Winifred Watson and Miss Pettigrew

Last week, I picked up this book by Winifred Watson, “Miss Pettigrew lives for a day”, wanting something light to read on the bus. Winifred was from Newcastle and spent all her life there. She only wrote a few novels, and this one seems to be the only one that is easily available, as it was republished a few years ago and made into a film. Her father was a businessman but lost money in the Depression, so she wasn’t able to attend University as she had hoped. She trained as a secretary and during her first jobs, she had little to do. Her brother in law jokingly dared her to try to write herself, as she had complained that the novel she was then reading was rubbish... So she wrote “Fell Top” a rural melodrama of the kind that was popular in the 1920s and 30s. Having written it, she put it away and only offered it to a publisher when her sister saw an advertisement looking for new material. Methuen accepted it and it was published in 1935, and they asked to see more of her work. She was about to get married, but she produced another novel Odd Shoes. Miss Pettigrew was her third novel and her most popular. It is a comic fantasy about a middle aged spinster governess who accidentally goes to the flat of a pretty young actress and singer, for a job interview. She then gets involved in the girl’s tangled love life and she herself begin to realise that life can be fun. She drinks, goes to a nightclub and helps the girl decide which of her suitors to marry. She finds that in spite of having lived a very narrow life, she is able to cope with a lot of unusual situations and she slips away from her father’s rigid morality. It is a rather light work, entertaining but not deep. In fact it is downright improbable, but I think with good acting, it would probably work very well as a frothy feel good kind of film. I’d like to try and find some of the other works, as I think she certainly had writing talent. However she gave up writing during the War. Her house was bombed and she and her baby son had a narrow escape from death. After that, she moved into a house with her mother in law, and found it very difficult to write, when she was “never alone”. She devoted herself to motherhood and gave up on writing. Winifred died in Newcastle in 2002. She was very pleased that her favourite novel had been re printed and had had a belated success.

Beds and Blue Jeans BY Nadine Sutton

Beds and Blue Jeans is set in present day America.  It is about a love affair between a young couple who drift into living together and having a baby.  Will they make it succeed or will Sam just go on having flings? 

http://www.amazon.com/Beds-Blue-Jeans-everyday-mayhem-ebook/dp/B01370SMFO/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1443265304&sr=8-2&keywords=nadine+sutton

Wodehouse the war years

During the 20’s, Ethel and Plum travelled between America and England, but this led to tax problems. Wodehouse was being taxed as a resident in the US and in England. So in the 1930s, they settled in France. Plum was happy provided he could work. Ethel’s daughter Leonora got married. Then, in 1939, France and England were at war with Germany. The Wodehouses did not leave, partly because they adored their pet dogs and didn’t want to have to put them into quarantine. Partly however it was because Plum was as always absorbed in his work and did not take much interest in politics. The German invasion took them by surprise. Once the Germans invaded France, they were caught there, and unable to get away. They made an effort to flee from the advancing Germans in May 1940, trying to drive down to Portugal. Their car broke down and the roads were so clogged with refugees that they gave up the attempt. This led to disaster. Soon after the invasion, the Germans imprisoned all male enemy nationals under 60, and Wodehouse was sent to a prison in Lille. He was sent on to other prisons, ending up in one in Germany. Ethel had a difficult time getting news of him, and some prominent Americans tried to get him released. Wodehouse made the best of internment, and was cheerful enough. Conditions were uncomfortable, but he was naturally inclined to be good tempered and get on with life. He got permission to use a typewriter and did some writing. He used his typewriter to write to his literary agent, to try to send messages to various Canadian families, to let them know that their sons were alive and well… This was evading the German censorship but he got away with it. In 1941, he was allowed to leave the prison some months before his sixtieth birthday. That was the age at which internees were usually released. But it was suggested by the German authorities that he should do some broadcasts. Wodehouse foolishly did not see the obvious trap. He was quite keen on the idea, wanting to get in touch with his readers in America in particular. He lived at a hotel in Germany, going on with his writing and living off his own money. However, he was incredibly foolish to agree to the broadcasts. While they were simply amusing anecdotes about life in prison, and in no way “supportive to Germany”, they caused a storm in Britain. Not surprisingly, the British, who were suffering privations and difficulties, and who didn’t hear the broadcasts, got a general idea that Wodehouse had been given privileges for “playing along” with the Nazis. Some journalists who tried to calm the outrage, pointing out that there was no evidence of collaboration, were shouted down. When Paris was liberated, the British authorities interviewed him and concluded that he had been stupid and naive, but there was no evidence of wrong doing.. When the war was finally over, Wodehouse and his wife moved back to America. Therer was now a certain estrangement between him and his native country. He continued to write and to lead a solitary life, keeping in touch with friends by letter. Ethel still managed his affairs and his daily life. Leonora, Ethel's daughter had died during the war, and they gave their affection to a brood of pet dogs. Over time, Plum's wartime "folly" was forgiven.. and it was realised that it had been the result of naivety rather than any ill intent. In his later years, he was finally offered a knighthood but was not well enough to travel to England. He lived to be over 90.. writing to the end...

Rough Music by Nadine Sutton

A “band” story set in the US, in the late 1970s.  I wanted to write about this era as I remember it as a kid and I love the music from it.

It is the story of a country rock band and its 2 lead singers and how they cope with life on the road.  It’s not a conventional love story, but more about marriage, life in the music world and life in the later 1970’s.  

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rough-Music-Nadine-Sutton-ebook/dp/B01AEQS0G0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452977780&sr=8-1&keywords=nadine+sutton

Wodehouse Part II

Wodehouse began to spend time in America, and since his poor eyesight debarred him from war service, he was detached from the War in the UK and life there. He married Ethel- an English widow, who had a daughter -Leonora. Plum loved his stepdaughter and was very close to her, and his marriage was happy, with Ethel managing his life and letting him concentrate on his writing. He became somewhat reclusive, as time passed and didn’t take much interest in the world outside which was later to cause him problems. He was content to let Ethel manage the practical details for him, and to enjoy a busy social life. He began to write his stories of Jeeves and Wooster, and about Blandings Castle, where Lord Emsworth, a dotty amiable country loving peer, lives, trying to avoid being bullied and managed by his large family of domineering sisters. He is obsessed with the well-being of his prize Pig, the Empress of Blandings. His plots were intricate and brilliant and funny. As he said it was a sort of musical comedy with the music left out, all about misunderstandings, farcical situations, and it all ended happily. Jeeves is much cleverer than his master Bertie, who is “mentally negligible” and who has a terrible knack of accidentally getting engaged to various strong minded girls. Jeeves rescues him from these and other situations. He also smooths the path of true love for many of Bertie's friends, like Bingo Little, and helps Bertie to keep on good terms with his domineering but affectionate Aunt Dahlia.

PG Wodehouse Part I

PG Wodehouse was born in Guildford, in England, in 1881. His family came from the middle classes, and they served in the Empire, and spent a lot of time abroad. Their children would be sent home to England at some stage, to go to school or live with relatives. His father worked as a magistrate in Hong Kong. Pelham was taken to Hong Kong and spent a few years there. However, in due course, was sent back to England, with his brothers, to be cared for by a nanny and other relatives. He saw little of his parents and seems to have never become close to them. Named Pelham Grenville, he was usually called “Plum”. He was sent to various schools in England, and enjoyed some more than others. His Father intended him for the Navy but his eyesight was too poor for that. His favourite school was Dulwich College. He was good at games, enjoyed music and entertainment and had a good time. He was not academic but was far from stupid. With his parents living abroad, he spent holidays with his extended family in the UK. This may have accounted for the place that domineering and amusing aunts and large families played in his fiction. He was used to being with aunts and uncles, rather than with his own parents. He also had a kindly Nanny and was accustomed to spend a lot of time with the servants. This again is reflected in his books where the servants take an important part in the action... And the most famous servant of all, is Jeeves, manservant to the amiable but idiotic Bertie Wooster. When he left school, his father had retired and his pension was not enough to allow Plum to go to University. He had to work, and went into a commercial bank... But he never enjoyed the life there. He was not a practical young man and found the work boring and had no interest in getting on there. He began to write in the evenings. He produced comic short stories and a school book and generally he did well enough for him to give up his day job by 1902... After this, now that he was settled as a full time writer, he began to think of going to the US. He found the country congenial and made a good income, writing stories and light journalism. He also met people in the musical theatre and started to work as a lyricist.

Bobby Bare singer

Bobby Bare was born in Ohio, in 1935 as Robert Joseph Bare. His father was a farmer, and as a young man, Bobby joined the army. Just before he joined up, he wrote a song called All American boy. But his song didn’t sell. After his hitch in the Army, he moved to Nashville, and was signed by Chet Atkins. His first single was a “cheating song” called Shame on Me, which gave him a start.. His next song was a big hit. It was “Detroit City” -by Mel Tillis. A song about southern men who moved up North to Detroit after the war, to get jobs in the automobile industry but pined for their home. Unlike many country singers, who write a lot of their own material, Bobby's own songs didn't ever seem to do very well. But he has a beautiful voice and a charming stage presence. He has an ability, like Johnny Cash, to make the songs sound as if they came from inside him, even the ones he did not write. He has worked very hard and had dozens of hits. In the 70's, he abandoned some of the sweeter, Nashville sound, and went a bit "outlaw country".. . He roughened his voice, wore jeans and cowboy shirts. However, he was never one of the singers who made headlines because of outrageous behavior. His hits included the folk song, "Four Strong Winds”, by Ian Tyson...Tom T Hall’s cheating song “Margie’s at the Lincoln Park Inn”, and another poignant song called “ the Homecoming”. This was written by Tom T Hall. It is about a singer who comes home for the first time in years, and tries to hide from his family that his singing career isn't going well. Another of his great songs was by Harlan Howard and Tompall Glaser “Streets of Baltimore”- another song about a man who leaves his southern home to work in a city… Bobby was close friends with Shel Silverstein and performed many of his songs. These include Tequila Sheila, Marie Laveau, “The Winner”, “Hippie and Redneck Romance” "Going back to Texas" and many more. He did a version of Dr Hook’s great hit, Sylvia’s Mother. In later life, he and 3 other singers, Waylon Jennings, Mel Tillis and Jerry Reed, combined as “the Old Dogs” to do an album of Shel’s songs. This time they were about the funny side of getting older. They included “I ain't too old to cut the Mustard”, “Lord Ain’t It hard when it Ain’t”, "Couch Potato " and other racy songs. Waylon was the youngest but he did songs about male sexual problems. Bare married in 1963 and remained married to Jeannie, who joined his band as a singer. They have children, including a son, Bobby Bare Junior, who is also a singer and song writer. Bobby still sings and records, and in recent years he has produced some excellent work, including an Album called Darker than Light, which includes covers of Woody Guthrie’s works and a song by U2. His voice seems as good as ever.