Angela's Ashes controversy

When we discussed Angela's Ashes, Page Turner mentioned having found an interview with the great late actor Richard Harris in which he refutes Frank McCourt's recollections of Limerick. Harris is a native of Limerick and actually calls McCourt a liar on several points; both versions can't be right. Read the Harris interview here, and McCourt's response here. This controversy makes the story all the more intriguing, especially the questions that Harris raises over the relationship between Frank and Malachy, and between both sons and their mother.

LA REINE MARGOT by Alexandre Dumas ~ October 2008

Captive Thoughts Book Club met recently to discuss our October selection, La Reine Margot, by Alexandre Dumas, the French 19th century author better known for The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo. This novel was our second attempt to read something related to the very broad theme of women in literature. We found, however, that the title character Marguerite de Valois is not necessarily the protagonist in this novel. Her presence is pervasive and perhaps even symbolic, but the plot focuses as much or more on the Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacre and various intrigues among the French royalty to secure the throne or other positions of power. As the sister of King Charles IX, daughter of the queen mother Catherine de Medici, and wife of Henry of Navarre, a Huguenot who escaped the Massacre and still aspires to the throne of Navarre or even France, Margot is often in the center of the action. Yet she herself is concerned with only two things: love, which she spurns in her marriage but finds in the gallant and handsome young La Mole, and ambition, a goal for which she faithfully conspires with her husband Henry of Navarre.

We did not have any prepared discussion questions since this does not seem to be a popular book club choice! But we had no trouble finding topics to occupy us for a couple of hours. The tension between Catholics and Huguenots is a key element of the story and Slow Reader began our discussion with some background information on this branch of the Reformation in France. Later in our discussion, we commented on the fact that very little was said of God or religion in La Reine Margot. This seemed rather odd given the fact that France was in the midst of the Wars of Religion and the Bartholomew's Day Massacre concerned this very conflict. We weren't sure whether the absence of God and the importance placed on astrology was a subtle commentary by Dumas on the emptiness of religion at this time or if it was an accurate reflection of the 16th century court. At any rate, Dumas himself seemed to be quite secular, and perhaps he brought those assumptions to his portrayal of history.

In keeping with our theme, we talked about the character of Margot, the significance of the book title, and the role of women as depicted for the 16th century French nobility. Margot was known for her beauty and sensuality. It seems that women of this day were generally powerless and thus used their bodies as a means to control their circumstances and destiny. Even so, Margot was a pawn in the hands of her power-hungry family as she had to submit to the arranged marriage with Henry of Navarre, and later the framed charges of treason which led to the death of her lover La Mole.

We discussed the historical accuracy of the novel at some length, for Dumas took quite a bit of license with the details. The explanatory notes were useful for learning what is known of the historical facts of the characters in this time period, but the number of characters and the author's subtle changes made it rather cumbersome to sort out the truth and fiction. In spite of this, most of us thought that once we read through the initial chapters where the many characters (often with similar names) were introduced, the novel moved quickly with plenty of action and suspense.

Along similar lines, we also speculated about what Dumas might have hoped to accomplish, aside from the obvious entertainment value of a fast-paced historical novel revolving around the romance and intrigues of an ancient royal family. There is a good deal of humor in the story, in spite of the carnage of the Massacre and other tragedies. Perhaps he was making a subtle attempt to reveal the pompous vanity of the nobility. For being more than 160 years old, it was not at all difficult to read, at least not in this recently updated English translation. We did find it interesting that our one member who read a different edition, Queen Margot or Marguerite De Valois (Miramax Book), shared a passage that had additional content from the Oxford World's Classics edition. Whichever version you read, La Reine Margot will give you an exciting and suspenseful view of this tumultuous time of history.

All Captive Thoughts Members, please leave additional thoughts and critiques in the comments or in another post to add to this little summary.

Page Turner's personal review can be found here.

Year I in Review: April '08 ~ THE THIRTEENTH TALE by Diane Setterfield

One of our members had read good reviews and intriguing excerpts from The Thirteenth Tale: A Novel by Diane Setterfield. It was described as a gothic novel (like Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights) with plenty of literary allusions, so it sounded like something we bookish types might enjoy, as well as something a bit lighter after several months of non-fiction selections. After reading it, however, our members had very mixed reviews - some really enjoyed it and others found it rather disturbing. It did generate good discussion, and from that discussion, we settled on the theme that we are pursuing during our second year.

The Thirteenth Tale tells the story of Vida Winter, a famous, but elusive novelist who is nearing the end of her life and decides to reveal her true story to Margaret Lea, an extremely introverted woman whose life revolves around reading and working in her father's antiquarian bookshop. Miss Winter has fabricated countless accounts of her life story to various reporters over the years, so Margaret is rather uncertain about finding the truth in Miss Winter's story. She takes meticulous notes and visits the sites of Miss Winter's early life, uncovering more complexities along the way. Margaret herself is haunted by a loss in her own life, and as she seeks to unravel Miss Winter's mysterious past, she must face her own memories and fears.

We began our discussion using questions found at the book's website, which unfortunately seems to be out of commission for the time being. While some of those questions were interesting, we didn't find a lot of depth to our discussion there.

We did, however, have some very good conversation about the nature of truth as presented in the novel. Margaret Lea seems to represent a more objective sense of truth as she searches for the facts necessary to make sense of Miss Winter's story. Vida Winter, on the other hand, seems the epitome of post-modernism, since truth has been whatever her imagination could create. As the story unfolds, we understand why Miss Winter fled from the truth, and in the end there is a neat resolution of the intricacies of the story and closure in the lives of almost all the principal characters.

Some of the disturbing details of the dysfunctional home of Vida Winter's childhood overshadowed our discussion of the story itself. The allusion to incest was shocking when encountered in the story, but in retrospect it does fit with the surprise twist near the end and, in that sense, is a key element to unravelling the mystery. One member mentioned several classic novels that have similar instances of incest, and from that idea we began to discuss classics about "fallen" women that we might want to read: Moll Flanders, Vanity Fair, Madame Bovary, and The House of Mirth, to name a few. Thus began our discussion of a theme for our second year, a theme which slowly evolved from a focus on fallen women in the classics to a more general category of the roles and influences of women in both classic and modern literature. Obviously, there is a vast number of books that fall under that broad heading, but we hope we have selected a good variety for this year so far (see schedule in the side bar).

Our members jotted down these brief comments on The Thirteenth Tale at the close of our meeting in April:

"Intriguing and allusive...with good discussion."

"Very unique story, captivating - in the sense of figuring out the truth."

"Good discussion; well-written story; not a favorite, but interesting."

"Yeah, not a favorite, but sparked good discussion - probably more than the writer thought we would find there."

"Well-written but disturbing in parts; good discussion book."

Kristin Lavransdatter

Captive Thoughts members spent summer '08 immersed in 14th century Norway -- a place none of us had been before -- arrived at by reading the Kristin Lavransdatter trilogy. A strange and compelling place, if Sigrid Undset's depiction is dependable.

The characters are all larger than life, and we asssume they must be representative of the culture and myths of Norway. Undset weaves a somewhat mystifying history and odd customs in manageable doses, interspersing the recitation of names and places with moments of intense action and emotional interchange between characters.

The narrative follows the life of Kristin from young girlhood through courtship, marriage, and motherhood to death, and unfolds, as she grows, in greater degrees of detail and insight. Young Kristin is unconcerned for and unaffected by the outer world, as long as she feels secure. Maturing, she stumbles in some decisions and only later realizes their consequences. In adulthood, the full weight of guilt for past sins nearly overwhelms her at times, but she remains undaunted throughout and deserves the title 'heroine.'

The books center around Kristin's love for Erlend -- a love that consumes both, for good and ill. It endures stubbornly through every sort of trial, long past what convention, or even wisdom, would say is sufficient. This was a matter of much discussion in the group. I believe everyone enjoyed the adventure and would recommend it to others.

I didn't really intend to be main reviewer for the series. Instead I wanted to talk about a book that made me think of Kristin when I read it. You can read excerpts here. It's a Bible study called Living in His Forgiveness, by Sandy Day, and is for women who have had abortions. I feel it brings to light what is missing in Kristin Lavransdatter.

There's a restlessness about Kristin Lavransdatter that arises from her spiritual condition and the lack of assurance her religion offers. We agreed that the books were remarkable in their insight into the depth and breadth of a person's guilt, as Kristin experiences it. This is a seriousness and attention to detail often lacking in Protestant circles. But at the same time, where is the joy of salvation, of forgiveness both with God and with man?

Kristin seems to bear her sin forever, to the end of her days. In her last conversation with her father, she is still dredging up past prodigality. (Although Lavrans admits his own sinfulness, he stands in the book as almost untouchably righteous. Has he really forgiven her?) Not long before she dies, Kristin feels compelled to take on one more strange quest -- a pilgrimage to yet again or once more fully atone for a callow youth. Grace is mentioned. The work of Christ is alluded to. But there's no redemption.

Similarly, Living in His Forgiveness presents sin and its consequences in an unsparing light. Testimonies by numerous people delve into the fulness of depravity, relating all the opportunities they'd had to avoid or reject abortion. There is blame to go around -- other people involved in the sin -- but, like Kristin, the writers place its full weight on themselves. They also uncover the various layers of suffering caused by sin, in their own lives and in their relationships with others.

Unlike some post-abortion treatments, these consequences are seen for what they are -- symptoms of a greater spiritual truth: Sin separates us from a holy God. Similarly, the only cure for the symptoms and corrective for the underlying cause is the righteousness of Christ applied to our account. Living in His Forgiveness makes it clear sin is doubly awful because it caused sinless Jesus to be separated from God for our sake, but also that we can live by faith in His forgiveness because of that sacrifice.

The title for the Bible study stands in apt contrast to Kristin Lavransdatter. We can go on, we can live, in God's forgiveness. Each writer speaks of the joy that overtook their lives once they realized they'd been given new life in Christ. While we remember our pasts, we don't wallow, we don't dredge. At the foot of the cross, we stand shoulder to shoulder with others who have also been forgiven.