The Crimson Petal and the White

I thought Romola Garai and, in fact, all the cast were terrific in the TV version of The Crimson Petal and the White, a story of Victorian hypocricy and how an intelligent prostitute, Sugar, climbed a few steps up the social ladder. Her gentleman lover, William Rackham, turned out to have a mad wife and feet of clay. It was billed as a dark story about low life that Dickens could only hint of.  Indeed Michael Faber, the author of the original novel, said some of his research uncovered events too sordid to write about, but this is a full-on book and he does include some graphic scenes that made me blink.
It took me a while to read the 850 page book (good price on the Kindle). What I'd missed in the TV version is that William Rackham genuninely loved his wife - and there was more room for insights into Agnes's character and the upstairs downstairs contrasts of the rich and poor, privileged and deprived/depraved.  What seemed much too long were Henry Rackham's religious ravings and, sometimes, Mrs Fox's good deeds.  Sugar on the other hand was a fascinating girl - Michael Faber manages write convincingly from the female point of view, not a skill shared by all male writers.  I admired his writing style, original and fluent, sometimes speaking to the reader directly.
If you have a broad mind and patience, do read this book but don't give it to your maiden aunt or staid uncle for Christmas.
Here's a review of the TV version and here's another one that expresses some of what I felt.

Puppy, daffodils & Danish thriller

Otto looks rather grown-up in the second pic, don't you think? He's much admired - people stop me in the road and ask about him. Behaviour improving slightly, though he's still super-enthusiastic and thrilled to bits to see everyone even if they've only gone out of the room for 15 minutes.

Book news: 

there's to be a new biog of John le Carre according to the Telegraph   He had an interesting life, so should be worth reading.

Television

Deeply missing the Danish thriller, The Killing, on Saturday nights. Look forward to the next series. Have started on Spiral - French policier about a female detective, but as yet it doesn't rock my socks or touch my heart. The Danish series depicted the homelife of the main protagonists which helped with credibility and so, however murky and quirky the plot at times, we did believe, and we wholly sympathised with the ordinary couple, Pernille and Theis, who tried to carry on despite their daughter's murder. And we cared that DCI Sarah Lund's single-mindedness about the crime meant that she might lose her lover and temporarily her son. And many of us fancied politician Troels too, with his high ideals and sculptured cheekbones. (Never thought I'd be interested in the candidates for mayor of Copenhagen.) Of course there was also the intellectual stimulus of guessing who dunnit over 20 episodes. If you missed out on The Killing, do get hold of the DVD.

Twitter fans of the Sat night BBC4 TV subtitles thriller are also bemoaning the lack of Lund woolly jumpers in Paris.  

Film, books, TV and, yes, the garden

Enjoyed the film, An Education.  A clever young schoolgirl learns more than she bargains for from an attractive older man who turns out to be even dodgier than she thinks.  Set in the early sixties, with good atmosphere. Kind of a comedy, but more of a cautionary tale. 'Jenny' is so anxious to escape from suburbia that she goes along with his wiles. Excellent, convincing acting all round.  The film was based on a memoir by the journalist Lynn Barber, whose unsophisticated parents must have been charmed and even more conned by the chap than their daughter. By the way, it's clear she went to a school (Lady Eleanor Holles, Hampton) that expected more from girls than most did in those days. Here's an interview with LBarber, but don't read it before you have seen the film.

Recent Reading

The Colour by Rose Tremain.  'In the mid 1800s Joseph and Harriet Blackstone emigrate from Norfolk to New Zealand in search of new beginnings and prosperity. But the harsh land near Christchurch where they settle threatens to destroy them almost before they begin. When the unpleasant Joseph finds gold in the creek he is seized by a secretive obsession with the supposed riches awaiting him deep in the earth. Abandoning his farm and family, he sets off alone for the new gold-fields over the Southern Alps, a moral wilderness where many others are violently rushing to their destinies.' Eventually Harriet attempts to find him and we learn why Joseph was so keen to leave England in the first place.

I thought this was a terrific novel, do read it. Must now look out for more books by Rose Tremain.

Astonishing Splashes of Colour by Clare Morrall is a first novel told from the unreliable viewpoint of an unhinged young woman. Kitty has lost a baby and hasn’t recovered her mental balance. She’s sympathetic and I found it an interesting read.

I’m probably the only person in the world who isn’t crazy about Isabel Dalhousie and The Sunday Philosophy Club. Alexander McCall Smith’s writing is charming as ever, but I never quite believe in Isabel as she sounds so old and fusty for her age. And I was annoyed by her actions in visiting a bereaved mother in such a tactless and intrusive manner.

I love Edinburgh, but wasn't convinced by the storyline of Doors Open by Ian Rankin, so put it down.  Perhaps it just isn't my thing. Don't suppose he will mind.

Enjoyed a nostalgic wallow with Frank Sinatra last week on TV.  And we all roared with laughter at Outnumbered last night. Those children are so scarily real and hilarious.

Delighted that Spring has sprung at last. I keep pottering round the garden seeing what has survived the winter, still have fingers crossed about one or two shrubs and not sure about the 'hardy' dahlia yet.

TV, books.

Much enjoyed Sunday's first episode of Small Island, the BBC's adaptation of Andrea Levy's award winning book. I confess that while I admired the novel I wasn't much moved or drawn into into it, whereas the tv version is heart-rending. I must find the book and re-read it to see what I missed.

On a less serious note, I absolutely love the tv comedy series Miranda, starring Miranda Hart. We are all in fits of laughter. Don't know why she got some bad reviews as she's extremely funny.

Also ejoyed all the Alan Bennett stuff, of course. Maybe somebody will give me his new bk for Xmas, hint, hint.

Encouraging review of Paris Imperfect on Amazon. 'I was attracted by the witty cover, and the inside certainly didn't disappoint. Susie Vereker has the gift of creating really amusing characters, who are so convincing one feels they must be people she actually knows. I enjoyed the gentle pace of the book,with the tension of Clio not quite getting together with gorgeous Joe and not quite having the courage to cut loose from domineering Philippe, - until the satisfactory end. Greatly looking forward to Susie's next book now.' Ahem, my characters are NOT people I know - that would be improper.

Emma, Rankin and Linda La Plante

What did you think of the recent BBC production of Emma? I must admit I found it fun. In the Telegraph Charles Moore didn't approve of all the anachronisms - a pedant's dream, he called it. I thought Romola was full of sparkle, perhaps not quite young enough and too modern for the picky, but JLM wasn't my idea Mr Knightley - I prefer him to be tall, dark and distinguished. I couldn't quite believe he lived in that house - I did worry about the fields of oilseed rape and why weren't there any maids? But the energy of the production made me smile, and Romola is the first actress to make the normally rather tiresome Emma so likeable.

The Romantic Novelists are faintly hurt that yet again the Crime Writers Assoc in the shape of Ian Rankin have jokily accused us being much more likely to stab each other in the back than they are. It may be that some of the early romantics like Barbara Cartland were tough cookies, but nowadays the RNA is one of the friendliest and most supportive organisations I've ever joined, but life is too short to be offended by crusty old jokes by blokes.

On a different tack, I dare say that Jordan doesn't give a hoot that Linda La Plante has, most robustly, accused her and other celebs of nabbing too much of the publishing purse.

Paris Imperfect, The Aviary Gate & Rossetti

There seems to be some confusion among on-line booksellers about the publication date of the trade paperback of Paris Imperfect. The publisher has confirmed that it is 30 Sept 09. (The Book Depository is showing 'out of stock' instead of not yet published, so hope they will change this since they usually give a good price.)

The publishers also told me they are placing a banner advert for Tropical Connections as below, so that's exciting.


Just finished reading The Aviary Gate by Katie Hickman, set in 1599 in Turkey. Gripping, interesting, well-written and well-researched. I don't usually go for harem novels, but I like Katie Hickman and enjoyed her non-fiction Daughters of Britannia, a history of diplomatic wives. Perhaps enjoyed is not the right word as reading the latter brought back memories of the sense of oppression I felt as a young wife when toeing the line was all. I am sure no one expects dip spouses to toe the line now. Reverting to The Aviary Gate, where female etiquette really was oppressive and strictly regulated, I found the modern heroine faintly irritating and would rather have stayed in 1599 throughout. Do read it and see what you think.


Enjoyed watching The Desperate Romantics on TV despite excessive amount of rumpy pumpy. I was in love with Dante Gabriel Rossetti as a schoolgirl, but I can't even remember which poem touched my heart so. Of course I had not idea he was such a libertine - they didn't tell us that sort of thing at school. It so happened I went to a couple of lectures on Victorian painting last year, so was already interested in the Pre-Raphaelites. Although some may disapprove of history lite, I mostly think it's good entertaining stuff.

Thinking woman's crumpet. Recent reading.

Here's Francesco da Mosto, Venetian count, architect and art historian. According to Cornflower, he's known as the thinking older woman's crumpet.
Too right. I'll be with him on his voyage around the Mediterranean on BBC2 every Tuesday evening.
Elaine of Random Jottings is besotted too apparently.

Recent reading:
I found The Private Lives of Pippa Lee by Rebecca Miller good in parts but, ultimately, for me, not that satisfying. Pippa is the perfect Stepford wife, now fifty, thirty years younger than her husband and, surprisingly, they have moved to a retirement village. So hard to imagine a fifty-year-old who would agree to this. The author's descriptions of the residents of the village were acute but depressing. It could be that the distant third person narrative was used in these early chapters to demonstrate Pippa's detachment from the world but the reader also feels detached.

In part 2, switching to first person narration, we read Pippa's back story as a wild teenager who seduces a married teacher, leaves home and becomes involved in drugs and worse. She meets Herb, the rich and powerful husband, who rescues her from all this and that's how she becomes Perfect Pippa. The chapters about young Pippa were lively, if repellent at times, but I kept falling asleep at the beginning and end of the book which is not a good sign.

I'd never go to sleep when Francesco is on TV, of course.