A Calamity of Mannerings
If you want a coming-of-age book full of warmth and wit, look no further than Carnegie-nominated author Joanna Nadin’s story of 1920s society gal, Panth Mannering.
Sixteen-year-old Panth dreams of champagne, dances and being in Tatler, but then her father dies leaving no male heir. Panth, her mother and sisters lose their Radley Manor home to rich American Buck Buchanan. Panth decides the simple way out of their troubles is to get Buck to fall in love with her and marry her; then they can all move back into Radley Manor.
Panth is already in love with handsome and dashing Buck so thinks her plan shouldn’t be too difficult. Childhood friend Freddy Spencer isn’t so sure, but what does he know? Panth’s efforts to make her wishes come true are written in the form of a laugh-out-loud diary, illustrated by Emma Block. Here Panth chronicles the trials and tribulations of herself and her sisters – secretive Aster, who at 23 surely should have been married, and ten-year-old animal-mad Marigold, who has a badly behaved menagerie, including Siegfried the sheep. Then there’s Panth’s supposed best friend Margot, gay cousin Valentine, a whirl of society friends and nasty grandma.
The novel is said to be for fans of I Capture the Castle and Bridgerton, but there’s a touch of Jane Austen, the Durrells, and a firm nod to the Mitfords and the bond of sisters. A delightful book which itself must be a classic in the making.
Age:13 and above. Triggers: occasional sex, aftermath of abortion.
