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A Cup of Tey
A CUP OF TEY, The Daughter of Time; Brat Farrar; Miss Pym Disposes Hardcover by Josephine Tey (Author)
581 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1979
1 person is currently reading
57 people want to read
About the author
Josephine Tey
133 books849 followersJosephine Tey was a pseudonym of Elizabeth Mackintosh. Josephine was her mother's first name and Tey the surname of an English Grandmother. As Josephine Tey, she wrote six mystery novels featuring Scotland Yard's Inspector Alan Grant.
The first of these, The Man in the Queue (1929) was published under the pseudonym of Gordon Daviot , whose name also appears on the title page of another of her 1929 novels, Kif; An Unvarnished History. She also used the Daviot by-line for a biography of the 17th century cavalry leader John Graham, which was entitled Claverhouse (1937).
Mackintosh also wrote plays (both one act and full length), some of which were produced during her lifetime, under the pseudonym Gordon Daviot. The district of Daviot, near her home of Inverness in Scotland, was a location her family had vacationed. The name Gordon does not appear in either her family or her history.
Elizabeth Mackintosh came of age during World War I, attending Anstey Physical Training College in Birmingham, England during the years 1915 - 1918. Upon graduation, she became a physical training instructor for eight years. In 1926, her mother died and she returned home to Inverness to care for her invalid father. Busy with household duties, she turned to writing as a diversion, and was successful in creating a second career.
Alfred Hitchcock filmed one of her novels, A Shilling for Candles (1936) as Young and Innocent in 1937 and two other of her novels have been made into films, The Franchise Affair (1948), filmed in 1950, and 'Brat Farrar' (1949), filmed as Paranoiac in 1963. In addition, a number of her works have been dramatised for radio.
Her novel The Daughter of Time (1951) was voted the greatest mystery novel of all time by the Crime Writers' Association in 1990.
Miss Mackintosh never married, and died at the age of 55, in London. A shy woman, she is reported to have been somewhat of a mystery even to her intimate friends. While her death seems to have been a surprise, there is some indication she may have known she was fatally ill for some time prior to her passing.
The first of these, The Man in the Queue (1929) was published under the pseudonym of Gordon Daviot , whose name also appears on the title page of another of her 1929 novels, Kif; An Unvarnished History. She also used the Daviot by-line for a biography of the 17th century cavalry leader John Graham, which was entitled Claverhouse (1937).
Mackintosh also wrote plays (both one act and full length), some of which were produced during her lifetime, under the pseudonym Gordon Daviot. The district of Daviot, near her home of Inverness in Scotland, was a location her family had vacationed. The name Gordon does not appear in either her family or her history.
Elizabeth Mackintosh came of age during World War I, attending Anstey Physical Training College in Birmingham, England during the years 1915 - 1918. Upon graduation, she became a physical training instructor for eight years. In 1926, her mother died and she returned home to Inverness to care for her invalid father. Busy with household duties, she turned to writing as a diversion, and was successful in creating a second career.
Alfred Hitchcock filmed one of her novels, A Shilling for Candles (1936) as Young and Innocent in 1937 and two other of her novels have been made into films, The Franchise Affair (1948), filmed in 1950, and 'Brat Farrar' (1949), filmed as Paranoiac in 1963. In addition, a number of her works have been dramatised for radio.
Her novel The Daughter of Time (1951) was voted the greatest mystery novel of all time by the Crime Writers' Association in 1990.
Miss Mackintosh never married, and died at the age of 55, in London. A shy woman, she is reported to have been somewhat of a mystery even to her intimate friends. While her death seems to have been a surprise, there is some indication she may have known she was fatally ill for some time prior to her passing.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
June 27, 2017
Josephine Tey wrote the best sentences. She also tells good stories, but it's the writing that keeps me returning to reread, for precisely the same reason that a favorite piece of music can be played over and over.
May 31, 2011
It's interesting what a different pairing can do. In this book are two Josephine Tey books: "The Daughter of Time," which I'd read before, and enjoyed, and "Miss Pym Disposes," which I hadn't read. Reading the two together brought to the foreground some aspects of Tey's writing that I never noticed before and that really...annoyed me.
The first is the idea that you can judge someone's character by looking at their face. Ludicrous. I never noticed it before, but it is a key element in these two books. OF COURSE, she's writing in a different time, but there is one bit of dialogue to the effect of "it surprised me into looking like a goggle-eyed negro." By itself, I would've just bumped over the quote, but it is indicative of this whole idea of being able to determine if someone is a criminal or not by looking at their features. I expected phrenology and Jewish phenotyping next.
The second idea is that an amateur is so much better at determining something about a case or a person than a professional. In "Miss Pym," the main character is an armchair psychologist who writes a book and becomes an "expert." In "Daughter," a police detective becomes an armchair historian and makes "discoveries" about Richard III that the masses were ignorant of, but which professionals had known for centuries.
I have to say that I still enjoy "Daughter of Time," because I've always had a soft spot for Richard III. I love the deliciously evil character of Shakespeare's, but when you know who Shakespeare was writing for, you realize that was all hooie, anyway. Poor Richard.
I suppose the jury is still out on Tey. I have read other books by her, and enjoyed them, but now I'm wondering if I would a second time.
The first is the idea that you can judge someone's character by looking at their face. Ludicrous. I never noticed it before, but it is a key element in these two books. OF COURSE, she's writing in a different time, but there is one bit of dialogue to the effect of "it surprised me into looking like a goggle-eyed negro." By itself, I would've just bumped over the quote, but it is indicative of this whole idea of being able to determine if someone is a criminal or not by looking at their features. I expected phrenology and Jewish phenotyping next.
The second idea is that an amateur is so much better at determining something about a case or a person than a professional. In "Miss Pym," the main character is an armchair psychologist who writes a book and becomes an "expert." In "Daughter," a police detective becomes an armchair historian and makes "discoveries" about Richard III that the masses were ignorant of, but which professionals had known for centuries.
I have to say that I still enjoy "Daughter of Time," because I've always had a soft spot for Richard III. I love the deliciously evil character of Shakespeare's, but when you know who Shakespeare was writing for, you realize that was all hooie, anyway. Poor Richard.
I suppose the jury is still out on Tey. I have read other books by her, and enjoyed them, but now I'm wondering if I would a second time.
October 4, 2019
I adore this author. Every story of hers is engrossing and delightful, especially as case studies in human nature and reading people (their faces in particular). Miss Pym Disposes is a stunner and unforgettable.
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March 27, 2023SOMEWHAT DISAPPOINTING . STARTED OUT INTERESTING BUT IT FLICKERED OUT MID BOOK
April 2, 2025
Liked but didn't love all three featured stories. Now that I've finished it, I've been waffling over whether to keep my copy or leave it for someone else to enjoy.
August 24, 2011
This is my first book by Miss Tey and I was hooked on her right from the get go! She has a wonderful way of writing, the way she describes every thing is very appealing. Here is a sample, the first paragraph in the book...
'A bell clanged. Brazen, insistent, maddening.
Through the quiet corridors came the din of it, making hideous the peace of the morning. From each of the yawning windows of the little quadrangle the noise poured out on to the still, sunlit garden where the grass was grey yet with dew.
Little Miss Pym stirred, opened one doubtful grey eye, and reached blindly for her watch. There was no watch. She opened the other eye. There seemed to be no bedside table either. No, of course not; now she remembered. There was no bedside table; as she had found last night. Her watch had had of necessity to be put under her pillow. She fumbled for it. Good heavens, what a row that bell was making! Obscene. There seemed to be no watch under the pillow. But it must be there! She lifted the pillow bodily, revealing only one small sheer-linen handkerchief in a saucy pattern of blue and white. She dropped the pillow and peered down between the bed and the wall. Yes, there was something that looked like a watch. By lying flat on her front and inserting an arm she could just reach it. Carefully she brought it up, lightly caught between the tips of first and second fingers. If she dropped it now she would have to get out of bed and crawl under for it. She turned on her back with a sigh of relief, holding the watch triumphantly above her.
Half-past five, said the watch.
Half-past five!'
I was hooked, already I like Miss Pym. I highly recommend Josephine Tey!
'A bell clanged. Brazen, insistent, maddening.
Through the quiet corridors came the din of it, making hideous the peace of the morning. From each of the yawning windows of the little quadrangle the noise poured out on to the still, sunlit garden where the grass was grey yet with dew.
Little Miss Pym stirred, opened one doubtful grey eye, and reached blindly for her watch. There was no watch. She opened the other eye. There seemed to be no bedside table either. No, of course not; now she remembered. There was no bedside table; as she had found last night. Her watch had had of necessity to be put under her pillow. She fumbled for it. Good heavens, what a row that bell was making! Obscene. There seemed to be no watch under the pillow. But it must be there! She lifted the pillow bodily, revealing only one small sheer-linen handkerchief in a saucy pattern of blue and white. She dropped the pillow and peered down between the bed and the wall. Yes, there was something that looked like a watch. By lying flat on her front and inserting an arm she could just reach it. Carefully she brought it up, lightly caught between the tips of first and second fingers. If she dropped it now she would have to get out of bed and crawl under for it. She turned on her back with a sigh of relief, holding the watch triumphantly above her.
Half-past five, said the watch.
Half-past five!'
I was hooked, already I like Miss Pym. I highly recommend Josephine Tey!
September 19, 2009
This book includes 3 novellas. I have read the first 2 and then set it aside. I imagine I will read the third one day, but since that seems to be taking a while, I thought I'd go ahead and review what I had completed.
I chose this book becuase of gushing reviews on another site. These stories are apparently part of the critical cannon of mystery fiction. But... they just felt dated to this modern reader. However innovative and original they were at the time, it is just not so anymore. Miss Pym was a very unpleasant person and I did not find her deductive abilities at all impressive.
The second story I found much better. It centers around a young man interjected into a family purporting to be a long lost family member. It is a blatant fraud, and one being orchestrated by a third person who knows the family. But, it is a better story because of the emotions involved. The fraud is found out, the perpetrator duly ashamed, but he is somehow forgiven and accepted back into the family he has come to love. A nice story, but very little mystery to it.
I chose this book becuase of gushing reviews on another site. These stories are apparently part of the critical cannon of mystery fiction. But... they just felt dated to this modern reader. However innovative and original they were at the time, it is just not so anymore. Miss Pym was a very unpleasant person and I did not find her deductive abilities at all impressive.
The second story I found much better. It centers around a young man interjected into a family purporting to be a long lost family member. It is a blatant fraud, and one being orchestrated by a third person who knows the family. But, it is a better story because of the emotions involved. The fraud is found out, the perpetrator duly ashamed, but he is somehow forgiven and accepted back into the family he has come to love. A nice story, but very little mystery to it.
July 25, 2014
Rating this two in one tome is not easy! Miss Pym Disposes was quite a long boring ride through a black and white country right up to the pale and grey Alfred Hitchcock kind of ending. However, The Daughter of Time is quite the opposite! I could never be confused with a history scholar, but this search back through more than 6 centuries of English history to "solve" a crime held my interest and got me Googling through every page. Loved it!
July 5, 2010
I wouldn't call them mysteries. A quaint collection of novels with a few twists at the end. Daughter of Time was the most baffling of the three. No mystery, no twist, and no resolution. I guess now I can say I've read Tey...but that's all I can say.
November 29, 2015
Interesting read. Although written in 1951, it surprised me to find The Daughter of Time with such contemporary connections, such as the discovery of King Richard III and the startling similarities between the War of the Roses and Game of Thrones.
January 19, 2010
Excellent writing, very interesting characters, very engaging story about young women and teachers at an English school. Good mystery.
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December 1, 2008LP Tey
July 22, 2012
Josephine Tey is amazing!!!!
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews