P. G. Wodehouse Meets Gertrude Jekyll

In 1946 Mr. Nichols longed to escape post-war London, so he went looking for a small Georgian House, not too far from the city, with about 5 acres of land where he could create a garden.  He found Merry Hall.  It fit all his requirements, and he bought it, even though the Georgian lines of the building had been ruined by remodeling and additions, the interior was in shambles, the five acres were mostly weeds and nettles, and the gardener who came with the house was devoted to all the mistakes of the former owner.  With the help of his incredibly efficient factotum, Gaskin; the reluctant but expert aid of the gardener; the company of his cats, One and Four; and the occasional interference of neighbors, he turned Merry Hall into his dream house and garden.  He tells the story with classic deadpan British humor.

You don't have to be a gardener to enjoy this book.  (My favorite garden activity is to recline gracefully in the shade on a hot day with a cool drink and a good book.)  You do need to be prepared for strong prejudices, mostly about plants, but also about women and what Nichols considers the lower classes, and accept that he was a creature of different times.  He brings the best of those times alive most enchantingly.