LUCIA TRIUMPHANT

In the fictional English village of Tilling sometime after the WWI, concerns of trench warfare abroad have been replaced with a communal fixation on the social and political battles of two formidable town matrons, Lucia and Elizabeth. Lucia launches offenses such as a Tilling tapestry project and spends considerable time countering moves by Elizabeth, such as driving a motor car, introducing the game of Monopoly, and presenting fake aristocratic ancestors. Norma West reads this story of foolish pursuits rather too well. She makes the characters all too believable, a strategy that unfortunately means all too irritating. She produces just the right note for Lucia, with her cloying appeals and affected use of Italian. Listeners will find this story either charming and funny or trivial and inane. D.L.G. © AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine [Published: APR/MAY 04]