Fancy joining in?

It's time for another readalong! I thought I'd give you some advance notice to see if you want to join Lizzy Siddal and me as we read The Slaves of Solitude by Patrick Hamilton - I spotted that she had recently got it, and I've been meaning to read it for a month or two: it seemed a good idea to read it together. We plan to post our thoughts sometime in the first week of June, or thereabouts - but I am already about a third of the way through it, and it is *brilliant*.


Putting my most persuasive face on, I'll just say that it's a 1940s novel about Miss Roach, bombed out of her London house and forced to live in an unpleasant boarding house in Thames Lockdon. The prose is exquisite, and Hamilton's precision is incredible. Somehow it is both bleak and incredibly funny. Here's an excerpt to draw you in....

As she let herself in by the front door she could in the same way see the Rosamund Tea Rooms - the somewhat narrow, three-storied, red-brick house, wedged in between a half-hearted toy-shop on one side, and an antique-shop on the other. She saw its bow-window on the ground floor, jutting out obtrusively on to the pavement; and above this, beneath the first-floor windows, the oblong black wooden board with faded gilt letters running its length - "The Rosamund Tea Rooms". But now, since the war, it was the Rosamund Tea Rooms no more - merely, if anything, "Mrs. Payne's". Mrs. Payne would have taken the sign down had not the golden letters been far too blistered and faded for anyone in his right mind to imagine that if he entered he would be likely to get tea. All the same, a few stray people in summer, probably driven slightly mad by the heat, did still enter with that idea in mind, and quietly had their error made clear to them.

I love it. I think it was the word 'half-hearted' that made me realise I'd love Hamilton - so few authors would have chosen that word, there, and it conjures up such an image.

Right! If that has spurred you on, grab a copy and get readin' any time between now and June. No strict time span or anything - but I think this could definitely be a gem.

Waiting on Wednesday # 46 ~ Lola and the Boy Next Door

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

My pick:

Summary from Goodreads

In this companion novel to Anna and the French Kiss, two teens discover that true love may be closer than they think.

For budding costume designer Lola Nolan, the more outrageous, the outfit—more sparkly, more fun, more wild—the better. But even though Lola’s style is outrageous, she’s a devoted daughter and friend with some big plans for the future. And everything is pretty perfect (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the dreaded Bell twins move back into the house next door.

When the family returns and Cricket—a gifted inventor and engineer—steps out from his twin sister’s shadow and back into Lola’s life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.

Stephenie Perkins

September 29th, 2011 by Dutton

Goodreads / Amazon

I LOVED Anna and the French Kiss and I expect Lola and the Boy Next Door to be as good or even better! :D What are you waiting for? Leave your links in the comments.

Echo

One of the novellas I read during Novella Reading Weekend was Echo (1931) by Violet Trefusis (translated from French by Sian Miles) and I thought it was rather brilliant. If I hadn't read Paul Gallico's exceptionally good Love of Seven Dolls at the same time, I'd probably have dashed off an enthused review of Echo right away. As it is, prepare yourself for some enthusiasm now. (I should add, I've since read Broderie Anglaise - I'll probably write a blog post on it at some point, but I was severely disappointed - it was nowhere near as good as Echo.)


I had a little stack of unread Violet Trefusis novellas (they do all seem to be short - Echo is 109pp.) on my shelf, mostly because I recognised her name from Virginia Woolf's diaries and various Bloomsbury books. I hadn't quite worked out where she fitted into everything (turns out she had a youthful affair with Vita Sackville-West, as you do) but the combined allure of Bloomsbury and brevity was enough for her to find her way to my shelves. And, eventually, to my hands - I'm very glad she did, because Echo is very funny, as well as well written and occasionally quite moving. Oh, and it has twins in it. That's what sealed the deal.

As people seem to in novels of the period, the central characters live in a Scottish castle. To give you an image of its state, this describes the bedrooms: 'They were all equally high-ceilinged, equally pale, equally damp, and entirely devoid of comfort or charm.' The castle houses Lady Balquidder and her twin niece and nephew, Jean and Malcolm - Lady Balquidder is proper and restrained, always behaving exactly as polite society expects of her, and receiving her due from society in return. Here she is:

Her plump hands were covered with freckles which matched the colour of her hair, still auburn, despite her sixty-five years. From time to time, the ale-coloured eyes, beneath their reddened lids, darted a glance at the door. Her whole person flickered like a small but constant flame.

Jean and Malcolm are not built in the same mould as their aunt. They are hardy, rough, and unmannered youths - in their early 20s - whose behaviour is closer to savages than to Lady B's. That is to say, they greatly prefer nature to the confines of rooms ('each of the twins had a passionate love of their wild homeland and were constantly entranced by its beauty'), and possess no frailties nor qualms which generally afflict those of their supposed class. Jean, especially, is proud of not being unduly feminine - and is devoted to her twin brother.

Into the mix of this maelstrom comes another of Lady Balquidder's nieces, the twins' cousin, Sauge, from Paris.

"Yes," agreed Jean, "I can't wait to see her teetering about the moors in Louis Quinze heels. She'll want to have snails every mealtime - when she's not eating frogs, that is. She'll have a little corncrakey voice, and she'll keep saying 'Ah mon Dieu!' all the time. And, of course, she'll be fat and dumpy, like her mother; you know, there's a photo of her on Aunt Agnes' desk."

"Well we can certainly make her life a misery," proclaimed Malcolm with relish.

Needless to say, Sauge is not in the least like this. Trefusis dashes us away from Scotland to Paris, and we get to glimpse Sauge first-hand:

Her searching curiosity was by now proverbial and she was strong and capable enough to act as a prop to someone who really interested her, as a trellis to the young tendrils of a plant slow to develop.

But whenever the eternally grateful 'subject' showed signs of wanting to stabilize a relationship regarded always by Sauge as temporary, she would quietly slip away, fearful lest a human heart bring her down from the Olympian heights of her disinterestedness.

The arrival of Sauge triggers off all manner of change at the castle, of course. Initially the twins treat her with the rudeness they intend - but Sauge's unusual, beguiling nature begins to work its effect over the family. This is no Cinderella tale, or even a novel with the enchantment of The Enchanted April - Sauge brings tragedy alongside comedy; and I should reiterate, Echo remains very amusing throughout - Trefusis' turn of phrase is a delight. But it is not unmitigated...

Through no fault of her own, Sauge is the catalyst for a change in Jean and Malcolm's interaction with one another, as both become, in their clumsy ways, besotted with their cousin. Behind Jean's refusal to be thought feminine lies a painful naivety; behind Malcolm's bravado lies inexperience and immaturity. Running beneath the amusing encounter of the civilised and uncivilised is a much more dramatic, tautly told narrative of a crisis point in a relationship - albeit one between siblings. The early 20s can be an incredibly difficult time to be a twin, and Trefusis paints so perfectly the unspoken struggle that must take place when one is ready to loosen the close bond before the other. Trefusis moves from comic to farce to moving with brio - and all in just over a hundred pages.

Echo starts like a Saki short story, all dark mischief and childish menace, but develops and maintains the fablesque tragedy of the Brothers Grimm, alongside flashes of the vibrant, vulnerable 1920s heroine. It's a heady, brilliant mixture - and, of course, a further addition to the pantheon of twin-lit.



Books to get Stuck into:

The Juniper Tree - Barbara Comyns: the same weaving of fable and pathos appears in this lesser-read Comyns novel

'The End of the Party' - Graham Greene: I haven't written about this twin-based short story, but it is a perfect little accompanient, and can be read online if you click the link.

Book Review: Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini

Title: Starcrossed

Author: Josephine Angelini

Series: Starcrossed #1

Release Date: May 31st, 2010

Publisher: HarperTeen

Age: Young Adult

How do you defy destiny?

Helen Hamilton has spent her entire sixteen years trying to hide how different she is—no easy task on an island as small and sheltered as Nantucket. And it's getting harder. Nightmares of a desperate desert journey have Helen waking parched, only to find her sheets damaged by dirt and dust. At school she's haunted by hallucinations of three women weeping tears of blood . . . and when Helen first crosses paths with Lucas Delos, she has no way of knowing they're destined to play the leading roles in a tragedy the Fates insist on repeating throughout history.

As Helen unlocks the secrets of her ancestry, she realizes that some myths are more than just legend. But even demigod powers might not be enough to defy the forces that are both drawing her and Lucas together—and trying to tear them apart.

You know I love Greek Mythology, so I was very interested in reading this book.

Starcrossed is definitely a love story. Helen has always been different, and she doesn't like it. But when Lucas and his family comes to town, she discovers she isn't the only one with powers.

Helen's smart and sweet, but I'm afraid she wasn't the kind of protagonist I prefer. I don't know exactly why, maybe she was boring sometimes. But I have to say I liked her more through the book, because she became more interesting.

Her romance with Lucas was what keep me reading. They didn't fall in love at first sight, bit still they fell in love very fast. They were a cute couple, but I wished they were more passionate. I know, it's a YA book, but still! Maybe more kissing?

Sometimes the writing was too slow for me, because I prefer fast reading. But the story was very original and interesting, and I liked the way the author played with Greek mythology and every once in a while there was a turn in the story.

Overall, I liked it and I really want to know what will happen with Helen and Lucas in the next book, called Dreamless.

More about this book at www.josephineangelini.com, Goodreads, Amazon, The Book Depository.

The beginning of a series...?

In My Mailbox #25 OMG!

In My Mailbox is a weekly bookish meme hosted @ The Story Siren

OMG! I'm finally at home! I was at Chile for 3 months and that's the reason why I haven't had enough time for my blog. Anyway, I arrived at my house two days ago and check out what I found!

The Mischief of the mistletoe by Lauren Willig

Kat Incorrigible by Stephanie Burgis

A touch mortal by Leah Clifford

Once in a full moon by Ellen Schreiber

Only the good spy young by Ally Carter

Absolution by Jennifer Laurens

Rastro by Maggie Stiefvater

Bandits by LM Preston

Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters by Natalie Standiford

How to say goodbye in robot by Natalie Standiford

Book jacket by LovLifeLive Reviews

Bookmarks, stickers and tattoos!

Thanks to everyone who send them! :D I'll read them as soon as possible :s

Vintage Classics Day

Do keep popping back and checking out the comments on my One Book, Two Book post, since loads of lovely people have been joining in and popping links in there. Thanks everyone! Not too late to do your own, of course.


On Saturday I was in London for Vintage Classics Day, helping celebrate 21 years of the publisher Vintage. Check out this webpage for a clever mosaic, where you can click on the composite books. They very kindly gave me a complementary ticket to attend a day of talks and things - and it was lovely to see Claire, Sakura, Kim, Jackie, and Lynne who were also attending (Jackie's link will take you to a great write-up of the day.)

There were a number of sessions of the great and the good discussing classic fiction. The first was about favourite villains, but I think that's a discussion I'm going to put on hold for another blog post, as I have Strident Views About It.

Up next was a conversation with Rose Tremain. Shamefully I have read zilch by her, but she seemed an interesting and friendly woman - I especially liked what she said about the value of siblings (the inspiration for her latest novel, Trespass) as amongst the few people who have known you all your life. I'm only 25 and, outside my family, I only have one good friend whom I've known for more than a decade (Hi Sarah!) so I definitely appreciate Tremain bringing this up. Any suggestions for Tremain novels I should read?

Another talk was inspired by the 'Orange Inheritance' thingummy - previous winners of the prize chose books they'd pass on to future generations. I'm a bit disappointed by the selection, which only has one book that I hadn't heard of (I want them to unearth gems, please, not give us another edition of Thomas Hardy!) But it did lead to a particularly interesting discussion, with Mark Haddon cheering on Virginia Woolf's To The Lighthouse and Lionel Shriver championing Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates. It's always lovely to hear about books that I've read and loved, as usually I haven't read the books being discussed.

My favourite section was celebrityless - a behind-the-scenes chat with Jean, the librarian of Random House's archive library (I found the new job I want, then, although it did amuse me that they qualify anything worth over £100 as 'valuable'. In the Bodleian it would have to be worth at least fifty times that.)

And finally Sebastian Faulks spoke about his recent TV series Faulks on Fiction. He says he's yet to find anyone who saw all four episodes - I confess I only saw the first, but would be interested in watching the rest or reading his book. He was warm and funny, and really seemed to enjoy the session. Like Tremain, he's an author I've never read - except for his witty collection of pastiches, called Pistache.

All in all, it was a really fun day - thanks for inviting me, Vintage! My favourite moment might have been Rose Tremain gossiping a little about A.S. Byatt, or Lionel Shriver telling an audience member (who said she was disappointed by the ending to that Kevin book) that she was enraged. It's a good job I didn't mention that I thought Kevin was written appallingly - how odd that someone who appreciates William Maxwell's expertly subtle writing can overwrite so much! But mostly it was a joy, as it is always a joy, to be in a room filled with people who love books as passionately as I do.

PLUS, this was my first trip to Foyle's. I didn't buy anything, because I prefer secondhand books to new ones (bought eight secondhand books on Charing Cross Road...) but I must say it is an impressive selection and a lovely place to hang out. I'll be back...