Tag: Historical Fiction

Life After Life by Kate Atkinson

Posted April 26, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Historical Fiction / 18 Comments

Title: Life After Life (Goodreads)
Author: Kate Atkinson
Published: Knopf Doubleday, 2013
Pages: 480
Genres: Historical Fiction
My Copy: Personal Copy

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What if you had the chance to live your life again and again, until you finally got it right?

Ursula Todd is born in a snowstorm in England in 1910 but dies before she can take her first breath. During that same snowstorm she was born again and lives to tell the tale; again and again. Life after Life tells the story of Ursula’s lives, as with each new life she makes small changes that send her on a completely different path.

I feel like I’m the only person on the planet that thought this book was overhyped and over rated. Sure Kate Atkinson has this trippy ability to create this bleak world while still managing to add some wit and compassion but it wasn’t the writing that was at fault. The premise of the book makes it sound really good but let’s face it; it is just Groundhog Day in disguise. The book is clever, but it tries too hard to be clever and it didn’t really turn out the way it should have; for me anyway. This book is getting so many rave reviews, I feel like I am a black sheep just telling people it did not work.

As I said before, there is nothing wrong with the writing; Kate Atkinson has created this lyrical narrative and I did find myself being swept away in the words. I even felt like at times I was reading this book without thinking about what was happening; a few times I had to stop and process before continuing. I almost found myself not noticing a death and Ursula’s life starting again and that could have got me completely lost. I did feel like Kate Atkinson did however overdo the twists and it turned out to be a roundabout way to retell the same story over and over again with different outcomes. This could have worked; and it sounds like it worked for many people but I sadly wasn’t one of them.

I wonder if Kate Atkinson was trying something different and experimental where she could play with the character’s death and life, explore the concept of life’s choices and their consequences but because there were no real penalty to Ursula’s life I wonder if it really worked? Do you ever have déjà vu? (I don’t think so, but I could check with the kitchen) Life after Life just seems to repeat the same scenes, some readers might gain a sense of familiarity and for me it just felt like I wasn’t getting anywhere.

Life after Life is the kind of book you should probably read in a real cold climate; the snowy, dark and sometimes bleakness of the novel seems to call for it. Maybe read snuggled up on a dark winters night and don’t forget your booties ’cause it’s cooooold out there today (It’s coooold out there every day. What is this, Miami Beach?). It is just the book that would work better in the cold; though it is never cold here in Townsville, maybe that’s why it didn’t work for me.

I really wanted to enjoy this book; I will try another Kate Atkinson novel because I really think she has a great style. Just so happened Life after Life was not for me and I know people loved this book and will probably complain about this review but at least it was just an excuse to put some Groundhog Day quotes into something. This book has had so many positive reviews so maybe it is just me, if the book sounds like something you’d like then don’t let this review stop you, is it too early for flapjacks?

A Treacherous Likeness by Lynn Shepherd

Posted April 24, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Crime, Historical Fiction / 5 Comments

Title: A Treacherous Likeness (Goodreads)
Author: Lynn Shepherd
Published: Corsair, 2013
Pages: 336
Genres: Crime, Historical Fiction
My Copy: Personal Copy

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In 1850, a young detective takes on a new case unlike anything seen before; Charles Maddox’s client is the surviving son of Percy Bysshe Shelley and Mary Shelley. Maddox has to track down some papers concerning the Shelleys that could be used for blackmail and ruin their literary legacy. This will take him into investigating the dark lives of not just Percy Bysshe Shelley but all the young Romantics and question the cause of death for Shelley’s first wife, Harriet.

This was a really difficult book to review but I will try hard to be fair and explore the two contradicting opinions I have about this book. First of all, I read this book with not much knowledge of the Romantics; I knew basics but I hadn’t explored them as much as I would have liked. I’ve been a fan of this literary movement even since the start of my reading life and most of you know that Frankenstein remains my favourite novel of all time. So when I heard about this book, I knew I wanted to read it.

Reading the book, I found it interesting; the writing style really reminded me of the time. Yet at times I felt like the writing was trying to reflect the time and sometimes it just did not feel right. I found myself rereading paragraphs trying to pick up what bothered me about them. I never really found the problem, I do not even think it was the writing that was my problem but more of the tone, but more on that later. When it comes to the mystery, everything felt pretty straightforward, piece by piece slowly revealed until the reader finally knows what was going on.

While I did have some problems with the book, all in all I was enjoying the book and would give it a rating of three stars, maybe three and a half. I didn’t find out much about the protagonist Charles Maddox as I would have liked but this could be because this detective appears in Lynn Shepherd’s other novel Tom-All-Alone. If I had read this book first I might have a different opinion towards Maddox. Which brings me to my problems; A Treacherous Likeness would have been a decent novel if it wasn’t using literary legends. This book made me want to explore more about the Romantic Movement, to its credit, but this was also its downfall.

After finishing this novel, I’ve been dipping in and out of three different books; The Monsters: Mary Shelley and the Curse of Frankenstein by Dorothy & Thomas Hoobler; Young Romantics: The Tangled Lives of English Poetry’s Greatest Generation by Daisy Hay; and Footsteps: Adventures of a Romantic Biographer by Richard Holmes. All these Non-Fiction books are vastly different but I picked them to get more of an insight on the lives of the Shelleys. Now the Romantics are wonderfully complex people with equally complex relationships and I don’t understand what their lives were like but the creative licence this author took in A Treacherous Likeness to weave this story through only leads me to think one thing. With all I’ve learnt about Percy Bysshe Shelley and the others I’ve come to the conclusion that Lynn Shepherd mustn’t like them at all.

I’ve got more to learn about the lives of the great poets but after reading some of the non-fiction of the time and reflecting back on A Treacherous Likeness I can’t help thinking, while the author has excellent knowledge on these people there has to be hatred towards them as well. In A Treacherous Likeness there are the controversial statements of Mary Shelley not writing Frankenstein, killing her baby and with Percy Bysshe Shelley’s help pushing Harriett to suicide. While they have merit and we can’t be sure if these are true or not they still point towards a dislike of these people, Mary Shelley in particular. This could be the author’s attempt to weave her story through the facts and create this complex mystery; for me, after all the research it just comes across in a negative way.

I have a lot to learn about the Romantic Movement and I have to give A Treacherous Likeness credit for the re-spark in my interest in these people. I am not trying to be negative towards Lynn Shepherd; I think she has a great writing style and hope that she continues writing historical mysteries. I would prefer if it wasn’t based on real people because when it comes to the Romantics and Mary Shelley, I still adore them and don’t like to read anything that paints them in a horrible light. Sure they were not the nicest people, they made many mistakes but we can’t deny what they did for literature. I think I will have to try Tom-All-Alone one day just so I’m not judging this author on just one experience; her writing is worth reading, I just had some issues with this novel.

The Son by Philipp Meyer

Posted April 11, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Historical Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: The Son (Goodreads)
Author: Philipp Meyer
Published: Ecco, 2013
Pages: 576
Genres: Historical Fiction
My Copy: ARC from Netgalley

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The Son is a multigenerational saga spanning three generations. This unforgettable Texas family’s story plays out from the three perspectives, each with their own hardships from Comanche and border raids to the oil boom. This is a story of power, blood, and the land; Philipp Meyer explores the American dream and the dark roots of which it came.

I’ve been meaning to pick up American Rust for a while now but instead The Son is the first look at the remarkable writing of Philipp Meyer. The Son follows three main characters of a Texas family: Eli, his son Pete and Pete’s Granddaughter Jeanne, each with their own set of issues to deal with. Overall this is a novel of the rise of a Texas oil dynasty and the demons facing them.

First the McCullough family is an old frontier family taking the land from the natives; the first character Eli (born in 1836) tells the story of being early settlers. But he soon finds himself being the sole survivor after being raided by the Comanche. His story is one that shows both sides, being taken captive and then learning the ways of the American natives. Confronting him and the reader with the idea of heritage from both the settlers and natives view point.

His son Peter, not only has to deal with his father’s violent past but also the Mexican border raids of the early 1900s. This is a very emotionally driven narrative, his father who has obviously had to adapt to Comanche life only to watch them die out with disease, starvation and the discrimination of settlers. Now Eli has a drive for power and Peter shares this story, how it effects the family, all while defending their land from raiding Mexicans.

Finally we have Jeanna, her story is not so violent but confronting none the less. Her story follows the Oil booms of the 20th century, the social and economy changing all while dealing with the demons of her family history. She is left to deal with most of the major consequences of her family’s choices in the past, while trying to succeed in business in a male dominated industry and world.

This is an epic adventure of wealth, privilege, family and the consequences of our actions. While it is a pretty dark subject matter, the book is rather elegant and beautiful. The prose alone makes it that way, Meyer really has created this wonderful scenery, yet I’ve not really noticed an overuse of similes. The writing style reminds me a little of John Steinbeck but there is an element of Cormac McCarthy that comes through as well, especially in Eli’s story. Overall The Son is a compelling novel with some interesting ideas for the reader.

I was really impressed with this novel but with the constant changing of time periods and characters at times I did feel like I struggled to keep up but Philipp Meyer did manage to push the story on. Historical Fiction with shades of western and southern gothic is how I would describe this novel but there is so much more to it than that. This is the second book in the American trilogy planned by Meyer, all dealing with issues facing America. American Rust with the towns that modern economy leave behind when all the factories move and The Son rather than dealing with a declining America, it deals with its dark past full of the blood and bones on the natives. I can’t wait to read American Rust and I’m interested to know what book three would be about but that may be awhile out. For now it check out Philipp Meyer’s works he has the makings of a great American author.

Painter of Silence by Georgina Harding

Posted April 2, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Historical Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: Painter of Silence (Goodreads)
Author: Georgina Harding
Published: Bloomsbury, 2012
Pages: 312
Genres: Historical Fiction
My Copy: ARC from Publisher

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Post World War II Romania is under the brutal Stalinist regime; an unnamed man wakes up in hospital deaf, mute and unable to communicate. A young nurse, Safta, recognises him and brings him a pencil and paper so he can draw. Slowly and painstakingly, memories appear on the page, not just his memories but Safta’s too as they grew up together. But his world has remained the same size and Safta’s has expanded to embrace languages and society.

Communist Romania wouldn’t be the easiest place to live and author Georgina Harding builds this wonderfully artistic scene with real beauty but also despair and hopelessness. This took a little time to become accustomed with; the overuse of similes really made for a rough start in reading this book. It really felt like the word ‘like’ appeared on every second line, but when I started to get further into the novel I did find myself being swept away in this artistic world.

The unnamed name protagonist (who we eventually find out is Augustin) slowly pieces together his world through his art and we as readers are on this journey with him. Finding out. as he has, that he is the son of the Safta’s family cook and the special bond the two formed growing up together. I do not think Augustin is a mute, he just doesn’t speak, but this does not mean that he cannot communicate; each detailed drawing he produces proves this.

There was something unnatural about the plot that really didn’t sit well with me; the whole book Augustin communicates via drawings yet there is this feeling like you find out more about this character than you possibly can via a drawing. Is this pure speculation from the author? Or is there something I am missing? While it wasn’t a big concern, that really did end up bothering me about this book. I just felt like that whole part of the book was a little contrived, yet it really did not effect my enjoyment of the book as this was an afterthought.

This book was really well written, I do not like to use the word Readable but I think that does cover my thoughts on the style. I really liked the way this book ended up feeling like a piece of art with all the little details and yet it still managed to capture the mental and physical burdens of the characters living in this post-war town. I found myself drifting into the story as it floats along and I had to pull myself out so I could pay more attention; it’s a rare feeling and if I wasn’t trying to read critically I would have happily floated through this novel.

While the fact that this book wasn’t linear it never really got confusing, you get little memories and slowly it starts to reveal the bigger picture. While this could get frustrating I never felt as though this was the case with Painter of Silence. Sure, I could talk about how some parts of this novel felt forced and artificial, but I will be honest, none of that ended up bothering me.

You can try to pick apart this novel as much as you like but you will still be left with this beautiful piece of art. I really did enjoy the experience of reading Painter of Silence by Georgina Harding; it is one of those novels that will stick with you and you cannot help but remember its fond memories. It’s a lyrical journey worth taking, even if it is a little unrealistic; just enjoy the ride.

March Violets by Philip Kerr

Posted March 24, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Pulp / 0 Comments

Title: March Violets (Goodreads)
Author: Philip Kerr
Series: Bernard Gunther #1
Published: Penguin, 1989
Pages: 256
Genres: Pulp
My Copy: Personal Copy

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Bernie Gunther investigates the murder of the daughter of one of German’s wealthiest industrialists while the 1936 Summer Olympics play out in Berlin. Gunther is an ex-policeman that thought he had seen everything, but becoming a freelance Private Investigator has found him being sucked into the horrible excesses of Nazi subculture.

This is classic hard-boiled/noir fiction; it has the hard-hitting detective, a fast-paced plot and the everyday violence you come to expect. But this time that everyday violence comes in the forms of anti-Semitisms and the Nazi regime. The Nazi German backdrop is a great location for noir novel and makes for a whole cast of strong and interesting characters.

While the plot does need some polish, as it’s not a very strong crime plot, the interference from the Kripo and Gestapo did a great job of masking the flaws. March Violets reminds me a lot of Fatherland by Robert Harris with the concept but for me March Violets concept was much better just not as well executed.

The over used metaphors and attempts at humour really took away from the richly developed backdrop and while at times it did drag on a little, I really found myself enjoying this book. I’m not sure how well Philip Kerr researched this novel but the way he portrayed Nazi Germany felt right in my mind; the strong police state trying to play nice for the Olympic games and then the inability or unwillingness of ordinary Germans to try stop the crimes or injustices, while spending most of their time worrying about the coming war.

March Violets is the first in the Berlin Noir series and based on this book, I’m looking forward to reading the next two books. Not sure if I will continue the series after that but I will start with them. Bernie Gunther is a great protagonist with his hard hitting ways that seem like they will land him in a KZ (Konzentrationslager or Concentration camp). I’m glad I picked this book up, while there are some weak points, like I said before, they seem to be easily missed with everything else happening in this book. Well worth reading for pulp fans, it’s a fresh take on this genre.

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

Posted March 18, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Historical Fiction, Romance / 0 Comments

Title: Outlander (Goodreads)
Author: Diana Gabaldon
Series: Outlander #1
Published: Dell, 1991
Pages: 870
Genres: Historical Fiction, Romance
My Copy: Audiobook

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Claire Randall found herself time travelling from 1945 to 1743. She was just back from the war and reunited with her husband on a second honeymoon but then she walks through an ancient stone circle and finds herself in the midst of a war torn Scotland being raided by the Highland clans. She finds a young Scot warrior and becomes a woman torn between fidelity and desire.

Contrary to popular belief, I didn’t read this book along with the Vaginal Fantasy book club; I did it because this is my wife’s favourite series and I needed a romance novel for the Literary Exploration challenge. I’m not really a fan of romances (Wuthering Heights is still the greatest Romance of all time) so I wasn’t sure what I was getting into here but be warned, even though I want to talk about all the things that didn’t work for me, it doesn’t mean this wasn’t an enjoyable read.

First of all I want to talk about Claire Randall; here is this strong former combat nurse that finds herself in the past. While she is scared and confused I never felt that her desperation was believable; I felt like the inner turmoil of Claire never really played out and I was left to believe she wanted to be there. Also she is suppose to be portrayed as a strong independent woman but all I saw was a loud mouth nag that put up no fight and just married Jamie with no reluctance at all.

Jamie Fraser suffers from instalove; as soon as he saw Claire he was madly in love with her. Then when they finally got married, the virgin becomes the greatest lover known to man; how is that possible? Also Jamie is supposed to be this great Scottish warrior but all I ever see him do is get into trouble and winding up caught or with severe wounds. Not to mention the abuse towards Claire; sure it was a sign on the time to discipline his wife but this isn’t sexy and is just over done.

Finally the plot; I tend to think this book goes in a repetitive circle, which consists of sex, more sex, conflict, sex, being caught, wife beating and then more sex. This is the entire plot arc and it keeps repeating itself for over 800 pages. Makes me wonder what makes a romance novel, I never felt there was an ounce of romance or love; just lots of sex.

I know this is a series of a great love between Jamie and Claire and there was a flicker of this from Jamie but never felt that come through from Claire. I wonder if sex is a substitute for love here or does this reflect more in the books that follow. Apart from everything I didn’t like about the book, the characters and the writing was pretty good. I wanted more inner conflict from Claire as0 the narrator but that is just a personal preference. I’m always interested in the inner thoughts of a protagonist, especially when they find themselves in an unusual situation.

I’m not sure if I will continue the Outlander series but I would like to think that the romance starts in the next book. I’m curious to know if this is the case; I’m a little hesitant to invest in another 800 pages if it’s just more of the same. Romance novels are not really my thing, but I did like the slight speculative fiction element with the time travel. I hope that aspect of the plot gets explored in greater detail with the other books. Now I’m curious to read The Time Travellers Wife and see how it compares.

The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro

Posted March 17, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Historical Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: The Remains of the Day (Goodreads)
Author: Kazuo Ishiguro
Published: Faber & Faber, 1986
Pages: 272
Genres: Historical Fiction
My Copy: Personal Copy

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England 1956, Stevens is a long-serving butler at Darlington Hall who decides to take a motoring trip through the country. Partly for work and partly for personal reasons, but this six day outing becomes a trip into the past as he remembers not only two world wars but an unrealised love between himself and his housekeeper. The Remains of the Day is an incredible novel of meditation, a changing England and missed love.

Stevens is an old fashion butler, always keeping to the rules and holding himself to a higher standard particularly when it comes to dignity. Throughout the novel he reflects on what it takes to be a truly accomplished butler; often referring to the Hayes Society, an elite society of butlers in the 1920s and 1930. The notion of “a dignity in keeping with his position” being the main ingredient to making a truly great butler. As he reflects on the idea of dignity, he also reflects on how he upholds himself as well as the changed world. Lord Darlington has passed away and an American, Mr Farraday is the new owner of Darlington Hall. This means a whole new way of doing things and as Stevens masterfully adjusts to the new way, he notices that he is doing too much as well as lacking in the ability to communicate the way his new employee wishes. Stevens takes his job too seriously so he struggles to be able to banter with his employee in the way Farraday wishes. He agonizes over his need to offer some witty banter and all attempts fail. He fails to realise that it is his delivery that is lacking and yet he keeps on reflecting on this.

The reason I wanted to talk about dignity and banter, is while Stevens’ is such a great character, he spends all his time reflecting on how he can be the best butler to his that he completely misses the opportunity of love. As this novel progresses and Stevens reflects on his time at Darlington Hall you can see a relationship blossom between the housemaid Miss Kenton and himself. The further you read, the more her feelings develop, while he is blissfully ignorant. Stevens does eventually realise but it is far too late.

The Remains of the Day is such a beautiful novel; while it does remind me a little of Downton Abbey (which I adore) this novel has other elements in it which make it worth exploring. It’s a book of loyalty and politics, love and relationships as well as memories and perspective. I don’t think I’ve seen the movie adaptation of this book but I’m struggling to see how it would work in that format. Does anyone know if the movie is worth watching?

I do recommend this book to fans of Downton Abbey, but I also want to recommend it to people looking for a stunningly elegant to read. Kazuo Ishiguro masterfully crafted this book and it paid off, winning the Man Booker Prize as well as Guardian’s “Books You Can’t Live Without” and the “1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die” list as well as a whole lot more. I’m so glad I picked up this book, it was short but it did so much. I would have to add it to a list of essential readings.

The Lifeboat by Charlotte Rogan

Posted March 4, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: The Lifeboat (Goodreads)
Author: Charlotte Rogan
Published: Reagan Arthur Books, 2012
Pages: 278
Genres: Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction
My Copy: Personal Copy

Buy: Amazon, Book Depository, Kindle (or visit your local Indie bookstore)

In the summer of 1914 the Empress Alexandra sinks; this elegant ocean liner suffers from a mysterious explosion and all the passengers scramble for safety. Henry Winters managers to secure a place on a lifeboat for his new bride Grace but when the people on the lifeboat soon realise they are over capacity the real struggle for survival begins.

The Lifeboat is an elegant and thrilling novel with many complex issues weaved into it. For any to live, some must die but the hard choice of survival can be taken too far. At what point does the struggle for survival turn into manslaughter and can you really live with your actions. With personality clashes between characters like John Hardie and Mrs Grant, this book is just a stimulating and thought provoking read.

My first thought with this book was that this was just playing out a novel based on ecologist Garrett Hardin’s metaphor for resource distribution. Hardin’s metaphor describes a lifeboat bearing 50 people, with room for ten more. The lifeboat is in an ocean surrounded by a hundred swimmers. The “ethics” of the situation stem from the dilemma of whether swimmers should be taken aboard the lifeboat. But when I read this book there was more of a focus on the moral dilemma, in regards to an overcrowded lifeboat.

This book is a highly emotional novel and while you do get some character development, this mainly focuses on Grace and her take on the situation at hand. I must admit to hating Mrs Grant throughout the entire book; she was bossy and always plotting against the others. While John Hardie seems to always try to do what was best for the people in the lifeboat and he seemed strong and determined; it was interesting to see how the pressure got to him.

Another aspect this book dealt with was the one of social class; the sinking of the Empress Alexandra brought people from all different social backgrounds onto the lifeboat. So it is interesting when they need to throw people off the lifeboat for survival how important class is to the people wanting to survive; as if that would be have importance at a time like this. I think Charlotte Rogan did a great job setting the novel in 1914; you have the sinking of the Titanic not too long before in 1912 and the time and age is perfect to look at the issue of social class as well as morals.

The Lifeboat is a stunning debut novel from Charlotte Rogan; while it could use a bit more development with some of the characters, this booked worked well with exploring the issues it set out to explore. I think Rogan has a worthy example of well crafted contemporary fiction, with the dilemmas the characters face and the pace the novel keeps. I really am impressed with the way this novel turned out and I hope Charlotte Rogan has an equally impressive sophomore novel.

Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler

Posted February 22, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Historical Fiction / 0 Comments

Title: Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald (Goodreads)
Author: Therese Anne Fowler
Published: St. Martin's Griffin, 2013
Pages: 384
Genres: Historical Fiction
My Copy: ARC from Netgalley

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The beautiful and reckless Southern belle Zelda Sayre first met Lieutenant Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald at an Alabama country club dance in 1918; she was seventeen at the time. Scott had a big dream, to be a rich writer and he wanted Zelda to join him on this ride of a lifetime. Taking a chance on him, their life soon became a whirlwind of glamour and fame. Z is a fictionalised account of Zelda Fitzgerald and her life with the dashing F. Scott Fitzgerald who everyone wants to meet.

This Side of Paradise (1920)

The novel starts off with Zelda just shy of her 18th birthday, when she meets Scott, a man with big dreams and unlike all the others. The novel The Romantic Egotist was rejected multiple times and almost killed Scott’s dreams, but it was Zelda who kept pushing him to try again. Their attraction blossoms quickly and soon they find themselves engaged. Scott goes off to try and makes a life for them; Zelda doesn’t take too kindly to waiting and with a bit of pushing they are married. Just a little after This Side of Paradise is released with great success. The popularity of this novel turns them into celebrities; everyone wanted to get to know this new author and his scandalous wife.

The Beautiful and Damned (1922)

Life is good with their new found fame for this newlywed couple, but both are passionate people and slowly this started to cause issues. Firstly with the success of Sinclair Lewis’ novel Main Street, the popularity of This Side of Paradise fadeds quickly and soon this couple found themselves struggling to make ends meet. With all the short stories and eventually the release of The Beautiful and Damned, which was largely based on their marriage, they were able to get back to living beyond their means.

The Great Gatsby (1925)

Scott began working on a new novel, which he was very passionate about. So passionate in fact that their marriage suffered again and Zelda planned on leaving. With a lot of beginning she eventually stayed and Scott continued to work on the novel that would eventually become The Great Gatsby. He was so passionate about what this novel would become, he could envision what was wrong with the drafts and what needed to be fixed to make it work, when it was released with mixed results, it really hurt him.

Save Me the Waltz (1932)

When Scott became friends with Ernest Hemingway, he started to spend most of his time with him. Scott loved truly loved Hemingway (platonically presumably) and with all the time he spent with him, Zelda and their daughter Scotty felt left out. Due to either boredom or isolation, Zelda’s behaviour became increasingly erratic and eventually she was diagnosed as a schizophrenic. Her novel Save Me the Waltz is a semi autobiographical account of her life and marriage.

Tender Is the Night (1934)

The failure of Save Me the Waltz, and her husband’s scornful criticism of her book by calling it “plagiaristic” and her a “third-rate” writer crushed her spirits and she never wrote creatively again. Scott became an increasingly heavy drinker, which caused many health problems for him as well, but while Zelda was hospitalised, he managed to write Tender is the Night, a book about the rise and fall of a promising young psychoanalyst and his wife (who was also his patient). These were the darkest years of their lives together and this was reflected in this novel.

The Love of the Last Tycoon (1941)

Zelda found out her husband had died of a heart attack from her parents, first thinking something was wrong with Scotty. His death, his legacy and her life afterwards were never really explored in this book. We do know that they were in debt when he died and most of his life insurance went towards covering those costs. His unfinished novel The Love of the Last Tycoon was completed by his friend, the literary critic, Edmund Wilson, based on the notes Scott had written but this wasn’t explored either.

I was really interested in reading about Zelda Fitzgerald after seeing Alison Pill’s brief performance of her in Midnight in Paris. I was more interested in her life than his; she seemed like a real fiery person and Z does really explore the first part of her life really well. The major problem I had was that I didn’t really find out enough about the struggles they faced from the 1930’s onwards. The bulk of the book takes place in the 1920’s and then really skips over their marriage and health issues. It completely missed life after his death all together.

I also had issues with the writing style, it just felt too modern and didn’t feel like how a person would talk in the 1920’s. To put it in perspective in the author notes at the end Therese Anne Fowler used the terms “Team Scott” and “Team Zelda” and the novel felt it was using modern phrases like this as well. While it was an interesting look at their lives, I can’t help wonder how much is actually true; fictionalised accounts of historical events are great but sometimes you need to know when creative licensing is in effect. I might have to read the biography Zelda by Nancy Milford and Save Me the Waltz to really know more about her life. I’m not sure why learning more about her life is more important than his life, but I’m just going to go with it.

Z is a great look at the quintessential “Flapper” of the Jazz Age and the Roaring Twenties but for me I wanted more of the other stuff. Glamour and Fame do have their hardships but it looks like they are nothing compared to what happened next. I really enjoyed learning about Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald; they had an interesting life and I know there was so much to cover. I know more about their lives than I thought I would and while I’m still not sure how much is true, it’s enough to make me want to continue exploring; right after I read every novel written by the Fitzgerald’s as well as Main Street by Sinclair Lewis.

Les Misérables by Victor Hugo

Posted February 14, 2013 by Michael @ Knowledge Lost in Classic / 0 Comments

Title: Les Misérables (Goodreads)
Author: Victor Hugo
Translator: Lee Fahnestock, Norman MacAfee
Published: Signet, 1862
Pages: 1463
Genres: Classic
My Copy: Personal Copy

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This is the story of Jean Valjean, a man seeking redemption after serving nineteen years in prison for stealing a loaf of bread to feed his starving relatives. When everyone else turns their back on him, it was a Bishop that showed him immense kindness and inspires him to do the same to everyone else. He finds him eventually appointed mayor of Montreuil-sur-Mer but then back on the run hunted by police inspector named Javert.

That is a very brief outline of what this book is about, as the book is about 1400 pages. If I tried to go into more detail it could be too big for a one paragraph synopsis, but I think people are familiar enough with this novel to know the basic plot of this book. I decided to read the book because of the recent adaption; yes I know it was an adaptation of the musical but I still wanted to read the book first so I’d have a better understanding of the plot.

This novel covers some very interesting topics from the nature of the law and the idea of grace, politics, justice, romance and moral philosophy. All this weaved into the plot but then you find yourself reading huge chunks of text outlining the battle of Waterloo, religion, the construction of the Paris sewers and urban design of Paris. These digressions really threw me off with the book and honestly think that if the editor removed them, the book would have been more accessible and readable.

There is a lot to offer within the book and I would say I could easily read it again (not now but in the future) and explore the sense of compassion and love that is in this book. It’s a heart breaking story but I will admit I cried more in the adaptation than I did in the book. I know I haven’t mentioned the French Revolution which is a huge part of this book, but it really is hard to review a book that is so packed with ideas and still cover the plot points as well.

While this book did take a while to get through and at times I was struggling to enjoy it. In the end I found this to be worth the journey. Now that I’ve also seen the most recent movie adaptation I would probably recommend people just watch that. But if you are interested in digesting a book this size and exploring the ideas it raises or you just love to read great literature then make sure Les Misérables is on your to-read list.