The Old Man and Me (New York Review Books Classics) [Paperback]

Elaine Dundy (Author, Introduction)

Book Description

Series: New York Review Books Classics | Publication Date: June 16, 2009

In The Dud Avocado, Elaine Dundy revealed the life of the young expatriate in Paris in all its hilarious and heartbreaking drama. With The Old Man and Me, written when Dundy was living in England in the early 1960s, she tackles the American girl in London, a bit older but certainly no wiser.

Honey Flood (if that’s her real name) arrives in London with only her quick wits and a scheme. To get what she wants, she’ll have to seduce the city’s brightest literary star, no matter how many would-be bohemians she has to charm, how many smoky jazz clubs she has to brave, or how many Lady Something-Somethings she has to humor. But with success within her reach, Honey finds that in making the Soho scene, she’s made a big mistake.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"In this, in a way a sequel to her classic The Dud Avocado, Elaine Dundy's young and sexy American heroine, named (excellently) Honey Flood this time, parks herself in London, hellbent on sleeping and conniving and boozing her way to the top. She's angry, ambitious, vixenish, Holly Golightly crossed with Kingsley Amis' Lucky Jim...I'm not sure who's claiming to have invented chick lit these days; but maybe Dundy should raise an arm, except that she's so murderously fierce." --Los Angeles Times

“Here was no one else quite like her. She introduced a whole style, the freed American girl landing on old Europe, starting in Paris and moving on to London. She collected a lot of very interesting friends...She had a lot of reality that was far more interesting than fiction.” –Gore Vidal


“It’s a terrific job—fierce, gamey, vixenish . . . as if it was bled not written. . . . Definitely demonic, exquisitely carved, deadly murderous comedy.”
—Dawn Powell, The Washington Post 

“The surprises here are delicious...Brilliant, weirdly original, hilarious.” –Irwin Shaw

“This story of an Anglo-American liaison dangereuse is both truly horrible and horribly funny.” –Christopher Isherwod

“As full of wry charm as The Dud Avocado.” –Doris Lessing

“The Old Man and Me is a witty black comedy of manners as seen through the eyes of Dundy’s finest creation, a hipster Daisy Miller, who shows us how each girl kills the thing she love-hates, or very nearly. A splendid, destructive work.” —Gore Vidal

“The Old Man and Me again finds an American woman, Honey Flood, in Europe–this time London–amid a tangle of relationships which have brought about her murderous intent. It is a glimpse of a vanished world, a city which did not require a fortune if one were to carouse, an suffer, in its more pleasant quarters.” –Times (London)

About the Author

Elaine Dundy (1921–2008) grew up in New York City and Long Island. After graduating from Sweet Briar College in 1943 she worked as an actress in Paris and, later, London, where she met her future husband, the theater critic Kenneth Tynan. Dundy wrote three novels, The Dud Avocado (1958), The Old Man and Me (1964), and The Injured Party (1974); a play, My Place (produced in 1962); biographies of Elvis Presley and the actor Peter Finch; a study of Ferriday, Louisiana; and a memoir, Life Itself!

Product Details

• Paperback: 231 pages
• Publisher: NYRB Classics (June 16, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590173171
• ISBN-13: 978-1590173176
• Product Dimensions: 5 x 0.6 x 7.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #454,654 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Stellar "chick lit" even before there was such a label, January 30, 2010

By 

Book Lover in KC - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Old Man and Me (New York Review Books Classics) (Paperback)

This book is gripping, well written, and has an undercurrent of creepiness which keeps it compelling. The author's intro helps put the story and setting into context which added to my appreciation of the book. I'm itching to read more from Dundy.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars perfectly funny, June 8, 2011

By 

Brittan Salisbury (Carlsbad, CA United States) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Old Man and Me (New York Review Books Classics) (Paperback)

I really loved this book and the delightful heroine Honey Flood. I thought the relationship she had with CD to be entertaining and I loved Elaine Dundy's take on London which has such a different attitude from her other book, The Dud Avocado. I love books which are satirical about society as well as a little sassy and I think this book truly fit the bill.

The novel wasn't perfect for me. Though I can't place my finger on it. It could be because I was in school, but I couldn't get through the book very quickly. Also, there was some slang and cultural references I couldn't understand which puzzled me occasionally. At the same time, this did add to the fun of the novel at times... so take that as you will, i suppose. haha.

Check out this book though! I love this author!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars the return of Dundy, January 10, 2011

By 

Adrianne Lobel - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Old Man and Me (New York Review Books Classics) (Paperback)

Elaine Dundy is the 60s Dawn Powell and deserves the same re -discovery that Powells novels enjoyed in the 90s. I read the Dud Avocado as well which is even better. I am talking her up everywhere.