Classic Canning – serie

A classic travelogue that brilliantly conjures 1930s Britain.In this series of pen-portraits of England from the 1930s, Victor Canning ‘evocatively captures the pattern and colour of English life’ (The Bookseller), from Cumbria to Cornwall. Canning’s heart-warming and humorous observations of sleepy villages, pastoral scenes and busy industries are a delightful time capsule into life in England during the interwar years.  ‘What does the word England mean to you? To all of us England means something different, and yet I think there is for every man and woman some little corner which is more England than anywhere else…’ ***PRAISE FOR EVERYMAN'S ENGLAND***'Wonderful... elegant, humorous, exuberant essays.' Guardian'Evocatively captures the pattern and colour of English life.’ The Bookseller‘Canning finds beauty everywhere, but never sentimentalises, and is consistently honest enough to highlight poverty and social inequality... Canning, at his very best when waxing lyrical about landscapes, offers vivid images of the English countryside...' The Daily Mail

Mr Edgar Finchley, unmarried clerk, aged 45, is told to take a holiday for the first time in his life. He decides to go to the seaside. But Fate has other plans in store…From his abduction by a cheerful crook, to his smuggling escapade off the south coast, the timid but plucky Mr Finchley is plunged into a series of the most astonishing and extraordinary adventures.His rural adventure takes him gradually westward through the English countryside and back, via a smuggling yacht, to London.This gentle comedy trilogy was a runaway bestseller on first publication in the 1930s and retains a timeless appeal today. It has been dramatized twice for BBC Radio, with the 1990 series regularly repeated.

An ebullient Mr Finchley is about to propose marriage to a lady he had rescued from mishap, when he is sent to Paris by his firm.There he manages to upset a boat, adopt a stray orphan and get himself kidnapped. The fine tangle he gets into takes some unravelling! Only when eventually back in London does he complete the proposal of marriage that was interrupted at the start.This gentle comedy trilogy was a runaway bestseller on first publication in the 1930s and retains a timeless appeal today. It has been dramatized twice for BBC Radio, with the 1990 series regularly repeated.

An exuberant, life-affirming novel of taking your chancesAfter a spur-of-the-moment day out with his boss’ daughter in celebration of his 21st birthday, Polycarp Jarvis decides to quit his Bristol-based junior government worker job. Newly emboldened, he embarks on an erratic, engaging and not always strictly legal course through life.Going from bus driver for the Red Dragon Motor Company to co-owner of a flying company, to seller of quack medicines, and eventually to media tycoon, Polycarp makes much of his luck along the way. Through ups and downs, his exuberance and charm carry him through.But what kind of person will he be by the end?This gentle coming-of-age story was hugely popular on first publication in the 1930s and retains a timeless appeal today.

How far could you go living in another’s shoes?In a mid-life moment, Paul Morison travels from America to England to discover his mother’s roots. A chance encounter and uncanny resemblance leads him to agree to assume the identity of a famous singer for a while. But it’s not just the unnerving attentions of the adoring public that he must deal with.Seeking to regain his freedom, Paul flees the length of Britain from Southampton to the Scottish Isles. On the run, he discovers he has let himself in for much more than he bargained.This gentle comic caper and love story was hugely popular on first publication in the 1930s and retains a timeless appeal today.

A life-affirming story of family and personal self-discoveryWhen George, the eldest son of Matthew Silverman, announces he won’t follow his father’s footsteps as editor of the family-owned local newspaper, the family finds itself on a course for change. The newspaper has been going for nearly 100 years.With younger brother Alexander and sisters Loraine and Alison growing up fast too, and gradual progress in the world around them, can Matthew do what’s best for them all?This beautifully observed story of a loving family navigating generational change retains a timeless appeal today.

What’s going on behind the doors of Fountain Inn?When her employer suddenly disappears, young Grace Kirkstall finds herself accepting a new job at a new company in the same building – an oasis of tranquillity off the streets of London.Ben and Helen Brown’s startup company’s pitch is that, for a small consideration, they will help people out of their major and minor fixes. Their first big commission initiates Ben into the gentle art of house-breaking, and Helen into the mysteries of the Society for Progressive Rehabilitation…But for Grace, it will plunge her into more danger than she could ever have imagined.This leisurely, beautifully observed thriller marked Victor Canning’s entrée into crime fiction, and rewards with a thrilling finale - sure to delight fans of Agatha Christie’s Tommy and Tuppence.