Armchair Escapism 15

Books

Among Women Only, Cesare Pavese

Winner of the Strega Prize in 1950 - Italy’s most prestigious literary award - Among Women Only follows Clelia, a fashion designer who leaves Rome to return to her hometown of Turin. There she opens a new boutique and re-immerses herself into the city and into the past that she had left behind. As she mingles among the creme de la creme of bourgeois society, particularly the women, Clelia observes that behind the lavish dinners and expensive clothes, a sense of quiet despair pervades. Pavese explores the tensions and facades of post-war Italy as the country rebuilds itself from the rubble. Clelia is our detached yet empathetic protagonist who navigates a world of profound materialism.

The Château, William Maxwell

Harold and Barbara, a young, doting American couple travel to France in the years following the Second World War seeking cultural enrichment and idyllic Mediterranean living. They choose to stay at a crumbling château run by the dignified and occasionally condescending Madame Viénot. During their time there, they encounter an array of eccentric guests still scarred by the lingering effects of the war. It soon transpires that the couple’s romantic expectations of a French getaway are dashed with the harsh realities of class divisions, subtle resentments, and cultural misunderstandings. Through his colourful characters, Maxwell gently mediates on postwar recovery and human connection.

Homage to Catalonia, George Orwell

One of America’s most noteworthy twentieth century writers, George Orwell, recounts his experiences fighting for the POUM militia during the Spanish Civil War. He arrived in Catalonia in 1936 to support the Republican cause against Franco’s fascists and almost immediately is embroiled amidst chaos, bravery and betrayal. Orwell uses his vivid writing style to transport us to the scenes as he grows increasingly disillusioned with the political strife that tears the parties apart. Wounded at the front and later forced to flee government persecution, Orwell reflects on the distortion of truth in propaganda and the fragility of ideals under pressure.

Films

Summer 1993

In this semi-autobiographical film by Carla Simón, six-year old Frida is coping with the death of her parents from AIDS. As she navigates the trauma, she is sent from Barcelona to live with her uncle, aunt and little cousin in rural Catalonia. We watch her adjust to a new life and a new family observing the raw tensions of this cataclysmic change. It proves difficult for everyone but equally rewarding. Set against the warmth of a Catalonia summer, this is a rare opportunity to watch a child’s perspective on loss and belonging with honesty and restraint.

Swimming pool

Sarah Morton, a disillusioned crime novelist flees the chaos of London for the calm of her publisher’s secluded villa in the south of France. Her self-imposed writer’s retreat is turned on its head by the arrival of Julie, her publisher’s beautiful and enigmatic daughter. The villa’s vastness does not aid in the pair’s coexistence, and clashing personalities evolve into deep-rooted tensions. Morton continues to plough on with her book but reality and fiction begin to blur and nail biting plot twists are formed from the desire and jealousy that continue to rise to the surface. We’re left on the edge of our seat as we also questions what is real and what is not…

Une Parisienne

It was Brigitte Bardot who almost single-handedly put St Tropez on the map. But when she wasn’t sprawling on the Cote d’Azure, she was making brilliant films that make us want to escape to other parts of France. Une Parisienne follows Brigitte Laurier (played by Bardot), the daughter of the French Prime Minister. She is determined to marry her father’s private secretary, the dashing Michel Legrand. After they tie the knot, Michel’s dalliances with other women cause Brigitte to seek her revenge. Against the backdrop of Paris in 1950s, we see Bardot stumble into a series of humorous adventures and romantic entanglements though never sacrificing her glamour or her wit.