Over the weekend I read a play, finished reading one novel, and finished listening to another; hence a three review blog entry.
The Woman Between the Worlds by F. Gwynplaine MacIntyre has been in my collection since 1994 when someone recommended it. When I was selecting books for January reading, it sounded like a good choice to read with Dodger by Terry Pratchett...from the front cover: "On the foggy streets of Victorian London an invisible woman emerges...desperate to escape her own world...and embrace ours."
MacIntyre's novel was a nice follow up to Dodger as it is historical science fiction not too far removed from Pratchett's historical fantasy; however, he gets a lower rating on the historical aspects. Like Pratchett, MacIntyre places people from history in his book, but MacIntrye plays a bit fast and loose with his history. I question scenes with Bram Stoker, G. Bernard Shaw, and William Yeats. It is a great read; there is much humor, he mentions H.G. Wells, and it was reminiscent of The Time Machine. The ending leaves itself open for a sequel, but searches did not show any other novels by MacIntyre.
MacIntyre, F. Gwynplaine. The Woman Between Worlds. New York: Dell Trade Paperback. 1994.
I listened to The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom on CD with excellent narration by Orlagh Cassidy and Bahni Turpin. I choose books on CD from the local public library shelf. I rarely make a request but choose from what is on the shelf. The description tells of an Irish girl orphaned while on board ship on her way to the United States. The ship owner/captain keeps her as passage payment and places her in the kitchen as a slave working along with his Black slaves. I was focusing on this description which promised a different twist for a slave narrative when I noticed the author was born in Canada. I try to read works by Canadian writers, so that was the clincher for this book.
It was a good read; had I not been listening, I would call it a page turner. I was very impressed until I got to the happy ending. Sorry...a happy ending does not work for this scenario. Although the author's note telling of how the story line just came to her as she wrote is intriguing, a happy ending does not fit for this book; hence, I label it chick lit. I also realized as I attempted to review this novel there are drawbacks when attempting to discuss something you have heard rather than read...more of that in a later blog entry.
Grissom, Kathleen. The Kitchen House. Blackstone Audio Inc. 2010.
Finally...the play Virginia by Edna O'Brien jumped off the shelf and demanded to be read. It took less than two hours to read it, but I was luxuriating over every word. Just three characters...Virginia Woolf, her husband Leonard, and her lover Vita Sackville-West. I saw the premier production of this play, and for just under two hours, I was back at Stratford, Ontario in the Avon Theatre. It was 1980. Maggie Smith as Virgina, Nicholas Pennell as Leonard, and Patricia Conolly as Vita.
I was too young to truly appreciate what I was experiencing, but I have always remembered the magic of that experience. While reading I was there again, seeing them on that stage, remembering the lighting..the costumes...hearing their voices, seeing them...young, vibrant, alive.
Years later I had the opportunity to interview Nicholas Pennell. He told of meeting a friend of Leonard's while performing the role in London. The man said he found the performance very moving because Pennell played the part so well. Pennell regarded it as one of the highest complements ever paid to him.
I just googled and found a review from The Montreal Gazette dated June 12, 1980. Maureen Peterson wrote, "It is difficult to know to whom belongs the greatest credit, but that is how it should be with a theatrical work of art. Just as 'the artist is androgynous' so the work of art is indivisible, and this premier production is, in every sense, a work of art. See it with a friend. It is too fine not to share." And that describes not only the production I saw but also encompasses the play itself. O'Brien takes isolated moments in a life and unites them to create an understanding of the woman alive on the page.
O'Brien, Edna. Virginia. San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. 1985.
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