From The Persephone Biannually Spring & Summer 2007 No. 1

‘I loved Margaret Bonham’s The Casino and Diana Gardner’s The Woman Novelist and Other Stories but I reeled at Frances Towers’s Tea with Mr Rochester. These pieces are works of the most exquisite, painful genius, written in clear acid on a bruised soul. Decades, probably half a century ahead of her time, her awareness of the most inner psychology, and the restrained yet intense prose she employs to reveal it, are an absolute object lesson. “Spade Man from over the Water” carries the same frisson as a perfectly structured ghost story.’ Tanith Lee,St Leonards on Sea

‘I enjoyed The Expendable Man if anything more than The Blank Wall. The narrative device whereby a key fact about the protagonist is withheld from us is
clever but it goes beyond being a clever piece of trickery. The book derived its strength from its psychological insight, allowing us to experience the dangers which
would face even a well-educated, well-off professional like Dr Densmore.’ Rosemary Hall, Coventry

‘I recently bought There Were No Windows by Norah Hoult from you. It certainly is “the saddest story”, but also one of the most painful I have ever read. When I reached the end of the first section I wondered how the story could be maintained to the end, and expected some sub-plot to be brought in, but it went relentlessly on and the more I read the more I was drawn into Claire Temple’s world. Her half-world of fears, shafts of bright memory, the bubbling up of words & people long known, the nagging apprehension of a coming disaster, dislike of those around her and yet moments of distancing and ironic humour. All this became mine. I don’t think I have ever read a book that so completely pulled me into the place and the mood it was describing. So painful, yes, and disturbing that she is surrounded by greed and malice and utter incomprehension, but at the same time there is something uplifting here. Claire is gallant, and brave, and tries so hard to deal with her troubles. The image of her wandering about the dark house at night is, in some strange way, hopeful. She is wounded but still searching for vitality. Perhaps the real poignancy of Claire’s situation is expressed when she walks through the streets in her slippers. “Here was a woman who had no defences.” It is a deeply disturbing book, and I am very glad I have read it. Thank you for finding and reprinting it.’ GN, Drumnadrochit

‘I have just finished reading The Carlyles at Home by Thea Holme. What an utterly delightful book! I learned a great deal about the Carlyles, especially the inimitable Jane, and about everyday Victorian life, while enjoying every page.’ EW, Twickenham

‘I just wanted to say how much I enjoyed The Fortnight in September – and am grateful to Persephone for republishing this lovely, compassionate novel. There is nothing dated about the characters, their hopes and fears and disappointments – they are as real today as they were for readers seventy-five years ago.’ Anne Outram, St Andrews

‘The story of the Stevens family in A Fortnight in September is both entertaining
and moving, exploring as it does life’s changing relationships and expectations.’ Barry Lord, Much Wenlock

‘I loved Doreen – I thought it was so beautifully observed – she picks her way so delicately through the intricacies of feeling, and depicts all the very different characters so meticulously, and of course she has a particular sensitivity to the emotions of childhood shame, embarrassment and helpless inarticulate love.’ TH, St Alban’s

‘The Hopkins Manuscript is one of the most readable and thought-provoking sf novels I have ever read. I asked someone who has his address to send it to Al Gore. Let’s hope he reads it! He’ll certainly see that a book about the moon crashing into the earth in 1945 can be read today as a book about climate change.' SR, Los Angeles

‘Joanna Cannan’s Princes in the Land is an excellent book but an uncomfortable read. It looks at what happens when expectations and reality do not match, and it
explores identity, specifically how a woman’s identity may be given away (willingly) for love and then subsumed under the layers of life as a wife and mother. It is a story
full of compromise and disaffection, charting a mother’s selflessness and what she is left with when her children are grown and have to live with their own ill advised choices. It could be about every woman, and none, but it’s a stark story, carefully and
poignantly told.’ Cornflower

‘The New House by Lettice Cooper, a domestic story first published in 1936, is about
one family and the day they move – the day they downsize. It follows a domineering mother, two daughters, one son and one daughter-in-law and all the many issues they have been dragging around for decades. Everyone has hopes and disappointments to bring along with them which result in this being one of the best books about family drama that I have ever read. It’s only one day – ONE DAY – but there’s a lifetime of reading in here. Just wonderful – like everything at Persephone.’ Chasing Ray

‘I can recommend lots of books from the 1940s, I have just read one by Dorothy Whipple which Persephone has reissued called Someone at a Distance. It was amazing. It is about a woman in a very happy middle-class marriage and her husband has this affair and it completely f***s everything up and is awful. It is terribly poignant.’ Sarah Waters talking to Danuta Kean in newbooksmag.com

‘Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (1938) is one of literature’s secret gems. I read it in two sittings, but I wanted to drag it out longer because I couldn't bear it to end. I’ve never quite read anything like it. Joyous without being cloying, lighthearted and fun without being frothy, are just two ways of summing it up. Throughout the book Winifred Watson's writing is confident and remarkably modern. The dialogue crackles and sparkles and drives the narrative forward without wasting a word, as does the structure in which each chapter is divided into hourly time periods. This is
pretty much a perfectly written tale about one woman’s second chance at life. Do add it to your collection if you’re looking for something a little on the enchanting side.’ Kimbofo

‘I have found a new obsession – Persephone books. My first two books arrived today and I am in love. I had been reading about Persephone books all over the place, from BookGirl’s Nightstand, Random Jottings of an Opera and Book Lover, Too Many Books and A Work in Progress. After going through the catalogue for a month, I finally placed my order for Someone at a Distance, They Knew Mr. Knight and Mariana last week. Despite my choosing the least expensive shipping available, two out of the three came pretty quick. The jackets are so simple yet elegant. Really. I love the endpaper for They Knew Mr. Knight. After touching them, smelling them,
petting them… I decided that I must purchase the whole set!’ Amelia’s Passion

“Oh, the bliss of Persephone Books!” says India Knight in her own treat
of a book, The Shops… her recommendation of Persephone Books’ collection of forgotten twentieth century classics is something I truly thank her for.
These are very much recovering from-flu books – a certain surface sweetness containing considerable depth. I have just finished Dorothy Whipple’s They Were Sisters. Utterly compelling with more bite than Eastenders on a VERY good day, with rogues, a truly evil villain, sweet souls, despair, studies of fecklessness and empty vanities.’ Mopsa at Ramblings

‘Greenery Street is another great read from Persephone: a wonderful insight into the
trials and tribulations of inter-war life and the social pressures of the time.’ Pompey princess