Mrs Miniver
by Jan Struther
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 55)
A series of vignettes that capture a woman and her view of her family. This is a woman who weighs the intimacies of family very highly. For her a diary is one of those trivial objects made momentous by its "terrible intimacy", and the dull brown calf one she had first chosen for 3s.9d. would not do, instead she chooses to honor those intimacies in a diary in green lizard at 7s.6d.
"Mrs. Miniver was created when Peter Fleming, brother of Ian, asked Jan to brighten up the Court P...more
"Mrs. Miniver was created when Peter Fleming, brother of Ian, asked Jan to brighten up the Court P...more
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Read in January, 1979
recommends it for:
Everyone
I love popping into a person's life through a book and then popping back out. Mrs. Miniver lives a middle class life in England (Kent is where her second home is) with her husband and three children right before World War 11 breaks out. The reader gets to see and understand how Mrs. Miniver (as she is called throughout most of the book) thinks and deals with her pretty much typical life. Don't expect action, adventure, thrills or chills in this one. But do expect to be privy to how a seemingly a...more
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FDR called this the book responsbile for America's entry into WWII. After reading it, I'm not sure I see why that would be the case....it's definitely not a war book. It's comprised of vignettes from Mrs. M's daily life as a Londoner in the late 1930s (book ends on Xmas Eve 1939). I think, but am not certain, that it was originally published in episodes, perhaps in newspapers. Fine to read, but unremarkable.
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Read in April, 2008
This is the perfect dozing-off book or reading-in-transit book. The vignettes are short, sufficiently self-contained, transport me to another world, bring a smile to my face, and (so far) contain no violence or hardly even any plot.
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Read in November, 1970
I read this book in school & it has stayed with me all these years. A warm story of family during England's war-torn years of the London Blitz. Not only is this a favorite book of mine but it is one of my favorite movies.
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Read in November, 2007
I needed something uplifing after reading Alexandra Fuller's memoir in Africa. Mrs. Miniver was very well written and a joy to read.
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Read in March, 2008
Very charming, well written book. Full of choice phrases, insightful observations, and great quotes. A keeper!
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Read in April, 2008
recommended to Suz by:
friend
Pre/current/post-war trials and tribulations of a housewife. Easy read but not particularly interesting.
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Read in April, 2006
recommended to Brenda by:
Carolyn Manwaring
Amazing descriptive words. Loved the movie as well.
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