One Fine Day cover art

One Fine Day

The poignant classic for fans of A MONTH IN THE COUNTRY

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One Fine Day

By: Mollie Panter-Downes
Narrated by: Ali Mylon
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'As profound as Katherine Mansfield, restrained as Jane Austen, sharp as Dorothy Parker' Independent

INTRODUCED BY NICOLA BEAUMAN

The lark rose in the brilliant air, higher, higher on its spun-glass spiral of song, knowing nothing of peace or war, accepting joyously the bounty of another day.

A hot summer's day in 1946. The village of Wealding is no longer troubled by distant sirens, yet the rusting coils of barbed wire are a reminder that something, some quality of life, has evaporated. Together again after years of separation, Laura and Stephen Marshall must find their way in an altered, shabbier world. Their rambling garden refuses to be tamed, the house seems perceptibly to crumble. Hour by hour, as the glorious weather holds, the Marshalls and their daughter Victoria are preoccupied by the small pleasures and irritations of everyday life. But alone on a hillside, as evening falls, Laura comes to see how much could have been lost - and how much the future might still hold.

Exquisitely written and achingly poignant, One Fine Day is an unforgettable portrait of a world, and a marriage, changed forever by war - perfect for fans of Small Pleasures and A Month in the Country.


'This short novel lyrically evokes the effect war has had on a small English village and, in particular, on one marriage . . . Beautifully written, it's a tribute to the women who held everything together as their men marched away' Daily Mail©1947 Mollie Panter-Downes Classics Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Women's Fiction War Village
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Critic reviews

Mollie Panter-Downes, a wartime voice to treasure . . . virtually forgotten these days, her work provides an unforgettably vivid impression of life in the second world war
Mollie Panter-Downes is as profound as Katherine Mansfield, restrained as Jane Austen, sharp as Dorothy Parker
All stars
Most relevant
This is a beautifully written book which I first read years ago when it was first reissued by Persephone Books. I was delighted to see it in audiobook form, but dismayed to find the reading was so out of tune with the text. As a previous reviewer has noted, many words are bizarrely mispronounced - and worse, at times the syntax and meaning are obscured. This exquisite novel deserved better.

Wonderful book, poor reading

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The book is as good as expected however the reader is a poor choice in my view. Stumbling over words like herbaceous and Rosamund which indicate little empathy and understanding of the world evoked in the book. The rythym of the reading is monotonous. A waste of a much awaited book. I will buy it to read instead - disappointed

Reader not suited to the book

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