Barbara Pym guides us through the small lives of four ageing colleagues as they approach retirement
Quartet in Autumn was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1977.
Barbara Pym published eight novels during her lifetime, with several more works published posthumously.
Quartet in Autumn follows Letty, Marcia, Edwin and Norman. They are all clerks of some kind, working in the same unspecified London office. Each of them lives alone – unmarried or widowed – and we read about the everyday intricacies of their worlds outside of work.
Although not explicitly friends, the quartet think of, and depend on, interactions with each other more than with anyone else. Pym’s writing is loving and poignant, and satirical in the gentlest but sharpest way.
Quartet in Autumn was adapted for the stage in 2026 by Booker Prize 2024 winning author Samantha Harvey. It plays at the Arcola Theatre, London from 7 May to 20 June 2026.
