Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day by Winifred Watson

Ratings:

Age Group: 12+ . Availability: 7/10 (Most librarys and many bookshops now have it as it is making a comeback). Cleanliness: 6/10 Overall: *****

Review:
English author Winnifred Watson wrote six novels, the best-known of which is Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day, a Cinderella-type story of a failed governess who finds happiness and turns her life around in only 24 hours. It is a delightful pre-WW2 tale of cocktail parties, clubs and the people that inhabited them. It is also the story of Miss Pettigrew who suddenly finds herself caught up in this unfamiliar world and has her fortunes radically altered as well as finding the beginnings of love in the process. The glitz and glamour of classy 1930's London is well-described in the book and one can easily visualise the glittering lights and champagne the story invokes. This lighthearted and bubbly book whips us and Miss Pettigrew through a dazzling story that I could hardly put down. The writing is good quality and while not of the calibre of say, Homer or Thomas Hardy, it is a highly enjoyable book. Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day is probably more appealing to girls than boys because of the Cinderella aspect of it, but it is a thoroughly good read.

Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day is by Winifred Watson. Republished in 2000 by Persephone Books, it was originally published in 1938 by Methuen.

An Additional Note:
The movie Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day (2008), starring Frances McDormand and Amy Adams, is widely available both for rent and from libraries. I viewed this film not long after reading the book and while it does deviate from the original in more than a few places, it does capture the spirit of the book and place it in a more realistic context. It also does a good job of showing the glamour of the world Miss Pettigrew steps into and the clothing and sets are true to the period. It does change the roles of a few characters and leave out some interesting parts. But, all in all, a very enjoyable film, although probably more for females.  It is rated PG-13 and is suitable for a teenage and adult audience.
You can see the trailer here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0970468/