"It is perfectly natural to feel as you do. It is better to acknowledge the lust than to be so consumed by it you sneak in one night and enact something perverse."
The story takes place in Sunderland, England, a city quarantined by the cholera epidemic of 1831. The main protagonist is fifteen-year old Gustine, a potter's assistant by day and a prostitute by night. She rents a frayed yet beautiful blue gown from her landlord in order for her to attract more affluent customers. She has a four-month old baby whose heart beats outside of his ribs, delicately protected only by his skin. Her dissolute landlord employs a sinister looking woman called The Eye to shadow Gustine to make sure she does not run off with the gown and her earnings. She meets Dr. Henry Chiver, a surgeon starting life anew in Sunderland after having been involved in grave robbing scandals with a group of other doctors in London.
Wonderfully written and well researched, the story employs the 'intrusive narrator', as well as "collective narrators" styles, that effectively walk you through the streets of Sunderland to the very walls of the lodging place where Gustine and her baby live. It is a story about the depth of love a mother has for her child and what she would do to keep her child alive. It is a story of a doctor so consumed by his desire to explore the human anatomy in order to understand the epidemic. It is a story that tells of ignorance that helped the spread of the disease at the time. When you read this book, all your senses are invoked, whether the scene is on the street as Gustine finds a customer, or in the laboratory where the doctor dissects cadavers for his students, or in the parlour where the doctor's fiancee is having tea with his uncle, or in the lodging house where the wrapped body of a cholera victim is kept in wake as is the custom. It starkly illustrates the ignorance of the lower class at the time and the apathy of those in the other end of the spectrum.
-o0o-
it is a morbid book for the most part. if you are one who likes to read a well-written book, then this is a must read.
a portion of this book deals with body snatching or grave robbing rampant during that time in history; descriptions are very graphic. reader's discretion is advised.
Great picture to go with the book!! You are so good at selecting the PERFECT picture for the book!! And your review -- once again -- so compelling!!!!!!
@danig - thanks, DG. it is a fascinating book but it is the kind which even if you want to continue reading, you just have to put it down for a while, because you will find yourself thinking what you just saw (or read), digest it in your mind, then go back to it again. it is that compelling!
@steeler - howard, you flatter me so. thank you very much, but the original photo in colour looks cheery due to the beautiful bright sunshine and the blue sky. looking forward to your photo!
Just added this book to my list of "will read." I love historical fiction and don't mind the dark and depressing parts. Have you ever read "Year of Wonders" by Geraldine Brooks? It is about an English village that got the plague and how they vowed to just stay inside the village,and not "run" to spread it. One of my favs.
processed it too many times to get this effect. :-)
@slang - thank you, sean.
@espyetta - thank you, marybeth. i don't think i've read 'year of wonders' but i will be looking for it, as now my curiousity is roused.