Mapp and Lucia · Lucia's Progress · Trouble for Lucia More enjoyable (even if not totally high-brow) fiction from E. F. Benson. As with any lengthy work (the two volumes cumulatively comprise over 1,300 pages), as time progresses, the reader becomes emotionally invested in the characters to a much greater extent than at the outset. This collection is notable since it is only in the fourth story (Mapp and Lucia) that the eponymous meet for the first time. Both are absurd in their own unique ways, more caricatures, but their interactions are deeply humorous, even if Benson does over-egg the satire at times. What perhaps is most notable is that Tilling (Rye) is not only driven by constant curiosity (about the actions of others), but also that it is utterly bereft of moral values. Whether it is truly representative of small town society is open to debate, but Benson constantly mocks the petty and snobbish actions of his characters as well as their self-interested motives. The characters all appear incapable of both self-reflection and self-knowledge. The insular nature of Tilling is also revealed in the sense that national and international events (the Great Depression, the rising risk of war) appear of no concern. There is more than meets the eye to the seemingly superficial affairs of Tilling. Benson deserves a greater academic consideration. 8/10.
By E. F. Benson