H. E. Bates (1905–1974)

The Fabulous Mrs. V is a collection of short stories by H. E. Bates. This collection was originally published in 1964 and consisted of twelve short stories. In this more recent edition a bonus story has been added bringing the total to thirteen. I found this to be a mixed group of stories, some of which I much preferred to others. Although this author is heavily praised for his characterizations, I did think that his women characters tended to be rather vapid and/or man-hungry which was perhaps a reflection of the times.

The story that gives it’s name to the collection, “The Fabulous Mrs. V” was excellent as the author painted a very clear and vivid picture of a woman who was clinging to her youth and beauty at the expense of others, most particularly her daughter and her husband. A couple of other stories that stood out for me were ‘A Party for the Girls” and “The Trespasser”, both of which are amusing tales that have elderly women mixing liquor, food and seduction.

In The Fabulous Mrs. V the author showcases his ability to invent odd and charming characters that draw the reader into his stories and bring both a time and place to life. Many of his stories show characters that were strongly affected by WW II or capture a very British way of life that has disappeared in modern times. Although I am not a huge fan of short stories I did enjoy this book and will certainly look for more of his short story collections.… (more)

Fair Stood the Wind For France by H. E. Bates is the story of a young English pilot, John Franklin, who, along with his 4 man crew, are forced to crash land in Occupied France in 1942. Franklin has a bad arm injury but they are taken in at a remote farm. The daughter, Francoise and Franklin have an immediate attraction to one another and rather than give himself up and get treatment, he allows the local doctor to remove his arm. Working with the Underground, papers are obtained for the 4 other Englishmen, but Franklin, due to his injury remains at the farm to heal.

Eventually he is well enough to attempt to escape and Francoise decides to be his guide and, in fact, to accompany him back to England so that they can be married. They manage to work their way into Vichy France and to Marseilles. When they learn that the Allies have landed in Algeria, they realize that the Germans will be taking over Vichy France and they need to get out quickly.

Although there were moments of very high tension, the story actually moved quite slowly with a lot of emphasis on the building relationship between the two young people. I have read H. E. Bates previously but only some of his humorous books like The Darling Buds of May, so I was quite surprised at the serious content and literary technique of the writing. The book was published in 1944 so is quite unusual in that it was unknown as to when or how the war would end. Fair Stood the Wind For France is a simple, poignant story that is delivered in a thoughtful and understated manner.… (more)