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Published by Phoenix, 2013, softcover, illustrated, 335 pages, index, condition, condition: as new.
From the late 19th century, when the Raj was at its height, many of Britain's best and brightest young men went out to India to work. Countless young women, suffering at the lack of eligible men, followed in their wake. The women were known as 'the fishing fleet', and this text is their story.
I thought this was a stunning read. It takes us back to the days of the Raj in India, and the 'fishing feet' of young women leaving Britain to go husband-hunting in the extraordinary world of 19th century white and male-dominated India.
Society there was a strange mix of toughness, stoicism, glamour, romance, boredom, rigid protocols and snobbery. There were many who had an intense loyalty to the country, especially those born there. India definitely got under the skin of many of the British who lived there - in spite of the harshness found in many of their situations. There were a lot of people of the Raj who fell in love with India.
There were some huge issues though - people who felt they had to send their children to school in England when aged about five. A terrible wrench, especially for those unable to afford trips to see their children during their schooling. British society in India was also massively obsessed with hunting and sport. (Partly perhaps because men in the army were not allowed to marry until they were thirty.) It was an intensely male society. Heat was another issue. Although many people went and spent the summer in hills stations, it could not always be avoided.
Anne de Courcy is a well-known writer and journalist. In the 1970s she was Woman's Editor on the London Evening News and in the 1980s she was a regular feature-writer for the Evening Standard. She is also a former feature writer and reviewer for the Daily Mail. Her recent books include THE VICEROY'S DAUGHTERS and DEBS AT WAR.