A review from pre-blog days - Notes from an Exhibition - Patrick Gale

I'm sharing a book review I wrote before I started my book blog and which originally appeared elsewhere. My 'before the blog' review posts are inspired by Karen at My Reading Corner and Janet at fromfirstpagetolast.

Notes from an Exhibition by Patrick Gale 

(originally read and reviewed in 2008, I purchased my copy of this novel)


Synopsis

When troubled artist Rachel Kelly dies painting obsessively in her attic studio in Penzance, her saintly husband and adult children have more than the usual mess to clear up. She leaves behind an extraordinary and acclaimed body of work - but she also leaves a legacy of secrets and emotional damage that will take months to unravel.

This is the first Patrick Gale novel I have read, but I am interested to read more after finishing this one. The central character, known as Rachel Kelly for the most part, is, we quickly come to learn, a talented artist, but she is troubled throughout her life with periods of mania and depression.

At first I was not sure if I was very keen on the way the chapters move suddenly and unpredictably in time backwards and forwards between the characters, but I think as the novel progresses, this pattern becomes more comfortable and even adds to the enjoyment once the reader has come to terms with it.

A painting or item by or relating to Rachel is depicted with exhibition style background/information notes to introduce each chapter, and is linked either physically or as a theme with the chapter it proceeds, a clever idea which gives a kind of clean break for each chapter to begin at a different point in time, and focussing on a different character in particular.

Patrick Gale delivers very believable and interesting characters in this novel. I loved to read about the events in the lives of the various children, and of those of Rachel and her husband Antony, who is a calming, patient influence on them all, with his strong grounding in the Quaker faith. This itself was fascinating and made me go on beyond this novel to look into what it means to be a Quaker, purely because of how Gale has written about it here. 

He also deals with the illness Rachel suffers from and the impact it has on her, and her children and the others around her in her wider circle, with great insight and sensitivity. It is moving indeed to see how this might affect children and how they think about it and about her.

The plot weaves together very cleverly indeed, and there are some moments that caused me to gasp or think, ah I see, that's what happened regarding such and such, as it all comes together. I would actually enjoy re-reading this novel as I think the nature of the book means it would enable a better and deeper understanding of the twists and turns and the characters to go through it again.

A recommended read.

The Purchase - Linda Spalding - Guest Book Review

Published by Sandstone Press

Guest review by Mandy Jenkinson

Quaker widower Daniel Dickinson is driven by his community from his native Pennsylvania after he marries a young orphan Methodist girl following the death of his wife. He sets off to build a new life for his family in Virginia and almost by accident he acquires a young slave boy. This impulsive act sets off a chain of tragic and ever more complicated set of events that profoundly affects both his life and that of his children. Deeply horrified by slavery he yet finds himself caught up in its snares, and can never quite manage to break free.

This is an extremely powerful and moving story with some unforgettable characters. Daniel himself is a good and moral man, but everything he does somehow goes wrong. Whether that is due to any intrinsic weakness in his character, or whether it’s a destiny he can’t fight against, is left to the reader to decide. For all his good intentions, he causes irreparable harm to those who are dear to him. Set in pre-abolition America, it’s an evocative and atmospheric account of everyday slavery and its effect on slave-owners. 

There’s some raw and powerful writing here. The author’s commanding use of language makes for an unforgettable portrait of a time and a place. Skilfully paced, and often surprising, the story moves on to its inexorable end and explores how devastating the consequences of one split-second decision can be. It’s an unremittingly bleak novel, with very few moments of joy or redemption, even though there is love and loyalty to be found here as well. Serious themes of family, religion and conscience pervade every page and I found it both totally absorbing and totally compelling.

Loosely based on the author’s own ancestors, and painstakingly and thoroughly researched, this is a book that will remain with me for a long time, and one that I very much enjoyed. 

Many thanks to Mandy for reading and reviewing this novel for The Little Reader Library. Mandy is an omnivorous reader who enjoys reviewing, for newbooks magazine as well as elsewhere, and enjoys discovering new authors.