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Una principessa in fuga
La giovane principessa Priscilla è stanca, stanca morta della vita di corte, del protocollo, delle dame di compagnia e di tutti gli obblighi cui deve sottostare per il solo fatto di essere figlia del granduca di Lothen-Kunitiz. Così progetta la fuga da palazzo, una fuga inesorabilmente e frettolosamente anticipata non appena il granduca decide di dare Priscilla in moglie a un cugino.
Accompagnano Priscilla il bibliotecario Fritzing – ufficialmente bibliotecario, in realtà una via di mezzo tra un padre, troppo assente quello vero, e la madre che Priscilla ha perso anni prima – e la cameriera Annalise, ignara del fatto che la principessa abbia deciso di trasferirsi in un piccolo cottage della campagna inglese soffocato dai rampicanti, senza servitù, per condurre finalmente una vita del tutto normale.
Priscilla può adesso cominciare la vita che sogna da sempre: non avere nessun obbligo, se non quello di essere buona e aiutare i bisognosi. Ma la sua idea di bontà – distribuire banconote di grosso taglio tra i paesani allibiti, rimpinzare di dolciumi i bambini, somministrare del rum a una vecchietta malata – non è delle più canoniche. Neanche a dirlo, presto i sogni si infrangono: i soldi finiscono, la cameriera avvilita tesse un ricatto ai danni di Priscilla, le famiglie del villaggio mal tollerano lo scompiglio che l’arrivo della principessa ha portato con sé. Ma come in ogni fiaba che si rispetti, non manca il lieto fine. O quasi.
Elizabeth von Arnim, dama geniale e crudele delle lettere inglesi, mette a segno un altro dei suoi capolavori d’ironia, con i quali ha conquistato un sempre maggior numero di lettori.
Accompagnano Priscilla il bibliotecario Fritzing – ufficialmente bibliotecario, in realtà una via di mezzo tra un padre, troppo assente quello vero, e la madre che Priscilla ha perso anni prima – e la cameriera Annalise, ignara del fatto che la principessa abbia deciso di trasferirsi in un piccolo cottage della campagna inglese soffocato dai rampicanti, senza servitù, per condurre finalmente una vita del tutto normale.
Priscilla può adesso cominciare la vita che sogna da sempre: non avere nessun obbligo, se non quello di essere buona e aiutare i bisognosi. Ma la sua idea di bontà – distribuire banconote di grosso taglio tra i paesani allibiti, rimpinzare di dolciumi i bambini, somministrare del rum a una vecchietta malata – non è delle più canoniche. Neanche a dirlo, presto i sogni si infrangono: i soldi finiscono, la cameriera avvilita tesse un ricatto ai danni di Priscilla, le famiglie del villaggio mal tollerano lo scompiglio che l’arrivo della principessa ha portato con sé. Ma come in ogni fiaba che si rispetti, non manca il lieto fine. O quasi.
Elizabeth von Arnim, dama geniale e crudele delle lettere inglesi, mette a segno un altro dei suoi capolavori d’ironia, con i quali ha conquistato un sempre maggior numero di lettori.
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1905
12 people are currently reading
357 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth von Arnim
212 books646 followersElizabeth von Arnim, born Mary Annette Beauchamp, was an English novelist. Born in Australia, she married a German aristocrat, and her earliest works are set in Germany. Her first marriage made her Countess von Arnim-Schlagenthin and her second Elizabeth Russell, Countess Russell. After her first husband's death, she had a three-year affair with the writer H.G. Wells, then later married Earl Russell, elder brother of the Nobel prize-winner and philosopher Bertrand Russell. She was a cousin of the New Zealand-born writer Katherine Mansfield. Though known in early life as May, her first book introduced her to readers as Elizabeth, which she eventually became to friends and finally to family. Her writings are ascribed to Elizabeth von Arnim. She used the pseudonym Alice Cholmondeley for only one novel, Christine, published in 1917.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 81 reviews
September 4, 2020
A brief synopsis of this novel published in 1905: Setting at beginning of novel is a castle in Germany circa end of the 19th century. Princess Priscilla does not like royal life in part because the head librarian of the castle, Fritzing, does not like royalty. Her mind is easily malleable so that by the time she is 21, the head librarian has successfully instilled in her a loathing of royalty—she is not interested in being a princess and getting married and getting her own castle. What she longs for is a far simpler life where she can live in a cottage in the countryside and read poetry and do good deeds. She tells old Fritzing (60 years old) of her plans to escape to England and tells him he must choose…to either run away with her and pretend he’s her uncle, and continue to instruct her in the simpler things of life, or stay with her father and his retinue in the castle. Of course he opts to go with Priscilla. They end up buying two cottages on land owned by Lady Shuttleworth in Sometshire in South West England. Soon after moving in, two men (vicar’s son & Lady Shuttleworth’s son) fall in love with her. Priscilla has given a large party for all the impoverished peasantry who live in the other cottages and given some of them money (she has no concept of money). She has turned that part of the world upside down. Men pining after her, poor peasants perhaps feeling not so poor… A number of people have a very favorable impression of her. Remember though she is there incognito. Nobody knows she is a princess.
You know those books where there are a number of characters and you don’t like any of them? Those sorts of books typically get poor ratings, regardless of the writing style of the author. For about the first 50% of this book I did not like any of the characters, and I was afraid I was going to give this a 2-star or 3-star rating at most. I thought the main protagonist she was building up in a positive light was a terrible person and I could not understand why Elizabeth was doing that. I thought that the gist of the second half of the novel would be more of the same….the main protagonist would be viewed in mostly a positive light throughout perhaps with a few blunders but the gentle reader would forgive her for that. Oh really????? Not me! 😠
Let me count the ways I disliked Priscilla the Princess and also Fritzing.
As I said I did not like the Princess…. And I was going to give this novel a 2-star review. But somehow my review is 3.5 stars (so 4 stars rounded up). How in the world did that happen? Well, I shan’t tell! 🙃 Suffice it to say, Elizabeth once again captured my attention and liking for the book hook, line, and sinker. 😊
New words for me: whilom: formerly, in the past AND magniloquent: using high-flown or bombastic language
I’d characterize this novel as humorous but there are dashes of darkness (we learn a father beats his daughter who works at Mrs. Shuttleworth’s estate regularly on Saturday nights when he is drunk….a murder takes place).
Reviews (they are all nicely written IMHO)
https://thecaptivereader.com/2012/04/...
https://leavesandpages.com/2014/01/13...
https://geraniumcatsbookshelf.blogspo...
You know those books where there are a number of characters and you don’t like any of them? Those sorts of books typically get poor ratings, regardless of the writing style of the author. For about the first 50% of this book I did not like any of the characters, and I was afraid I was going to give this a 2-star or 3-star rating at most. I thought the main protagonist she was building up in a positive light was a terrible person and I could not understand why Elizabeth was doing that. I thought that the gist of the second half of the novel would be more of the same….the main protagonist would be viewed in mostly a positive light throughout perhaps with a few blunders but the gentle reader would forgive her for that. Oh really????? Not me! 😠
Let me count the ways I disliked Priscilla the Princess and also Fritzing.
As I said I did not like the Princess…. And I was going to give this novel a 2-star review. But somehow my review is 3.5 stars (so 4 stars rounded up). How in the world did that happen? Well, I shan’t tell! 🙃 Suffice it to say, Elizabeth once again captured my attention and liking for the book hook, line, and sinker. 😊
New words for me: whilom: formerly, in the past AND magniloquent: using high-flown or bombastic language
I’d characterize this novel as humorous but there are dashes of darkness (we learn a father beats his daughter who works at Mrs. Shuttleworth’s estate regularly on Saturday nights when he is drunk….a murder takes place).
Reviews (they are all nicely written IMHO)
https://thecaptivereader.com/2012/04/...
https://leavesandpages.com/2014/01/13...
https://geraniumcatsbookshelf.blogspo...
November 12, 2021
Available free at Librivox, here: https://librivox.org/the-princess-pri...
A story about a princess, Priscilla, the daughter of the Grand Duke of Lothen-Kunitz in southern Germany. The Duchy is fictional. She is pretty, slender and has alluring golden red curls. She is pampered. She is coddled. She is treated with deference. She knows of no other existence. Her two sisters have settled down, become “good”, obedient girls, in other words they have married as all good girls are expected to do. Priscilla is twenty one and she’s looking for freedom. She is sure it is out there, beyond the trees, hills and villages, on the distant horizon. She had been to Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle in England, but this is not what she is looking for--those castles were too much like home! A marriage is arranged, her father is pleased. Her mother died when she was sixteen.
Pricilla decides she must escape. With the aid of the ducal librarian, her dear friend and former teacher, they are off. Where? To England—Priscilla is determined to help the poor and the needy. The residents of a small village in Somerset will be the beneficiaries of Priscilla’s aid and attention. We watch and see what happens.
There is a clear fairy tale feel to the story—castles and a rose covered cottage, a prince and a princess and multiple suitors.
I find the story predictable, too happy and cute for my taste. What saves it from being bad? Number one, the writing. The lines are chockful of ironical humor. I smiled often while reading this book. Landscapes are well drawn. Number two, the happy ending is in fact the most realistic ending the book could have.
A woman named Tabitha reads the story at Librivox. The production is not the best—a few of the beginning chapters lack a sentence or two at the chapters’ start. Names are not pronounced clearly, but this is only problematic at the beginning. Her tone is flat, unnuanced. The reading is OK, so I have given the narration two stars. Tabitha’s reading isn’t bad, but I cannot say I like it. She has done her best and I appreciate her effort.
Not one of my favorite books by the author. Others are much better.
*********************
*Elizabeth and Her German Garden 4 stars
*Love 4 stars
*The Pastor's Wife 4 stars
*The Benefactress 4 stars
*Vera 4 stars
*The Princess Priscilla's Fortnight 2 stars
*The Enchanted April 2 stars
A story about a princess, Priscilla, the daughter of the Grand Duke of Lothen-Kunitz in southern Germany. The Duchy is fictional. She is pretty, slender and has alluring golden red curls. She is pampered. She is coddled. She is treated with deference. She knows of no other existence. Her two sisters have settled down, become “good”, obedient girls, in other words they have married as all good girls are expected to do. Priscilla is twenty one and she’s looking for freedom. She is sure it is out there, beyond the trees, hills and villages, on the distant horizon. She had been to Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle in England, but this is not what she is looking for--those castles were too much like home! A marriage is arranged, her father is pleased. Her mother died when she was sixteen.
Pricilla decides she must escape. With the aid of the ducal librarian, her dear friend and former teacher, they are off. Where? To England—Priscilla is determined to help the poor and the needy. The residents of a small village in Somerset will be the beneficiaries of Priscilla’s aid and attention. We watch and see what happens.
There is a clear fairy tale feel to the story—castles and a rose covered cottage, a prince and a princess and multiple suitors.
I find the story predictable, too happy and cute for my taste. What saves it from being bad? Number one, the writing. The lines are chockful of ironical humor. I smiled often while reading this book. Landscapes are well drawn. Number two, the happy ending is in fact the most realistic ending the book could have.
A woman named Tabitha reads the story at Librivox. The production is not the best—a few of the beginning chapters lack a sentence or two at the chapters’ start. Names are not pronounced clearly, but this is only problematic at the beginning. Her tone is flat, unnuanced. The reading is OK, so I have given the narration two stars. Tabitha’s reading isn’t bad, but I cannot say I like it. She has done her best and I appreciate her effort.
Not one of my favorite books by the author. Others are much better.
*********************
*Elizabeth and Her German Garden 4 stars
*Love 4 stars
*The Pastor's Wife 4 stars
*The Benefactress 4 stars
*Vera 4 stars
*The Princess Priscilla's Fortnight 2 stars
*The Enchanted April 2 stars
January 20, 2019
"Priscilla, invece, era una sognatrice, una poetessa che non scriveva poesie, dotata di un'anima che non riusciva ad esprimersi a che era colma dei desideri e degli amori da cui nasce la poesia."
Una storia particolare, a tratti ironica, a tratti invece tragica.
Von Arnim racconta di Priscilla, una principessa che, soffocata dagli agi, dalla vita di corte e da un matrimonio non voluto; decide di scappare insieme al premuroso Fritz, suo insegnante nonché confidente. Arrivano così in un piccolo paesino inglese, Symford, dove la vita semplice dei pochi cittadini affascina e cattura l'ingenua Priscilla. Tutto sembra essere proprio come la principessa aveva immaginato, peccato che la cattiva sorte decide di giocare con le vite dei nostri protagonisti trascinandoli sempre di più in un baratro senza fondo. Ben presto i soldi finiscono e le bugie da raccontare diventano troppe e pesanti come macigni.
"Una principessa in fuga" è sicuramente un romanzo dalla trama molto semplice e scorrevole, complice anche lo stile di scrittura impeccabile della Arnim. Ho amato tutte le descrizioni della campagna, così come la caratterizzazione di ogni singolo cittadino di Symford. Le vicende narrate sono divertenti da leggere anche se all'improvviso tutta la storia diventa più grigia e cupa.
L'inizio l'ho trovato leggermente lento, la storia parte quando i nostri protagonisti arrivano e si sistemano finalmente a Symford. Il tutto inizia quindi a movimentarsi grazie soprattutto alle bugie e agli errori di Priscilla e Fritz che, in alcune parti del romanzo, mi hanno fatto ridere un sacco. Tuttavia il romanzo non prende mai una vera e propria svolta e sono ancora confusa sul finale, non mi è dispiaciuto, ma allo stesso tempo forse mi aspettavo qualcosina in più.
Una storia particolare, a tratti ironica, a tratti invece tragica.
Von Arnim racconta di Priscilla, una principessa che, soffocata dagli agi, dalla vita di corte e da un matrimonio non voluto; decide di scappare insieme al premuroso Fritz, suo insegnante nonché confidente. Arrivano così in un piccolo paesino inglese, Symford, dove la vita semplice dei pochi cittadini affascina e cattura l'ingenua Priscilla. Tutto sembra essere proprio come la principessa aveva immaginato, peccato che la cattiva sorte decide di giocare con le vite dei nostri protagonisti trascinandoli sempre di più in un baratro senza fondo. Ben presto i soldi finiscono e le bugie da raccontare diventano troppe e pesanti come macigni.
"Una principessa in fuga" è sicuramente un romanzo dalla trama molto semplice e scorrevole, complice anche lo stile di scrittura impeccabile della Arnim. Ho amato tutte le descrizioni della campagna, così come la caratterizzazione di ogni singolo cittadino di Symford. Le vicende narrate sono divertenti da leggere anche se all'improvviso tutta la storia diventa più grigia e cupa.
L'inizio l'ho trovato leggermente lento, la storia parte quando i nostri protagonisti arrivano e si sistemano finalmente a Symford. Il tutto inizia quindi a movimentarsi grazie soprattutto alle bugie e agli errori di Priscilla e Fritz che, in alcune parti del romanzo, mi hanno fatto ridere un sacco. Tuttavia il romanzo non prende mai una vera e propria svolta e sono ancora confusa sul finale, non mi è dispiaciuto, ma allo stesso tempo forse mi aspettavo qualcosina in più.
August 10, 2016
"Vacanze" infauste
Romanzo leggero e garbato come una fiaba, forse un po' scontato, ma impreziosito da una prosa fresca e vibrante, venata a sprazzi di raffinata, mordace ironia.
È vero, come è stato rilevato, che il tema di base ricorda quello del film "Vacanze romane", diretto da William Wyler: una bella principessa, in questo caso tedesca, esasperata dalle convenzioni sociali e dai vincoli della vita di corte, decide di ribellarsi rifugiandosi nella campagna inglese, al fine di scoprire finalmente le delizie di una vita "normale" protetta dall'anonimato, e dedicata alle buone letture e alle opere di bene. Qui tuttavia mancano i risvolti romantici dell'incontro con un uomo affascinante sul tipo di Gregory Peck, e le situazioni, invece che idilliache come sperato, si rivelano infauste, evolvendosi in modo (im)prevedibile, con esiti oscillanti tra comicità e dramma.
Anche il finale è piuttosto convenzionale (e, se si vuole, leggermente "classista"), ma la lettura è senz'altro piacevole.
Romanzo leggero e garbato come una fiaba, forse un po' scontato, ma impreziosito da una prosa fresca e vibrante, venata a sprazzi di raffinata, mordace ironia.
È vero, come è stato rilevato, che il tema di base ricorda quello del film "Vacanze romane", diretto da William Wyler: una bella principessa, in questo caso tedesca, esasperata dalle convenzioni sociali e dai vincoli della vita di corte, decide di ribellarsi rifugiandosi nella campagna inglese, al fine di scoprire finalmente le delizie di una vita "normale" protetta dall'anonimato, e dedicata alle buone letture e alle opere di bene. Qui tuttavia mancano i risvolti romantici dell'incontro con un uomo affascinante sul tipo di Gregory Peck, e le situazioni, invece che idilliache come sperato, si rivelano infauste, evolvendosi in modo (im)prevedibile, con esiti oscillanti tra comicità e dramma.
Anche il finale è piuttosto convenzionale (e, se si vuole, leggermente "classista"), ma la lettura è senz'altro piacevole.
September 17, 2018
Ho conosciuto Elizabeth Von Arnim 5 anni fa, innamorandomi dei suoi "Un'estate da sola" e "il giardino di Elizabeth": è un'autrice raffinata, elegante, e al contempo ironica, spregiudicata, controcorrente, e a volte anche crudele nel suo brio smodato nel criticare tic e tabù della buona società.
Come molte altre donne dell'universo letterario von Armin, la giovane principessa Priscilla è stanca della vita di corte, del protocollo e delle persone che la circondano. Progetta quindi la fuga da palazzo con il bibliotecario Fritzing, una via di mezzo tra padre e amico e la cameriera Annalise, verso un piccolo cottage della campagna inglese, coperto di rampicanti romantici, senza servi, alla volta di una vita finalmente tranquilla che si rivelerà poi, com'è consuetudine, diversa da ciò che si aspettavano. Brioso e sagace.
Come molte altre donne dell'universo letterario von Armin, la giovane principessa Priscilla è stanca della vita di corte, del protocollo e delle persone che la circondano. Progetta quindi la fuga da palazzo con il bibliotecario Fritzing, una via di mezzo tra padre e amico e la cameriera Annalise, verso un piccolo cottage della campagna inglese, coperto di rampicanti romantici, senza servi, alla volta di una vita finalmente tranquilla che si rivelerà poi, com'è consuetudine, diversa da ciò che si aspettavano. Brioso e sagace.
June 28, 2020
I don’t think I was quite in the mood for this, because although I enjoyed the ending, I could never really settle in to the tone, which seemed to hover between farce and pathos. It needed to be more Wodehousian, I think...
December 22, 2020
I had many expectations for this book but none of them involved it being laugh-out-loud funny. It was so unexpected. I wish the overall story lived up to its delightful wit.
Princess Priscilla feels smothered by her perfect life in the German duchy of Lothen-Kunitz...her soul is smothered by feather beds and ladies-in-waiting and everyone adoring her! Her solution? Talk the elderly librarian into taking her to England so she can live in a cottage and focus entirely on good works.
But of course, she never expected good works in a cottage to include such difficulties as making tea or sewing buttons...
If The Enchanted April makes the pitch for month-long vacations, The Princess Priscilla's Fortnight sings the praises of learning to appreciate the social circles where you already live. As much as it claims fairy-tale status, it is more of a moral tale and not a particularly subtle one.
The lack of subtlety distracted from the humor and eventually lost me as a reader. But there was quite a lot of unexpected charm here.
Princess Priscilla feels smothered by her perfect life in the German duchy of Lothen-Kunitz...her soul is smothered by feather beds and ladies-in-waiting and everyone adoring her! Her solution? Talk the elderly librarian into taking her to England so she can live in a cottage and focus entirely on good works.
But of course, she never expected good works in a cottage to include such difficulties as making tea or sewing buttons...
If The Enchanted April makes the pitch for month-long vacations, The Princess Priscilla's Fortnight sings the praises of learning to appreciate the social circles where you already live. As much as it claims fairy-tale status, it is more of a moral tale and not a particularly subtle one.
The lack of subtlety distracted from the humor and eventually lost me as a reader. But there was quite a lot of unexpected charm here.
June 16, 2020
Priscilla wanted to run away. This, I believe, is considered an awful thing to do even if you are only a housemaid or somebody's wife. If it were not considered awful, placed by the world high up on its list of Utter Unforgivablenesses, there is, I suppose, not a woman who would not at some time or other have run. She might come back, but she would surely have gone.
“ONLY a housemaid or somebody’s WIFE,” Elizabeth von Arnim says to her readers, with a wink and a grin. This satirical 1905 novel is witty and clever, served up with a side of snark. It made me chuckle so much that I was compelled to share the joy by reading passages aloud to my family. And between belly laughs I found myself murmuring, “You clever girl, you!” to Elizabeth von Arnim.
Here are a few more quotes to give you a feel for the style of this brilliant author.
There had been much trouble and a great deal of delay in finding him a wife, for he had insisted on having a princess who should be both pretty and not his cousin. Europe did not seem to contain such a thing.
It was what had been the matter with the deceased Grand Duchess; she would think, and no one could stop her, and her life in consequence was a burden to herself and to everybody else at her court.
He clung to the rail, staring miserably over the side into the oily water. Some of the passengers lingered to watch him, at first because they thought he was going to be seasick with so little provocation that it amounted to genius, and afterwards because they were sure he must want to commit suicide. When they found that time passed and he did neither, he became unpopular, and they went away and left him altogether and contemptuously alone.
Any one, therefore, seeking a cottage would have to address himself to the Shuttleworth agent, Mr. Dawson, who too lived in a house so picturesque that merely to see it made you long either to poison or to marry Mr. Dawson—preferably, I think, to poison him.
This cottage, as far as he could gather from the descriptions she gave him from time to time, was going to be rather difficult to find. He feared also that it would be a very insect-ridden place, and that their calm pursuits would often be interrupted by things like earwigs. It was to be ancient, and much thatched and latticed and rose-overgrown. It was, too, to be very small; the smallest of labourers' cottages. Yet though so small and so ancient it was to have several bathrooms—one for each of them, so he understood.
Recommended for fans of joyful satire.
The free ebook is available at gutenberg.org and on Kindle.
“ONLY a housemaid or somebody’s WIFE,” Elizabeth von Arnim says to her readers, with a wink and a grin. This satirical 1905 novel is witty and clever, served up with a side of snark. It made me chuckle so much that I was compelled to share the joy by reading passages aloud to my family. And between belly laughs I found myself murmuring, “You clever girl, you!” to Elizabeth von Arnim.
Here are a few more quotes to give you a feel for the style of this brilliant author.
There had been much trouble and a great deal of delay in finding him a wife, for he had insisted on having a princess who should be both pretty and not his cousin. Europe did not seem to contain such a thing.
It was what had been the matter with the deceased Grand Duchess; she would think, and no one could stop her, and her life in consequence was a burden to herself and to everybody else at her court.
He clung to the rail, staring miserably over the side into the oily water. Some of the passengers lingered to watch him, at first because they thought he was going to be seasick with so little provocation that it amounted to genius, and afterwards because they were sure he must want to commit suicide. When they found that time passed and he did neither, he became unpopular, and they went away and left him altogether and contemptuously alone.
Any one, therefore, seeking a cottage would have to address himself to the Shuttleworth agent, Mr. Dawson, who too lived in a house so picturesque that merely to see it made you long either to poison or to marry Mr. Dawson—preferably, I think, to poison him.
This cottage, as far as he could gather from the descriptions she gave him from time to time, was going to be rather difficult to find. He feared also that it would be a very insect-ridden place, and that their calm pursuits would often be interrupted by things like earwigs. It was to be ancient, and much thatched and latticed and rose-overgrown. It was, too, to be very small; the smallest of labourers' cottages. Yet though so small and so ancient it was to have several bathrooms—one for each of them, so he understood.
Recommended for fans of joyful satire.
The free ebook is available at gutenberg.org and on Kindle.
February 10, 2024
The Princess Priscilla's Fortnight is not author Elizabeth von Arnim at her best. It has many of the same issues as Candide, absent the sharp edged social satire. An aging bookish court Liberian Fritzing instills a set of highly noble sounding, left of center ideals into an impressionable and catered too royal princess, the 21 year old Priscilla of the title. Together, with one much put upon, but not sworn to the secret house maid they run away to a preemptively ideal English small town.
The princess blithely ignores any but her most romantic notions. He lacks even the most minimal practical capabilities and I suppose what ensues is hilarity.
The Princess is quite lovely, so she soon attracts a number of the local male wanna be swans. The preacher's wife, sees nothing for these strangers except a threat to her overly protective hold on village society. Money swiftly becomes a problem, and the maid will soon enough have enough of everybody.
Among others Mark Twain’s The Prince and the Pauper made of this plot an adventure. As noted, Voltaire made of it a classic and there are many cultures and versions of the royal, moving among the commoner in mufti.
Ms. Arnim can tell as story. Von Arnim has a keen eye for characters, esp other than the two hapless main characters. Some are right in enjoying the sense of humor, thou at times I grew tired of the deliberate piercings of the 4th wall. Her variation is not without some merit, but mostly I was glad to be done with it.
The princess blithely ignores any but her most romantic notions. He lacks even the most minimal practical capabilities and I suppose what ensues is hilarity.
The Princess is quite lovely, so she soon attracts a number of the local male wanna be swans. The preacher's wife, sees nothing for these strangers except a threat to her overly protective hold on village society. Money swiftly becomes a problem, and the maid will soon enough have enough of everybody.
Among others Mark Twain’s The Prince and the Pauper made of this plot an adventure. As noted, Voltaire made of it a classic and there are many cultures and versions of the royal, moving among the commoner in mufti.
Ms. Arnim can tell as story. Von Arnim has a keen eye for characters, esp other than the two hapless main characters. Some are right in enjoying the sense of humor, thou at times I grew tired of the deliberate piercings of the 4th wall. Her variation is not without some merit, but mostly I was glad to be done with it.
April 30, 2017
A well-behaved young princess from a small Ruritanian country breaks out in search of the simple life, attempting to settle in an idyllic English village and wreaking havoc on the inhabitants in her desire to bring them help and pleasure.
This is new to me but I reread The Enchanted April and Christopher and Columbus in recent months, which, like this, are very sunny. Christopher and Columbus, like Princess Priscilla, has the feel of one of those charming, slight, whimsical and slightly odd black and white films. I was thinking about Arnim's themes when I read these, because it's interesting to see how the same stuff can be turned to different purposes. The way people who are truly sincere cannot make themselves understood, as if they are speaking a different language, which leads to misunderstandings both comic and tragic. The intoxication of getting away from one's responsibilities. Not a permanent getting away, as far as I can recall, and certainly not here. Whimsical framings of trains of logic which sometimes leads her characters right and sometimes wrong. Sunny as some of Arnim's books are, the same themes and tics are used to much more depressing effect in some of her others like Vera, Love and, ultimately, The Pastor's Wife, which deal with psychological oppression and manipulation and desperation. The stony ground on which the tremulously ingenuous fall on.
This is a slight and whimsical read with some darker aspects that might grate. Not a great work or anything but I enjoyed it a lot.
This is new to me but I reread The Enchanted April and Christopher and Columbus in recent months, which, like this, are very sunny. Christopher and Columbus, like Princess Priscilla, has the feel of one of those charming, slight, whimsical and slightly odd black and white films. I was thinking about Arnim's themes when I read these, because it's interesting to see how the same stuff can be turned to different purposes. The way people who are truly sincere cannot make themselves understood, as if they are speaking a different language, which leads to misunderstandings both comic and tragic. The intoxication of getting away from one's responsibilities. Not a permanent getting away, as far as I can recall, and certainly not here. Whimsical framings of trains of logic which sometimes leads her characters right and sometimes wrong. Sunny as some of Arnim's books are, the same themes and tics are used to much more depressing effect in some of her others like Vera, Love and, ultimately, The Pastor's Wife, which deal with psychological oppression and manipulation and desperation. The stony ground on which the tremulously ingenuous fall on.
This is a slight and whimsical read with some darker aspects that might grate. Not a great work or anything but I enjoyed it a lot.
January 20, 2011
Did nobody notice that this book was hilarious? I caught myself laughing out loud several times - and embarrassing myself. The Librivox reader was excellent, if not professional, surely faking it well. The situations Priscilla gets herself into without any clue as to how crazy she looks? Funny! The author asides are amusing as well. Most of the charm (for me) was in the fact that the princess knew absolutely nothing of what real life was all about - but went about doing things that she thought were normal. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes Elizabeth von Arnim's style, and who is needing a winter pick-me-up.
March 6, 2015
http://labibliotecadieliza.blogspot.i...
E' la prima volta che affronto questa scrittrice di inizio '900, e sono rimasta piacevolmente colpita dal suo stile pungente e ironico e dalle tematiche affrontate, solo in apparenza frivole e leggere.
La storia può sembrare quasi una favola. La principessa Priscilla, figlia del granduca di Lothen-Kunitiz è stufa della vita agiata e lussuosa di palazzo e sogna un piccolo cottage di campagna, in cui passare pigre serate davanti al fuoco. La realizzazione delle sue fantasie, condivise con il fidato bibliotecario Fritzing, subiscono una accelerazione quando l'augusto genitore decide di darla in sposa ad un principe. Priscilla e Fritzing, accompagnati dalla cameriera Analise, scappano di notte diretti in un paesino della campagna inglese. All'inizio tutto è bello e risponde all'ideale immaginato dalla principessa, che passa il suo tempo ad acquistare cottage, fare l'elemosina ai poveri, dare feste per i bambini. Ma presto i nodi vengono al pettine, le bugie raccontate iniziano a rendere loro la vita difficile e i i soldi scarseggiano.
La storia è molto semplice, quasi una favola appunto, ma racchiude in se molto di più. Quello che salta subito all'occhio del lettore è la preminenza dei personaggi femminili; la von Arnim ci propone le tante sfaccettature dell'animo femminile, la giovane ingenua e un po' arrogante, la cameriera arrivista, la matrona impicciona, la madre preoccupata. Le donne la fanno da padrone in tutta la storia, fanno il buono e il cattivo tempo, quasi schiacciando i personaggi maschili, che in effetti non ci fanno una gran figura.
La buona e la cattiva sorte sono spesso tirate in ballo, e i personaggi sono in balia dei loro capricci; diventano quasi dei personaggi loro stessi.
I personaggi principali sono ovviamente Priscilla e Fritzing. Priscilla è la classica principessa stufa della sua condizione privilegia, che sogna una vita più semplice. Ma come gran parte delle principesse "da romanzo" non sa che la vita normale ha un costo, e anche bello consistente. La vita vera non è distribuire banconote in giro, ma ben altro. Priscilla è giovane e d è ingenua, carente di una visione completa del mondo che la circonda. A bilanciare questa sua mancanza dovrebbe esserci il saggio bibliotecario, che però è troppo impegnato a farle piacere per poterla veramente istruire. Fritzing è talmente invaghito della sua protetta da costruire un castello di menzogne senza solide basi e da accettare le sue continue spese, senza realizzare un vero piano. Potevano farcela, ma il loro ottuso attaccamento ad un ideale impossibile li ha portati alla rovina.
Ho apprezzato molto lo stile della von Arnim, in alcuni punti forse un po' troppo ricco, ma in generale ironico e colorito. Crea immagini vive e le propone al lettore con il suo humor e con un pizzico di sano cinismo. Oggetto della sua ironia e delle sue battutine al vetriolo è la società bene e la nobiltà, ma anche la visione che si ha in quelle classi sociali della donna. La cosa particolare è che, sebbene il libro sia ambientato nella prima metà del '900, non si sente una grande distanza temporale, nè con la storia nè con lo stile della scrittrice.
Voglio leggere altri romanzi di questa scrittrice (che, se non lo sapete, ha scritto anche Un incantevole aprile, da cui è stato tratto anche il film), anzi ne ho già uno pronto che non tarderò a leggere (visto che l'ho preso in biblioteca...).
E' la prima volta che affronto questa scrittrice di inizio '900, e sono rimasta piacevolmente colpita dal suo stile pungente e ironico e dalle tematiche affrontate, solo in apparenza frivole e leggere.
La storia può sembrare quasi una favola. La principessa Priscilla, figlia del granduca di Lothen-Kunitiz è stufa della vita agiata e lussuosa di palazzo e sogna un piccolo cottage di campagna, in cui passare pigre serate davanti al fuoco. La realizzazione delle sue fantasie, condivise con il fidato bibliotecario Fritzing, subiscono una accelerazione quando l'augusto genitore decide di darla in sposa ad un principe. Priscilla e Fritzing, accompagnati dalla cameriera Analise, scappano di notte diretti in un paesino della campagna inglese. All'inizio tutto è bello e risponde all'ideale immaginato dalla principessa, che passa il suo tempo ad acquistare cottage, fare l'elemosina ai poveri, dare feste per i bambini. Ma presto i nodi vengono al pettine, le bugie raccontate iniziano a rendere loro la vita difficile e i i soldi scarseggiano.
La storia è molto semplice, quasi una favola appunto, ma racchiude in se molto di più. Quello che salta subito all'occhio del lettore è la preminenza dei personaggi femminili; la von Arnim ci propone le tante sfaccettature dell'animo femminile, la giovane ingenua e un po' arrogante, la cameriera arrivista, la matrona impicciona, la madre preoccupata. Le donne la fanno da padrone in tutta la storia, fanno il buono e il cattivo tempo, quasi schiacciando i personaggi maschili, che in effetti non ci fanno una gran figura.
La buona e la cattiva sorte sono spesso tirate in ballo, e i personaggi sono in balia dei loro capricci; diventano quasi dei personaggi loro stessi.
I personaggi principali sono ovviamente Priscilla e Fritzing. Priscilla è la classica principessa stufa della sua condizione privilegia, che sogna una vita più semplice. Ma come gran parte delle principesse "da romanzo" non sa che la vita normale ha un costo, e anche bello consistente. La vita vera non è distribuire banconote in giro, ma ben altro. Priscilla è giovane e d è ingenua, carente di una visione completa del mondo che la circonda. A bilanciare questa sua mancanza dovrebbe esserci il saggio bibliotecario, che però è troppo impegnato a farle piacere per poterla veramente istruire. Fritzing è talmente invaghito della sua protetta da costruire un castello di menzogne senza solide basi e da accettare le sue continue spese, senza realizzare un vero piano. Potevano farcela, ma il loro ottuso attaccamento ad un ideale impossibile li ha portati alla rovina.
Ho apprezzato molto lo stile della von Arnim, in alcuni punti forse un po' troppo ricco, ma in generale ironico e colorito. Crea immagini vive e le propone al lettore con il suo humor e con un pizzico di sano cinismo. Oggetto della sua ironia e delle sue battutine al vetriolo è la società bene e la nobiltà, ma anche la visione che si ha in quelle classi sociali della donna. La cosa particolare è che, sebbene il libro sia ambientato nella prima metà del '900, non si sente una grande distanza temporale, nè con la storia nè con lo stile della scrittrice.
Voglio leggere altri romanzi di questa scrittrice (che, se non lo sapete, ha scritto anche Un incantevole aprile, da cui è stato tratto anche il film), anzi ne ho già uno pronto che non tarderò a leggere (visto che l'ho preso in biblioteca...).
May 14, 2020
Von Arnim si conferma una scrittrice brillante, mi piacciono veramente tanto i suoi libri. Questo è un libro "con una morale", infatti da quel che ho capito l'autrice l'ha scritto per i suoi figli.
La principessa Priscilla di Kunitz è sempre stata molto obbediente, ma segretamente ha già deciso di fuggire dalla corte, che sente come opprimente. In questo sarà aiutata e, prima ancora, incoraggiata, dal bibliotecario Fritzing, che la fa innamorare della letteratura inglese mentre la sua dama di compagnia sonnecchia in un angolo, ignara di tutto. Così Priscilla e il vecchio Fritzing scapperanno in Inghilterra, dove per una settimana vivranno nel villaggio di Symford. Priscilla è ansiosa di fare del bene alle persone più fragili e povere, e pare riuscirci, ma le conseguenze saranno ben diverse da quelle che si sarebbbe aspettata. Inoltre, chiaramente la ragazza non è abituata a una vita diversa da quella di corte e altrettanto chiaramente non ha mai davvero pensato che la fuga avrebbe comportato la necessità di adattarsi a una vita molto diversa e più umile. Insomma: è facile disprezzare quello che si ha e sognare sempre qualcosa di diverso, che ai nostri occhi sognanti può apparire immensamente più bello e genuino, ma in ultima analisi non è tutto oro quello che luccica e soprattutto le proprie azioni dovrebbero essere valutate bene perché non sempre la nuova vita sarà rose e fiori, anzi.
Molto grazioso, non fra i migliori dell'autrice ma davvero piacevole e consigliato.
La principessa Priscilla di Kunitz è sempre stata molto obbediente, ma segretamente ha già deciso di fuggire dalla corte, che sente come opprimente. In questo sarà aiutata e, prima ancora, incoraggiata, dal bibliotecario Fritzing, che la fa innamorare della letteratura inglese mentre la sua dama di compagnia sonnecchia in un angolo, ignara di tutto. Così Priscilla e il vecchio Fritzing scapperanno in Inghilterra, dove per una settimana vivranno nel villaggio di Symford. Priscilla è ansiosa di fare del bene alle persone più fragili e povere, e pare riuscirci, ma le conseguenze saranno ben diverse da quelle che si sarebbbe aspettata. Inoltre, chiaramente la ragazza non è abituata a una vita diversa da quella di corte e altrettanto chiaramente non ha mai davvero pensato che la fuga avrebbe comportato la necessità di adattarsi a una vita molto diversa e più umile. Insomma: è facile disprezzare quello che si ha e sognare sempre qualcosa di diverso, che ai nostri occhi sognanti può apparire immensamente più bello e genuino, ma in ultima analisi non è tutto oro quello che luccica e soprattutto le proprie azioni dovrebbero essere valutate bene perché non sempre la nuova vita sarà rose e fiori, anzi.
Molto grazioso, non fra i migliori dell'autrice ma davvero piacevole e consigliato.
August 25, 2011
I loved this book; it has a lot of humor, but it's also serious. It ended just how I wanted it to. Awww.
Here's the moral of the story:
"Priscilla's story has taken such a hold on me, it seemed when first I heard it to be so full of lessons, that I feel bound to set it down from beginning to end for the use and warning of all persons, princesses and others, who think that by searching, by going far afield, they will find happiness, and do not see that it is lying all the while at their feet. They do not see it because it is so close. It is so close that there is a danger of its being trodden on or kicked away. And it is shy, and waits to be picked up."
4 1/2 stars
Here's the moral of the story:
"Priscilla's story has taken such a hold on me, it seemed when first I heard it to be so full of lessons, that I feel bound to set it down from beginning to end for the use and warning of all persons, princesses and others, who think that by searching, by going far afield, they will find happiness, and do not see that it is lying all the while at their feet. They do not see it because it is so close. It is so close that there is a danger of its being trodden on or kicked away. And it is shy, and waits to be picked up."
4 1/2 stars
November 25, 2024
Self-conscious princess book. It knows and is slightly amused by the runaway princess trope. Where was this sense of humor in The Enchanted April? I guess it was there alright, but it passed me by because the joke wasn't on the genre. Anyway, this was delightfully ironic, took lots of unexpected turns and still managed to remain true to the fairy tale. The closest thing to an Eva Ibbotson novel I've come across so far.
September 17, 2020
I got the e-book free (and legal!) from the awesome www.girlebooks.com . Go check their extensive collection of free, prettily designed e-books written by great women writers in the history, if you haven't already!
The Goodreads description for this book stated that it is a "true-to-life fairy tale for Von Arnim's children", so I expected something similar to The Enchanted April with a mix of The April Baby's Book of Tunes and perhaps a bit more fantasy elements. Turned out that this book is not really a fairy tale, and I doubt if this is written for Von Arnim's children at all. Von Arnim's style of tragic-comedy is still very apparent, and it is still very delightful in its own way, although it is not my favourite Von Arnim to-date.
Princess Priscilla of Lothen-Kunitz, the heroine of this story, was tired of her pampered and luxurious lifestyle. She felt like she was being smothered by feather beds, and she feared that she might be dead inside, beat into shapelessness, before she truly lived, much like her two older sisters. With the help from Fritzing, her old tutor, she planned to escape to England, where she dreamt of leading a full and simple life. However, Priscilla's idea of simple life was not as simple when confronted with the relatively quaint life of Symford, a small English village they chose to live in, whose residents were not used to strangers, especially when the strangers were a small group of foreigners led by a princess in disguise.
At the beginning, it was quite easy to sympathize at Priscilla's plight of freedom and intellectual stimulation, and put the suspicious Symford ladies as the antagonists of the story. However as the time goes, Priscilla's well-intended antics led to disastrous result due to her not being well-trained in living a commoner's life. It was quite hilarious at times, but it's the kind of hilarity that makes you feel guilty if you laughed, because the situation was indeed quite serious for Priscilla and the villagers. It's unfortunate that the conflicts were resolved in a surprisingly unsatisfying way. I cannot blabber too much because that would be too spoiler-y...but oh my, how very unsatisfying it is!
I still recommend this book for the character's hilarious banters, mostly due to the German-English culture shock, and the usual Von Arnim's charm. She appeared as the story-teller who sometimes rambled about something, and then admitted that it does not contribute much to the story. Some readers might think her out-of topic ramblings overly-preachy and annoying, but I find it endearing. Overall, I think this is a very good book, but if you want fully-unleashed Von Arnim brand of charm, I would recommend you to check The Enchanted April and Elizabeth and Her German Garden instead.
The Goodreads description for this book stated that it is a "true-to-life fairy tale for Von Arnim's children", so I expected something similar to The Enchanted April with a mix of The April Baby's Book of Tunes and perhaps a bit more fantasy elements. Turned out that this book is not really a fairy tale, and I doubt if this is written for Von Arnim's children at all. Von Arnim's style of tragic-comedy is still very apparent, and it is still very delightful in its own way, although it is not my favourite Von Arnim to-date.
Princess Priscilla of Lothen-Kunitz, the heroine of this story, was tired of her pampered and luxurious lifestyle. She felt like she was being smothered by feather beds, and she feared that she might be dead inside, beat into shapelessness, before she truly lived, much like her two older sisters. With the help from Fritzing, her old tutor, she planned to escape to England, where she dreamt of leading a full and simple life. However, Priscilla's idea of simple life was not as simple when confronted with the relatively quaint life of Symford, a small English village they chose to live in, whose residents were not used to strangers, especially when the strangers were a small group of foreigners led by a princess in disguise.
At the beginning, it was quite easy to sympathize at Priscilla's plight of freedom and intellectual stimulation, and put the suspicious Symford ladies as the antagonists of the story. However as the time goes, Priscilla's well-intended antics led to disastrous result due to her not being well-trained in living a commoner's life. It was quite hilarious at times, but it's the kind of hilarity that makes you feel guilty if you laughed, because the situation was indeed quite serious for Priscilla and the villagers. It's unfortunate that the conflicts were resolved in a surprisingly unsatisfying way. I cannot blabber too much because that would be too spoiler-y...but oh my, how very unsatisfying it is!
I still recommend this book for the character's hilarious banters, mostly due to the German-English culture shock, and the usual Von Arnim's charm. She appeared as the story-teller who sometimes rambled about something, and then admitted that it does not contribute much to the story. Some readers might think her out-of topic ramblings overly-preachy and annoying, but I find it endearing. Overall, I think this is a very good book, but if you want fully-unleashed Von Arnim brand of charm, I would recommend you to check The Enchanted April and Elizabeth and Her German Garden instead.
August 20, 2013
Priscilla, principessa silenziosa e obbediente, è desiderosa di libertà, per questo organizza la fuga verso l’Inghilterra aiutata dall’anziano insegnante.
L’esperienza di vita in un villaggio sarà particolare, considerando che i modi da principessa non possono essere dimenticati con una semplice fuga dal palazzo.
All’inizio stavo trovando il romanzo piuttosto noioso, una volta iniziata la vita nella cittadina inglese mi ha interessato molto di più ed è risultato più scorrevole, anche grazie alla presenza di diversi personaggi dal carattere molto diverso.
---
Priscilla, quiet and docile princess, wants freedom, so she sets up her escape towards England with her old teacher.
The life in a small English village will be a peculiar one, considering that Priscilla’s princess manners cannot be forgotten with a simple escape from the palace.
At the beginning I found the book a little boring, however I changed my mind once begun reading the adventures in England. The book becomes more interesting also thanks to the presence of various characters.
L’esperienza di vita in un villaggio sarà particolare, considerando che i modi da principessa non possono essere dimenticati con una semplice fuga dal palazzo.
All’inizio stavo trovando il romanzo piuttosto noioso, una volta iniziata la vita nella cittadina inglese mi ha interessato molto di più ed è risultato più scorrevole, anche grazie alla presenza di diversi personaggi dal carattere molto diverso.
---
Priscilla, quiet and docile princess, wants freedom, so she sets up her escape towards England with her old teacher.
The life in a small English village will be a peculiar one, considering that Priscilla’s princess manners cannot be forgotten with a simple escape from the palace.
At the beginning I found the book a little boring, however I changed my mind once begun reading the adventures in England. The book becomes more interesting also thanks to the presence of various characters.
January 15, 2020
Ancora una volta una prova della scrittura pungente di Elizabeth von Armin: Una principessa in fuga è una storia vivace, coinvolgente, provocatoria e irritante - sì, irritante, ma in senso buono - e questo mi ha fatta scivolare rapidamente fino alla conclusione. Il romanzo è un concentrato di situazioni rocambolesche e paradossali, perché, in fondo, non si riesce a simpatizzare con i protagonisti ma nemmeno a prendere le parti dei loro oppositori: ognuno si mette in luce per comportamenti gretti, capricciosi, invadenti e di cui non sanno prevedere le conseguenze, in un vivace e irresistibile gioco di figuracce. E su tutto c'è lo sguardo onnisciente dell'autrice, che, come se ci offrisse un succoso pettegolezzo, si fa trascinare dal racconto pungente, lo condisce di ironia e di interventi raffinati.
http://athenaenoctua2013.blogspot.com...
http://athenaenoctua2013.blogspot.com...
December 12, 2019
An enjoyable moral tale with a message, but I feel Elizabeth is at her best when writing her autobiographical works rather than fiction, there's much more humour too.
Priscilla Runs Away seems to be undecided what sort of book it is, it started out lighthearted, progressed to a murder and ended in romance. It seems as though Elizabeth was trying to satisfy the demands of the day, while mimicking contemporary novelists and not altogether successfully.
The book seems to stall in the middle and not quite recover, rather like The Benefactress by the same author.
I think one of the problems is that the main character Priscilla isn't likeable, she's haughty, arrogant and thoughtless and I was left wondering if she deserved the happy ending.
Priscilla Runs Away seems to be undecided what sort of book it is, it started out lighthearted, progressed to a murder and ended in romance. It seems as though Elizabeth was trying to satisfy the demands of the day, while mimicking contemporary novelists and not altogether successfully.
The book seems to stall in the middle and not quite recover, rather like The Benefactress by the same author.
I think one of the problems is that the main character Priscilla isn't likeable, she's haughty, arrogant and thoughtless and I was left wondering if she deserved the happy ending.
June 27, 2015
I'm surprised so many reviewers found this book "hilarious" when a spoiled (though not her fault or even her realization initially) teen princess runs away with a mentor/tutor and wreaks havoc on a tiny town. Evictions, severe illness, theft, and much worse occur because of her naïveté.
True, there are funny moments in the writing, but the first book I read by Von Arnim was The Benefactress, with such a different feel and heart that it's hard to conceive that they were written by the same author. I guess that's the skill of a good writer though, isn't it.
True, there are funny moments in the writing, but the first book I read by Von Arnim was The Benefactress, with such a different feel and heart that it's hard to conceive that they were written by the same author. I guess that's the skill of a good writer though, isn't it.
November 2, 2019
While this is supposed to be a novel, I wonder how much is (was?) true. While Elizabeth wrote of her adventures as fiction they sometimes seem to ring of truth. Since she's gone and all that are now available are these Createspace editions with no intro, summary or otherwise I suppose I'll never know.
What goes with out saying though is she was a fabulous writer and this was no exception. The story concerns a German Princess who runs away from her family and tries to start a new life in England.
What goes with out saying though is she was a fabulous writer and this was no exception. The story concerns a German Princess who runs away from her family and tries to start a new life in England.
February 24, 2013
I'm a fan of E von Arnim. The inter-war period is my favourite escape zone. She is a clever writer with the wit of Dorothy Parker, and frequently produces real gems of humour. I put off reading this one because the title is pink as Katie Price's tutu. In fact I found it the slightest of her books. I never sympathised with the main character and the other characters came over as stock. It reads as though she is amusing herself by exploring a premise that doesn't entirely engage or convince her.
March 21, 2009
This was the most delightful book. I wish there was a Masterpiece Theater version. It is an adventure story/fable about good intentions gone wrong. If you feasted on Enchanted April, this will be a treat.
April 27, 2009
I really enjoyed this book! I agree with Gretchen that the BBC has really dropped the ball by not making this into a film yet. It would be great. I loved the characters and how one could feel so sympathetic toward the spoiled princess. Lovely.
April 2, 2017
Very funny book that also drove me nuts witnessing the fall out as the main characters brought down such consequences upon their heads. The ending was too easy but the whole thing was unreal fluff, so I'm not griping about an ending to match.
November 9, 2018
Romanzo divertente, ironico e ricco di notevole acume. Lo stile brioso di Elizabeth von Arnim è ciò per cui vale la pena leggere il libro.
Per una recensione completa, vedere il seguente link: https://www.sololibri.net/Fazi-editor...
Per una recensione completa, vedere il seguente link: https://www.sololibri.net/Fazi-editor...
August 8, 2013
4.5
Elizabeth von Arnim non mi delude mai.
Elizabeth von Arnim non mi delude mai.
January 4, 2015
brutto,scritto male al limite del lezioso ...terrificante!
May 17, 2019
3.5*
Charming but quite wordy tale of getting what you want and then not wanting it anymore.
Charming but quite wordy tale of getting what you want and then not wanting it anymore.
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