Last Push” (1926), the final volume in Saki’s last sequence of books about Jeeves and Bertie Wooster. Saki’s writing career was cut short after she died of cancer in 1916 at age 42, so the tales were published only after she died. The book contains a lovely epilogue, which I’ll share in part below, and I think it would make a perfect gift for a friend, if you’re looking to buy them a present. And here is the postscript I promised you at the end of Part 1… Postscript: What have you got to lose by reading a book written by a 19th century woman of whom you know nothing? It’s your own reading life that you have to lose. Think about that next time you read a book that’s not recommended by a review or magazine blurb. You could be missing out on a good read. And now I’d like to introduce you to Trixie from London (1898), a short story by E.F. Benson (1867-1940), the author of such classics as The Small House at Allington (1921), Love in a Cottage (1929), and Bachelor Days (1936). Trixie was published in The Sunday at Home (1918), a collection of short stories by Benson with a more domestic-themed content than his novels. E.F. Benson, Trixie, 1923 Trixie (1922) has a charming title, although the story itself isn’t very charming. It’s a clever little yarn in which a girl meets a man on the street and falls madly in love with him. Everything is perfect — until he turns out to be her brother, although the couple try not to let on that he isn’t really her brother. How lovely! You might well ask, was he ever in a similar situation himself? Had Benson himself been tempted by the girl he took out and fallen so passionately in love with? Maybe so, for his family background was similar to Trixie’s. Benson was born in 1868, the eldest of four children, in Bucklebury, Berkshire, the eldest son of a clergyman, who gave him an interest in literature at an early age, and was something of a mentor to him. He attended Oxford University and graduated with first-class honours in history at 18. He went on to do five years of military service, but when he returned from the army in 1907 he worked as a magazine editor for some years before starting to write novels. His first published work was his most successful novel to date, Miss Nobody (1907), a light comedy and a critique of the “new woman” of the times. His next novel was Where’s George? (1909), a novel that depicts the life of a typical English girl. You’ll never get the identity of this fellow In 1905, Benson married Helen Grace Mary (“Gertie”) Wodehouse, granddaughter of Charles Wodehouse, a distinguished novelist and playwright, and Gertrude Winthrop’s daughter. They were married for 46 years and had one son, Edward Frederick Benson (1907-1979). Benson’s first marriage ended in 1917 in a legal dispute over a gambling debt. He subsequently married two further times. The Benson family home was at Stokenchurch Court in Bucklebury, Berkshire. In this light-hearted, amusing, and slightly unusual story, Benson shows that men don’t always know the most important details about the women they date, even the women they are actually dating. In a world full of unrequited loves, Benson is saying to us: don’t ever assume anything. You never know what’s going on behind the scenes in the minds and actions of men and women. You could be doing yourself a great disservice by passing up the chance to have some fun with Trixie or you could be missing out on a great love. And don’t forget, men and women are so much more alike than they might think. Like a cat, men purr, purr, and purr — if you don’t stroke them you might just be very, very surprised. And that’s why I’m thinking maybe Benson would have enjoyed Trixie after all. But then again maybe it’s best to just leave Trixie strictly for fantasy. Thank you, Shirley, for adding this to our archive. We could use a little more happiness in our lives and maybe Trixie might lighten up your day. [Here’s a fun fact: this article is about a book called Trixie, written by E.F. Benson. For some reason Benson is also one of the most famous authors with the initials E.F. B. His initials could have just as easily been used to write the name E.T. Benson, if you’ll forgive the joke. Or E.Z. Benson. And we can’t forget I.F. Benson. Or S.E. Benson.] The most charming little thing What a great book this book is. It’s part of the “Chastenings” series by Georgette Heyer (1902-1974). It’s written as a tale of the “early days” in our heroine’s life and a warning to all younger girls about those charming young men who are always coming in and out of the young women’s lives. And here’s another interesting fact: Heyer also wrote historical romances, but her best work is that of her “Regency romances,” featuring well-bred young ladies in Regency times, and her protagonists are generally ladies and gentlemen in keeping with those times. The most charming young man This book also shares many of the characteristics that have made Heyer famous. There is plenty of humor, and her characters, for the most part, are good-natured, charming fellows. And they are all gentlemen. These are the gentlemen young ladies are supposed to wait for, to pine for, and to give all their hearts to. But not too much, for Heyer warns: one must never commit to one man or one woman too hastily. In the novel, Flora (called Flora for short in the book) has been engaged to be married by her parents to Lord Ossett, an accomplished man who is a diplomat and an aspiring politician. But he doesn’t quite seem to fancy his beautiful fiancée as much as she does him. As a result, her feelings become hurt and she runs away from home to live on her own in the country. The novel is about her misadventures after she goes to live with her aunt in Norfolk. She’s not a complete innocent, but she certainly is a young lady who seems more a daughter than a daughter-in-law. And although she is quite capable of managing the affairs of her aunt’s household, she quickly realizes that she is hopelessly in over her head. Her romantic aspirations are met by an attractive young rake who lives in a neighboring manor house and who is quite the catch in his own right. But Flora seems to have fallen for this handsome, charming gentleman as soon as she laid eyes on him. And though they do spend time together as a couple, it is quite clear that she is only in love with him as a friend. This book is one of my favorites because of the way Heyer writes it. A part of the charm of the novel is the way she describes the characters and describes the locations of the places where they are. I like the way she goes into great detail, describing things like the garden (it is always the gardens in Heyer) at the manor house, which is situated on top of a small hill. She describes the way the garden has been arranged: how to walk there, which is difficult at the beginning of the book, and then when it’s more like a trail through the woods. You just have to believe that she walked on the path through the woods, with her handkerchief in hand, that she could feel the rain on her face, and the way she could hear the leaves rustling. She describes things like that. I like the way that she describes things. She’s not just describing things, but she’s letting the reader come along with her as she does. Her descriptions are not only informative for those unfamiliar with Norfolk (which I am), but are also quite enjoyable to read about. In Chapter 6, Heyer talks about the way the character was written, and she talks about her difficulties when it came to writing her. She found it easy to describe the actions of the man and the actions of the women, but to write about a woman she found harder, and also more tiring to write about. I think I’ve figured out why. It’s because Heyer always wrote about what she herself would have liked, or would do, in a given situation. And in the book there is a chapter where Flora goes to a ball with her cousin, which is a bit more sophisticated than she is used to. So I think that was one of the reasons Heyer, who was more well-read, wrote this particular book in that way. But she’s a lady with lots of courage The way Heyer handles this subject is very similar to the way she handles men and women. She’s describing the typical woman of that time and how difficult it was for