I am sitting her at 9.40 am at my laptop writing this post. I have been awake since 7 am and have been sitting propped up in bed with tray of tea and biscuits and Mapp and Lucia. I have made myself get out of bed and log on as I have to do something to stop myself reading Lucia Triumphant. I simply must know that I have another Lucia and Mapp book waiting else what shall I do?
I have just spent the last week reading the second omnibus edition containing Mapp and Lucia, Lucia's Progress and Trouble for Lucia. As in my previous post on these simply wonderful books, there is no need for me to write anything at all about the events in each story, as if you know and love them, this is superfluous to requirements, and if, like me until a few weeks ago, they are a mystery to you, then I am not going to spoil anything for future readers.
One thing I simply must mention, which had me helpless with laughter, was the sight of Elizabeth and Lucia being swept out to sea on an upturned kitchen table and the tremendous sang-froid with which Lucia waves to the horrified onlookers:
"She waved her hand and her clear voice rang out gaily across the waste of water. "Au reservoir, all of you" she cried. "We'll come back; just wait till we come back" and she was seen to put her arm around the huddled form of Mapp and comfort her.
Priceless.
I came to the end of these three stories and managed to hold off for one day until I turned to Lucia in Wartime and Lucia Triumphant written by Tom Holt in the manner of E F Benson, which were recently loaned to me by a thoughtful friend who could see I was in the grip of an addiction and wanted to help me out. As a 
newcomer to All Things Tilling, I cannot pronounce with any authority at all on these books, but as a newbie they seem to me to have captured the characters and ambiance perfectly and I have just devoured Lucia in Wartime in two hours while lounging in the aforementioned bed and allowing my tea to get cold.
I note from Simon over on Stuck in a Book that there is a new book, Major Benjy, coming out soon so my pre-order finger is twitching to get over onto Amazon. I am also going to hunt down my own copies of these Tom Holt books. I know nothing about him, is he still alive? Where does he live? Will he write some more? I am sure that readers of this post will be able to answer these questions without my having recourse to Google.
I simply adore Mapp and Lucia. The DVDs are in the post to me as I write and I am going to allow a little time to lapse and then read my omnibuses all over again as I loved them so much, I read through them fairly quickly as I wanted to see what devilish stratagem Lucia would come up with next to trounce Elizabeth, so now I can re-read at my leisure. WHY have I never discovered these before? I simply don't know.
Here is a quote by Auberon Waugh which sums up just how I feel at the moment:
"I might have gone to my grave without ever knowing about Lucia or Miss Mapp. It is not a risk anyone should take lightly"
Quite.
