What do you think?
Rate this book
Little Sisters
Elsa, who has not a penny to her name except the scrapings from last week's pay packet, goes with her rich, 48-year-old friend and employer, Victor, to spend her 19th birthday in the household of his millionaire friend, Hamish.
224 pages, Paperback
First published July 7, 1977
2 people are currently reading
85 people want to read
About the author
Fay Weldon
159 books398 followersFay Weldon CBE was an English author, essayist and playwright, whose work has been associated with feminism. In her fiction, Weldon typically portrayed contemporary women who find themselves trapped in oppressive situations caused by the patriarchal structure of British society.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fay_Weldon
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fay_Weldon
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
Read
January 7, 2022Elsa, just eighteen, is the mistress to Victor, who owns an antique shop. They are invited to a weekend with millionaire Hamish and his wife Gemma, and Elsa finds herself quite, quite over her head.
It's been a very long time since I read a Weldon book but she's much as I remember in this 1977 novel. She's very sharp-eyed when it comes to the fallibility of both women and men, but especially men, who are usually boorish or stupid and sexist. Her women can be awful too but it's often because they're forced to be. I think I liked best the description of Victor's wife Janice, who in his absence finally abandons any pretence at being a good housewife and lets herself be free - slovenly, lazy, sexually available. Go on Janice, you do you!
This novel felt typical to me in the sense that it starts out in a realistic place, and returns there from time to time, but slips so easily into the fantastical, allegorical, and farcical. Little Sisters intertwines itself into so many fairytales, Rapunzel and Bluebeard and others, and it layers itself into repetitions and circles (secretaries falling love with bosses, severed ring fingers, little girls lost in big cities), while also very much being the story of Elsa being stuck on a horrible weekend away with her horrible older boyfriend.
And like the other Weldon novels I read, it left with me a faintly unpleasant aftertaste! It's well written and easy to read, and very very funny and sharp at times; but everyone is so unpleasant, and such horrible things happen to them, that it's a relief when it's all over.
It's been a very long time since I read a Weldon book but she's much as I remember in this 1977 novel. She's very sharp-eyed when it comes to the fallibility of both women and men, but especially men, who are usually boorish or stupid and sexist. Her women can be awful too but it's often because they're forced to be. I think I liked best the description of Victor's wife Janice, who in his absence finally abandons any pretence at being a good housewife and lets herself be free - slovenly, lazy, sexually available. Go on Janice, you do you!
This novel felt typical to me in the sense that it starts out in a realistic place, and returns there from time to time, but slips so easily into the fantastical, allegorical, and farcical. Little Sisters intertwines itself into so many fairytales, Rapunzel and Bluebeard and others, and it layers itself into repetitions and circles (secretaries falling love with bosses, severed ring fingers, little girls lost in big cities), while also very much being the story of Elsa being stuck on a horrible weekend away with her horrible older boyfriend.
And like the other Weldon novels I read, it left with me a faintly unpleasant aftertaste! It's well written and easy to read, and very very funny and sharp at times; but everyone is so unpleasant, and such horrible things happen to them, that it's a relief when it's all over.
August 20, 2024
Laatste 20 pagina's zijn verrassend gewelddadig
March 23, 2021
Fay Weldon at her shadowy best. Modern characters, of the late 20th century mixed with fairy- tale material, but from the darker side of those tales. The wicked would-be stepmother, a mad prince in the tower, a rumpelstiltskin figure and the girl who has to fight her way through the dark woods containing these, as well as others. Will she be destroyed, or will she realise that there’s no place like home? As ever, Weldon treats her material with a fine touch in another beautifully-crafted piece. The pages flew by in this engaging read; and there are still books by Fay Weldon which I haven’t read. Off to find another.
August 24, 2009
From Amazon - "Elsa, who has not a penny to her name except the scrapings from last week's pay packet, goes with her rich, 48-year-old friend and employer, Victor, to spend her 19th birthday in the household of his millionaire friend, Hamish".
January 8, 2026
Dangerous connections
Beautiful 19-year-old Elsa is as poor as a church mouse, but her patron (employer, lover), antique dealer Victor (48), has something in a worn purse. And his friends Hamish and Gemma have millions of clients. And maybe tens or even hundreds of millions, at least. This couple lives in a mansion filled to the brim with curiosities and curiosities. On the eve of Elsa's birthday, he brings her here to decide with Hamish which of the things he is ready to part with. Formally, Elsa accompanies the boss as a referent, as which she is of little use, in fact, as a virgin for bed pleasures. And there is one more thing - beauty is a terrible force, the presence of a beautiful woman during negotiations will soften the opponent and move him towards financial concessions.
Victor is married, although he has not lived with his wife for a long time, and his daughter is a year younger than Elsa (they even have a birthday on the same day), and the news is not the most pleasant surprise for the girl. that the wife and daughter of the man they love are invited to the estate too. Even more unpleasant is that the beloved is ready to put her under the master in exchange for substantial concessions in the bargaining. Attractive Gemma, much younger than her husband and much older than the guest, is confined to a wheelchair, Elsa has a complex cocktail of envy, pity, superiority, awe and the devil knows what else, and there is absolutely no desire to know her story, which the hostess intends to share, and she didn't give a damn about the desire-unwillingness of the girl.
The second layer of the "Sisters" is the story of Gemma, the same mongrel without a family, but with high hopes and attractive appearance, who came to conquer London twenty years earlier. Still with healthy legs and a full set of fingers on his hands. The 90s are known for the postmodern reinterpretation of plots from the point of view of feminism. Here is a fabulation of the tale of the robber groom and the severed finger as a metaphor for the cruel male world, to the inviting light of which poor beauties fly like moths and some even manage to establish themselves in it, becoming their own, but the wings become singed and flight becomes problematic, and without it, what the hell are all these riches?
The end of the last century was a time of somewhat excessive femme optimism, which Faye Weldon could not help but succumb to, urging her heroines, and in fact, readers, to rely on themselves, their knowledge, skills, and skills in life, and to rely less on men who would deceive and betray. Not because they're scoundrels, but because they can. I love her and agree with her, but this book is not that. to make mine mine.
Опасные связи
Красивая 19-летняя Эльза бедна как церковная мышь, но у ее покровителя (работодателя, любовника) антиквара Виктора (48) кое-что в потертом кошельке. А у его клиентов-приятелей Хэмиша и Джеммы так и вовсе миллионы. А может быть десятки или даже сотни миллионов, по крайней мере. обитает эта пара в особняке, под завязку набитом диковинами и редкостями. Накануне дня рождения Эльзы он привозит ее сюда, чтобы решить с Хэмишем, с чем из вещиц тот готов расстаться. Формально Эльза сопровождает шефа как референт, в качестве которого от нее толку мало, фактически - как дева для постельных утех. И есть еще одно - красота страшная сила, присутствие при переговорах красивой женщины смягчит оппонента и подвинет его в сторону финансовых уступок.
Виктор женат, хотя давно не живет с женой, и дочь у него на год моложе Эльзы (у них даже день рождения в один день), и не самым приятным сюрпризом для девушки становится известие. что жена и дочь любимого мужчины приглашены в поместье тоже. Еще более неприятным - что любимый готов подложить ее под хозяина в обмен на солидные уступки при торге. Привлекательная Джемма, значительно моложе мужа и значительно старше гостьи, прикована к инвалидному креслу, у Эльзы к ней сложный коктейль из зависти, жалости, превосходства, благоговения и черт знает чего еще, и совершенно нет желания узнать ее историю, которой хозяйка намерена поделиться, и плевать она хотела на желание-нежелание девушки.
Второй слой "Сестричек" - история Джеммы, такой же дворняжки без роду-племени, но с большими надеждами и привлекательной внешностью, приехавшей покорять Лондон двадцатью годами раньше. Еще со здоровыми ногами и полным комплектом пальцев на руках. 90-е известны постмодернистским переосмыслением сюжетов с точки зрения феминизма. Здесь фабуляция сказки о женихе-разбойнике и отрубленном пальце как метафора жестокого мужского мира, на манящий свет которого летят мотыльками бедные красавицы и некоторым даже удается утвердиться в нем, сделавшись своей, но крылья при этом опаляются и полет становится проблематичным, а без него на фига все эти богатства?
Конец прошлого века был временем несколько чрезмерного фем-оптимизма, которому не могла не поддаться Фэй Уэлдон, призывавшая своих героинь, а по сути - читательниц рассчитывать в жизни на себя, свои знания-умения-навыки и поменьше полагаться на мужиков, которые обманут и предадут. Не потому, что негодяи, а потому, что могут. Я люблю ее и согласна с ней, но эта книга не то. чтобы моя-моя.
Beautiful 19-year-old Elsa is as poor as a church mouse, but her patron (employer, lover), antique dealer Victor (48), has something in a worn purse. And his friends Hamish and Gemma have millions of clients. And maybe tens or even hundreds of millions, at least. This couple lives in a mansion filled to the brim with curiosities and curiosities. On the eve of Elsa's birthday, he brings her here to decide with Hamish which of the things he is ready to part with. Formally, Elsa accompanies the boss as a referent, as which she is of little use, in fact, as a virgin for bed pleasures. And there is one more thing - beauty is a terrible force, the presence of a beautiful woman during negotiations will soften the opponent and move him towards financial concessions.
Victor is married, although he has not lived with his wife for a long time, and his daughter is a year younger than Elsa (they even have a birthday on the same day), and the news is not the most pleasant surprise for the girl. that the wife and daughter of the man they love are invited to the estate too. Even more unpleasant is that the beloved is ready to put her under the master in exchange for substantial concessions in the bargaining. Attractive Gemma, much younger than her husband and much older than the guest, is confined to a wheelchair, Elsa has a complex cocktail of envy, pity, superiority, awe and the devil knows what else, and there is absolutely no desire to know her story, which the hostess intends to share, and she didn't give a damn about the desire-unwillingness of the girl.
The second layer of the "Sisters" is the story of Gemma, the same mongrel without a family, but with high hopes and attractive appearance, who came to conquer London twenty years earlier. Still with healthy legs and a full set of fingers on his hands. The 90s are known for the postmodern reinterpretation of plots from the point of view of feminism. Here is a fabulation of the tale of the robber groom and the severed finger as a metaphor for the cruel male world, to the inviting light of which poor beauties fly like moths and some even manage to establish themselves in it, becoming their own, but the wings become singed and flight becomes problematic, and without it, what the hell are all these riches?
The end of the last century was a time of somewhat excessive femme optimism, which Faye Weldon could not help but succumb to, urging her heroines, and in fact, readers, to rely on themselves, their knowledge, skills, and skills in life, and to rely less on men who would deceive and betray. Not because they're scoundrels, but because they can. I love her and agree with her, but this book is not that. to make mine mine.
Опасные связи
Красивая 19-летняя Эльза бедна как церковная мышь, но у ее покровителя (работодателя, любовника) антиквара Виктора (48) кое-что в потертом кошельке. А у его клиентов-приятелей Хэмиша и Джеммы так и вовсе миллионы. А может быть десятки или даже сотни миллионов, по крайней мере. обитает эта пара в особняке, под завязку набитом диковинами и редкостями. Накануне дня рождения Эльзы он привозит ее сюда, чтобы решить с Хэмишем, с чем из вещиц тот готов расстаться. Формально Эльза сопровождает шефа как референт, в качестве которого от нее толку мало, фактически - как дева для постельных утех. И есть еще одно - красота страшная сила, присутствие при переговорах красивой женщины смягчит оппонента и подвинет его в сторону финансовых уступок.
Виктор женат, хотя давно не живет с женой, и дочь у него на год моложе Эльзы (у них даже день рождения в один день), и не самым приятным сюрпризом для девушки становится известие. что жена и дочь любимого мужчины приглашены в поместье тоже. Еще более неприятным - что любимый готов подложить ее под хозяина в обмен на солидные уступки при торге. Привлекательная Джемма, значительно моложе мужа и значительно старше гостьи, прикована к инвалидному креслу, у Эльзы к ней сложный коктейль из зависти, жалости, превосходства, благоговения и черт знает чего еще, и совершенно нет желания узнать ее историю, которой хозяйка намерена поделиться, и плевать она хотела на желание-нежелание девушки.
Второй слой "Сестричек" - история Джеммы, такой же дворняжки без роду-племени, но с большими надеждами и привлекательной внешностью, приехавшей покорять Лондон двадцатью годами раньше. Еще со здоровыми ногами и полным комплектом пальцев на руках. 90-е известны постмодернистским переосмыслением сюжетов с точки зрения феминизма. Здесь фабуляция сказки о женихе-разбойнике и отрубленном пальце как метафора жестокого мужского мира, на манящий свет которого летят мотыльками бедные красавицы и некоторым даже удается утвердиться в нем, сделавшись своей, но крылья при этом опаляются и полет становится проблематичным, а без него на фига все эти богатства?
Конец прошлого века был временем несколько чрезмерного фем-оптимизма, которому не могла не поддаться Фэй Уэлдон, призывавшая своих героинь, а по сути - читательниц рассчитывать в жизни на себя, свои знания-умения-навыки и поменьше полагаться на мужиков, которые обманут и предадут. Не потому, что негодяи, а потому, что могут. Я люблю ее и согласна с ней, но эта книга не то. чтобы моя-моя.
April 20, 2018
It is a true testament to the beautiful writing and modes of expression of Fay Weldon that I finished this otherwise quite disturbing book! I am sincerely in love with this author's work, any work, and I am glad I have many more to read. Quite macabre and unsettling, but beautifully delivered.
August 26, 2021
This book takes you to a very different and strange time. Can’t say I really enjoyed it but it was interesting. Something about it reminded me of Ayn Rand’s Fountainhead. The cover of the book, maybe the way it was written and the social norms of the time.
October 24, 2018
Pleasingly dark...
Read
June 9, 20231977, Elsa herbeleeft Gemma's story in 1966. G's husband Hamish (First) en E's lover Victor aan de zijlijn.
September 9, 2014
Virgins are evil. The sexually active are even worse. Brilliantly, sex has nothing to do with it. Fay Weldon novels are easy to find, I must have picked up at least one from each second-hand shop I've visited in the past 2 or 3 years. And they are easy to read, too, though never anything less than scrawny, script-like, and shocking. Hers is the blackest of sexual comedies with uncomfortable insides and lots and lots of all sorts of depravations. The macabre is also present, here on the milder side (I really don't mind) and there's a more pronounced sense of dread than later stories. Wikipedia says her work "has been associated with feminism." Be warned; this is feminism courtesy of literature's supreme witch.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews