This is an auction for MR ROSENBLUM'S LIST, or FRIENDLY GUIDANCE FOR THE ASPIRING ENGLISHMAN, by Natasha Solomons.

“Jack Rosenblum is five foot three and a half inches of sheer tenacity. He's writing a list so he can become a Very English Gentleman. It's 1952, and despite his best efforts, his bid to blend in is fraught with unexpected hurdles - including his wife. Sadie doesn't want to forget where they came from or the family they've lost. And she shows no interest in getting a purple rinse. Jack leads a reluctant Sadie deep into the English countryside in pursuit of a dream. Here, in a land of woolly pigs, bluebells and jitterbug cider, they embark on an impossible task . . . ”

“Prepare to be seriously charmed.”

• The Times

"Utterly charming and very funny."

• Paul Torday, author of Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

'In her charming debut, Natasha Solomons folds together Jewish baking, golf and Dorset folklore to create a singular comic confection . . . Solomons crafts a fine pastoral comedy from Jack's eccentric endeavours to reshape the land and from his encounters with rustic labourers who seem to have absconded from the pages of a Hardy novel . . . Sadie provides a touching counterpoint to the comedy . . . Much of the delight in this novel stems from Solomons' feeling for types of traditional knowledge that are on the verge of obsolescence."

• Daily Telegraph

"The light yet poignant tone makes for an unusual, richly comic novel . . . a treat of a book."

• The Guardian

Very favourable reviews on Amazon.com.

Hardback 2010.

311 pages.

Good condition.

The cost of shipping is $4.95 (ordinary post) or $6.95 (tracked mail). If you are on rural delivery and want tracked mail, the shipping cost will be $9.95.

There is of course no charge for shipping if you collect this book from my shop in Wellington following the auction.

Payment within seven days, please.