'I finished the book in one sitting, leaving the children unbathed, dogs unwalked, a husband unfed, and giving alternate cries of joy and recognition throughout' - Jully Cooper 'I reread, for the nth time, E. M. Delafield's dry, caustic Diary of a Provincial Lady, and howled with laughter' - India Knight 'Glorious, simply glorious' - Daily Telegraph 'She converts the small and familiar dullness of life into laughter' - The Times