The Man in the Wooden Hat

Here Gardam addresses the same story told in "Old Filth", from the point of view of his wife Betty. The long-married Feathers live on parallel tracks that almost never intersect. Yet their union, defined by a great secret, is enduring and mutually devoted. I was skeptical that Betty's story could match Edward's -- but it is equally engrossing, enlarging on events in the first volume, and full of surprises. In the end, the reader is treated to the greatest surprise of all, the eventual triumph of Edward, a fox in possum's clothing. I read this book immediately after "Old Filth", and cannot remember a more satisfying literary experience.

This was just a delight to listen to. Funny, charming, sly and heart-tugging. I was captivated. Loved the narrator, too.

really enjoyed the story and setting. Jane Gardam has a gift of taking you back in time to the 30s and bringing you back to the present.

Read "Old Filth" first, and then dig into this book. It is an expansion of some of the stories from Old Filth, but much more tender in its treatment of long-term marriage. The story is set in Hong Kong, post WWII and continues in London, and then back and forth. If you have ever wondered about "settling" in a marriage, this is a good book -- it really addresses the compromises we all make when we commit our lives to a partnership with another person. The tale and its telling is wonderful. I will listen again. Jane Gardam is one of my new favorite authors. I hope there will be more. Graeme Malcolm is a great reader.

A wonderful addition to _Old Filth_. I did not want to let go of the characters when I'd finished it and was so pleased to learn that I could continue our "relationship" a bit longer. Wonderful reader.

I thought I might not like this addendum to Gardam's "Old Filth," which I really enjoyed. I was expecting a lot of repetition perhaps. Or something that would skewer my enjoyment of "Old Filth". But no. It's quite wonderful to see the marriage of Old Filth through the eyes of his wife, Betty. The author answers questions that you didn't even realize you had. Thoroughly enjoyable.If you liked, "Old Filth", as I and the other members of my book club did, this one is a must.The reader is terrific. Keeps the voices separate and clear without overly dramatizing dialog. I have no complaints about this one.

This is another wonderful book. Perhaps not quite as great as All Filth, but very fulfilling. A wonderful writer, and very well read.

I don't remember the story after a month or so at all, but I enjoyed the audio at the time.

I hated to finish the book

Unlike "Old Filth" where Eddie's character is fairly thoroughly examined, Betty remained fairly unknown to me - for one thing, the bit about her time in Japanese camps is frustratingly alluded to a couple of times, but otherwise completely dropped. Tough to say more without invoking spoilers.
I strongly recommend the book for its descriptions of Hong Kong, as well as the minor characters (who interested me more than Betty herself). Until the end, I had seen these two novels as completely complementary, more or less standing alone. However, the ending of "Hat", which I found riveting as opposed to the slow start, serves as a highly satisfying closure for the combined stories. Reading "Old Filth" first would make more sense in terms of background for this one; reading this one first would cause a "spoiler effect" for some of the issues raised in the other book that were resolved here.
Graeme Malcolm narrates both books well.