Old Filth
and The Man in the Wooden Hat
by Jane Gardam. These were on last year’s list but still get mentions. “Don't be put off by the drab covers and unappealing titles. These two books are my favorites of the year. Traveling back and forth in time, they are the story of Edward Feathers ( Filth), his wife Betty and Filth's rival Terry Veneering. Lovely passages from the vague point of view of the aging but still feisty British. Filth is a ‘raj orphan’, one of the children sent home to English foster care to avoid the tropical diseases in colonial outposts in the Far East. Love story, adventure story , moves from Hong Kong to the British countryside . Funny, sad, and very British.”
