have some humour and lightness.

Gentle and humorous, even laugh out loud funny!

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It’s really great - a gem of a novel. I will listen to it again for sure

Loved it, funny and gentle

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I read a couple of Barbara Pym novels years ago, and found them interesting for being set around Anglican parishes, but don't recall being struck by the plots or characters. Coming back to Excellent Women, I found there is virtually no plot, just a lot of largely trivial dialogues. Moreover, there is an undercurrent of barely concealed malice everywhere. I feel sure I will never read another Pym novel. However, the reading of Excellent Women by two people was excellent indeed.

Clever writing but largely trivial content

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Barbara Pym is an excellent writer. An insightful look at the role of single women in society. I loved the main character, Mildred.

Brilliant writing

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