King George

Devotees of E.F. Benson’s books on the people of Tilling will not be disappointed in this sequel. From cricket matches, Christmas lunches and Roman villas, the lives of the residents of Tilling are laid bare once again with all their small-village craziness. Not only Tilling, but also the residents of Risenholme, and friends from London, all come to Tilling to play a part in pre-war village Britain. Once again, Elizabeth Mapp tries to prove to the world that she is right and Tilling is wrong in their love for Lucia. All the past characters are here including Mr and Mrs Wyse, Quaint Irene, Diva, the Padre as well as Janet and Foljambe and there is a new character to invade the peaceful and tranquil lives of the residents whose identity confounds and confuses them.

E. F. Benson wrote Queen Lucia, the first of the five books devoted to Elizabeth Mapp and Lucia Lucas, in 1922. This was followed by Miss Mapp two years later and then Lucia in London, Mapp and Lucia, Lucia’s Progress, and finally in 1939 by Trouble for Lucia. Miss Mapp and Mapp and Lucia were set mainly in Tilling while the other three books revolved around the residents of Risenholme. The beauty of books, to me at any rate, is they are ageless. There is very little to determine in any of the original books the dates they are set in, so they all flow together to create one delicious read from start to finish. King George is set in 1937 and covers just over a year of the lives of the residents of Tilling and Risenholme. I firmly believe you do not need to have read the previous books to enjoy this, indeed reading this may well move you to go back to the beginning to see how the mastery of E. F. Benson started the whole thing.