Summary (from the back cover of the book): Famous author Olive Wellwood writes a special private book, bound in different colors, for each of her children. In their rambling house hear Romney March they play in a story-book world — but their lives, and those of their rich cousins and their friends, the son and daughter of a curator at the new Victoria and Albert Museum, are already inscribed with mystery. Each family carries their own secrets.
They grow up in the golden summers of Edwardian times, but as the sons rebel against their parents and the girls dream of independent futures, they are unaware that in the darkness ahead they will be betrayed unintentionally by the adults who love them.
Review: It is difficult to review this book as the writing is extremely dense and it has so many interesting nuances. I read it a few weeks ago but there are parts of it that I am still thinking about. The book is set in the Edwardian times and I love the description of the artistic, cultural and political milieu. I especially like the contrast between the artistic environments of England and Germany and the sprinkling of real facts, events and people, within the fictional world. They provide a rich framework of reference, within which Byatt's characters interact.
The characters themselves are varied, some more memorable than the others. Olive Wellwood and Benedict Fludd, offer two different views of artists consumed by their art. Olive's residence, Todefright, stands in sharp contrast to the gloomy environment of Fludd's Purchase House. However, despite the differences in their personalities and their approaches to their respective arts, they both become the agents of tragedies, because of their artistic obsessions. There is an alternative offered to their tendency towards self-destruction and that is seen in the life of the German puppeteer Anselm Stern, who despite his eccentricities is able to find a balance between art and life.
Initially Olive's world seems almost ideal. It echoes the pastoral life, even though it is clear that her husband Humphry's financial position, offers them this lifestyle. This couple is almost the antithesis of Humphry's brother, Basil, and his wife, Katherina Wellwood, and it is interesting how at the end of the book, after the destructive war, it is their home that becomes the focal point, a shadow of Todefright in it's glorious days. The physical spaces described in the book reflect and affect the personalities of those who inhabit them. The tree house becomes the everlasting symbol of the Wellwood childrens' childhood. Its destruction prefigures Tom's tragedy. For me, Tom is the single most memorable character and also the most tragic. With his inability to relate to the realities of the world, he almost becomes a part of the fiction that his mother creates for him, and is ultimately doomed because of that.
Olive Wellwood's stories, even though written for children have a dark and disturbing edge. The prince who's shadow is stolen by a rat and the girl who captures tiny people, to be captured by giant people herself, are children's tales with adult themes. They dot the landscape of the writing, and are intriguing.
In terms of the women characters, Dorothy, who follows the difficult path of becoming a doctor, stands out. Elsie, too emerges as a strong character. It is interesting that the women who seek to pursue life beyond the household, are able to find happiness in work and in their personal lives. The women who are more traditional, content to be homemakers, seem to find no contentment. Phyllis, the only Wellwood girl, who only wants to be a homemaker and a mother, is unable to achieve even that, and fades into the background, much like her mother.
The book explores themes of parenting, responsibility, freedom of choice, the city versus the country and sexual freedom, among others. It is a compelling read, but not a simple read. I was immersed into it quite quickly, but it needs to be read at leisure. It is not a book to be read in a few quick sittings. Much like Possession, which I also loved, maybe more so because of the poetry in it (I am partial to poetry!), this is a book that one needs to chew on. As for me, I think Byatt is becoming one of my favorite writers; I will definitely be reading more of her work.
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