The Darling Buds of May by H E Bates
'Home looks nice. Allus does though, don't it? Perfick' And so the Larkins - Pop, Ma, Mariette, Zinnia, Petunia, Primrose, Victoria and Montgomery - return from an outing for fish and chips and ice cream one May evening. There, amid the rustic charms of home, they discover a visitor: one Cedric Charlton, Her Majesty's inspector of taxes. Mr Charlton is visiting to find out why junk-dealer Pop hasn't paid his tax - but nothing's that simple at the Larkins. Mariette takes a shine to 'Charley' - as Pop calls him - and before long the family have introduced the uncomplaining inspector to the delights of country living: the lusty scents of wild flowers, the pleasures of a bottle of Dragon's Blood, cold cream dribbled over a bowl of strawberries and hot, hot summer nights. In fact, soon Charley can't see any reason to return to the office at all . . .
A pulsing comedy of country mannersA five-alarm blaze of a book. Just about perfick. * Time *
A gently, anarchic wish-fulfilling daydream * The Times *
A perfick piece of entertainment * New York Times *
A wistful daydream about innocence and happiness * Spectator *
Pop Larkin, Ma and their progeny . . . are essentially English of the rich and ribald England of Chaucer and Shakespeare. A superb and timeless comedy * Scotsman *
As funny as Evelyn Waugh and as enchanting as Laurie Lee's Cider with Rosie. Don't miss it * Herald *
They are absolute comfort books * The Lady *
Pop is as sexy, genial, generous, and boozy as ever. Ma is a worthy match for him in all these qualities -- - * The Times *
As funny as Evelyn Waugh and as enchanting as Laurie Lee's Cider with Rosie. Don't miss it -- - * Herald *
Pop Larkin, Ma and their progeny . . . are essentially English of the rich and ribald England of Chaucer and Shakespeare. A superb and timeless comedy -- - * Scotsman *
A perfick piece of entertainment -- - * New York Times *
A wistful daydream about innocence and happiness -- - * Spectator *
A pulsing comedy of country manners. A five-alarm blaze of a book. Just about perfick -- - * Time *
A gently, anarchic wish-fulfilling daydream -- - * The Times *
The Larkins live - these novels please us by escaping definition -- - * Guardian *
A gently, anarchic wish-fulfilling daydream * The Times *
A perfick piece of entertainment * New York Times *
A wistful daydream about innocence and happiness * Spectator *
Pop Larkin, Ma and their progeny . . . are essentially English of the rich and ribald England of Chaucer and Shakespeare. A superb and timeless comedy * Scotsman *
As funny as Evelyn Waugh and as enchanting as Laurie Lee's Cider with Rosie. Don't miss it * Herald *
They are absolute comfort books * The Lady *
Pop is as sexy, genial, generous, and boozy as ever. Ma is a worthy match for him in all these qualities -- - * The Times *
As funny as Evelyn Waugh and as enchanting as Laurie Lee's Cider with Rosie. Don't miss it -- - * Herald *
Pop Larkin, Ma and their progeny . . . are essentially English of the rich and ribald England of Chaucer and Shakespeare. A superb and timeless comedy -- - * Scotsman *
A perfick piece of entertainment -- - * New York Times *
A wistful daydream about innocence and happiness -- - * Spectator *
A pulsing comedy of country manners. A five-alarm blaze of a book. Just about perfick -- - * Time *
A gently, anarchic wish-fulfilling daydream -- - * The Times *
The Larkins live - these novels please us by escaping definition -- - * Guardian *
H. E. Bates was born in 1905 in Northamptonshire. He worked as a journalist and clerk on a local newspaper before publishing his first book, The Two Sisters, when he was twenty. In the next fifteen years he acquired a distinguished reputation for his stories about English country life. During the Second World War he was a Squadron Leader in the R.A.F. The Darling Buds of May (1958), the first of the popular Larkin family novels, was followed by A Breath of French Air (1959), When the Green Woods Laugh (1960), Oh! To Be in England (1963) and A Little of What You Fancy (1970). His works have been translated into sixteen languages. H. E. Bates was awarded the C.B.E. in 1973 and died in January 1974.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780141029672 |
| ISBN 10 | 0141029676 |
| Title | The Darling Buds of May |
| Author | H E Bates |
| Series | The Larkin Family Series |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Penguin Books Ltd |
| Year published | 2006-11-30 |
| Number of pages | 144 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |