SOURCE: "Her Thirties Values Now Seem as Ready-Made as Any Other," in The Listener, July 29, 1982, p. 24.

In the following review of When Things of the Spirit Come First, Annan discusses how the stories reflect Beauvoir's values.

These five linked stories about five young women make a French version of The Group, class of 1927 or thereabouts. If they had not been waiting over 40 years for publication one might think that Madame de Beauvoir was consciously and quite legitimately treading in Mary McCarthy's footsteps. Unfortunately, her book is not nearly so entertaining as its American counterpart. It is no use expecting humour from Madame de Beauvoir, though in fact she does produce one joke: one of the girls has a series of passes made at her in cinemas, bars and shops without ever realising what is going on. That is the advantage of a Christian upbringing,' she later concludes...