from the cradle to the grave
DESCRIPTION
Stories about life and deathTRANSCRIPT
SUSAN HILL’S BIOGRAPHY
Born in Scarborough, she is a novelist, playwright,
and critic, who has also written several radio plays
and broadcasts frequently. Most of her novels and
short stories are about difficult emotional
relationships, but she writes with delicacy.
TEA
“Under certain circumstances there are few hours in life more
agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as
afternoon tea. There are circumstances in which, whether you
partake of the tea or not the situation is in itself delightful. The
implements of the little feast had been disposed upon the lawn of
an old English country-house.”
Do you happen to know what novel does this fragment
belong to?
“It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in
possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.”
Does it ring a bell?
James Cushat-Prinkly was a young man who had always
had a settled conviction that one of these days he would
marry. His lack of initiative in this matter aroused a
certain amount of impatience among the women-folk of
his home circle. He turns out to single out one of his
choice.
If you have liked this story, there is a Collector’s Library
collection in the market offering the best of Saki
complete and unabridged.
SAKI’S BIOGRAPHY
Hector Hugh Munro, the British novelist and short-
story writer, travelled widely and became a
successful journalist. He is best known for his short
stories.
A BIT OF SINGING AND DANCING
Esme Fanshaw has suddenly been
released into longed-for liberty by the
death of her mother. Now she is “mistress of herself”.
Vocabulary
Shingle : palet, còdol. Dapper : pulcre.
Pickle : conserva en vinagre. Darn : sargit.
Cellist : violoncel.lista. Untapped:sense explotar.
Sleet : aiguaneu. thatch (hair): mata.
Sinewy : nerviüt. bereaved : afligit.
To scurry = to hurry to curtail : reduir.
Crooner : cantant melòdic. Nippy : esprimatxat.
Pedlar : venedor ambulant. To hoard : acumular.
To jab (with elbow) : colzada. Runner : catifeta.
book-keeping : contabilitat. Spruce : pulcre.
H. E. BATES’ BIOGRAPHY
Born in 1905, he began his working life as a journalist,
but he made his reputation as a writer with his stories
about English country life. He was one of the greatest
of the short-story form, with an exceptional talent for
portraying character sensitively and economically.
MR LOVEDAY’S LITTLE OUTING
An asylum for lunatics is the setting of this story in
which Mr Loveday is granted a privilege : to dispose
of an outing for himself. When Lady Moping visits
her husband at a mental institution, she meets the
charming and affable Mr Loveday. Amazed that
Loveday is, in fact, an inmate, she gets the other
patients to petition for his release. Loveday may
seem a reasonable man, but that doesn’t mean that
he’s been cured.
Vocabulary
Fowl : au de corral. Weak or strong tea
Lump of sugar : terròs de sucre.
Dainties : small delicate cakes.
To scuttle : vagarejar.
Marquee : carpa, marquesina.
Bough : branca. To anoint : ungir
Cuckoo (FAMILIAR USE) : guillat, tocat de l’ala.
EVELYN WAUGH’S BIOGRAPHY
Born in London in 1903, in the 1930s was
acknowledged as England’s leading satirical novelist.
Readers loved A Handful of Dust, which satirized the
social excesses of upper-class life in the 1920s and
1930s.
SAME TIME, SAME PLACE
Miss Treadwell lives alone, in a bed-sitter with very
meagre economic means. She tries to make ends meet,
because she’s proud and “one has to keep up with
appearances”.
Do you think Miss Treadwell would have accepted Mr
Thornhill’s proposal if he had known her true
circumstances? Or indeed, if he had known them,
would he have proposed marriage in the first place?
Vocabulary
Bed-sitter = a furnished sitting room with sleeping accomodations.
Well-off : adinerat.
Dog-kennel : caseta de gossos.
Tipple (FAM.) : beguda alcohòlica.
Mallard : ànec reial.
Geese (Pl. of geese): oca.
Moorhen : polla d’aigua.
RAYMOND CARVER’S BIOGRAPHY
Born in the USA. He contributed to many literary
magazines and won several awards for his poems
and short stories. His writing is direct, focusing on
ordinary working people. Often his characters are in
a state of uncertainty or indecision, between jobs,
for example, or in the middle of an accident.
THE COLONEL’S LADY
Eve, the wife of Colonel George Peregrine writes a
book of love poems which is a huge success. Eve is
soon in demand everywhere, but her book seems to
include revelations about her love life, and it has a
disastrous effect on her marriage. The colonel is
anxious to find out the identity of the young man
Eve’s poems were addressed to.
VOCABULARY
Busybody = meddler hag = an ugly or evil-looking woman.
Barren: eixorca cockney = a native of London.
Loins: lloms chicken = insistent on petty
discipline.
Bosh = nonsense gumption = common sense,
initiative.
Gibberish =confused speech or language.
Bolt = used to fasten the door : balda.
To titter: to laugh in a nervous, half-suppressed manner.
SOMERSET MAUGHAM ‘S BIOGRAPHY
He originally qualified as a surgeon but soon became
a full-time writer of plays, short stories, and novels.
In both world wars he served as a British Intelligence
agent, and travelled widely, incorporating many of
his experiences into his stories. He was a master
storyteller. Among his most famous novels is The
Razor’s Edge.
THE BATH
The birthday boy is been knocked down by a car. Of
course, the birthday party never happened.
It is an open ending. Would you like a more definite
ending? Decide how you want the story to end.
Vocabulary
Curb (AM. EN.) : vorera.
Cufflinks : bessons
Loafers (AM. EN.) : mocasí.
FRANK SARGESON’S BIOGRAPHY
An acute observer of people and situations, he
describes them in few words, but with great
sensitivity. His stories are written in simple, informal
style, usually in the first person.
MRS BIXBY AND THE COLONEL’S COAT
According to the narrator, marriage in North
America provides a marvellous opportunity for
women to enjoy themselves, while their unfortunate
husbands slave away to pay their bills...
Vocabulary
Payroll : nòmina.
Lecherous : luxuriós, lasciu.
Jiggery-pokery : trampes.
Flabbergasted : astorat, esmaperdut.
Hitch : obstacle, dificultat.
Finicky : picadís, escarafallós / (job) enfarfegador.
Mink : visó.
Probe : sonda.
Enamel : esmalt.
Horseradish: rabe picant.
Dandelion : dent de lleó.
To cast an inlay (DENTIST) : empastar.
Lilt : melodia alegre.
ROALD DAHL’S BIOGRAPHY
He served in the Royal Air Force during the Second
World War, and then in Intelligence. He started writing
short stories, at first on flying themes. His storytelling
is bizarre and disturbing, always with a nasty sting. His
children’s books are also very popular.
THEY GAVE HER A RISE
News of a disaster is always horrifying, but it brings a
particular terror if we are afraid that someone we
know might be involved. When Mrs Bowman hears
the explosion from the ammunition factory and then
the news that people have been killed, she
immediately goes into a state of shock.
Vocabulary
To work on the wharves : drassanes.
Crockery = earthenware : terrissa.
Smithereens = fragments, bits.