The Demon in the House [Large Print] [Hardcover]

Angela Mackail Thirkell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 15, 2002

In The Duke's Daughter, ordinary country pleasures provide the happenstance for the hopes and hesitations of young love. Family names familiar from earlier installments of Barsetshire series- Marling and Adams, Winter and Waring, Belton and Dale- populate the pages of this engaging novel, as enamored men and women find their way into each other's hearts, culminating in one day in which three engagements are announced! To the traditional concerns of the gentry is added a fierce displeasure with intrusions of the post-war government (the office of "Red Tape and Sealing Wax"), yet this new-found preoccupation does nothing to deter the onset of a happy ending for all concerned.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Angela Thirkell was born in London in 1890. Mrs. Thirkell did not begin writing novels until her return to Britain in 1930; then, for the rest of her life, she produced a new book almost every year until her death in 1961. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 264 pages
• Publisher: Isis Large Print Books (July 15, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0753167298
• ISBN-13: 978-0753167298
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,634,921 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars This little demon will make you laugh out loud, July 13, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: The Demon in the House (Paperback)

Tony Morland, the 12 year old demon of Angela Thirkell's
novel, is the most enchanting of evil spirits. He will
exasperate you and even annoy you but he surely will make
you laugh out loud. His exhausted mother, Laura, copes with
a series of near-fatal disasters all of which leave Tony
triumphant and Laura defeated. His imaginary world, his
bicycling accidents,his silent but loyal sidekick, Donk, all
drive the adults around him to distraction. Thirkell has
caught the world of a mischievous braggart and revealed him,
in the end, as an endearing child. One of her best!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Delightfully Vexing Book, September 28, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Demon in the House (Paperback)

This book follows characters introduced in High Rising. Both focus on Mrs. Laura Morland, author extraordinaire, and her family, friends and neighbors between the wars. Where High Rising focused more on Mrs. Morland and her doings, Demon in the House focuses on Tony Morland, her youngest son, who is devilishly annoying. Although the book is social humor in the best Angela Thirkell style, you may find yourself frequently vexed with Tony, thinking "Will he ever shut up?!" Nonetheless, an amusing book.

If you are a first time visitor of Barsetshire, I would recommend Pomfret Towers, High Rising, Wild Strawberries, or even other, later Thirkell publications, like Growing Up or Private Enterprise.

An aside - These Moyer Bell editions are better than the Caroll & Graf editions, with their terrible, light typeface. But be prepared to encounter some spelling and typographical errors.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of Thirkell's Best, March 16, 2006

By 

Christmas in March - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Demon in the House (Paperback)

"The Demon in the House" is one of Angela Thirkell's first novels. It chronicles Tony Morland and his mother during his holidays. It is one of the funniest and most charming books by Thirkell. While one of the other reviewers has noted that Thirkell is not adept at characterizing children, I thought her descriptions of Tony and the other children were spot-on: the need for kids to one-up each other, the constant war of boys v. masters, etc. The end of the book is particularly poignant as Tony transitions from a boy in lower school to upper school. Thirkell's writing is wonderful and evokes the slow and close-knit atmosphere of an English village beautifully.