Virago Modern Classics

I first came across Virago books, with their distinctive green spines and apple logo,

many years ago in the days when, as a young woman, I was struggling to find my own identity as opposed to being 'just a wife and mother'. Virago Press, international publisher of books by women, started in 1973, the year I got married, and their mission has always been to champion women’s voices and bring them to the widest possible readership around the world. 'From fiction and politics to history and classic children’s stories, our writers continue to win acclaim, break new ground and enrich the lives of readers.' They are still doing it. Indeed, in the words of one of our much loved writers:

So when asked to suggest a theme for my local book group, I suggested we all read a Virago Modern Classic. A delightful afternoon followed discovering old friends and new. Here are just a few I would recommend.

The first Virago I read, back in the 1980s, was South Riding by Winifred Holtby. I loved this tale of the comedies and tragedies of local governnment in a rural community and when, in the 1990's, I sat on my local town council, I saw many parallels with the characters and capers of South Riding. The 2010 Virago edition has a preface by Shirley Williams, whose mother Vera Brittain, became great friends with Holtby. The two had been at Oxford together, shared a flat after university and both became writers. South Riding is an invented place but it is steeped in the traditions and countryside of Holtby's home county of Yorkshire. Holtby's father was a Yorkshire farmer and her mother, the formidable Alice Holtby, the first woman to become an alderman on East Riding County Council. Sadly, her mother did not approve of Winifred's novel and opposed its publication to the end.

It is not surprising that Daphne du Maurier had many books published by Virago. One chosen by a book group member was My Cousin Rachel. All du Maurier books have a sense of mystery and foreboding and this one is no different. Once again set in Cornwall, the characters and the locality are drawn vividly and you are on the edge of your seat as you read. Philip Ashley, orphaned at an early age, is raised by a benevolent older cousin, Ambrose, who names him as his heir. However, Ambrose meets, falls in love and marries the mysterious Rachel, then promptly dies. This gripping, psychological thriller will not disappoint.

I chose myself to read a novel by Muriel Spark. Like many, I am sure, I had only ever read The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and thought it was time I dipped into Miss Spark once

again. Memento Mori is exactly what it says - an aid to the contemplation of our demise, a reminder of the one irreversible truth. It is also a crime story. My new Virago edition has an introduction by A.L. Kennedy and I quote from her description: "A number of elderly men and women, including Dame Lettie, a blue-blooded reformer, Godfrey, her petulant and mildly perverse brother, his once-feted novelist wife Charmian and Alec Warner, an obsessive amateur gerontologist, slowly begin to receive anonymous phone calls which tell them, 'Remember you must die' . The mystery voice and tone varies, the message does not. A suitably ancient detective is hired to investigate." Muriel Spark's writing is sharp and darkly comic. A great read.

Recommended at the bookclub and subsequently read by me was the delightful The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim. A discreet advertisement in the Times, addressed to 'those who appreciate wistaria and sunshine' offers a small medieval castle for rent, above a bay on the Italian Riviera. Four very different women are drawn to the shores of the mediterranean that April and each in turn blossoms in the warmth of the Italian spring. The Enchanted April published in 1922, is a witty and delightful depiction of what it is like to rediscover joy. This book is a real treat and I am very tempted to take myself to Italy one spring!

Do have a look at the Virago website to discover some wonderful titles.