Ivy Compton-Burnett (1892-1969) wrote over fifteen novels about the
upper classes of the late Victorian period. The novels are
constructed almost entirely of seemingly banal dialogue that
eventually reveals, beneath its surface, the truths of human nature
and insights into human relationships which Compton-Burnett took as
her themes. Her works include Pastors and Masters, A Family
and a Fortune, Manservant and Maidservant, and A House
and Its Head.
Diane Johnson’s most recent novel is Lulu in Marrakech.
The realism of this novel [Manservant and Maidservant] like the
realism of all Dame Ivy’s novels goes far beyond verisimilitude to
some psychologically consistent truth that transcends words.
— Constance Lewis
A remarkable and unusual novelist, who has, in her own well-tilled
field, no rival and no parallel.
— Times Literary Supplement
The thing is, Compton-Burnett is absolutely sui generis, although
she’s often compared to Jane Austen. But as Francine Prose points
out in the afterward to one of these new editions, she is Austen on
bad drugs. Compton-Burnett herself was loftily dismissive of a
comparison with Henry James. Her remorseless humor and savagery are
a unique cocktail. There’s no middle ground with this
novelist—you’re either bewildered by her or you become an addict.
The technical term for the latter is an Ivyist. I do urge you to
find out where you stand.
— Maria Aitken, Bomb
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