The Men and the Girls

A well-observed story of the changing relationships between younger women and older men, their patterns of work and how their families and acquaintances are affected. I would have given it four stars but for a surprising mistake to which the publisher's editor should have drawn the author's attention. Two of the American characters say to one another "They're like something out of a novel..." which of course instantly reminds the reader that all of them are characters in a novel. In this sort of book that just won't do!

Really enjoyable read, with characters well drawn and engaging. I was able to pick up the book each time and be reabsorbed in the story. Kate Bain and Julia Hunter in relationships with older men when the book starts. The state of these relationships is well observed and sympathetically drawn. Kate’s partner James runs over an elderly Oxford spinster on his bicycle and she enters into their lives and that of Kate’s bolshy daughter Joss, James’ cantankerous uncle Leonard. A series of characters are drawn to the house in Richmond Villas and the tale goes on.
This is a book to enjoy I will suggest to my book club for exactly that reason.

I thought I saw where this was going but it took some turns I didn't expect and ended up mostly pleasantly surprising me. This despite starting out the novel really not liking any of the characters at all. Glad I stuck with it.

Hugh, a sixty-something television personality, is married to Julia, 25 years his junior. His career seems to be on the wane, as hers is on the rise. Can they cope?

Meanwhile Hugh's best friend James, who lives with Kate (also 25 years his junior), has a minor car accident which precipitates a lot of changes.

Nicely done, covering some interesting issues as well as having a low-key romantic thread. Shocking at times, and bittersweet. Recommended.

One of Joanna Trollope's best. Tale of entangled lives, falling in and out of love, working out how to live neither independently, nor dependently but interdependently.

The cover on the copy I was reading had a teapot, a cup and a creamer. As usual, I love the way she gives you such a clear picture of the characters and their relationships.

Entertaining book about the relationships between two couples consisting of older men (60s) and younger women (late 30s-early 40s). Peripheral characters such as Mrs. Chang, Joss, and Leonard, are likeable and help to make this novel more readable. Not bad, but not as good, in my opinion, as The Choir--I didn't like the main characters (James, Kate, Hugh, and Julia) as well as those found in that book. However, as events unfolded, I found myself sympathizing with Kate as she navigated life on her own, and with Julia as she dealt with the demands of her disintegrating family life and her rising career. A predictable ending further lessened my level of satisfaction with this story. Overall, a good, but not great, book.