-- Covers 200 of the most important women writers of English -- Groups authors culturally and by genre, from 18th-century diarists to new writers of experimental prose -- Each volume covers approximately 15 authors and includes a concise biography, a selection of critical extracts, and a complete and up-to-date bibliography of the author's publications

Original essays by American and British scholars offer a reader-friendly introduction to the work of Angela Carter, Doris Lessing, and a dozen other British women writers British women in the second half of the 20th century have produced a body of work that is as diverse as it is entertaining. This book offers an informal, jargon-free introduction to the fiction of sixteen contemporary writers either brought up or now living in England, from Muriel Spark to Jeanette Winterson. British Women Writing Fiction presents a balanced view comprising women writing since the 1950s and 1960s, those who attracted critical attention during the 1970s and 1980s, and those who have burst upon the literary scene more recently, including African-Caribbean and African women. The essays show how all of these writers treat British subjects and themes, sometimes from radically different perspectives, and how those who are daughters of immigrants see themselves as women writing on the margins of society. Abby Werlock's introduction explores the historical and aesthetic factors that have contributed to the genre, showing how even those writers who began in a traditional vein have created experimental work. The contributors provide complete bibliographies of each writer's works and selected bibliographies of criticism. Exceptional both in its breadth of subjects covered and critical approaches taken, this book provides essential background that will enable readers to appreciate the singular merits of each writer. It offers an approach toward better understanding favorite authors and provides a way to become acquainted with new ones.

Many aspects of British detective fiction are intriguingly different from the American detective fiction. And, confusingly, many of the British women detectives who have made it to American television are far from typical of the latest women detectives. This work is a study of British detective fiction with female protagonists written by women. Authors included are P.D. James, Jennie Melville, Liza Cody, Val McDermid, Joan Smith and Susan Moody. Special attention is paid to the evolution of the British female sleuth from the 1960s to the year 2000, particularly the 1980s, and how this shaped and altered detective fiction. Also discussed is the effect of the British judicial system and gun laws on detective fiction and real life, the types of crimes women detectives usually investigate, why certain directions have been taken and which ones may be taken in the future, issues being raised by the authors, and new women authors of detective fiction with female protagonists.

The historical novel has been one of the most important forms of women's reading and writing in the twentieth century, yet it has been consistently under-rated and critically neglected. In the first major study of British women writers' use of the genre, Diana Wallace tracks its development across the century. She combines a comprehensive survey with detailed readings of key writers, including Naomi Mitchison, Georgette Heyer, Sylvia Townsend Warner, Margaret Irwin, Jean Plaidy, Mary Renault, Philippa Gregory and Pat Barker.

"I shall turn this into a tea-house, with lunches if requested, and shall serve pleasant meals in the orchard," announced David, "and with my penchant for cooking I ought to make a fortune." "Oh dear!" said Germayne. David Tompkins thinks it is a splendid idea to open a tea garden at his Kentish cottage. His wife, Germayne, is not so sure. The local villagers are divided on the matter, and not necessarily supportive, particularly Mr. Perch at the Dolphin, who sees it as direct competition to Mrs. Perch's own tea garden. It doesn't bode well when the official opening coincides with a break in the beautiful weather. Things are further complicated by the arrival of the "cake cook" Mimi, a Viennese girl with a mysterious past, Germayne's daughter Ducks, and finally her "rather stolid" ex-husband Digby. With rumor rife that the couple is - whisper it - not actually married, the lady of the manor, who has failed to realize that nowadays that title carries no real weight, makes it her mission to shut the enterprise down. British Library Women Writers 1950's. Part of a curated collection of forgotten works by early to mid-century women writers, the British Library Women Writers series highlights the best middlebrow fiction from the 1910s to the 1960s, offering escapism, popular appeal, and plenty of period detail to amuse, surprise, and inform.

Essays illustrating the range and diversity of post-1970 British women writers. Despite the enduring popularity of contemporary women's writing, British women writers have received scant critical attention. They tend to be overshadowed by their American counterparts in the media and have come to be represented within the academy almost exclusively by Angela Carter and Jeanette Winterson. This collection celebrates the range and diversity of contemporary (post-1970) British women writers. It challenges misconceptions about the natureand scope of fiction by women writers working in Britain - commonly dismissed as parochial, insular, dreary and domestic - and seeks to expand conventional definitions of "British" by exploring how issues of nationality intersectwith gender, class, race and sexuality. Writers covered include Pat Barker, A.L. Kennedy, Maggie Gee, Rukhsana Ahmad, Joan Riley, Jennifer Johnston, Ellen Galford, Susan Hill, Fay Weldon, Emma Tennant, and Helen Fielding. Contributors: DAVID ELLIS, CLARE HANSON, MAROULA JOANNOU, PAULINA PALMER, EMMA PARKER, FELICITY ROSSLYN, CHRISTIANE SCHLOTE, JOHN SEARS, ELUNED SUMMERS-BREMNER, IMELDA WHELEHAN, GINA WISKER.

This vintage book contains Dame Rose Macaulay's 1921 novel, "Dangerous Ages". A young writer with a sizeable family returns to college as a way to spend her free time, but finds that she is perhaps not as sharp as she once was. Sick of her chaotic family, she decides to settle down, but realises that her boyfriend was no longer wiling to wait and has fallen for someone else... and her own niece, no less. Struggling with all the commitments that come with a large family, she endeavours to put her life back together again. Dame Emilie Rose Macaulay (1881 - 1958) was an English writer. She is most famous for the award-winning novel "The Towers of Trebizond" (1956). Many vintage books such as this are increasingly scarce and expensive. We are republishing this volume now in an affordable, modern edition complete with a specially commissioned new introduction.