Mrs. Lorimer's Quiet Summer by Molly Clavering #DeanStreetDecember24

As the introduction by Elizabeth Crawford to this new edition points out, after serving as a Wren in WWII, Molly Clavering settled in Moffat, in Dumfries and Galloway, in the Scottish Borders. She was already acquainted with another writer, D.E. Stevenson, who had moved to Moffat with her husband James after the bombing of Glasgow in the early 1940s. This is the story of two writer friends during one full summer, inspired by the real life friendship of Molly and Dorothy.

Mrs. Lorimer is fond of her four adult children and wishes her house were big enough to hold them comfortably when they all come at once to spend a week, but her husband is very set in his ways and unwilling to move. The house she had her eye on has been unexpectedly sold to a Glasgow family named Smellie, which everyone agrees is a most regrettable name. Mrs. Lorimer’s daughters Alice and husband Vivian (rarely, if ever, a man’s name in the US) and Phillis (why no y) and husband George arrive with offspring (and nannies who will squabble with Mrs. Lorimer’s cook instead of keeping the children out of sight), while son Thomas and his wife Mary, and the youngest Lorimer, Guy, an Naval officer, are staying with Mrs. Lorimer’s bestie, Grace “Gray” Douglas, a short walk away (there’d be more room for guests if Mrs. Lorimer shared a room with her husband but she doesn’t). 

Guy is recovering from a broken heart and confides in Gray instead of his mother, which would hurt Mrs. Lorimer's feelings if she knew. Fortunately, he begins to takes an interest in young Nesta Rowena (nicknamed Rona by the Lorimers) Smellie, who piques his interest by describing her desire for a marriage of convenience:

“He must have a nice name, or it would be no use at all. That’s where falling in love would be so awkward. One might fall madly in love with a man called Buggins.”

“I see your point,” said Guy. “By the way, do you like my name? This isn’t a proposal, of course, merely a question.

“Yes, I do. I think Guy Lorimer sounds just right,” she said, and added with an absurd, somehow pathetic little air of dignity, “You understand that this - this discussion isn’t personal, don’t you? I wasn’t considering you as a man at all. It was purely – purely – you know the word I mean.”

“Purely academic,” he agreed gravely. “Though I don’t quite care for not being considered as a man. . . .”

Their acquaintance develops, and soon he does not find her or her name offensive and she does consider him as a man! Mrs. Lorimer’s other children are less interesting and do not play as big a role, although Alice winds up in the hospital, Phillis crashes her husband’s car, and Thomas suffers from his wife Mary’s lackluster housekeeping. Maybe that is why Mary is still calling her mother-in-law Mrs. Lorimer after several years of marriage – hello, it’s 1951! So the summer is definitely not quiet for Lucy Lorimer but is filled with fairly ordinary family activities, including the reappearance of an old beau. Fortunately, he has become annoying and flamboyant, so Mrs. Lorimer has no regrets, although the Colonel is not the sharpest tool in the shed.  Her friend Gray provides friendship and advice neede when no one else understands what she is going through.

The original American edition

This is my third book by Molly Clavering and I look forward to more - it is a very pleasant story that captures a busy family’s life in a small town (although none of the adult children live nearby, they don’t seem far away, and Guy comes home on weekends from Glasgow). Clavering’s style resembles D.E. Stevenson’s but the humor is much quieter. I read this for Dean Street December, a month featuring some of the delightful books published by Dean Street Press, hosted by Liz at Adventures in Reading, Running and Working from Home. Thanks to Scott at Furrowed Middlebrow for rediscovering Clavering and introducing her to a new audience.  These books can be ordered from most booksellers.

Dog food: The dogs in Paula Munier’s books eat hamburgers with their humans and the dog in this book drinks Mrs. Lorimer’s tea every morning. Why can’t Colonel Lorimer simply give her water and let his wife finish her tea? Caffeine is bad for dogs although a sip or two won’t hurt.

Title: Mrs. Lorimer’s Quiet Summer
Author: Molly Clavering
Publication: Dean Street Press, trade paperback, originally published in 1953
Genre: Fiction
Source: Personal copy

Other Reviews: Stuck in a Book, Adventures in reading, running and working from home, Hopewell's Public Library of Life, The Chocolate Lady's Book Review Blog.  Clearly, I was the last to read this one!