Elizabeth Jane Howard

I was very sorry to hear about the death of Elizabeth Jane Howard this afternoon.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-25581260

I just heard on the radio and saw Liz's post on Facebook at about the same time.

As well as her own books, she wrote introductions to several Virago Modern Classics, including some of Elizabeth Taylor's books (they were quite good friends at the end of Taylor's life).

I'm so upset, having seen her at the Elizabeth Taylor day in Reading and being about to start reading her books. I mean, she was 90, but still ...

Here's a recent interview with her - I just found the link:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/authorinterviews/10431293/Elizabeth-Jan...

3: I was sad when Hetty Bower died last year at 108 (never met her, but I think we must have been on some of the same demos, including one in defence of a local hospital in March (yes, at 108 - or maybe she was only 107 at that point). While some younger deaths can seem especially cruel, I don't suppose it lessens the loss that they had a much longer life.

And how great that you and others did get to see her at the Elizabeth Taylor thing.

Very sad news indeed...

It is so sad. I love her writing.

I've never read her. Must do. She was quite a pretty woman and wrote of herself, it seems, so honestly.

Oh dear. I have Cazalet #3 in line to read soon, and I'm sorry to hear about her death. She was a lovely writer.

I am very sad to hear of her death. She wrote a lot of great novels, from The Beautiful Visit on through to All Change, what a fabulous record of her abilities.

Has anyone read the last Czalet novel which was published last year?

11: Not yet, but I need to reread books 2-4 in the series - when I find them. I have several of her books somewhere in a box in the shed, and we've had miserable weather here all week (and the week before but we were away then anyway). Next week I'm going to start rearranging the boxes in the house as they're a mixture of recent acquisitions I've read and ones I haven't, and if I'm going to try and bring in some books from the cold, I need to consign some to the shed in their place (preferably not ones I'll decide I want to read the following day/week/month/year).

I think that by the time I've reread/read 3 Cazalet books, 5 other novels on the shelf in front of me and the one on my Kindle, and what I think is her last but one novel Falling (think it's in the same box as the Cazalets in the shed), the new one should be out in paperback and therefore available at a lower price on Kindle. Or available from the library - the easiest library to reserve books from is quite slow to get new stuff, and budgets are so squeezed at the moment that they get less copies of less books.

Two of the newspaper obituaries published today:

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jan/02/elizabeth-jane-howard-dies-90

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/10548019/Elizabeth-Jane-Howard-obitua...

I'm sorry to notice that the obituaries mention her relationships/friendships with male writers, yes, fine, interesting, but don't find the space to mention other women. The Guardian sometimes publishes extra letters on the obituary page - perhaps someone should write a little note about her friendship with Elizabeth Taylor which mentions the conference some of us went to? (so wishing I'd gone to it now!) and her intros for several VMCs.

11: I'm in the middle of reading All Change (alongside several other books). It was a review copy and I'm feeling mildly and irrationally guilty for not completing it and writing a review before she died. I picked it up again last night and felt really sad as if I was saying goodbye to all the characters too (which I suppose I am).

The book is pretty much what you'd expect after the first four books, no surprises but not a disappointment either. If you've grown to love the characters in the previous Cazalet novels, you'll enjoy finding out what happened next.

One thing I've noticed, having read the Cazalet chronicles after Howard's autobiography, is how closely many of the events in the novels exactly mirror events that happened to her in real life. It's quite spoilerish at times!

4: Thanks for the link to the recent interview, Luci. It's good to know that she "slipped away" in the way she wanted.

8: Belva, she was a strikingly beautiful woman in her younger years and you could still see traces of that when we met her at Reading library. I recommend reading her autobiography: Slipstream. She certainly had no shortage of admirers but despite her beauty and talent, struggled with self-esteem issues all her life. When I told her how pleased I was that she'd come to the event in Reading she kind of shrugged and said, "Well, I didn't think anyone would be here to see me"!

>14 Soupdragon::
So she never got past that Dee. How very sad. I am glad you had an opportunity to meet her. Thank you for your comments.

>11 Liz1564::
Elaine, I found the first 4 of the series on PBS & when I went to Amazon to order the 5th, much to my chagrin, I found that here in the U.S. we must pre-order it. To quote them:

"$9.73 Paperback
Available for Pre-order. This item will be released on April 10, 2014."

On AmazonUK one can order the 5th book in hardcover for 12.72 in British lbs plus shipping. I think I shall be happy to wait. Have you read the first four?

It's been abut 17 years since I read the first of the Cazelet quartet and I've forgotten more than I remember. I have had Slipstream on my wishlist at PBS for 5 years but I do have Falling on my shelves. Must get to it.

Dee, thank you very much for your comments about Howard and her writing. I too have Slipstream on Mt. Bookpile. I look forward to it. And, Belva, I'll read the 2 Cazalets I have before getting the last one; maybe by that time it will be more affordable.

>17 LizzieD::
I am hoping, Peggy! I have all four of the Cazalet Chronicles to read so I am going to space them out throughout the year or over the next couple of years depending on what else I want to read. Hopefully the fifth will be out in paperback form at that point and then there is always the library.
I am only two books into the Angela Thirkell Barsetshire series and I want to read more of those this year as well.

Oh dear Belva, I am finding the Cazalets addictive! I read 1 and 2 at the end of last year, but now have read 3, 4, The Beautiful Visit, and now 5, in a row. I have had the feeling I would like to at least browse Vol.1 again, I think her writing changes over the five books, not surprisingly.
I've High Rising on my next list, hope I show more control there.

>19 annejacinta::
Oh no, no, no, no, no Anne! When it comes to Angela Thirkell one wishes to show no restraint at all! And I am so glad to hear that you are addicted to the Cazalets. I hope that I also become addicted to them!
Thank you so much for stopping by.