Sep 01, 2003 05:21 PM
6581 Views
(Updated Sep 01, 2003 05:21 PM)
A S Byatt is truly brilliant. I read this book really slowly , was recommended to me by cousin ; it took ages to finish. the language although difficult to grasp quickly is poetic, flamboyant. Byatt brilliantly recreates Victorian era England and marvelously moves back & forth between the 19th & 21st century synchronising the two eras perfectly. The most commendable aspect of the book is her ability to get into the skin of the characters, so well that she is able to capture even the slight nuances of the different poetic styles of her poets (the central characters). Her charactersiation is near flawless. The Indian reader might however feel lost while reading the numerous English cultural references especally those who arent familiar with the Victorian era and its ways. The book has the english subtlety and the implied has much greater value than the written. and so wonderfully implied it is... She spins an intriguing erotic tale, the story unfolds quietly an underlying sombre magnificence, reminscent of a silence slowly filling a room. The climax is chilling and the story transforms itself from romance to intrigue effortlessly.
An intense book , one of my faviriotes.
