Lo scapolo

by Stella Gibbons

Fratello e sorella, Constance e Kenneth Fielding, vivono in una tranquilla, rispettabile casetta nei dintorni di Londra, quando una serie di ospiti indesiderati converge a turbare il loro ordine: un esule dei Balcani, la vecchia fiamma di Kenneth, una coppia di gemelli… La pace di quel tranquillo angolo di periferia sembra prosciugarsi di minuto in minuto, e nessuno, fratelli compresi, potrà credere che proprio allora, in una situazione di perduto equilibrio, possa arrivare nientemeno che l’amore tanto atteso. Ambientato durante la Seconda guerra mondiale e pubblicato nel 1944, Lo scapolo è una commedia degli equivoci dal ritmo serrato che descrive la vita dei piccoli centri negli anni in cui il conflitto imperversava in Europa. A quei tempi, persino la cristallina decenza delle cittadine fuori mano poteva ritrovarsi invasa all’improvviso da profughi, fuggitivi, scampati d’ogni sorta, razionamenti alimentari, black-out... Eppure, a volte è proprio così, nel caos dell’ordine perduto, ogni cosa, d’un tratto, diventa possibile.

Genres: Classics, Fiction, Historical Fiction, British Literature, Contemporary, Historical, War

376 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1944

About the author

Stella Dorothea Gibbons was an English novelist, journalist, poet and short-story writer.

Her first novel, Cold Comfort Farm, won the Femina Vie Heureuse Prize for 1933. A satire and parody of the pessimistic ruralism of Thomas Hardy, his followers and especially Precious Bain by Mary Webb -the "loam and lovechild" genre, as some called it, Cold Comfort Farm introduces a self-confident young woman, quite self-consciously modern, pragmatic and optimistic, into the grim, fate-bound and dark rural scene those novelists tended to portray.

Reviews

[Ali · Rating 5 out of 5]

During the war owners of large homes in the country were obliged to take in lodgers from the bomb besieged towns and cities – putting the homeowners under some strain. The Bachelor of the title – Kenneth Fielding, and his sister Constance own Sunglades; a large seven-bedroom house not far from London, though far enough to protect them from the worst of the bombing. They are a middle-aged pair, Constance in her early fifties, Kenneth around forty-seven, a little set in their ways things have gone along unchanged for years. With them lives a spinster cousin Frankie Burton, who nurses the memory of her one romance when she was a young woman, as a woman once jilted, Frankie is the household expert on matters of the heart. Miss Burton has a little voice in her head – that she thinks of as The Usurper – who is sometimes responsible for a tart remark or a little mischief. Frankie was definitely my favourite character in the book, she often seems the kindest too. Kenneth too once had a romance, and Constance who considers her brother unsuited to marriage is thankful that nothing came of it.

Constance is a complex character; a woman of high ideals, known for filling the house with foreign lodgers and promoting international understanding. More recently the household had a small family evacuated from London – who had proved rather a trial – and it might not be long before another family take their place. Constance is also a pacifist, and disapproves strongly of the war, much to the disgust of her daily woman Mrs Archer.

Full review: https://heavenali.wordpress.com/2018/...

[❀⊱RoryReads⊰❀ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars
Character driven story set in England during World War II. Gibson excels at writing funny stories that are unexpectedly touching.

[Christine PNW · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had planned to read this one for a 1944 club on my blog but ran out of time. This is my second Gibbons, and I have not yet read her most celebrated work Cold Comfort Farm - the first one I read was called Nightingale Wood, which I read a couple of years ago.

I think I liked this one a tiny bit better than Nightingale Wood, although it has some of the same issues that I stumbled on in that one. It's set during WWII, so the characters are on the homefront during the active fighting, but they scarcely seem to notice that there is a war on. There is some talk about the blackout, and a bit during a barrage, and a couple of the characters have war work that they are engaged in, but for the most part the three main character's lives go on much as they do during peacetime. I'm not sure if this is an accurate depiction of the way that money can smooth all of the rough edges off the world, even during WWII, or if it is a bit of wishful thinking on the part of Gibbons. I tend to think the latter.

It is a bit of a romance, with the characters coupling off all over the place. My issue with The Bachelor is that I found only one of the pairings even remotely appealing or plausible. Gibbons writes flawed characters, which isn't a problem for me, but also writes characters who need a swift kick in the ass. The only characters I particularly liked were Betty and Alicia, and I actively disliked Vartouhi and Constance and found them unconvincing. Richard and Kenneth (the titular bachelor, btw) were pleasant enough, if a bit wet.

The writing is a pleasure to read, however, and the descriptions of Sunglade, the home where most of the "action" takes place, are beautiful. I will definitely read more Gibbons, because no matter my issues with her novels, they are worth reading.

[Tulipsaki · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was Stella Gibbons at her best. I know she's known for Cold Comfort Farm first and Nightingale Wood second but this book ought to be re-printed along with The Matchmaker.

In this book, set during the end of World War II, we get the usual assortment of possible couples who eventually couple-up. However, the ones you initially think will match up, don't do so. And people initially seen as hard or as soft and pleasant turn out to be the complete opposite. In fact, it was quite the eye-opener to see someone who seemed all polite and sweet turn out nasty, vicious and vindictive. And then who hasn't had the experience of initially disliking someone only to find they are really quite lovely characters? That was how I felt about one of the women in the book, Alicia: she seemed a callous party girl in the beginning and ended up showing us her tender, loving nature as she blossomed in a lasting romance.

As for the other characters, all were drawn well: the ineffectual "incorrigible" bachelor who is trapped by a pretty face after all, the spinster sister who ends up with her own version of happiness and the perpetual old maid jilted by a former who - well, she just continues. But she's rich, so she's all right one way or another!

If you can get this book, I recommend it highly. And I personally think Virago or some epublishing site should re-issue this book along with the rest of Stella Gibbon's work.

Thank you for reading this review and for more reviews seeseveralbooksatonce.blogspot.com.

[Mary Durrant · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a lovely story set in WW2.
Stella Gibbons as an eye for character with witty charm.
Who will find love?
I was hooked from page one.

[Kate Howe]

I'm still not sure what to make of this book...
Some funny scenarios and one liners but overall the characters felt distant.

[Chrystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this for two reasons: firstly because of the delightful cover by Vintage, and secondly because I had only read one other book by Stella Gibbons and wanted to go beyond Cold Comfort Farm.

Gibbons is very good at characterization, within limits. Her older characters are great, but her younger ones are not. I got the impression that she wanted the reader to sympathize with Richard and the two young girls. I disliked them all and felt they were unrealistic and unconvincing.

The older characters were much better done and their conversations were natural and entertaining.

I didn't like the ending and felt like it was forced. Also the book was too long. Not a bad book, but I probably won't read any more of her novels.

[Ludovica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dopo tre lunghi anni di guerra l'Inghilterra è in balìa dei razionamenti di cibo e carburante, del coprifuoco durante l'oscuramento e delle masse di profughi e sfollati provenienti dalle grandi città bombardate.

Ma niente di tutto ciò sembra davvero preoccupare Constance Fielding. L'unica idea che le faccia davvero orrore è che suo fratello Kenneth, di mezza età come lei, possa rendersi ridicolo innamorandosi e vagheggiando una normale e felice vita matrimoniale.

La situazione sembra comunque sotto controllo, finché un giorno arrivano in città tre donne molto belle e interessanti che, per motivi diversi, si troveranno a frequentare o ad essere ospiti a casa Fielding...

"Non avevano mai fatto un picnic , o una gita al lago, o una partita a tennis, in cui lei non avesse tirato un sospiro di sollievo quando le belle ragazze se n'erano andate e Kenneth era al sicuro, seduto, di nuovo solo, di fronte a lei durante il viaggio di ritorno".

Questo romanzo del 1944 è il primo che leggo della Gibbons e posso asserire che dalle scrittrici della sua generazione non si resta mai delusi. La prosa è corposa, l'ironia sottile e il messaggio di fondo incredibilmente luminoso per essere stato concepito in tempi tanto bui: la vita è movimento, cambiamento, rischio. E anche, ovviamente, amore.

[Paul Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

A classic that deserves a ider audience. All the comic caricatures of Cold Comfort Ferm but far more credible. Gibbons has a fine eye for detail, parody, mannersisms and the mores of the "petit bourgeoisie". Her work contrasts and compares favourably with Muriel Spark's Girls of Slender Means.

[UmbraWitch · Rating 1 out of 5]

There isn’t one character in this book that’s not despicable and idiotic. I expect sexism in a book written in the fourties’, but the foolishness of every single man and woman in this novel makes it unbearable. Truly one of the worst stories I’ve ever read.

[Lucy Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

I galloped through this page-turner. Would it end tragically? Gibbons had a beady eye for manners, mores, decor and silly ideas. Constance Fielding (mistress of Sunglades) embraces a form of "New Thought". She tries to think positive, but is the nastiest character of those displayed.

The war has brought disparate characters together, even forcing them to share houses. Most of the action takes place at Sunglades, both a haven and a prison. Gibbons waxes lyrical about the light of the changing seasons, the flowers in the garden and in vases. Sometimes she goes on a bit too long. I prefer Bachelor Kenneth's damp garden to the positively Disney light that envelops Alicia and Richard.

Late in the story, Kenneth visits London to look for Vartouhi, the unusual "Bairamian" refugee who made all their lives comfortable and even happy. This gives Gibbons a chance (via Kenneth) to critique the "new" Britain. London was much emptier than it is now, many buildings were flattened, others stood in ruins, there was no light after sundown. But what really gets Kenneth down is the garishness of brightly coloured soft drinks, and "cheap" shops full of "gaudy" dresses.

Vartouhi herself is no caricatured foreigner. (I skipped the chapters set in Bairamia - Gibbons was inclined, like many Brits of the time, to be sentimental about "peasants".) No "how you say in your language" clichés for her. She loves things that are "vary pratty", and "too, also". When she finally loses her temper with Constance, she points out the lack of "prattiness" at Sunglades. After she flounces out in the rain Betty, another house guest, remarks understatedly that her behaviour was "not pretty". Sunglades is, of course, decorated in subdued good taste.

Anyway, a ripping read.

[Jo Everett · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't completely dislike this book, but it didn't particularly inspire me. I was attracted by the cover and the blurb as I had not heard of Stella Gibbons before so was unaware of her work. For me 'The Bachelor' just didn't work for a number of reasons, and I was a tad baffled by all the praise for the book, which made me think I had missed something.

I found the narrative messy because it didn't flow easily, and kept getting confused with who was who. Gibbon's had a habit of naming the characters sometimes by their first names and sometimes by their more formal surname, which made it hard for me to keep up. I almost needed a character list at the front of the book to avoid those situations when I was thinking 'Who exactly is in the room at the moment? Is Miss Fielding also Betty, or is Betty someone else?!'

There were a couple of interesting uses of vocabulary and grammar that I wasn't sure whether Gibbon's had put there as a joke or they were poor mistakes. My spelling and grammar are by no means perfect, but is 'oftener' really a word? It certainly isn't in the dictionary and it made me question her usage of the word.

But, the most important point of all, was that I didn't particularly like any of the characters or care what happened to them. Once you, as a reader, are heading into that territory then the whole narrative is lost on you because why would you want to dedicate your spare time reading about people that you have no interest in.

All of these things said the overall tone of the novel felt to me like a boring soap opera about a group of people trapped in their lives for a variety of reasons and affected by the "annoyance" of the second world war. At times I was bored and only carried on because I was determined to finish what I had started, I didn't particularly warm to the characters, the story was lacking drama, emotion and that narrative bite that makes you want to read it again. I certainly don't want to read this novel ever again.

[Eve · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thought this would be a book about a bunch of random people with different lives and backgrounds living in a hotel/b&b during the war and trying to get along/ live their lives.

Really it's just two siblings, their cousin, someone who the brother had a fling with and her son and the quite rude and callous girl from a fictional country, somewhere in Eastern Europe I think? Fleeing another war. Oh and the father and some other guy just randomly show up, cause chaos and then leave.

The plot? Nothing more than a very boring love triangle, or is it more of a square, and people trying and failing to rehearse a play that's way too metaphorical. Most of the characters are insufferable apart from Miss Burton who possibly has some kind of mental health condition/ Personality disorder as she lives with a sort of second personality called 'The Usperper' who takes over her and makes her say things etc. , but that's obviously glazed right over, and Alicia.

All of the characters are pretty flat and Gibbons likes to cause confusion by sometimes using surnames and sometimes using first names and introducing us to lots of characters, some of whom only appear once every 4 chapters. My biggest issue is there's so much description and so little actually happening.

Gets one star for some nice descriptions of the countryside and a bit of humour.

[Megan Bromley · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Bachelor was an absolutely delightful read, set in wartime England and populated with a cast of quirky, endearing characters. While romantic (mis)adventures furnish much of the plot, the novel moves along briskly despite the day-to-dayness of the characters' lives. I was slightly wary of the 400+ page length, but rather than dragging, the tone remained sprightly and very humorous throughout, providing a read that was satisfying in both literary and entertainment value. A splendid read for the dark winter months, as its descriptions of the turning year are quite evocative.

[Elisabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book to just sink into and take your time with. It is an enjoyable, amusing read. What I didn't like was the imaginary land of Bairamia where apparently people speak in a sort of medieval English complete with thous, thees and rememberests. It comes across as clunky and racist to a modern reader.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Vintage Gibbons. No one since Jane Austen makes you delight in an utterly selfish character as well as Stella Gibbons - her Miss Fielding could go several rounds with Mrs. Norris and not come out the worse for wear.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not at all what it seems

[Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

Recensione parziale, continua sul blog
"Giovani e vecchi, belli e brutti, uomini o donne [...]è un bene essere sposati."(citazione)

Siamo abituati a leggere dei romanzi sulla Seconda Guerra mondiale dove i protagonisti sono le vittime o i carnefici, ma poche volte ci troviamo davanti a dei libri dove seguiamo la vita delle persone normali, che non combattevano il conflitto in prima linea.

Chi possedeva una grande casa doveva ospitare gli sfollati che scappavano da paesi assediati e che erano rimasti senza niente, così come hanno fatto anche i protagonisti di questa storia, Kenneth e Constance Fielding.

La loro vita segue una routine consolidata ormai da anni, entrambi sono alla soglia dei cinquant'anni, ma l'arrivo di tre donne cambierà tutti gli equilibri. Kenneth e Constance vivono assieme alla cugina zitella Frankie Burton, i due hanno ereditato dalle zie un' enorme fortuna che hanno investito in altre attività commerciali.

Dopo tre anni di guerra, anche loro iniziano a vedere qualche perdita che però più di tanto non ha scalfito la loro fortuna, l'Inghilterra invece soffre molto il conflitto, sia per il razionamento di cibo, per il coprifuoco che per le migliaia di persone che sono sfollate.

Nonostante tutto quello che sta accadendo, Constance ha un'unica preoccupazione che suo fratello Kenneth non faccia brutte figure, si innamori e addirittura si sposi, perché lo crede inadatto al matrimonio.

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

A British classic written in 1944, the characters are varied and many, a series of uninvited guests invade Sunglades, the house of siblings Constance and Kenneth Fielding. (I love how the British names their houses) A friend and her son and a beautiful, young immigrant from Bariamia, who has been employed as a housekeeper are the first of many house guests that upset the peace of the household. The writing is lovely and the characters are well written, with some witty descriptions of all the characters which made me chuckle quite often. I understand The Bachelor is not as goods as Gibbons earlier novel Cold Comfort Farm; I thought this was very good so I think I’m going to love Cold Comfort Farm. Recommend….

[Anna Kosovac · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating story set in wartime England (WWII) about a family who are struggling to keep their pre-war English sensibilities in the face of rationing and cutbacks. An hilarious look at what happens when their lives are uprooted by a few (some unwelcome) visitors. A very funny book that pokes fun at the sense of entitlement, and importance, of a people trying to keep their high position in a society that is gradually breaking down class-based barriers.

[D.M. Fletcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book

Seldom have I laughed so much. Miss Gibbons tears pretension to pieces and sees into the heart of humans.
This is a very domestic book, and many may recognize their relatives here.
This is a novel about human relationships and it’s accurate and hilarious.
A great book.

[Catherine Jeffrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the fact there is more than one bachelor in this story. Set in the Second World War Kenneth and his sister Constance are both unmarried and living with their unmarried cousin. The arrival of a new home help shakes up the household.

[Marguerite · Rating 4 out of 5]

country house shenanigans + the blitz. lovely.

[Dalloway · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delizioso

[Ms Jayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this and found the characters so true to life.

[Huda · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Clare Sullivan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it. Stella Gibbons was such a clever writer who could craft characters as scathing and wicked as Miss Fielding and as charming as Vartohi and Miss Burton.

[Raina · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars! A Must Read !!

[Louise Culmer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kenneth Fielding is a bachelor in his late forties who lives in a village in Hertfordshire with his unmarried sister Constance, and their cousin, Miss Frances Burton. WW2 is raging, but Miss Fielding is a pacifist who devotes her time to trying to promote international understanding, and disapproves of her brother's involvemet with the local Home Guard. Struggling to manage without much domestic help, they are delighted with the arrival of Varthoui, a lively and attractive young refugee from Baramia (a country that seems to be somewhere in south east Europe). Then widow Betty Martin (who had been engaged to Kenneth when they were young, but jilted him) arrives to stay with her son Richard, an idealist who is not quite a pacifist, but can't fight due to ill health. A local girl called Alicia is keen on Richard, though he is intrigued by the scintillating Varthoui.

The various characters in the house are all interesting in their different ways, but it is Varthoui who is the most fascinating, and whose possible fate kept me following the story, also wondering whether one or either of the two bachelors in the story - Kenneth and Richard - will end up as married men. A very entertaining tale.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Occasionally a little slow going, but full of hilarious, ironic prose gems.