From a Dead Man's Library. I'm into rescuing books that relatives of the deceaced are willing to toss away. I've never heard of Mansfield, but the back cover calls her a genius who was compared to Chekhov. Opsadaisy, here I show my ignorance again...

Pic: A little garden party in York on the week I turned 50.
Edit 2020: Wow, seven countries and three continents!

I've forgotten to make a release note, but I've tagged crimson-tide with this book and sent it off last week. I've also forgotten which town she lives in, but hopefully I got Australia right...

Edit 2019: I love it when books travel, on several continents even, long after their previous owners have died!

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Ha! Well at least you got the country right kirjakko, even if the town is somewhere between 3,000 and 4,000 km out . . . ;-)

Thanks very much for this wishlist tag.

This book comprises fifteen short stories, written towards the end of Mansfield's short life. As with most short story collections the individual stories vary in their quality and appeal, I enjoyed quite a few but others were so-so. She has a distinctive style, but is always perceptive and acutely aware of both the unspoken and the extraordinary within the ordinary lives of her subjects. Published in 1922 they also reveal much of the social life and conventions of the time, both in New Zealand and Europe, complete with all the class distinctions and racism.

On the 1001 Books list.

Update 4th August:
Offered on greenbadger's "One book a month offered 2018" thread for August.

Wilena is the recipient of my RABCK for August, so posting off on a trip to France. Hope you enjoy it.


Update 30th October:
This poor little book lobbed up back in my PO Box a couple of weeks ago, feeling quite exhausted after a return trip to France! Certainly a bit of a mystery as the address was definitely correct. Australia Post has now come to the party and has refunded the postage, so I reposted the book back to Wilena today. Hopefully this time it will be delivered successfully. If not, then it will be one very jet-lagged and confused little parcel. 😉

The book finally arrived at destination, with some go and come back !

Thanks a lot crimson-tide for sharing it ! :-)

A good book with different novels. The style is old but the author throw us in the climax and we see how the characters interact between them.

An interesting reading, thanks a lot for the discovery ! :-)

This book completes the New-Zealand at the Challenge of foreign writers of Indy2012.

I didn't plan to release this book there but I just finished to read it for the foreign writers challenge and I am leaving for Germany so I decide to take it and to release it at the Mainz Convention, I hope it will find new readers there !

Picked up this book at the Convention, and already started reading it on my way back home. I can see why they call Mansfield a female Chekhov.

The book is about to travel to its new owner - the winner ( or decoy) of the Mail a Garden Sweeps. I hope she likes the book as much as I did!


If you aren't familiar with Bookcrossing, take a few minutes to check out this very cool site. Bookcrossers LOVE books, and more than anything, they love to read books and then set them free for other people to find and enjoy. I would love it if you would leave a journal entry -- you can say where you found the book or how you liked it when you read it.

I received this lovely book as part of the "Mail a Garden" Sweeps and it will definitely take a top spot on my TBR pile. Lovely that it was sent with a personal touch, including some pressed lavender. Once I finish reading, this book will go into one of my little free libraries.

I have finished reading the book and reviewed it on Goodreads:
I generally prefer novels to short stories but received this book in a garden-themed BookCrossing sweepstakes and decided to give it a try. Mansfield is an observer of the minute details of life and conveys these moments perfectly in her descriptions. I enjoyed some of the stories more than others but "The Garden Party" itself was among the best. If you're looking for a thriller and fast-clipped action, this is not for you. But if you want to "stop and smell the roses," you won't be disappointed.

This book is on its way to the winner or decoy of the 2020 July/August "Mail a Garden" sweepstakes. I hope she enjoys it as much as I did when I was the decoy last year.

Wow! Thank you very much Ninas_BookNook for your amazing parcel, containing tons of beautiful ladybug/flowery/bookish stickers and bookmarks, a couple of mint tea bags, a leaflet on mosquito repellent plants, a beautiful postcard (I loved your handwriting) and last but not least this interesting book! I hope I don't forget anything, I'm not sure the photo makes justice to this treasure trove!
I feel very lucky today!

Small snippets of life given on a decent prose and a gentle way. I liked some stories more than others, but overall I'm not enthused with the book. Not because it's badly written but maybe because that's not very much my favorite style of stories/writting?

Of course I didn't expect major thrills from this kind of author but given the fact she lived and focused her stories on a specific era and in specific countries, I found the conventions, mannerisms and prejudices a bit boring. I'm not much interested to read about a woman's fur or a man's hat although I enjoyed the weather and nature's descriptions when there were some.

To be honest, I felt that the worries/thoughts/problems of the characters on most stories were a bit too boring for me, while when there was a hint of some risk or change for the better for some of the most deprived characters, the author was quick to extinguise any hope at its start. The only small exception was the story with the music teacher and this one was too bland too.

Mansfield is often mentioned as rivaling Virginia Woolf and been influenced by Anton Chekhov and I can see why, although I find the stories and characters of Chekhov more fleshed out and interesting. Maybe the setting has something to do with this?

All in all I'm glad I read this, but it turned out a neutral experiece.

Thank you for sharing this well-travelled book!

The Garden Party and Other Stories will now continue its adventures in Portugal.
And then... who knows?

Good Luck little book and Don't forget to write your news from time to time!

The book arrived today. I see it's a well travelled book, I'll try to be quick and send it travelling again soon.