Cheerful Weather for the Wedding Audiobook (Unabridged)

" A nice little British book set on the day of a wedding in 1930's England. Reminded me of Mrs. Dalloway a little bit. Hilariously read by Miriam Margolyes, it certainly helped my commutes go by faster! "

" A peculiar little novella. Very of its time, stream of consciousness, sub-Woolfian. Very very funny, especially the brothers quarrelling about those damned socks, and the bride off her face on rum and spilling ink on her dress just before she leaves for the church. It's too short, though, and one doesn't really care for the characters very much. "

" This short novel or novella describes a couple hours of a blustery March day in the 1920s in England. Dolly is getting married to a Civil servant and leaving immediately afterwards to take a ship to his far-away posting. The only one who seems to think this is a jolly occasion is her mother, who flutters around the house murmuring that it's such cheerful weather. Everybody else in the house is either tormenting someone else, tormenting themselves, or being tormented by relatives. The bride's younger sister is caught up in bridesmaid-dress drama. A cousin is pursuing his younger brother trying to make him change his "disreputable" socks, anticipating social disgrace if another "Rugby man" happens to attend the wedding. Various mad old aunts need to be accomodated. And who is the irriated "friend" in the parlor, who keeps wanting to see the bride? And why does the bride feel the need to slug rum as she's getting dressed in her bridal finery? The reader is given to understand that there was "something" between Joseph and Dolly the summer before. But nothing came of it and Dolly got engaged to someone else. And now both are regretting their missed chances. But the wedding must go on. I gave this book two stars because it is written in a type of stream-of-consciousness technique that I find exhausting after a while. It was very popular with the Bloomsbury set, of which Julia Strachey was a prominent member, but it feels dated today. Still, this short book offers some good insights into human psychology and is wholly unsentimental, so it's definitely worth two stars. "

" Enjoyable, with some sharp and insightful character studies. Rather like a play - and indeed Strachey had ambitions as a playwright. They show here. I could see this working as a staged piece. Rather strange in pacing at times, but enjoyed, fun, a relaxing read. "

" This is one of those books that really makes me realize that even if I lived in London for eleventy-eight years, I would still only be faking being British. Usually I love black humor and acid send-ups, but this one...meh. Just not that funny, not that sharp, ...or maybe, as I said, I am just not British enough to appreciate it. The plot is disconnected and random (by design - it wasn't an accident), so if the humor isn't your cup of tea, you've wasted your nine pounds. I'm afraid I did just that. "

" More interesting for its connections to Bloomsbury, the Woolfs, and Hogarth Press -- but a good, solid read nonetheless. "

" Somewhere between I Capture the Castle, Cold Comfort Farm, and The Philadelphia Story....that's where I would file this one in the Rolodex of my mind. Subtly funny, British to the Nth degree, you can picture the BBC version of your dreams in your head as you read.... "

" Near-perfect! Everything about this book is acute and compact; Strachey says so much with so little, and her portrait of a family, spanning just a few hours, is rich with detail and history. "

" Would have been 2 stars but for the last 20 pages. "

" rather short despite being a novella, Downton Abbey esque "

" Terrible. Thank goodness it was short. ONE star rating but tricky amending atm. "

" This is an extremely scattered book. The dramatic reveal at the end that, I suppose, was designed to make sense of all the confusion just made things even more confused. Still, there were some very funny moments. My favorite was the running gag about the green socks. "

" As astringent as wormwood or an espresso sorbet. Invigorating as a cold shower. A book to cleanse the palate after candyfloss romances and to revive the spirits after Russian tragedy. The plot? It's the morning of a wedding. The couple marry. The guests depart. And yet... "

" A breezy read from the 1930's. "

" A memorable novella. Read for an online book group, the choice was linked to a recent film adaptation which I haven't been able to see. It is a bittersweet read, with wonderfully drawn characters. "

" A 1932 British novella. Funny, I suppose, but in a rather brittle way. "

" A small and elegant novel about a society wedding, sharply observed, often quite funny, and full of interesting characters but rather slight, I felt -- worth reading, but not one of my favorite Persephones. "

" A poignant little novella. "

" After reading the reviews, I had high hopes for this but it just didn't measure up -- nothing interesting or entertaining. "

" A quick, quirky portrait of the life of the rich in the 1930s "

" Excellent story, short read about a British family with serious communication and perception issues...Blackly humorous throughout, with a significant smack to the head that I didn't see coming. "

" A nice little British book set on the day of a wedding in 1930's England. Reminded me of Mrs. Dalloway a little bit. Hilariously read by Miriam Margolyes, it certainly helped my commutes go by faster! "

" A small and elegant novel about a society wedding, sharply observed, often quite funny, and full of interesting characters but rather slight, I felt -- worth reading, but not one of my favorite Persephones. "

" After reading the reviews, I had high hopes for this but it just didn't measure up -- nothing interesting or entertaining. "

" Remarkable for its economy of prose and insightful asides. And, funny. "

" Would give it a 3.5 if I could. I really enjoyed this short novel - I thought that it was a great character study and a funny little story. I wasn't even annoyed that Dolly and Joseph didn't actually get together (which I usually am in situations like this). "

" This short novella reads like Jane Austin in the1930s...captivating. "

" A breezy read from the 1930's. "

" This is an extremely scattered book. The dramatic reveal at the end that, I suppose, was designed to make sense of all the confusion just made things even more confused. Still, there were some very funny moments. My favorite was the running gag about the green socks. "