The Pursuit of Alice Thrift

The Pursuit of Alice Thrift by Elinor Lipman

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


"Meet Alice Thrift, surgical intern at a Boston hospital, high of IQ but low in social graces. She doesn't mean to be acerbic, clinical, or blunt, but where was she the day they taught Bedside Manner 101? Into Alice's workaholic and wallflower life comes Ray Russo, a slick traveling fudge salesman in search of a nose job and well-heeled companionship, but not necessarily in that order. Is he a con man or a sincere suitor? Good guy or bad? Alice's parent, roommate, and best friend Sylvie are appalled at her choice of mate. Despite her doubts, Alice finds herself walking down the aisle, not so much won over as worn down. Will their marriage last the honeymoon? Only if Alice's best instincts can triumph over Ray's unsavory ways."
~~back cover

That description would lead you to believe that Alice is one of those highly intelligent, intellectually arrogant women who don't have much time or patience for the rest of the world. On the contrary, Alice would like to have friends, a boy friend, be accepted by her fellow medical students. But Alice is a train wreck of a girl -- completely clueless and paranoid about herself to boot. She has unfailing instincts -- for not seeing the forest for the trees, and mislabeling the trees as well. She's clumsy and inept -- disasterous traits in a doctor, fledgling or otherwise.

It's a train wreck of a plot -- I kept wanting to scream at her, & throw the book across the room. How could anybody be that daft, that dense?

I suppose this is some arcane form of chick lit. It was well written and the characterization was excellent. Everyone seemed so real -- Ray obviously a silver-tongued devil, Alice totally oblivious. But it was just too frustrating for me.

There was an interesting debate about why Alice was like she was. I won't go into it here so as not to spoil it for the next reader. I'd be interested to know what you think, if you read the book.

Of Flowers & a Village

Of Flowers and a Village: An Entertainment for Flower Lovers by Wilfrid Blunt

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Of Flowers and a Village: An Entertainment for Flower Lovers is written in the form of chatty letters from a doting godfather to his goddaughter, Flora, an enthusiastic (if inexperienced) gardener who is recovering from an illness that has left her temporarily bedridden. Along with snippets of history, lore and practical gardening knowledge, "Wilfrid Sharp" (the author's thinly disguised persona) paints a vivid picture of life in the village of "Dewbury", home to a large cast of eccentric inhabitants. There is Admiral Downes, whose favorite pastimes are cutting down trees and tippling at parties; Susannah Tumaniantz, an Armenian emigree who adores tulips and avant-garde art and writes terrible poetry ("Spring in Mush"); the sweet-natured Delia Lovell, who calls everyone "darling" and whose dogs are nammed Hither and Thither; the dreadful Mrs. Moon, who runs roughshod over everyone in her path; and the even more dreadful Mrs. Putterham, a righ vulgarian whose inexplicably nice son, Oliver, likes music and gardening.

Although we learn a great deal about the daily life of Dewbury, the subject never strays far from gardening -- by the novel's end, both Flora and the reader have received a gentle but thorough horticultural education. Never has learning about gardening been so much fun.
~~ front flap

It's a lovely book. Charming, and certainly a snapshot of the quintessential English village. And gardening. For my tastes, I could have done with a bit less gardening and a bit more village, but it's lovely all the same. Enjoy!