For this, my first post of the year I want to introduce the The Diary of a Provincial Lady (E.M. Delafield) to anyone who hasn’t come across her before. I have been meaning to read the book for ages (hence the need for this challenge and this blog in the first place) and I did finally get around to it last year. Although it isn’t a 2018 read, I wanted to talk a little about it before I put it back on the shelf. My edition is a Virago paperback (1984) which comprises four diaries of the Provincial Lady. It also contains an excellent introduction by Nicola Beauman. I have discovered that Persephone Books offer a lovely reprint, using the original illustrations by Arthur Watts and with an afterward by Nicola Beauman. This edition sorely tempts me (see illustration below).
Virago, 1984 paperback edition of The Diary of a Provincial Lady by E.M. Delafield
" data-orig-size="464,647" sizes="(max-width: 215px) 100vw, 215px" data-image-title="The Diary of A Provincial Lady" data-orig-file="https://talesfromthelandingbookshelves.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/provincial-lady.jpg" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"3.6","credit":"","camera":"Canon IXUS 265 HS","caption":"","created_timestamp":"1507592880","copyright":"","focal_length":"4.5","iso":"320","shutter_speed":"0.033333333333333","title":"","orientation":"1"}" width="215" data-medium-file="https://talesfromthelandingbookshelves.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/provincial-lady.jpg?w=215&h;=300" data-permalink="https://talesfromthelandingbookshelves.com/2018/01/17/diary-of-a-provincial-lady/provincial-lady-2/" alt="Cover of The Diary of a Provincial Lady" height="300" srcset="https://talesfromthelandingbookshelves.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/provincial-lady.jpg?w=215&h;=300 215w, https://talesfromthelandingbookshelves.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/provincial-lady.jpg?w=430&h;=600 430w, https://talesfromthelandingbookshelves.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/provincial-lady.jpg?w=108&h;=150 108w" class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-3796" data-large-file="https://talesfromthelandingbookshelves.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/provincial-lady.jpg?w=464" />The Provincial Lady began life as a series of articles for a weekly feminist magazine, Time and Tide when Delafield was well established as an author, already having eighteen books under her belt. The first Diary of a Provincial Lady was published in 1930, followed in 1932 by The Provincial Lady Goes Further, The Provincial Lady in America (1934) and The Provincial Lady in Wartime (1940). My internet searches have also yielded the information that our PL also went to Russia (published 1937), this book slotting in between America and Wartime. That must be next on my wants list! I have read though all four books in my volume, but in this post, I will confine myself to the first volume to give you a flavor of the Provincial Lady and her world.
Before talking about our lady diarist, I will just sketch in a few details about the author. E.M. Delafield is the pen name of Edmée Elizabeth Monica de la Pasture (1890-1943) whose mother was a well-known author. This explains the transition from ‘de la Pasture’ to ‘Delafield’ when she came to publish her own work. Her father was a Count, descended from a family fleeing the French revolution; Delafield went on to marry Arthur Dashwood third son of a baronet and they eventually settled in Devon. Delafield’s Provincial Lady draws on her own provincial life and experiences in this part of the world, however the husband and children in the books were apparently only very loosely based on her own husband and offspring. Her first novel, Zella Sees Herself (1917) was published after Delafield had spent most of the First World War as a V.A.D. She went on to become a very successful author before her untimely death at only fifty-three.
The diaries humorously detail the ordinary life experiences of the un-named Provincial Lady, dealing with servants, school, children, balancing the household budget and those all important social duties. The characters include the snobbish and wealthy Lady Boxe, Our Vicar’s Wife, a couple of old school friends, various neighbours and visitors. The immediate household consists of husband Robert, daughter Vicky (her son Robin is away at school but makes his presence felt in occasional unsatisfying letters), French governess Mademoiselle, Cook and Ethel the parlour maid. A common theme in the book is the Lady’s endless efforts to balance the financial books. Receipts go missing, the contents of the cash box is never what it should be and polite letters arrive from suppliers and bank managers requesting settlement. Great aunt’s diamond ring is regularly pawned (though at a suitable distance from the village).
This is the Persephone Books edition, containing illustrations by Arthur Watts.
" data-orig-size="914,1500" sizes="(max-width: 183px) 100vw, 183px" data-image-title="Illustrated Provincial Lady" data-orig-file="https://talesfromthelandingbookshelves.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/illustrated-provincial-lady.jpg" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"1"}" width="183" data-medium-file="https://talesfromthelandingbookshelves.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/illustrated-provincial-lady.jpg?w=183&h;=300" data-permalink="https://talesfromthelandingbookshelves.com/2018/01/17/diary-of-a-provincial-lady/illustrated-provincial-lady/" alt="Illustrated Provincial Lady" height="300" srcset="https://talesfromthelandingbookshelves.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/illustrated-provincial-lady.jpg?w=183&h;=300 183w, https://talesfromthelandingbookshelves.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/illustrated-provincial-lady.jpg?w=366&h;=600 366w, https://talesfromthelandingbookshelves.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/illustrated-provincial-lady.jpg?w=91&h;=150 91w" class="alignright size-medium wp-image-3803" data-large-file="https://talesfromthelandingbookshelves.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/illustrated-provincial-lady.jpg?w=624" />I was surprised how many little incidents struck a chord, despite the 1930s setting and the fact that the social background of the character is somewhat removed from my own. Here is she espousing modern parenting by discussing the question of the existence of Hell with her daughter Vicky:
Am determined to be a modern parent, and assure her that there is not, never has been, and never could be, such a place. Vicky maintains that there is, and refers me to the Bible. I become more modern than ever, and tell her that theories of eternal punishment were invented to frighten people … (Query: Are modern children going to revolt against being modern, and if so, what form will reaction of modern parents take?)
While reading the diary entries on the vexed question of Christmas shopping, I was amused to note that her caustic reactions to the cost of gift ideas given in magazines in 1930 are eerily similar to my own (most recently given voice to in reading gift guides in 2017 Christmas supplements). Her gift guide makes suggestions ‘individual and yet appropriate-beautiful, and yet enduring’. It goes on to say, ‘Then why not Enamel dressing-table set, at £94 16s 4d or Set of crystal-ware, exact replica of early English cut-glass, at moderate price pf £34 17s 9d?’ The Provincial Lady’s response is a tart ‘Why not, indeed?’ After briefly surveying the section for ‘Giver with Restricted Means’ (5 guineas) she settles for a ‘one-and-sixpenny calendar with picture of sunset on Scaw Fell, as usual’. During an exhausting shopping trip to London she agonises over a ‘really handsome’ card for her old school friend Cissie Crabbe against an ‘almost invisibly small diary’. She eventually settles on the diary as it will fit into an ordinary sized envelope. The glamour of Christmas shopping on a limited budget!
Finally, I note that our diarist has the eternal discussion with her offspring whether hand washing before meals ‘is, or is not necessary’. She notes in an aside:
(Mem: Have sometimes considered -though idly- writing letter to the Times to find out if any recorded instances exist of parents and children whose views on this subject coincide. Topic of far wider appeal than many of those so exhaustively dealt with).
This reminds me of a John Drinkwater poem that I knew as a child called ‘Washing’ , which begins ‘What is all this washing about, Every day, week in, week out?’ It’s nice to know that some thing never change! All that washing business baffled me too.
I did actually read all four books straight through, which was probably not the best idea. As Beauman points out in her introduction, the diaries were not meant to be read straight through, so repetition of phrases and events is noticeable as you go on. However, I don’t think that detracts from the humor of the books, or the sharp observation that Delafield applies to the mundane round of life. I have since found myself dipping back to read entries here and there which is a better way to read the diaries I think. These are books you could return to over and over again for escapist humor with a dash of vim.
Now all I need to do is to track down the remaining volume for my collection.
Best wishes for a Happy Reading Year to one and all! Drop me a line below if you have any New Year reading goals.
Picture Credits: Additional image from Persephone Books online shop.
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