This collection of essays about things that bring pleasure has a bit of a quirk to it. Not only does Macaulay write about the reasons that those things bring her pleasure, but she also includes the drawbacks, the potential non-pleasurable side effects, of those same things. It is kind of the opposite to finding silver linings in storm clouds. Although since she was a novelist famous for her satire, this is rather in keeping with her outlook. Many of the things she finds pleasure in, I do too. Some essays have a dated feel to them, but seeing that she died in 1958, that is not totally unexpected. It was interesting to see those things that still persist in bringing pleasure more than fifty years on.
This one's not so much for reading as for savoring, bit by bit. Macaulay has a way of describing the pure, sensuous pleasures of life that make it very difficult not to go on a journey, revisit your favorite book, or go straight back to bed and pull up the covers -- just a few of the pleasures receiving their own chapter in this collection. (The chapter on "Bed," comprised of the sections "Getting In To" and "Not Getting Out Of," is perhaps my favorite.)Recommended for fans of luxurious language, especially of the British variety.
