From the Bookshelf of Retro Reads…

Mrs Tim of the Regiment (Mrs. Tim #1)

D.E. Stevenson

Start date: December 1, 2019

Finish date: December 31, 2019

Discussion: Buddy reads

Discussion leader: Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽

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What Members Thought

Dec 12, 2019 Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽ rated it really liked it

Shelves: england, historical-fiction, military, dated-social-attitudes, scotland

3.5 stars. This is the first book in the Mrs. Tim series, a novel in the form of journal entries written by the wife of a career British military officer, Mrs. Tim Christie. D.E. Stevenson, who wrote this book in 1932, was herself a military wife, and based much of this book on her own real-life journal, so there's definitely a realistic take on the ups and downs of British military life in between the world wars.

The first half is best viewed as an immersion into Hester Christie's day-to-day lif 3.5 stars. This is the first book in the Mrs. Tim series, a novel in the form of journal entries written by the wife of a career British military officer, Mrs. Tim Christie. D.E. Stevenson, who wrote this book in 1932, was herself a military wife, and based much of this book on her own real-life journal, so there's definitely a realistic take on the ups and downs of British military life in between the world wars.

The first half is best viewed as an immersion into Hester Christie's day-to-day life. It doesn't really have much of a plot, but she has a wry sense of humor and tells some interesting stories. The second half is more novel-like, as Hester visits a well-to-do friend in Scotland for a few weeks' vacation and there's lots of interpersonal drama, including her friend's son falling in love with the Wrong Girl and a Major Tony Morley (who works closely with Hester's husband Tim) who follows Hester around and has fallen in love with her ... which Hester utterly fails to realize because she's "hedged about with innocence," in Tony's words. Her obliviousness to his love for her never really worked for me, since Hester is otherwise quite observant, but maybe this is what readers in the 30s expected where one of the parties was married? In any case, even though Tim isn't around for most of the book, Hester is unswervingly devoted to him. And Tony, questionable though his motives may be, is a hilarious guy who always brightens up the pages when he appears.

It's a cozy read, definitely of its time in terms of social attitudes and unexamined classism, but that generally comes with the territory in older books. This isn't my favorite book by D.E. Stevenson (that would be Miss Buncle's Book) but I did enjoy getting a glimpse of another, bygone world through Hester Christie's eyes.

These books were very popular in their day (Stevenson wrote three more Mrs. Tim books) but I may or may not ever get around to reading them. I did read her book The Four Graces last week, which I'd recommend more than this one for people who like old-fashioned romances. ...more

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Dec 21, 2019 Carol She's So Novel꧁꧂ rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: vintage-retro-romance, diary-format, _can-t-finish-won-t-finish

2.5★

I'm sorry, I really tried, but I just can't finish this. One session (And oh, it did feel like a session!) reading I fell asleep before I read a single line.

Time to tidy up 2019 reads and move on.

There are exceptions (Désirée for one) but I'm rarely a fan of the diary format, as it is very limiting. But I did mildly enjoy the first half of the book that was based on Ms Stevenson's real life diaries. The quickly jotted down style was really authentic and it was interesting readin ...more

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Jan 10, 2020 Christine PNW rated it liked it

I've read several D.E. Stevenson books at this point - there are a number that are available through kindle unlimited, and one of my friends sent me a copy of Miss Buncle's Book. I actually picked up this Bloomsbury paperback around six years ago, but just now got around to reading it.

Mrs. Tim is apparently based on the actual diaries of D.E. Stevenson from when she was a young wife. There is a lot to like about the book - especially Mrs. Tim herself - but the diary format, to me, was not as suc ...more

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Sep 02, 2020 Tania rated it really liked it

Shelves: ww2, middlebrow

Miss Buncle's Book remains my favourite, but I did love this one too and will certainly be reading on in the seties. ...more

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May 04, 2015 Theresa rated it really liked it

Shelves: english-lit, favorites, adult-fiction

A re-read.

I hadn't read this one in years and had forgotten how entertaining it is!

Mrs. Tim, (Hester Christie), a British Army wife, goes through ups and downs from life at the barracks to life in Scotland, as they are transferred and Tim gets a promotion. Her anecdotes about housekeeping, servants, organizing the home and dealing with new neighbors (in between raising her two children, Betty and Bryan), are so fun to read!

There are dinner parties, afternoon teas, awkward social situations, and A re-read.

I hadn't read this one in years and had forgotten how entertaining it is!

Mrs. Tim, (Hester Christie), a British Army wife, goes through ups and downs from life at the barracks to life in Scotland, as they are transferred and Tim gets a promotion. Her anecdotes about housekeeping, servants, organizing the home and dealing with new neighbors (in between raising her two children, Betty and Bryan), are so fun to read!

There are dinner parties, afternoon teas, awkward social situations, and ultimately, Hester is called upon to assist in breaking up a less-than-desirable match between a friend's only son and his trendy girlfriend.

"He is really a very nice man, though a trifle too scurrilous for my liking."

"Scurrilous!' gasps Mrs. McTurk.

"It just means very talkative," explains Mrs. Falconer kindly. "Dear Papa used such long words, and us girls got into the habit of saying them, just from hearing him - much to Mama's horror. Poor Mama was always telling us we would never get husbands if we used such long words. It was not fashionable to be clever in my young days. Poor dear Mama was always telling us about it. "Let your conversation be yea yea and nay nay" she used to say. That's out of the Bible, of course, so I've no doubt it is very good advice, but if we all did that, and went about saying "yea yea and nay nay" we should look rather silly, and there would not be any conversation at all."

"Mrs. Tim of the Regiment", according to the background note, was based on Stevenson's own diary that she kept while married to a young Army officer. D.E. Stevenson writes with humor, and her observations upon life in general and upon her neighbors are a treat to read!

"Meet Mrs. Benson on the way home; she is coming to see me to lend me a 'Little book" which is so wonderful - she knows it will help me to bring up the dear children. I accept it with gratitude and spend the afternoon studying its pages.

According to this book I have been sowing the seeds of complexes and cultivating inhibitions in Bryan and Betty ever since they were a few months old. Feel much worried about this, but decide that it is too late now to do anything, and that Bryan and Betty must just take their chance." ...more

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Dec 09, 2019 Tuesdayschild rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: pub-1930-1950-s, england, scotland-scots-author, 2019-read, 2019-audio, gentle-read, wwll, historical-fiction

Audiobook narrated by Christine Rendel.
An enjoyable book, and I’m keen to listen to the next one in the series especially as it’s narrated by Leslie Mackie.
I liked this book so much more once I’d adapted to the narrators odd inflexions and got past the first part of the story – I don’t do well with diaried accounts - and after adjusting to the mindset that the author had a happily married woman, Mrs. Tim, gadding about with a single man (more than one) while her husband is elsewhere working: one ...more

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Jun 29, 2015 Jenn Estepp rated it liked it

Shelves: comfort-food, lit-wall

Not nearly as fond of this one as I have been of Stevenson's other works, although fond enough that I wish that some of the other Mrs. Tim books will be added to the re-issue list. Or, properly I should just wish that I stumbled upon dusty old copies of them in some random little bookstore. This one is tricky, as it's essentially two books (and I think may have been published as such?), so the first half is pretty straightforward diary sort of stuff (albeit very long-winded entries, but I do tha ...more

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