Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
 
Quartet in Autumn
  
Publisher: learn how customers can search inside this book.

Quartet in Autumn (Hardcover)

by Barbara Pym (Author)
4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)

Available from these sellers.


6 used from £8.06
Other Editions: RRP: Our Price: Other Offers:
Hardcover (Lrg) Order it used
Paperback 7 used & new from £1.24
Hardcover (Large Print) Order it used
Audio Cassette (Audiobook) £31.95 £31.95 5 used & new from £23.95

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

An Unsuitable Attachment

An Unsuitable Attachment

by Barbara Pym
5.0 out of 5 stars (2)  £4.98
The Sweet Dove Died

The Sweet Dove Died

by Barbara Pym
4.0 out of 5 stars (1)  £4.98
Some Tame Gazelle

Some Tame Gazelle

by Barbara Pym
3.8 out of 5 stars (5)  £5.99
Jane and Prudence

Jane and Prudence

by Barbara Pym
3.7 out of 5 stars (7)  £4.88
A Few Green Leaves

A Few Green Leaves

by Barbara Pym
£6.88
› Explore similar items

Product details

  • Hardcover: 224 pages
  • Publisher: Macmillan; First Edition edition (1 Sep 1977)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0333227786
  • ISBN-13: 978-0333227787
  • Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 1,224,035 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category:

    #64 in  Books > Fiction > Authors, A-Z > P > Pym, Barbara

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

Suggested Tags from Similar Products

 (What's this?)
Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
 
(4)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)

Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Quartet in Autumn
63% buy the item featured on this page:
Quartet in Autumn 4.2 out of 5 stars (10)
An Unsuitable Attachment
12% buy
An Unsuitable Attachment 5.0 out of 5 stars (2)
£4.98
Excellent Women
11% buy
Excellent Women 4.6 out of 5 stars (9)
£4.98
Some Tame Gazelle
8% buy
Some Tame Gazelle 3.8 out of 5 stars (5)
£5.99
Explore similar items
 

Customer Reviews

10 Reviews
5 star:
 (5)
4 star:
 (3)
3 star:
 (1)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.2 out of 5 stars (10 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A great opportunity, 31 Oct 2005
By A Customer
This review is from: Quartet In Autumn (Paperback)
Like the quartet of her novel, Barbara Pym during her writing career may have found herself swept away as if she had never been. She was one of the most underrated authors of the past 75 years, according to the Times Literary Supplement. It is ironic, then, that she created four such memorable characters, people in the autumn of their working lives who somehow survive the sensation of being phased out (of their jobs, their homes, their human ties) and provide us a glimpse of the heartening truth that even the most ordinary of lives hold infinite possibilities for change, all life, as the author points out being nothing so much as a great opportunity. Barbara Pym has given us a tale of solitude and a particular sort of intimacy which oscillates between understated tragedy and an irrepressible circumspect comedy. With a crisp pace not held back by unnecessary detail this book is a soothing antidote to all that is excessive in contemporary literature.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews  
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


 
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Old age and reduced circumstances, 24 May 2008
By Damaskcat (UK) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)      
This review is from: Quartet In Autumn (Paperback)
Letty, Marcia, Norman and Edwin all work together in an office dealing with unspecified paperwork. Marcia has had a major operation and she and Letty are about to retire, leaving Norman and Edwin working. The style of writing is subtle and understated and the characters mildly eccentric -Marcia keeps well washed empty milk bottles in her garden shed. All four will be changed irrevocably by the end of the book.
The story deals with issues we must all face at some point in our lives. Loneliness, independence, being used and using. The minor characters are well realised - Mrs Pope - who Letty lodges with; Father G the priest with whom Edwin is friends; Marjorie who would like Letty to live with her if there are no better alternatives; and Janice - the social worker - who visits Marcia with the best of intentions.
Four people growing old and dealing with life's slings and arrows in the only way they know how. Of the four Letty is perhaps the most likeable, striving as she does to keep the peace, realising by the end of the book that Marjorie is not the best friend she could have and finding the courage to make her own choices. All four will stay in your mind long after you have finished reading. I shall definitely be looking for more books by Barbara Pym. If you like Anita Brookner you will enjoy this - Barbara Pym has the same acute eye for all the facets of everyday life.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews  
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


 
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars This Novel is a Work of Art, 15 July 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Quartet in Autumn (Paperback)
Don't be put off by the title of this novel: there is nothing heavy or depressing about it. "Quartet in Autumn" is about ordinary old people in the 1970s and has not a shred of romance in it; it defies ALL the conventions of fiction, Victorian or modern; still it is a fascinating, hilarious, profound book--the best of Pym's novels, without a doubt. This novel is totally original and I highly recommend it!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews  
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars He very nearly visits Marcia, then doesn't
This is a singularly and puzzlingly dull book with hardly any events of note or anything much going on. Four people, two men, two women, work in an office together. Read more
Published 2 months ago by E. Shaw

5.0 out of 5 stars A Perfect Miniature
While it's true that this final novel has little of the high comedy that made her earlier works popular its elegaic tone is note-perfect. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Livia

4.0 out of 5 stars A delightful read
I am a great fan of Barbara Pym. She has the rare knack of creating an absorbing novel out of very ordinary characters doing ordinary things. Read more
Published 9 months ago by F. M. M. Stott

3.0 out of 5 stars Read the early novels first
Miss Pym published six delightful novels in the 50s and very early 60s before being cast aside by her publisher, Cape, as out of date in the swinging 60s. Read more
Published 12 months ago by S. B. Kelly

5.0 out of 5 stars A lovely book
Beautifully observed, restrained and unsensational, a lovely book of life and change. A fine modern classic.
Published 22 months ago by Jack

5.0 out of 5 stars Quartet in Autumn
A bittersweet novel about growing older in an England which seems to have almost entirely vanished. Miss Pym's characters are often sad, sometimes eccentric, but always engaging... Read more
Published on 15 Sep 2007 by Harriet BlueStocking

4.0 out of 5 stars We've come a long way, baby.....
I chose this title because I wanted something gentle from another era. Although this book was published as recently as the year of the Queen's Silver Jubilee, (exactly thirty... Read more
Published on 9 Jan 2007 by Puskas

Only search this product's reviews


Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
   
Related forums

Listmania!

Create a Listmania! list

Look for similar items by category

Look for similar items by subject









i.e., each product must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...

Feedback


Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.