Quartet in Autumn by Barbara Pym was shortlisted for The Booker Prize in 1977, when Staying On http://realini.blogspot.com/2016/02/staying-on-by-paul-scott-if-not.html by Paul Scott won the coveted award…when Magister Ludi Kingsley Amis won The Booker he joked and said that he had previously thought of the Booker as a rather trivial, showbizzy sort of caper, but now considered it a very serious, reliable indication of literary merit… 10 out of 10

 Quartet in Autumn by Barbara Pym was shortlisted for The Booker Prize in 1977, when Staying On http://realini.blogspot.com/2016/02/staying-on-by-paul-scott-if-not.html by Paul Scott won the coveted award…when Magister Ludi Kingsley Amis won The Booker he joked and said that he had previously thought of the Booker as a rather trivial, showbizzy sort of caper, but now considered it a very serious, reliable indication of literary merit…

10 out of 10

 

Excellent Women http://realini.blogspot.com/2019/04/excellent-women-by-barbara-pym-10-out.html has enchanted this reader and predicted that I would enjoy what the wonderful Barbara Pym writes…indeed, I was more than surprised to find that her style went out of ‘fashion’ and she would not be published for some time, until Quartet in Autumn would be finished, given to Philip Larkin, the manuscript is appreciated, the poet suggests a title change, then writes about the author as the most underrated writer, and thus Barbara Pym becomes the only one nominated twice in this category, interest in her work is increased and then a publishing house finally takes on Quartet in Autumn…

 

There are three spectacular novels by the same author that I need to set aside, for another look, in some years’ time (Insha’Allah) along with Quartet in Autumn and Excellent Women, there is another magnum opus, Less Than Angels http://realini.blogspot.com/2020/10/less-than-angels-by-barbara-pym-10-out.html which I see now that I thought ‘the perfect novel’ at the time of reading it, about three years ago, different in tone and style, Quartet is much more somber, however amusing it can be at times…

The Quartet in Autumn refers in fact to four main characters that are approaching retirement, the two female personages, Marcia Ivory and Letty Crowe, actually stop working in the office where the Quartet has met, they have been for some years colleagues, not doing much for the outfit – when the women stop working, in this ‘filing department’, the firm will not hire anybody else, and once the two men, Edwin Braithwaite and Norman (I take notes, to remember names, and sometimes events, highlights that may escape me with time, only for Norman I have not bothered to put in his whole name, alas) will leave the firm, their whole department will cease to exist, which provokes some feelings of unease…

 

Marcia Ivory may be the least likeable of the Quartet, however much we could explain her ways, and see that her medical condition must have affected her behavior and attitude, and besides, we could do well to listen to what our greatest luminary, Andrei Plesu http://realini.blogspot.com/2021/11/50-minutes-with-plesu-and-liiceanu-10.html has to say on the subject of getting old, with age, we tend to develop some beneficial habits – we do not care so much about the flimsy aspects, then we are also allowed to have stains on the tie without accusations – but we tend to engage in some annoying rituals, we tell stories that are not required, could be even boring or worse…

Then there is the grumpiness, and that is one feature that Marcia has in more than large supply, just like she has a huge collection of milk bottles (I must remember to read Quartet again, later, as I get to be seventy, eighty, God willing, and learn from her, to avoid hurting others) kept in her shed, and she is irritated to the point of ire with Letty, because the latter had given her some milk and then that had come into a type of recipient which does not fit into her collection, and Marcia resents this in a peculiar, and ultimately amusing way…

 

Letty Crowe appears to be a more affable, even pitiable personage, she had never married (actually, none of them is, if Edwin is a widower) and does not know about married life, or relationships, she is puzzled by odd situations, when her friend, Marjorie, invites her to retire into the country, Letty imagines the future in that village, only to find that Marjorie decides to marry the vicar, and thus Letty has to find another place…the room she had had belongs now to a Nigerian (sort of) priest and his family, quite rumbustious and exuberant for the taste of the sedate Letty, who moves in with an eighty year old woman, Mrs. Pope

Spoiler alert, the vicar would cancel the wedding, after giving Marjorie a ring (which she decides to keep, because she likes it, with age, our fingers get fatter and then this piece of jewelry looks nice under the circumstances…in other words, if we have a tragedy on our hands, Barbara Pym is so splendid, and talented that she inserts exquisite moments of humor throughout) and instead, he decides to marry the friend of his would be spouse, the manager of an old people’s home, the establishment where Marjorie intends Letty to move, as she (Marjorie) does not respect the plans they had made…in fact, dominant Marjorie was the one taking the lead, making decisions, until Letty thinks better of this.

 

The spoiler alert is still on, and let me say that this is also felicitous and amusing, to read that naïve, benign, gullible Letty is about to change strategy and when invited (Again) by Marjorie to share her abode, now that she is not to marry the fickle vicar, she does not say yes, of course, instead she wants to think about it, and looks as if she may stay in London after all – we are left in doubt, wondering what will happen after the end of this august, marvelous narrative – after all, Letty was not at all keen on the mangled rabbits, dead birds, cruelty of the villagers, which she had noticed when visiting…

For the last few words, we are left with the men, and maybe I confuse the two at the end, but I am experiencing some of the phenomenon which are specific to the age of the protagonists – what was I talking about by the way – Norman is the one that is less enticing of the male characters (if I have him right, that is) who is grumbling, sarcastic and negative, while Edwin is into religious pomp and circumstance, however superficial he may be, Edwin could well engage with rituals as a habit, for the decorum, the superficial paraphernalia.

 

When Marcia appears to ‘go around the bend’, show signs that she is losing it, none of the other three does much to improve things, no matter how futile their efforts would have been, seeing as there is a social worker (and her portrait is also remarkable, outstanding in its accuracy, sardonic look) who tries to support, but Marcia is more than resistant, she is outright rude and impregnable, ultimately that will cost her a lot…

 

Now for a question, and invitation – maybe you have a good idea on how we could make more than a million dollars with this http://realini.blogspot.com/2022/02/unique-in-world.html?q=unique+in+the+world – as it is, this is a unique technique, which we could promote, sell, open the Oscars show with or something and then make lots of money together, if you have the how, I have the product, I just do not know how to get the befits from it, other than the exercise per se

 

As for my role in the Revolution that killed Ceausescu, a smaller Mao, there it is http://realini.blogspot.com/2022/03/realini-in-newsweek-participant-in.html