Without Knowing Mr. Walkley

by Edith Olivier

"Nowadays, one meets fewer 'Characters' than of old, and life seems to be far more uniform. Everyone knew some oddities in their childhood, curious people who looked and behaved quite unlike others, but such pronounced individuality is rare to-day." In this mesmerising autobiography, acclaimed novelist Edith Olivier describes her remarkable life, which spanned the last decades of the nineteenth century, two world wars, and the birth of modern Britain. The daughter of a stern, traditional and fiercely charismatic Victorian rector, her journey begins with a childhood rooted in the timeless traditions of the Wiltshire countryside. From the start, Olivier's account is a treasure trove of historical knick-knacks and engaging from her studies at Oxford University in 1895 to her friendships with famous First World War poets, energetic efforts on behalf of the Women's Land Army and supernatural experiences on the Salisbury plains. Edith Olivier's wry and witty narrative vividly conjures the oddball characters, smells, sounds and sights of a bygone era.

320 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1939

About the author

Edith Maud Olivier MBE was an English writer, also noted for acting as hostess to a circle of well-known writers, artists, and composers in her native Wiltshire.

Reviews

[Karen-Leigh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful to read. So eloquent. She also wrote small capsule descriptions of many people whose biographies and lives I have followed so I kept meeting old friends. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Now I shall go to my shelves and get Stephen Tennant's biography and today I ordered Siegfried Sassoon A Life. I might reread the life of Ottoline Morrell. She mentions Ottoline reading a small description she had written about Katherine Mansfield and the lead up made me think it was a particularly bitter commentary but the writer did not write down what she heard. I finished a bunch of books by and about Katherine Mansfield in 2016 and now hope to find a trace of her in Ottoline's biographies.