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The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets: The bestselling coming-of-age novel from the author of This Could Be Everything Paperback – 24 Oct. 2005
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The classic bestseller adored by thousands of readers from the author of THIS COULD BE EVERYTHING. Hailed as a 'modern vintage classic', The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets was a Richard and Judy Book Club Choice and is in development as a major new TV series.
Set in the 1950s, in an England still recovering from the Second World War, this is the enchanting story of Penelope Wallace and her eccentric family at the start of the rock'n'roll era.
Penelope longs to be grown-up and to fall in love, but various rather inconvenient things keep getting in her way. Like her mother, a stunning but petulant beauty widowed at a tragically early age, her younger brother Inigo, currently incapable of concentrating on anything that isn't Elvis Presley, a vast but crumbling ancestral home, a severe shortage of cash, and her best friend Charlotte's sardonic cousin Harry...
*** PRAISE FOR EVA RICE ***
'Exquisite. Enchanting. Quite possibly perfect. The next One Day/Me Before You' - Veronica Henry
'A reason to be cheerful . . . the book I've been waiting my whole life for, a perfect 90s period piece about sisters, it's glam, gorgeous, a little bit melancholic and a lot charming' - Daisy Buchanan
'Will break your heart and piece it back together again with wit, warmth and magic. The way Rice weaves together fiction and reality is delicious . . . Nobody captures the exhilaration of first love and teen fandom quite like her' - Lauren Bravo
This special tenth anniversary edition includes a foreword by Miranda Hart and an exclusive short story from Eva Rice, The Moth Trap, which offers a glimpse into the cocktail party where Penelope's parents, Archie and Talitha, first met.
- Print length480 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherHeadline Review
- Publication date24 Oct. 2005
- Dimensions14.7 x 3.1 x 19.8 cm
- ISBN-100755325508
- ISBN-13978-0755325504
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Review
A delight of Nancy Mitford-esque trials and tribulations ― Vogue
This tenth anniversary edition of Rice's modern classic is a treat for fans of Nancy Mitford and Elizabeth Jane Howard. Stylishly written with a touch of whimsical charm ― The Lady
Book Description
From the Publisher
From the Author
About the Author
Eva Rice has written 5 novels and is the author of the Sunday Times bestseller The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets- a post-war coming-of-age story that was runner-up in the 2006 Richard and Judy Book of the Year. A 10th anniversary edition of the novel was published in 2015 with a foreword by Miranda Hart. The Lost Art Of Keeping Secrets is currently being developed by Fudge Park (creators of The Inbetweeners) and Moonage Pictures (Pursuit of Love) as a major new TV series.
Eva has toured with bands since her early twenties. She has written the music and lyrics for Harriet a musical based on an early Jilly Cooper novel due to open in 2023. She has a geek-like fascination with pop music, and her party trick is recalling chart positions.
Follow her on twitter @EvaRiceAuthor
Product details
- Publisher : Headline Review; First Paperback Editon edition (24 Oct. 2005)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 480 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0755325508
- ISBN-13 : 978-0755325504
- Dimensions : 14.7 x 3.1 x 19.8 cm
- Best Sellers Rank: 35,282 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 118 in Gardens in Britain
- 449 in Romantic Relationships
- 918 in Love, Sex & Marriage Humour
- Customer reviews:
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I preferred Love Notes for Freddie.
The cover really doesn't illustrate the intelligent content of the book. Buy it, you won't be disappointed.
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I first read this book when I was eighteen myself, and I had never related so closely to a character in my life. There is the fact that Penelope is too tall – like me – but it’s more that she feels she is on the verge of something big…but doesn’t know what it is. About to set off for college on the other side of the country, that struck home for me. Penelope tries to be interested in things that make her appear sophisticated, but in truth she wants to write stories and listen to Johnnie Ray. There is something so truthful about the seeming contradictions of her character: she is thoughtful and eager to please, she loves pop music and pretty dresses, she dreams of romance, she feels weighed down by the loyalty to her family, she is in turns saddened and frustrated by her mother’s fear of modernity.
This is a book about growing up. It is a book about figuring out who you are in relation to your parents – honoring their memories and their experiences while experiencing life in your own right. It is a book about family and friendship and love and understanding.
I read this book at least once a year, and each time I read it I notice new details that make the characters feel like parts of me, new beautifully phrased descriptions that allow me to breath in the crisp snowy morning outside Magna on New Year’s Day or taste the champagne at the Ritz or feel music inspire happiness so sharp it makes you cry.
This book makes my heart ache in the best possible way.