Another late addition to this category and another book I couldn't resist digging into. I never heard of Elizabeth Taylor, the author, until I joined Twitter @DebbieVignovic and found @JacquiWine - she has proved a treasure trove of #TBR. A recent heatwave has caused a spike in my reading. Rest assured I will be reading the rest of Elizabeth Taylor's novels.
This story is set in 1960's London and revolves around the unexpected friendship that develops between the recently widowed Laura Palfrey and a young struggling writer Ludo Myers. After the death of her husband Mrs. Palfrey makes the decision to move from Scotland to London to be near her 26 year old grandson. She takes up residence in the Claremont Hotel and is quickly surrounded by a group of other elderly residents.
Mrs. Palfrey is out walking one evening when she accidentally falls in front of Ludo's basement apartment and he rushes to her rescue.
Mrs. Palfrey's actual grandson turns out to be a bit of a flake and in spite of his promises never shows up for a visit with his grandmother. In order to save face in front of her fellow elderly residents she calls upon Ludo and implores him to come to dinner and impersonate her grandson to which he agrees. The story while it does have its elements of comedy and wit--it is mostly a novel about the particular loneliness of old age--the feeling of being a burden upon others. It is about the casting to the side of the elderly and how fragile life can be.
Comments powered by CComment