Winifred Watson

For the discerning reader who prefers books that are neither too literary nor too commercial

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson

May 23, 2026 by KimMiE" Leave a Comment

Recounting one very full and unusual day in the life of a 40-year old governess, Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day is a charming tale that drops the reader straight into the 1930s, where martinis are flowing and beautiful young ladies have scads of evening gowns and even more beaus. When a mix-up at the employment agency sends Guinevere Pettigrew to the home of the enchanting Delysia LaFosse, the puritanically-raised Miss Pettigrew gets a glimpse into a way of life that she thought only existed […]

some content warnings mar an otherwise champagne-and-froth delight of a book

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson

July 21, 2025 by wicherwill 1 Comment

BINGO: Rec’d, I suppose, as this was one of my birthday gifts this year–funny to go full circle from receiving books in elementary school because I had to invite my entire class and no one knew anything about me as I wasn’t friends with them, to receiving books for my [cough cough] from friends who know I read and are anxious to find things I haven’t! h/t to Ryan 🙂 hot take this book has some unfortunate racist bits, as is unsurprisingly common in literature […]

A delightful book (which is also a lovely film)

August 13, 2016 by Malin 4 Comments

Miss Guinevere Pettigrew is a desperate, middle-aged governess, pretty sure that she’s unlikely to find many more jobs, who by accident is sent to to the wrong address by the employment agency. Instead of a mother looking for a new child minder, she meets the glamorous and vivacious singer/actress Miss Delysia DeFosse (NOT her real name) and before she knows it, Miss Pettigrew’s rather colourless and boring life is full of high drama and romance. Delysia has not one, not two, but three suitors that […]

wicherwill
on Domestic Issues
I'm actually surprised, I felt like this book wouldn't hold up very well at all just because of the overall...
Tracy
on can a fiction book about the historical racial terrorism be funny actually yes
I really liked Dr No. James was good but got a little dark. Erasure was great but I hated the...
ElCicco
on “The wonder is that you could start life with nothing, end with nothing, and lose so much in between.”
I can see this being one of my top reads this year. I keep thinking about it
faintingviolet
on First Book in a New Series
The cat gets an okay amount of page time. She is an 18 year old senior lady who belongs to...
Esmemoria
on “The wonder is that you could start life with nothing, end with nothing, and lose so much in between.”
I loved this book. One of my top five reads from last year.

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