Miss Petitfour and Miss Pettigrew

I ordered a book for GrandDaughter1, aged nearly 9. It arrived yesterday, I sat down and read it myself. It is a delight.

The Adventures of Miss Petitfour is old-fashioned in the very best way. Whimsical with hints of Mary Poppins. But also it's about books and writing and words.

Miss Petitfour and her sixteen cats enjoy having adventures that are just the right size and that's what they do in these four short stories. With a few digressions along the way. Hint: digressions play a very large part in this book.

"Certain words are like twists of crumpled paper jammed into the hole in the bottom of a leaky pail, to keep the story from spilling out too quickly. Words like, MEANWHILE, IT IS INTERESTING TO NOTE, and THAT REMINDS. Adults use these words all the time when they are afraid things are getting too exciting."

The author, Anne Michaels, also wrote Fugitive Pieces, that I failed to finish but there is so much about this book that I love. I may have to keep it myself and buy another copy for GrandDaughter.

I can't recommend it for a 9-year-old as she hasn't read it yet but I highly recommend it for a weary granny. *****

Miss Petitfour, obviously, reminded me of Miss Pettigrew, another whimsical tale, this time for adults and another I would highly recommend.

In Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day the middle-aged governess is sent to the wrong address by her agency. Instead of a household full of children she finds her new employer is a night club singer and her life takes an unexpected turn.

Originally published in 1938 this was re-discovered and published by the wonderful Persephone Books.