The Middle Age of Mrs Eliot
Encyclopedia
The Middle Age of Mrs Eliot is a novel by Angus Wilson
, first published in 1958
. It won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize
for that year, and has been regularly reprinted ever since.
It describes the fortunes of Meg Eliot, a happy and active woman, the wife of a barrister, who finds herself a widow in reduced circumstances after the shocking murder of her husband abroad.
Her attempts to rebuild her life are placed in contrast with the self-isolation of her brother, David, who lives with his dying partner Gordon at a commercial nursery in Sussex
.
Wilson conceived the idea for the story in September 1957, while visiting Thailand
, which is possibly the model for the fictional country of Badai.
The first edition dust jacket was designed by Michael Ayrton
.
Angus Wilson
Sir Angus Frank Johnstone Wilson, CBE was an English novelist and short story writer. He was awarded the 1958 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for The Middle Age of Mrs Eliot and later received a knighthood for his services to literature.-Biography:Wilson was born in Bexhill, Sussex, England, to...
, first published in 1958
1958 in literature
The year 1958 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*August 18 - Vladimir Nabokov's controversial novel Lolita is published in United States.*First volume of The Civil War by Shelby Foote is published....
. It won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize
James Tait Black Memorial Prize
Founded in 1919, the James Tait Black Memorial Prizes are among the oldest and most prestigious book prizes awarded for literature written in the English language and are Britain's oldest literary awards...
for that year, and has been regularly reprinted ever since.
It describes the fortunes of Meg Eliot, a happy and active woman, the wife of a barrister, who finds herself a widow in reduced circumstances after the shocking murder of her husband abroad.
Her attempts to rebuild her life are placed in contrast with the self-isolation of her brother, David, who lives with his dying partner Gordon at a commercial nursery in Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
.
Wilson conceived the idea for the story in September 1957, while visiting Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, which is possibly the model for the fictional country of Badai.
The first edition dust jacket was designed by Michael Ayrton
Michael Ayrton
Michael Ayrton was an English artist and writer, known as a painter, printmaker and sculptor, and also as a critic, broadcaster and novelist...
.
Characters
- Meg Eliot
- Bill Eliot, her husband
- David Parker, her brother
- The "lame ducks"
- Polly Robson
- Lady Pirie
- Jill Stokes
- Gordon Paget, David's partner
- Else Bode
- Mrs Paget, Gordon's mother
- Lady Pirie
- Michael Grant-Pritchard, a Tory MP
- Fred Rogerson