I was intrigued to see these two books by Enid Bagnold. Although she was an extremely successful playwright her only well remembered work now is National Velvet, and that only because of the film. I loved National Velvet as a girl, and still love it, it is a beautifully written, strange, poetic book.

This book is wonderful, a neglected classic. The images of France after the First World War are amazing, the tottering ruins of Verdun, the weird gaiety of Metz where the Alsations are wooed by the French with cream cakes. The heroine drives French and Russian officers on the perilous roads around Metz, and falls in love. I haven't finished it yet, but I urge you to read this book.