One Pair of Feet: 'I envy anyone yet to discover the joy of Monica Dickens ... she's blissfully funny' Nina Stibbe (Virago Modern Classics)

Review Humorous, moving and fascinating -- Clare Mackintosh I envy anyone yet to discover the joy of Monica Dickens. She's beady eyed, big hearted and blissfully funny -- Nina Stibbe One of the most affectionate and humorous observers of the English scene -- John Betjeman Monica's naked curiosity and general bolshiness are easy to identify with, and as a narrator she always tells us what we're longing to know - it's like listening to a friend's anecdote, and egging them on -- Lissa Evans One Pair of Feet is not just a spirited and entertaining account of a hospital nurse in wartime, but a fascinating glimpse into a time and a culture so recent and yet so utterly changed -- Marina Lewycka A brilliantly funny account -- Elizabeth Bowen Product Description INTRODUCED BY LISSA EVANS 'I envy anyone yet to discover the joy of Monica Dickens. She's beady eyed, big hearted and blissfully funny' Nina Stibbe 'One Pair of Feet is not just a spirited and entertaining account of the training of a hospital nurse in wartime but a fascinating glimpse into a time and a culture so recent and yet so utterly changed' Marina Lewycka As the effects of the war raging in Europe begins to be felt at home in London, Monica Dickens decides to do her bit and to pursue a new career, and so enrols as a student nurse at a hospital in rural Hertfordshire. By nature clever and spirited, she struggles to submit to the iron rule of the Matron and Sisters, and is alternately infuriated and charmed by her patients. That's not to mention the mountains of menial work that are a trainee's lot. But there are friends among the staff and patients, night-time escapades to dances with dashing army men, and her secret writing project to keep her going. 'Monica's naked curiosity and general bolshiness are easy to identify with, and as a narrator she always tells us what we're longing to know - it's like listening to a friend's anecdote, and egging them on' LISSA EVANS If you enjoyed One Pair of Feet, you will love the novel that followed it. My Turn to Make the Tea, Monica Dickens's lively and entertaining novel about life as a cub reporter on a regional newspaper, is also published as a Virago Modern Classic. Book Description A charming, funny and fascinating account of a young trainee nurse during the Second World War. From the Back Cover Introduced by Lissa Evans 'Humorous, moving and fascinating' CLARE MACKINTOSH Considering herself unsuitable for any other contribution to the war effort, Monica Dickens opts for nursing, imagining herself gliding through the wards, serene in a pure white halo cap. On enrolment, however, she is promptly stripped of all illusions. Intelligent and headstrong, Monica struggles to submit to the iron rule of the Matron and toils over the mountains of menial work that are a trainee's lot. But there are friends among the staff and patients, night-time escapades to dances with dashing army men, and her secret writing project to keep her going. One Pair of Feet is a witty and brilliantly observed autobiographical novel, based upon Monica Dickens's own trials and tribulations as a wartime nurse. 'Monica's naked curiosity and general bolshiness are easy to identify with, and as a narrator she always tells us what we're longing to know - it's like listening to a friend's anecdote, and egging them on' LISSA EVANS 'Not just a spirited and entertaining account of the training of a hospital nurse in wartime but a fascinating glimpse into a time and a culture so recent and yet so utterly changed' Marina Lewycka About the Author Monica Dickens MBE (1915-1992) was the great-granddaughter of Charles Dickens. Expelled from St Paul's Girls' School, she was then sent to a finishing school in France, before returning home to life as a debutante. She then spent two years as a cook and general servant, which she wrote about in her first book, One Pair of Hands (1939). The book published when she was twenty-four, was a bestseller and esta