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Mr Finchley #2
Mr Finchley Goes to Paris
Book 2 of the classic trilogy of humorous adventures
An ebullient Mr Finchley is about to propose marriage to a lady he had rescued from mishap, when he is sent to Paris by his firm.
There he manages to upset a boat, adopt a stray orphan and get himself kidnapped. The fine tangle he gets into takes some unravelling! Only when eventually back in London does he complete the proposal of marriage that was interrupted at the start.
This gentle comedy trilogy was a runaway bestseller on first publication in the 1930s and retains a timeless appeal today. It has been dramatized twice for BBC Radio, with the 1990 series regularly repeated.
What people are saying about the Mr Finchley series:‘Wonderful character from a kinder slower England between the wars.’
‘An overlooked gem. An innocent picaresque novel set in an arcadian version of mid 20th century England. The literary equivalent of naive painting, it narrates the adventures of a respectable upper middle-aged man who takes retirement.’
‘An antidote to the rush of the early 21st century.’
‘A thoroughly enjoyable stroll through a vanished England with some lovable characters. Don't expect modern, fashionable agonisings, here there is good, evil, and understanding. A lovely reminiscent wallow of a read.’
‘Gentle well told simple story, full of pleasant surprises, and a mild mannered believable hero. Loved it to bits.’
‘So gentle, it hurts.’
‘There is a freshness about the writing which is charming and that disarms criticism. Don't expect any great profundities, a gripping plot or inter-character tensions - these books are of the world of Billy Bunter and William Brown - but do expect a very well-written and enjoyable romp through early twentieth-century England in the company of an engaging protagonist.’
‘A delightful story of a man who finds himself jolted out of his comfort zone and taken on a journey beyond his wildest imaginings.’
‘Another lovely book detailing the adventures of Mr Finchley in altogether far too short a series. Full of humour and a book I was sorry to finish as I wanted it to go on and on.’
Editorial reviews:‘Quite delightful, with an atmosphere of quiet contentment and humour that cannot fail to charm … The longer we travel with Mr Finchley, the better we come to love him. He makes us share his bread and cheese, and beer and pipe. His delight at the beauties of the countryside and his mild astonishment at the strange ways of men are infectious.’ Daily Telegraph
‘His gift of story-telling is obviously innate. Rarely does one come on so satisfying an amalgam of plot, characterisation and good writing.’ Punch
‘A paean to the beauties of the English countryside and the lovable oddities of the English character… [Mr Finchley] runs into one astonishing situation after another, sticking gamely to his resolve that he must take things as they come and accept them.
196 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 1, 1971
181 people are currently reading
137 people want to read
About the author
Victor Canning
163 books59 followersVictor Canning was a prolific writer of novels and thrillers who flourished in the 1950s, '60s and '70s, but whose reputation has faded since his death in 1986. He was personally reticent, writing no memoirs and giving relatively few newspaper interviews.
Canning was born in Plymouth, Devon, the eldest child of a coach builder, Fred Canning, and his wife May, née Goold. During World War I his father served as an ambulance driver in France and Flanders, while he with his two sisters went to live in the village of Calstock ten miles north of Plymouth, where his uncle Cecil Goold worked for the railways and later became station master. After the war the family returned to Plymouth. In the mid 1920s they moved to Oxford where his father had found work, and Victor attended the Oxford Central School. Here he was encouraged to stay on at school and go to university by a classical scholar, Dr. Henderson, but the family could not afford it and instead Victor went to work as a clerk in the education office at age 16.
Within three years he had started selling short stories to boys’ magazines and in 1934, his first novel. Mr. Finchley Discovers his England, was accepted by Hodder and Stoughton and became a runaway best seller. He gave up his job and started writing full time, producing thirteen more novels in the next six years under three different names. Lord Rothermere engaged him to write for the Daily Mail, and a number of his travel articles for the Daily Mail were collected as a book with illustrations by Leslie Stead under the title Everyman's England in 1936. He also continued to write short stories.
He married Phyllis McEwen in 1935, a girl from a theatrical family whom he met while she was working with a touring vaudeville production at Weston-super-Mare. They had three daughters, Lindel born in 1939, Hilary born in 1940, and Virginia who was born in 1942, but died in infancy.
In 1940 he enlisted in the Army, and was sent for training with the Royal Artillery in Llandrindod Wells in mid-Wales, where he trained alongside his friend Eric Ambler. Both were commissioned as second lieutenants in 1941. Canning worked in anti-aircraft batteries in the south of England until early 1943, when he was sent to North Africa and took part in the Allied invasion of Sicily and the Italian campaigns. At the end of the war he was assigned to an Anglo-American unit doing experimental work with radar range-finding. It was top secret work but nothing to do with espionage, though Canning never discouraged the assumption of publishers and reviewers that his espionage stories were partly based on experience. He was discharged in 1946 with the rank of major.
He resumed writing with The Chasm (1947), a novel about identifying a Nazi collaborator who has hidden himself in a remote Italian village. A film of this was planned but never finished. Canning’s next book, Panther’s Moon, was filmed as Spy Hunt, and from now on Canning was established as someone who could write a book a year in the suspense genre, have them reliably appear in book club and paperback editions on both sides of the Atlantic, be translated into the main European languages, and in many cases get filmed. He himself spent a year in Hollywood working on scripts for movies of his own books and on TV shows. The money earned from the film of The Golden Salamander (filmed with Trevor Howard) meant that Canning could buy a substantial country house with some land in Kent, Marle Place, where he lived for nearly twenty years and where his daughter continues to live now. From the mid 1950s onwards his books became more conventional, full of exotic settings, stirring action sequences and stock characters. In 1965 he began a series of four books featuring a private detective called Rex Carver, and these were among his most successful in sales terms.
He died in 1986.
Canning was born in Plymouth, Devon, the eldest child of a coach builder, Fred Canning, and his wife May, née Goold. During World War I his father served as an ambulance driver in France and Flanders, while he with his two sisters went to live in the village of Calstock ten miles north of Plymouth, where his uncle Cecil Goold worked for the railways and later became station master. After the war the family returned to Plymouth. In the mid 1920s they moved to Oxford where his father had found work, and Victor attended the Oxford Central School. Here he was encouraged to stay on at school and go to university by a classical scholar, Dr. Henderson, but the family could not afford it and instead Victor went to work as a clerk in the education office at age 16.
Within three years he had started selling short stories to boys’ magazines and in 1934, his first novel. Mr. Finchley Discovers his England, was accepted by Hodder and Stoughton and became a runaway best seller. He gave up his job and started writing full time, producing thirteen more novels in the next six years under three different names. Lord Rothermere engaged him to write for the Daily Mail, and a number of his travel articles for the Daily Mail were collected as a book with illustrations by Leslie Stead under the title Everyman's England in 1936. He also continued to write short stories.
He married Phyllis McEwen in 1935, a girl from a theatrical family whom he met while she was working with a touring vaudeville production at Weston-super-Mare. They had three daughters, Lindel born in 1939, Hilary born in 1940, and Virginia who was born in 1942, but died in infancy.
In 1940 he enlisted in the Army, and was sent for training with the Royal Artillery in Llandrindod Wells in mid-Wales, where he trained alongside his friend Eric Ambler. Both were commissioned as second lieutenants in 1941. Canning worked in anti-aircraft batteries in the south of England until early 1943, when he was sent to North Africa and took part in the Allied invasion of Sicily and the Italian campaigns. At the end of the war he was assigned to an Anglo-American unit doing experimental work with radar range-finding. It was top secret work but nothing to do with espionage, though Canning never discouraged the assumption of publishers and reviewers that his espionage stories were partly based on experience. He was discharged in 1946 with the rank of major.
He resumed writing with The Chasm (1947), a novel about identifying a Nazi collaborator who has hidden himself in a remote Italian village. A film of this was planned but never finished. Canning’s next book, Panther’s Moon, was filmed as Spy Hunt, and from now on Canning was established as someone who could write a book a year in the suspense genre, have them reliably appear in book club and paperback editions on both sides of the Atlantic, be translated into the main European languages, and in many cases get filmed. He himself spent a year in Hollywood working on scripts for movies of his own books and on TV shows. The money earned from the film of The Golden Salamander (filmed with Trevor Howard) meant that Canning could buy a substantial country house with some land in Kent, Marle Place, where he lived for nearly twenty years and where his daughter continues to live now. From the mid 1950s onwards his books became more conventional, full of exotic settings, stirring action sequences and stock characters. In 1965 he began a series of four books featuring a private detective called Rex Carver, and these were among his most successful in sales terms.
He died in 1986.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews
May 29, 2022
Still enjoying the series although this second one wasn't as good. Still intruiged to continue on with the series.
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July 2, 2019The sequel to Mr Finchley Discovers His England, but where that was a fantasy of the downtrodden office worker's escape to the country, this soon reveals itself as the story of a bachelor settling down to domesticity and parenthood, which for me was never likely to make for such a congenial read, even before one considers the lines about 'duty to the race' and similar concepts which, 80 years down the line, can't help but read somewhat awkwardly. On top of which, and this may be stating the obvious, but it's a book about a trip to Paris. And that is a city which disappointed me hugely on my one visit for reasons in which this book rather rubs my face. For instance, Mr Finchley's excitement at all the new and strange and uniquely Parisian shops – whereas, post-globalisation, I think the most excited I got by a shop was when I saw that they still had still had a C&A (and one which looked like a secret police HQ, at that). When Canning talks of "A city which managed to be a capital without being ugly and too busy for beauty", he expresses the diametric opposite of my own experience, in which the place felt at once too small and too preserved to be a proper capital, while somehow still managing to be almost entirely full of motorways, as though London had been cursed with a Euston Road every two blocks. Still, other bits land better, like the frustration of being replied to in English, despite not being that good at spoken French and it probably being a mercy for all concerned. And yes, everyone French he meets is quite spectacularly French, but then in the first book the Britons were equally stereotypically British, so that seems fair enough. The most surprising detail, for me: mention is made of the difficulty of earning a living in France – a situation apparently significantly worse than in Britain, the parlous state of whose own economy in the 1930s was not wholly avoided in the first book, despite its overall sense of something close to idyll. Which is one of those moments that brings home the unknown unknowns. After all, it's common knowledge that things were bad here and in America in the thirties, and worse in Germany. But why should France not also have been having a tough time? It's just not one of those details that survives in the general memory here, though I'm sure it does in France.
Inevitably, given the first novel was the story of a buttoned-up man's gradual unbuttoning, Mr Finchley needs to be buttoned back up a little before we begin, but it doesn't feel like too egregious a use of the reset, well, button. He's not all the way back to being the constrained soul he was, and after all, don't we all return to our shell a little once back from holiday? Still, a few notes do ring false, like the idea that one misses spring in the city, which seems perverse when we know from the opening that Mr Finchley lives near, and casually crosses, Hampstead Heath. Once again, it's an instruction from his boss that sets Finchley off on his adventures: not that he take a holiday, this time, but that he should go meet with the wastrel heir of a deceased client, in order to retain the estate's business for his employers. What follows is much as before in terms of constantly derailed plans, though given the geographical limits there isn't quite the same variety of incident, and at times the narrative can lean a little too heavily into the bluff and hearty, the notion that down-home simplicity is intrinsically redemptive. And at one point the story really does seem to follow the first book a little too closely: having the same man accidentally kidnapped in two successive books feels excessive.
The big surprise, though, is that with fully a third of the book still to go, Mr Finchley returns to England, accompanied (because of some plot) by an urchin he found in Paris, a boy of English stock but who has been raised by a Parisian bargeman. And if anything, the quality of hijinks markedly improves at this point. At times it suggests a William story, albeit told from the perspective of the father, and with more grudging admiration sneaking in than the father could ever let show. There are fine descriptive passages throughout the book, but it's around here that the comic flair really kicks up a gear, with Wodehousian descriptions such as a bulldog "lurching towards Mr Finchley with very much the expression and mood of a bandy-legged pugilist who has invested his savings in an unpopular public-house and has decided to throw out a traveller who has innocently said: "Bit quiet in here, ain't it?"." The only sour note, alas, is the name of the urchin. For just as Norman Spinrad's sixties SF novel Agent of Chaos presciently named its protagonist Boris Johnson, so Canning chanced to call the adopted tyke Robert Gillespie. Meaning whatever sympathies one may have with the lad are at war with the wish that Mr Finchley should bop him on the head with an oar and chuck him in the canal, before he can grow up to churn out decades of terrible Stones pastiches and worse political takes
(Netgalley ARC)
Inevitably, given the first novel was the story of a buttoned-up man's gradual unbuttoning, Mr Finchley needs to be buttoned back up a little before we begin, but it doesn't feel like too egregious a use of the reset, well, button. He's not all the way back to being the constrained soul he was, and after all, don't we all return to our shell a little once back from holiday? Still, a few notes do ring false, like the idea that one misses spring in the city, which seems perverse when we know from the opening that Mr Finchley lives near, and casually crosses, Hampstead Heath. Once again, it's an instruction from his boss that sets Finchley off on his adventures: not that he take a holiday, this time, but that he should go meet with the wastrel heir of a deceased client, in order to retain the estate's business for his employers. What follows is much as before in terms of constantly derailed plans, though given the geographical limits there isn't quite the same variety of incident, and at times the narrative can lean a little too heavily into the bluff and hearty, the notion that down-home simplicity is intrinsically redemptive. And at one point the story really does seem to follow the first book a little too closely: having the same man accidentally kidnapped in two successive books feels excessive.
The big surprise, though, is that with fully a third of the book still to go, Mr Finchley returns to England, accompanied (because of some plot) by an urchin he found in Paris, a boy of English stock but who has been raised by a Parisian bargeman. And if anything, the quality of hijinks markedly improves at this point. At times it suggests a William story, albeit told from the perspective of the father, and with more grudging admiration sneaking in than the father could ever let show. There are fine descriptive passages throughout the book, but it's around here that the comic flair really kicks up a gear, with Wodehousian descriptions such as a bulldog "lurching towards Mr Finchley with very much the expression and mood of a bandy-legged pugilist who has invested his savings in an unpopular public-house and has decided to throw out a traveller who has innocently said: "Bit quiet in here, ain't it?"." The only sour note, alas, is the name of the urchin. For just as Norman Spinrad's sixties SF novel Agent of Chaos presciently named its protagonist Boris Johnson, so Canning chanced to call the adopted tyke Robert Gillespie. Meaning whatever sympathies one may have with the lad are at war with the wish that Mr Finchley should bop him on the head with an oar and chuck him in the canal, before he can grow up to churn out decades of terrible Stones pastiches and worse political takes
(Netgalley ARC)
September 1, 2017
From BBC Radio 4 Extra:
Episode 1 of 6
Mr Finchley finds himself on his way to Paris to track down a rather irresponsible client. But before he sets off, he has an important question to put to a certain widow of his acquaintance...
Episode 2 of 6
After a contretemps with a haddock, the shy solicitor's clerk gains a guide and makes a move.
Episode 3 of 6
Edgar finally meets his client and visits a fair. But will this bring down the curtain on his visit?
Episode 4 of 6
Edgar and young Robert have been kidnapped - but is it a case of mistaken identity?
Episode 5 of 6
Back in London, Robert gets into trouble and the solicitor's clerk receives an unlikely visitor.
Episode 6 of 6
Back in London after his first trip to Paris, Mr Finchley upstages a ham and demands a decision - and Robert goes home.
Richard Griffiths returns as the shy solicitor's clerk, Edgar Finchley - in a second series of adventures written by Victor Canning.
With Anna Cropper as Mrs Crantell, James Grout as Mr Sprake, Piers Gibbon as Lawrence Hume, Jill Graham as Mrs Patten and Barry Gordon as the Frenchman. James Villiers narrates.
Adapted for radio by Andy and Eric Merriman.
Producer: Gareth Edwards
First broadcast on BBC Radio 2 in May 1994.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00g27dk
Episode 1 of 6
Mr Finchley finds himself on his way to Paris to track down a rather irresponsible client. But before he sets off, he has an important question to put to a certain widow of his acquaintance...
Episode 2 of 6
After a contretemps with a haddock, the shy solicitor's clerk gains a guide and makes a move.
Episode 3 of 6
Edgar finally meets his client and visits a fair. But will this bring down the curtain on his visit?
Episode 4 of 6
Edgar and young Robert have been kidnapped - but is it a case of mistaken identity?
Episode 5 of 6
Back in London, Robert gets into trouble and the solicitor's clerk receives an unlikely visitor.
Episode 6 of 6
Back in London after his first trip to Paris, Mr Finchley upstages a ham and demands a decision - and Robert goes home.
Richard Griffiths returns as the shy solicitor's clerk, Edgar Finchley - in a second series of adventures written by Victor Canning.
With Anna Cropper as Mrs Crantell, James Grout as Mr Sprake, Piers Gibbon as Lawrence Hume, Jill Graham as Mrs Patten and Barry Gordon as the Frenchman. James Villiers narrates.
Adapted for radio by Andy and Eric Merriman.
Producer: Gareth Edwards
First broadcast on BBC Radio 2 in May 1994.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00g27dk
May 13, 2019
I enjoyed Mr Finchley Discovers His England. This, the second book of the series, didn’t have quite the same appeal for me.
Mr Finchley Goes To Paris is amiable and pleasant enough, as Our Hero is despatched to Paris on business and then finds his stay unexpectedly prolonged, allowing mild, improbable adventures. Canning’s eye for interesting characters and delight in detail is still there, but of course it lacks that deep love for England and its vagaries which made the first book so enjoyable. Here, I found a slight air of “Oh, those funny foreigners and their amusing ways” at times, which I wasn’t keen on, and although Mr Finchley remains an engaging character, and I wasn’t nearly so taken with this instalment.
This is a perfectly decent read but I can only give it a qualified recommendation.
(My thanks to Farrago for an ARC via NetGalley.)
Mr Finchley Goes To Paris is amiable and pleasant enough, as Our Hero is despatched to Paris on business and then finds his stay unexpectedly prolonged, allowing mild, improbable adventures. Canning’s eye for interesting characters and delight in detail is still there, but of course it lacks that deep love for England and its vagaries which made the first book so enjoyable. Here, I found a slight air of “Oh, those funny foreigners and their amusing ways” at times, which I wasn’t keen on, and although Mr Finchley remains an engaging character, and I wasn’t nearly so taken with this instalment.
This is a perfectly decent read but I can only give it a qualified recommendation.
(My thanks to Farrago for an ARC via NetGalley.)
August 24, 2019
I am always up for trying a reprint of older books, preferably mysteries but I sometimes succumb to interesting-sounding books of other genres. This was one of those latter forays that turned out to be an interesting read.
Mr. Finchley is back in his routine after his last adventure. He has retained one connection he made towards the end. She is a big part of his daily life now and he hopes to change their relationship but things get in the way (which seems to be a recurring factor in his life).
The biggest hurdle/surprise turns out to be an assignment that takes him to Paris. He starts off as a solo traveler but picks up friends on the way. There are a lot of things that happen to him in this tale, but the mental processing of his reactions to the unfolding events are the draw in this narrative. He is such a likable character who on top of being 'ordinary' is a good man who means no harm to anyone but does not refrain from protecting himself or others. There is more growth in his life in this book than the last, the humour laced into the tale more pronounced and overall a definite improvement from the first adventure.He keeps referring to what constitutes an English lifestyle to Robert(his closest ally in the tale) who has never been to England despite having English parents, this was a very interesting part of the story. Once again the ending is the best part and although anyone could see it coming from almost the start of the Paris section, are still is a touching set of scenes.
Mr. Finchley is back in his routine after his last adventure. He has retained one connection he made towards the end. She is a big part of his daily life now and he hopes to change their relationship but things get in the way (which seems to be a recurring factor in his life).
The biggest hurdle/surprise turns out to be an assignment that takes him to Paris. He starts off as a solo traveler but picks up friends on the way. There are a lot of things that happen to him in this tale, but the mental processing of his reactions to the unfolding events are the draw in this narrative. He is such a likable character who on top of being 'ordinary' is a good man who means no harm to anyone but does not refrain from protecting himself or others. There is more growth in his life in this book than the last, the humour laced into the tale more pronounced and overall a definite improvement from the first adventure.He keeps referring to what constitutes an English lifestyle to Robert(his closest ally in the tale) who has never been to England despite having English parents, this was a very interesting part of the story. Once again the ending is the best part and although anyone could see it coming from almost the start of the Paris section, are still is a touching set of scenes.
May 10, 2019
Another sweet story about Mr. Finchley and how is ordinary life becomes extraordinary.
This time we see Mr. Finchley visiting Paris for work. At first I was braced for all kinds of mishaps like he encountered in the last book. I even saw trouble brewing where there wasn't any. That is why I am giving this book 4 stars. Once I realized that the mishaps weren't Mr. Finchley being taken advantage of, I really enjoyed the story.
The same holds true for this book - a relaxing, wholesome story that is a delight to read.
This time we see Mr. Finchley visiting Paris for work. At first I was braced for all kinds of mishaps like he encountered in the last book. I even saw trouble brewing where there wasn't any. That is why I am giving this book 4 stars. Once I realized that the mishaps weren't Mr. Finchley being taken advantage of, I really enjoyed the story.
The same holds true for this book - a relaxing, wholesome story that is a delight to read.
July 26, 2020
A kinder era?
The Mr Finchley novels are a recent discovery for me, and I’m enthralled by them. They evoke a gentler, kinder era, with characters that capture your imagination, and a story line that’s eminently well drawn. I really think that Victor Canning deserves a much wider audience, his books are a delight.
The Mr Finchley novels are a recent discovery for me, and I’m enthralled by them. They evoke a gentler, kinder era, with characters that capture your imagination, and a story line that’s eminently well drawn. I really think that Victor Canning deserves a much wider audience, his books are a delight.
July 18, 2019
I received a free copy via Netgalley in exchange for a honest review.
Written in an entirely different age this just does not read well in this day and age.
If you can ignore the total innocence of the era then it may be for you.
I personally struggled.
Written in an entirely different age this just does not read well in this day and age.
If you can ignore the total innocence of the era then it may be for you.
I personally struggled.
August 24, 2017
Very rare book to get hold of but thanks to BBC for broadcasting the audio version thoroughly enjoyed it.
July 15, 2022
I liked this one even more than the first one. Don't know as I'll ever be likely to reread them, but they're very fun and make good background listening while I work.
September 25, 2025
A Nostalgic and Gentle Read
I liked the nostalgic view of days gone by and the gentle story of happier days a really good book as all the books I've read of this author are
I liked the nostalgic view of days gone by and the gentle story of happier days a really good book as all the books I've read of this author are
August 25, 2017
Listened to a BBC full cast production.
A pocketful of mild escapades, and silliness that could only be a light humor novel of the early 20th century; focused on the happy, and outrageous accidents that befall Mr. Finchley's life. If for a single moment one puts in a modicum of reality, the suspension of disbelief collapses.
For a good-natured romp from one unlikely situation to the next, this can pass the time easily. It was originally written in the 1930's so there is the veneer of a clerk living a humble life, bumbling his way with British manners, and a genteel aplomb which spoon feeds the reader with a comic moment. No hint of true danger, or peril to worry over, simply enjoy the ride of events our main character finds himself, again, and again.
A pocketful of mild escapades, and silliness that could only be a light humor novel of the early 20th century; focused on the happy, and outrageous accidents that befall Mr. Finchley's life. If for a single moment one puts in a modicum of reality, the suspension of disbelief collapses.
For a good-natured romp from one unlikely situation to the next, this can pass the time easily. It was originally written in the 1930's so there is the veneer of a clerk living a humble life, bumbling his way with British manners, and a genteel aplomb which spoon feeds the reader with a comic moment. No hint of true danger, or peril to worry over, simply enjoy the ride of events our main character finds himself, again, and again.
April 27, 2019
Mr. Finchley Goes to Paris, by Victor Canning, was originally published in 1938. It is the second book in a trilogy but reads well as a stand alone novel. Mr. Finchley, of the title is a mild mannered, middle aged, bachelor, solicitor's clerk. In this novel he is sent to Paris on business and has a series of adventures leading to him befriending, and eventually adopting, a boy.
This reviewer enjoyed the author's descriptions of both the middle class British life style and the scenic delights of Paris. A light and lovely read, it is easy to understand why this was part of such a popular series during the Depression years
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a free ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
This reviewer enjoyed the author's descriptions of both the middle class British life style and the scenic delights of Paris. A light and lovely read, it is easy to understand why this was part of such a popular series during the Depression years
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a free ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
October 19, 2023
Loved this one! Wonderful story...
The vocabulary is Real True England English with Some Branch phrases thrown in...I loved this one...actually cannot wait to read the next book in this from the past series. This book was charming, disarming, funny, lovely and even better than the first...glad I moved to number two...the characters are well drawn, the relationships meaningful and each character goes through changes that define them thoroughly as they grow in experience and their relationships begin to flourish.
I was truly charmed and recommend this series to young folks who want to know more about the England of the 1930's and about the folks who inhabited it.
Such sweet, curious, and wonderful tales for adults, as well. I am an old woman of 68 plus years and I know!
The vocabulary is Real True England English with Some Branch phrases thrown in...I loved this one...actually cannot wait to read the next book in this from the past series. This book was charming, disarming, funny, lovely and even better than the first...glad I moved to number two...the characters are well drawn, the relationships meaningful and each character goes through changes that define them thoroughly as they grow in experience and their relationships begin to flourish.
I was truly charmed and recommend this series to young folks who want to know more about the England of the 1930's and about the folks who inhabited it.
Such sweet, curious, and wonderful tales for adults, as well. I am an old woman of 68 plus years and I know!
May 20, 2019
Following in the footsteps of the first novel in the series, Mr. Finchley sets off on another trip, only to have unexpected adventures instead. I enjoyed this book even more than I enjoyed the first (where he discovered “his England”) because my family and I were just in Paris last year. It was fascinating to read about places we had also seen and to compare Mr. Finchley’s experiences with our own. We didn’t have the adventures that he did, but it still brought back beautiful memories. This is a charming series, and I look forward to rereading these books in the future. Thank you to Farrago Publishing via NetGalley for a digital ARC.
February 9, 2021
I like this book even better than the first book which chronicles the adventures of Mr Finchley, in book #2, Mr Finchley goes to Paris and meets a small boy who tells Mr. Finchley he is English and being raised by "Pepe" who turns out to be a friend of the boy's late father. Lots of fun (more for the boy, Robert than Mr. Finchley, one feels) is played out against the people and the beauty of Paris. A book that takes the reader back in time to a place where even the "bad guys" aren't really so bad, and there is always a happy ending. Definitely a book that will give you a very sweet and peaceful feeling that everything will always be alright.
July 16, 2021
The follow up to "Mr Finchley Discovers His England" sees solicitor Mr Finchley once again disappointed with life having lacked the courage to ask Mrs Crantell to marry him after their regular trip to the opera. Mr Finchley's boss Mr Sprake gives in the chance to go to Paris to see a big client, Mr Hammerton. On arrival he is adopted by young English boy, Robert Gillespie, who is domiciled in France and the pair bond as the young boy acts as his guide. Once again Victor Canning provides a gentle little tale of friendship and life as young Robert a free spirit, and Mr Finchley visit the hidden side of Paris. A gentle and innocent tale of a time long vanished.
May 18, 2019
Mr. Finchley Finds Treasure in Paris
This second episode finds Mr. Finchley finding great adventure in Paris, in spite of himself! This wonderful story continues the life of our staid clerk on yet another grand adventure. These books really need to be read in order to appreciate them fully. These are sweet and clean books filled with the simplicity of life between the World Wars. I love watching Mr. Finchley expand his horizons and become so much more than an office drone. I can't wait to read the next book. I received this book for free from Net Galley and this is my honest opinion.
This second episode finds Mr. Finchley finding great adventure in Paris, in spite of himself! This wonderful story continues the life of our staid clerk on yet another grand adventure. These books really need to be read in order to appreciate them fully. These are sweet and clean books filled with the simplicity of life between the World Wars. I love watching Mr. Finchley expand his horizons and become so much more than an office drone. I can't wait to read the next book. I received this book for free from Net Galley and this is my honest opinion.
June 5, 2019
Mr. Finchley Goes to Paris is the second installment of Victor Canning's wonderful trilogy about a solicitor's clerk and his travels.
This time our protagonist is located to Paris on an assignment for his company. As expected, a series of mishaps and misunderstandings lead to numerous adventures, this time with his local tour guide, Robert involved.
The final third of the book returns to England where Mr. Finchley's life changes forever. As per the previous book, this gentle action and adventure can not be recommended more highly.
This was provided by NetGalley for an honest review
This time our protagonist is located to Paris on an assignment for his company. As expected, a series of mishaps and misunderstandings lead to numerous adventures, this time with his local tour guide, Robert involved.
The final third of the book returns to England where Mr. Finchley's life changes forever. As per the previous book, this gentle action and adventure can not be recommended more highly.
This was provided by NetGalley for an honest review
July 25, 2019
Parisian Papa
In his inimitable way, Mr Finchley finds himself involved with all manner of folk as he discovers Paris. He'd been to France in the war and learned a bit of the lingo, but wartime ports and La Dame Paris are two different kettles of fish. And he returns home with riches beyond compare--and beyond money. This story stands alone, although you will, perhaps, enjoy some of Mr F's idiosyncracies a bit more if you've perused book one.
In his inimitable way, Mr Finchley finds himself involved with all manner of folk as he discovers Paris. He'd been to France in the war and learned a bit of the lingo, but wartime ports and La Dame Paris are two different kettles of fish. And he returns home with riches beyond compare--and beyond money. This story stands alone, although you will, perhaps, enjoy some of Mr F's idiosyncracies a bit more if you've perused book one.
June 10, 2021
The sequel to Mr Finchley Discovers His England which I liked and found the hapless character of Mr Finchley quite amusing.
In Mr Finchley Goes To Paris Mr Finchley, Mr. Finchley sets off on another trip, only to have unexpected adventures instead. I enjoyed this one and can't wait to read the next book in the series.
Received a review copy from the publisher and NetGalley. All thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.
#MrFinchley #NetGalley
In Mr Finchley Goes To Paris Mr Finchley, Mr. Finchley sets off on another trip, only to have unexpected adventures instead. I enjoyed this one and can't wait to read the next book in the series.
Received a review copy from the publisher and NetGalley. All thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.
#MrFinchley #NetGalley
May 17, 2019
Just a pleasure to read, predictable, yet a book that you just want to continue to read. A gentle story, entwined with many threads but leading to one ending. I just loved this book, it brings back memories of a quieter, more honourable time when life was to be savoured and enjoyed.
Take some time out and enjoy this book - simple but satisfying.
Take some time out and enjoy this book - simple but satisfying.
October 28, 2019
Gentle well written humou
Slightly dated but a genuinely well written and funny book - the chapter in which Mr Finchley attempts to leave London by caravan (despite the best efforts of Churchwarden the horse) made me laugh out loud on a train, to the bemusementof my fellow travellers.
Slightly dated but a genuinely well written and funny book - the chapter in which Mr Finchley attempts to leave London by caravan (despite the best efforts of Churchwarden the horse) made me laugh out loud on a train, to the bemusementof my fellow travellers.
June 6, 2020
it might be the times....the tragedy of events surrounding us these days but the Mr. Finchley series are a wonderful escape. I loose myself in the vivid description of both cities and countryside, the amazing variety of characters and the adventures that simply unfold day by day as the reader joins this kind loving Mr. Finchley on his wandering journeys.
July 9, 2019
I like the continuing of this series. The author has captured the spirit of the era and the "gentleman" that is Mr Finchley.. He has created a storyline full of mishap and misadventure but told with an almost courtly charm. Each character is so well drawn and i look forward to reading more
February 15, 2021
Amusing and adorable story
Relaxing and humorous, a delightful escape from the stress of the times. Not grand literature with strong cultural relevance but simple, warm, heartfelt happy endings.
Relaxing and humorous, a delightful escape from the stress of the times. Not grand literature with strong cultural relevance but simple, warm, heartfelt happy endings.
October 19, 2021
It's good to read what happens next to Mr Finchley. The setting of Paris is not as well-described as England in the first book, but details of place improve when Mr F returns to England in the latter part of the book.
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September 11, 2020I Want to Live with Mr Finchley
A light enjoyable read with humorous dilemmas that always work themselves out. The characters are charmingly attractive and enhance the novel.
A light enjoyable read with humorous dilemmas that always work themselves out. The characters are charmingly attractive and enhance the novel.
April 21, 2021
This book, along with all the other Mr Finchley books, is so entertaining, you will be glad you read it.
July 25, 2021
Another delightful outing for our Hero Mr Finchley but this time in Gay Paree.. Delightful read think I preferred it to the first one!!
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