Table Two by Marjorie Wilenski ~ 1942. This edition: Dean Street Press, 2019. (Furrowed Middlebrow – FM35). Softcover. 224 pages.
Those of us with a penchant for reading middlebrow fiction of the second to sixth decades of the 20th Century have been quietly delighted by the recent collaboration (since 2016) between Dean Street Press and book blogger extraordinaire Scott of the deliciously, dangerously eclectic Furrowed Middlebrow.
A steadily growing list of unfairly forgotten out-of-print “women’s literature” has been assembled from hither and yon, dusted off, re-read and assessed for republication. I’ve been acquiring quite a few of these, and have found every single one of them to be interesting in some form or another, though occasionally I strike one which is not completely enthralling.
Such as this one.
Table Two starts out with considerable promise, as we are introduced to a range of characters working in a (fictional) branch of the Ministry of Foreign Intelligence in the early years of World War II.
Elsie Pearne is chief among the group of female translators transcribing various documents from a wide variety of foreign languages into English. Elsie is perhaps the most intelligent and efficient of the eclectic group working away at Table Two in the Ministry Office. (We never get to know the ladies of Table One, as they exist merely to provide a vaguely antagonistic counterpoint to the Table Two-ers.)
Elsie is clever enough, but she’s also bitter and prickly, having been wronged in childhood by bullying peers and in adolescence by her family – she was made to give up a scholarship position and go out to work at the age of thirteen – and she has an extraordinarily tenacious chip on her shoulder as a result of the setbacks she has undoubtedly experienced.
Elsie’s practical talents and drive to succeed are considerable, but her equally strong tone deafness to the nuances of common social relationships means that she will never quite figure out why no one appreciates her true worth. When a junior translator joins the group, Elsie is determined to strike a blow at her co-workers (she knows full well how unpopular she is) and annex pretty, popular young Anne as her very own belle amie, triggering a cascading series of hurt feelings and convoluted misunderstandings which coincide with the onset of the London Blitz.
Unfortunately, the darkly humorous character portraits of Elsie, Anne and the rest of the Table Two staffers aren’t quite enough to carry the weaknesses of the office-drama plot, and the second half of the novel fades in interest as the author gradually loses control of her story.
Drawn from the writer’s personal experiences as detailed in the interesting Introduction by Elizabeth Crawford, Table Two is readable enough, but ultimately more for period colour than for polished literary quality.
This was Marjorie Wilenski’s one and only novel. It certainly shows initial strength of narrative and character development; it is regrettable that the author appears not to have had the opportunity to further develop her technique.
Recommended for readers looking to round out their World War II “first-hand fiction” collections, with the stated reservations.
My rating: 6.5/10
Leaves & Pages 
Interesting! I think there *is* a danger that we look at older books through rose-tinted glasses sometimes and think they’re all worth reprinting. I felt with some of the first British Library Crime Classics that the quality varied, though they seem to have settled down now. A shame this one didn’t quite do it for you!
It’s such a nebulous sort of thing – personal reaction to books – isn’t it? I do love reading the old and now obscure, but occasionally one has the thought that perhaps there is a reason for the obscurity. This wasn’t in any way a “bad” book, and it did start out with strength and interest, but then it just sort of petered out, as if the writer wasn’t quite sure how to bring things to a satisfying ending. Hard work, this writing game!
I am deeply grateful for the chance to encounter these stories in their new covers – the “misses” are few and far between – and most are well worth the time to acquire and read. All of the Furrowed Middlebrow editions I’ve collected – including this one – are decidedly re-read worthy keepers.
Oh, thanks for this review. Have you read any of the others?
When the latest batch of FM/DSP came out, I carefully went through all of Scott’s reviews and selected three to buy: Spam Tomorrow, Wine of Honour and The House Opposite. I’ve now read the first two, and am happy with my choices so far. Spam Tomorrow is the only memoir among the batch, and Wine of Honour deals with the varying lives of men and women returning from 6 years of war, and now coping with Change. Very enlightening.
It’s too bad Table Two is a letdown. It sounds like it would have worked better as a straight memoir.
Susan! So lovely to hear from you.
I have managed to collect a goodly number of the FM/DSP titles released so far, and my goal is to get my hands on *all* of them. (Except the D.E. Stevensons I already own in hardcover. Though I am thinking I will buy the DSP versions to supplement my sadly tattered Ace paperbacks of some.)
I have just read the above-reviewed Table Two, as well as the fantastical Miss Carter and the Ifrit, which I also found a bit lacking in shazam, subject matter aside. (An ancient genie appears to a genteel English spinster in the later years of World War II.)
I have just this morning polished off – with significant pleasure and equal regret that they are over – the last of the two Carola Oman novels, Nothing to Report and Somewhere in England. Now *those* were really good, and met all expectations.
I do have The House Opposite and Spam Tomorrow sitting here waiting – I think they will be my New Year’s Eve and Day indulgences, and I am so very happy to hear that you’ve enjoyed them as that augurs well for me.
Back to D.E. Stevenson, I was most interested to discover (from the DES conversation group) that The Empty World is available in ebook format. I still don’t have an ereader, but I purchased it (TEW) regardless, and am about a third of the way through reading it in fits and starts over the past few days from my desktop computer screen. (We have been having some challenging winter weather, and the power is not reliable – fingers crossed right now that it stays on until this comment is posted! 😉 )
I remember you saying that though this one was “interesting” I shouldn’t go to a lot of effort and expense to acquire it. I am seeing what you mean! It’s not really one of her most successful efforts, is it? It rather reminds me of Crooked Adam for some reason – so highly unlikely and rather stilted as DES fools about with pushing her comfort levels beyond her usual genre. Yes, decidedly interesting, but not quite-quite. 😉
Happy New Year to you and yours, Susan. May 2020 bring you everything good, including lots and lots of satisfying books! (Now I shall hit the “post” button and hope for the best – the lights just flickered again…!)
I agree many times i have bought mid century novels only to be disappointed.
I have to admit I’ve found the new-to-me Furrowed Middlebrow books that I’ve tried disappointing and they’ve ended up in charity shops (including the two Carola Oman ones which I see you’ve enjoyed). I’m taking a much more skeptical view now and borrowing titles from the library first to see if I like them and then only buying if I truly want and need a copy. But bless them for reissuing the out-of-print Mrs Tim books and a couple of great wartime memoirs!
Best to borrow not buy books–that is my NEWYEARS RESO.
I’ve still got my eye on this one but will bear your reservations in mind. I’ve liked all the ones I’ve read so far and this has reminded me I have a couple of review copies for the ones that are about to come out!
I absolutely loved this book!
Wonderful to see you back – and to treat us to a review the very next day! More please!
Waving from Toronto. Everything okay with you out there in BC?
Susan! So good to hear from you! Yes, all is as good as can be expected here. I have just returned (late Tuesday night after a 13 hour drive) from collecting my daughter from her Alberta college as all educational institutions are now closed to in-person attendance. Trying to wrap our heads around the “what next” aspect. Very “interesting” times.
I am involved with several “event” organizations – a regional performing arts group plus our local farmers’ market – and as you can guess things are in great turmoil at present as we cope with cancellations and crafting plans for what “moving forward” might look like.
I must let you know that I recently joined the D.E. Stevenson online group which you are part of, and I have hugely enjoyed “lurking” reading all the posts as they roll into my inbox, but I have yet to come forward into the conversation. Soon, I think. I have just received (yesterday!) the three Mrs.Tim books I did not yet have – Carries On, Gets a Job, Flies Home – and am looking forward to diving into them as soon as I finish my re-read (umpteenth time!) of Monica Dickens’ Winds of Heaven.
If there was ever a time for “comfort reads”, this is certainly it.
I hope you and yours are well and stay well through this “interesting time” in our world!
I’ve also been enjoying the Dean Street reprints although have not read this one yet. Sometimes I am able to persuade my library to order them too. I am missing a few D.E. Stevenson’s so am filling out that collection too. Recently, I was at my own childhood library (one of the few that is actually open) and checked out an armful of Elizabeth Cadell books. Usually, I remember the plot once I start reading although it has been a long time. The way her characters interrupt each other somehow makes me laugh.