Olivia Manning?

Best WW2 novels ever - very hard to locate, two trilogies, Balkan and Levant - adapted for BBC series in 80's, with Emma Thompsen and her husband. I've seen them in print occasionally, rarely as individual titles - anyone else a fan?

I haven't read them, but I have her The Doves of Venus, though I haven't read that either. Oooops! Which of the two trilogies would you recommend?

P.S. You might be interested in the Virago Modern Classics group!

http://www.librarything.com/groups/viragomodernclassics#forums

Hi,
Thanks for writing. You should read the Balkan trilogy first, as that starts the series. Slog on through, it may be a little slow-going at first, but really picks up when you get to the Levant trilogy. By then the characters will be like old friends and they get so interesting as time passes and plot develops....

Hope you enjoy them!

JaneReading

Anyone try the Olivia Manning trilogies? Good winter reading for the Balkan Trilogy, then cruise on down to Cairo for the Levant when spring/summer head in

Just wondering if there are other fans?

I have a like-dislike relationship with the Balkan Trilogy. I like the story and the secondary characters, but I don't particularly like the Pringles. After reading the first two novels in the trilogy, I found myself wondering why those two were still married. Perhaps that will become clearer in Friends and Heroes. We'll see. But, despite Harriet and Guy, I really liked The Great Fortune and The Spoilt City.