The Shop...
Persephone Books (www.persephonebooks.co.uk) are a publisher and bookshop with a clear mission and brand. I really admire what Nicola Beauman has done with this business - as a businesswoman she has found a distinct niche within the publishing market that promotes itself as a lifestyle choice along with what Beauman herself describes as a kind of 'soft' feminism. The 78 books that currently form the Persephone catalogue are written by mainly female writers whose books struggled to maintain long-term notoriety and which all without exception are regarded to be extremely well written. On visiting the original bookshop on Lambs Conduit Street, London and browsing for about 15 minutes in the front part (this is the shop and the rest is Persephone Headquarters) the member of staff working there was constantly answering the telephone and taking orders, business seemed to be booming... Especially in the wake of Miss Pettigrew's foray into cinema. It was an extremely pleasant retail experience - I love good service in a shop, not intrusive, yet knowledgeable and friendly - full marks were had here.
Onto the Novel itself...
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day is a Cinderella story with a twist: Cinderella is not young and beautiful, but rather a middle aged, frumpy and down-at-heel governess who cons her way into the lovely Delysia LaFosse's apartment and her life. Miss Pettigrew is painted and polished to hob nob with the social elite, and meets Joe, an underwear magnate who sees through to her very soul. It's a lovely inoffensive novel which makes you laugh and tugs at the heartstrings. This version also has some lovely illustrations and an excellent preface, setting the book in context and offering with lightness of touch, some insight into the author's world.
The Film...
It is interesting how liberal the scriptwriters have been with the plot and characters of the novel, infact much of the film bears little resemblance to the original storyline. However it manages to escape criticism because of this, due to the beauty of the film. The settings and costumes are magnificent. The contrast between the stark streets of London, Delysia's decadent apartment ( I want to live there!) and the racy Scarlet Peacock is really nicely managed. The script focuses very much on the two lead female characters and rather less on the pursuit of the men in Delysia's life and the two lead actresses (Frances McDormand and Amy Adams) put in some good performances as you see their relationship developing.
Miss Pettigrew has managed to fill three rainy afternoons for me - a visit to the shop, reading the novel, and watching the film. A satisfying way to have spent my time.
4 comments:
Both the book and the film sound delightful. Congrats on finishing your first book and film for the Lit Flicks Challenge!
This movie just arrived in my mail box but I have yet to get to the book. I absolutely loved reading about the shop and the publisher, thank you.
Nice review. :) I've read the book, and really liked it, but still haven't seen the film. I did hear from a friend that it wasn't nearly as good as the book, but I still want to see it.
The movie was delightful! I loved it! and did you watch the interview with the son of the author? He has interesting things to say about his mother and whether or not she would have liked the adaption. She actually sold the film rights 3 times before it was able to be attempted.
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