Finished Some Tame Gazelle by Barbara Pym. This was her first published novel. It is the story of two spinster sisters living in a small village in England. Their world is very small and precise. Any changes to it cause tremendous upheaval. There were moments when I was reminded of characters in the first of the Mapp & Lucia books, but I enjoyed this book so much more because I actually liked these characters.
The main character, Belinda, nurses her long unrequited love for their neighbor the Archdeacon. While a small, quiet, sometimes amusing story, I was very drawn to the characters and found myself wondering about them when I was at work and away from the book. Pym novels always have an excellent quote worth saving. One from this book is "If only one could clear out one's mind and heart as ruthlessly as one did one's wardrobe." Next year I will read her next novel Excellent Women.
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