How do you think it compares to Greene’s other books? Detailed plot synopsis reviews of Travels with my Aunt ; Henry Pulling is a retired bank manager, he lives in London, he meets for the second time in his life his Aunt Augusta, during his mother´s funeral. With time Harry grows, and is able to attain the pleasures life offers (the word attain has been used intentionally with thought). Alistair Maclean written by Barbara Pym - bon voyage! It's really a belated coming-of-age novel, about an early-retired bank manager who eventually finds himself thanks to the intervention of his eccentric, mysterious aunt, from whom he has been estranged since birth, until they meet at his mother's (her sister's) funeral. This was our book club choice and an author I’ve not read for many years. Great contrast between the two main characters. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 28, 2018. That said, it's not great stuff, but it's at least fairly entertaining, diverting, and sad. Our book group choice for March 2019 is Travels with my Aunt by Graham Greene. Travels with my aunt is a fabulous book that should encourage anyone embarking on the 2nd half of their life that many adventures, romance and travel can and will happen if you want it too and have the energy to carry it through. Unable to add item to Wish List. At his mother's funeral he meets his Aunt Augusta for the first time since his baptism, and she immediately rocks his world by announcing that his mother was in fact not this biological mother. What did that opening paragraph of the book tell you about Henry? Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 4, 2020. Notebook for Legends Only : Journal, Gift for Writing, Birthday Gift, Size 6" x 9",... Antonia of Venice: A Novel Of The Venetian Empire. No good complaining this isn't Brighton Rock or any of the author's novels of relgious introspection, fine though many of them are. Your Next 1969 Book Club Assignment is Here, Wheels Within Wheels: Revisiting Slaughterhouse-Five. The book ends on a charming note with Harry marrying a younger woman with whom he reads poetry. After viewing product detail pages, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages that interest you. Graham Greene Booklist Graham Greene Message Board. This book was written in the late 60’s…. He's a total zero, dull and timid, with nothing to look forward to but 30 years of watering his dahlias. You're listening to a sample of the Audible audio edition. Harun … I love the concept of a new and exciting life after the age of retirement and Greene pokes fun at the naivety of a boring man chained to a desk for decades. Prime members enjoy Free Two-Day Shipping, Free Same-Day or One-Day Delivery to select areas, Prime Video, Prime Music, Prime Reading, and more. Your email address will not be published. Travels With My Aunt by Graham Greene Discussion questions used at SPL - March 2013 1. The tale is of Henry, a middle-aged bachelor (and presumably virgin) who has been forced to retire from his bank job after 30 years. 'Travels' is not a great novel, not even a great Graham Greene novel. In Travels with my Aunt Graham Greene not only gives us intoxicating entertainment but also confronts us with some of the most perplexing of human dilemmas. Did you like it? Download one of the Free Kindle apps to start reading Kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, and computer. She's old, but with way more zest than her nephew, and their interplay is a clear call for everyone to live life and not let it drift by (carpe diem and all that). About Augusta? © 2008-2020, Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates. If you’ve wrapped Slaughterhouse-Five (details on this weekend’s discussion below), you should be ready for book two of our 1969 Book Club list: Graham Greene’s comic novel, Travels with My Aunt. She soon persuades Henry to abandon his dull suburban existence to travel. Pritchett, The Times. The sadness of side-characters – Miss Keene, Wordsworth, Tooley, Miss Patterson. Fast, FREE delivery, video streaming, music, and much more. This is a romp with little serious intent, though a few sideswipes at the CIA and the church in its various manifestations are not resisted. At the end, did Pullen make the right decision to stay with his ‘Aunt’, or should he have returned to Southwold, possibly with Miss Keene. This shopping feature will continue to load items when the Enter key is pressed. It’ s the story of Hanry Pulling, a retired and complacent bank manager who meets his septuagenarian Aunt Augusta for the first time at what he supposes to be his mother’s funeral. 2. Greene had a remarkably long career, and in contrast to many authors was publishing some of his greatest novels – such as The Honorary Consul – in his 70s. In the meantime, happy reading! The novel follows the travels of Henry Pulling, a retired bank manager, and his eccentric Aunt Augusta as they find their way across Europe, and eventually even further afield. He worked as a journalist and critic, and in 1940 became literary editor of the, You and Only You: Lined Notebook Journal - 120 Pages - (6 x 9 inches), Creat Your Own Sunshine: Lined Notebook Journal - 120 Pages - (6 x 9 inches). I would of course be happy to return the favour sometime if possible. Catholicism is mentioned a lot, but was it necessary? Sometimes you wonder whether the maddening primness is the narrator's or the author's. You can confirm your order details before purchasing. Every age has its assumptions, and the perceptive reader will be able to filter out Greene's message even if the setting looks unfamiliar. It turned out to be a fun and entertaining story about Henry Puling, a very unim "One's life is more formed, I sometimes think, by books than by human beings: it is out of books one learns about love and pain at second hand. "Rich in exactly etched and moving portraits of real human beings...the tragic and comic ironies of love, loyalty and belief." Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. Graham Greene claims this to be the only book he wrote "for fun." We’ll be enlisting the help of contemporary novelist, Christopher Bollen, to discuss the merits of Travels with My Aunt towards the end of the month. It is flawed, mannered, contrived, old-fashioned, complacent; the work of a writer who has earned his laurels and is content to lounge on them. “Every day when I sat down before the blank sheets of foolscap (for as symbol of my new freedom I had abandoned the single lined variety where the lines seemed to me now like the bars on a prison window) I had no idea what was going to happen to Henry or Augusta next. do you feel it gives you a sense of the time? Thanks. To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. There are a lot of side-stories / reminisces, do they complement/ distract from the story? She soon persuades Henry to abandon his dull suburban existence to travel her way—winding through Brighton, Paris, Istanbul, and Paraguay. The frequent allusions to then-modish Latin American fiction (the novel ends up in Paraguay) only exposes its lack of adventurousness. Do you know if the book club found or made up some questions, and if so would you be able to send these to me? Travels with my Aunt was published just a little earlier, but it was also something of a literary bauble, the only book he claims to have written “for the fun of it.”. I liked the story in general but the end was a little rushed and the one thing most readers might have guessed was simply stated at the end with no real explanation which is why I’ve only awarded it 4 stars. Of course, it's obvious to everyone except Henry that his "aunt" is his real mother, but that the one story which goes untold. Your email address will not be published. Travels with my aunt is a fabulous book that should encourage anyone embarking on the 2nd half of their life that many adventures, romance and travel can and will happen if you want it too and have the energy to carry it through. Finally, a Graham Greene book I sort of liked (following disappointing experiences with Stamboul Train and This Gun For Hire)! Notify me of follow-up comments by email.

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