Angus Wilson (1) (1913–1991)

This is a selection of poems and extracts from letters writings and diaries of and about East Anglia. It starts with "Ode to the North-West Wind" by Charles Kingsley, ends with "Granchester" by Robert Brooke and goes by way of Fanny Burney, Bede, Chaucer amongst others. I like a collection that's happy to put a smutty limerick in with the apparently more worthy writings. Some were better than others, as you'd expect, but at just 100 pages, it was wide ranging and, I think, successful in giving a flavour of the area.… (més)

At first this seemed not to be a promising novel; however, having read Wilson novels earlier I persisted and was rewarded.
The novel catches the prevailing moods in England in three sections; Part 1 - 1948, Part 2 (and the bulk of the novel - (1956-1957) and Part 3 - 1969. The two main characters are brothers, Piers, who has a mind full of dreams for a wonderful future for himself, and Tom a dearly loved brother, who looks at life less sanguinely. They are sons of a wealthy banking family (the Mossons) who have inhabited Tothill House in Westminster for centuries.
The legend of Phaethon forms a central theme to the novel. The fall of Phaethon is grandly depicted on the ceiling of Tothill House and a production of Lully's opera in the house is the setting for Piers' tour de force and his means of "setting the world on fire".
The world has moved on from the manners and hypocrisies of mid-Twentieth Century monied wealth. However, that world is sharply observed by Wilson. He's a master at mannered dialogue. There is fine comedy, eccentricity and a convincing treatment of the evolving mentalities of the characters through the decades. And a thunderbolt ending that references Zeus' drastic elimination of Phaethon when the latter loses control.… (més)

An inventive novel where the development of six children of down at heel parents, whose wealth has disappeared, is traced from 1912 to 1967. The family reveals itself in a series of vignettes through the decades. The inventive delivery of the novel is one of its distinguishing features. Aside from narrative, the children themselves invent a game that parodies the family, especially the snobbery and laziness of the parents; one of them, novelist Margaret, turns the family life into a fictional one of her own making, the Matthews becoming the Carmichaels, as a technique for the advancement of the story.
At times elusive, the story soon returns to the familiar, so the reader is helped by being patient and rewarded by a full and absorbing account of growing up in the first half of the Twentieth Century.

Note: My Faber Finds 2008 edition of Wilson's novel is a typographical disgrace that reveals a total absence of editing. This abomination of the printer's craft comes from Amazon.co.uk.Ltd., and must surely stand as the worst a print run as could be imagined. Shame on all concerned.… (més)