Sullington Windmills WI

Maggie O’Farrell’s 'My Lover’s Lover' was generally received as just “OK” by our book group. As fans of Maggie O’Farrell (especially those who had recently enjoyed Hamnet) expectations were high, which perhaps made the novel feel even more disappointing.

Many of us were more engaged in the first half, when the story’s eerie atmosphere and ambiguity, suggesting a ghost story or even a murder mystery, created real intrigue. However, interest waned once the true direction of the plot became clear.

The novel explores themes of obsession, love, deception and particularly how the past lingers in present relationships.

Lily’s growing fixation on Marcus’s former lover, Sinead, shows how absence can take on a powerful, almost haunting presence, with the past described as something that “seemed to breathe in the rooms.” Although Sinead is absent, she becomes a compelling figure, highlighting one of the book’s central ideas: that the past, and the people in it, can exert a strong hold over the present.

Marcus was widely disliked, and many of us struggled to understand why Lily stayed with him, making their relationship hard to invest in. The ending also felt unsatisfactory.

That said, O’Farrell’s talent as a writer is undeniable. Her prose is rich and evocative, particularly in her depiction of Marcus’s unsettling flat.

Finally, whilst 'My Lover’s Lover' may not be one of O’Farrell’s most compelling works, it certainly shouldn’t put you off reading more from her.

The next book to be read will be "The Time Machine" by HG Wells.

This will be discussed on Friday 8th May 2026.

March sees the formal end of the WI year, with the stepping down of the current committee and the voting in of the new committee. It is our chance to thank everyone who has played a part in keeping our WI going over the previous 12 months and welcome and thank those who are taking on the challenge for the next 12 months.

We were lucky that the existing committee agreed to continue for the next 12 months, thereby making the business part of the meeting quite easy. 

We therefore had time for a fun quiz, refreshments and the raffle.

Sullington Windmills WI is luckily well placed for the comming year, with an interesting programme planned, a good level of membership and a healthy bank balance. 

Thank you again to everyone who makes Sullington Windmills WI run as smoothly as it does.

Nancy Mitford’s “Love in a Cold Climate” was a book that as a group I think many of us were looking forward to reading. Knowing of Nancy Mitford’s aristocratic background and family, plus her scandalous and politically extreme sisters, we were expecting an interesting read.

However, this was a book that definitely left our book group ‘cold’. The novel is often referred to as witty and satirical, “a wickedly funny satire, brilliantly lampooning upper-class society” or “a comic masterpiece”. Nevertheless, there were only two people within our group of 12 who enjoyed either the book as a whole or in part.

The opening pages of the book really did not draw you in or entice you to read on. However, after persevering, you then encountered a cast of characters with whom it was difficult to empathise or, in some cases, even like. Many of the characters were spoiled and/or vacuous and the world of extreme wealth and aristocratic indifference depicted in the book was off-putting.

In particular, the romance between Polly and her "lecherous" uncle, Boy Dougdale, was very distasteful, with little humour in what was a dated concept that felt uncomfortable to our group.

On a more positive note, there were some parts of the book that were found to be humorous, we enjoyed Fanny’s observations, and the eccentric Radlett sisters, Jassy and Victoria, brought energy to the narrative with their youthful indifference to adult drama.

On the whole, Love in a Cold Climate did not warm our group to Nancy Mitford, and it was commented that the majority would not wish to read another of her novels.

The next book to be read will be "My Lover’s Lover" by Maggie O’Farrell.

This will be discussed on Friday 10th April 2026.

*Image courtesy of the Creative Fashion Forum website. Click on the 'Susan Bishop' link below for more information.

This month we had a very interesting and enjoyable talk provided by Susan Bishop.

Susan is a Fashion Historian and Curator. Her research includes historical department store fashion shows, marketing and consumer shopping habits.

She has worked in fashion for over 45 years and is an avid collector of vintage jewellery, toys and a variety of other objects.

Susan has a particular interest in fashion and cinema and her talk looked at how, in the 1920s, Hollywood influenced fashion, largely because Paris couturiers were designing for the stars.

Before high street designers and catwalk shows existed, the general public obtained their fashion ideas from the stars in the cinema. Way back in the 1920s female (mostly) actors would have their clothes for the silver screen made by designers who worked for the film studio and designed clothes to suit the star and the role they were playing.

Later on, the designers and studios would allow some businesses to copy the 'costume' designs to make for the retail market.

The talk was illustrated with many slides showing actors such as: Greta Garbo, Gloria Swanson, Joan Crawford, Elizabeth Taylor etc. in their fabulous clothes.

Many of the iconic looks still go in and out of fashion today.