And we soon learn that shy Winifred isn’t all she seems. Theirs isn’t the most passionate of romances, but marriages have survived on less. Taking pity on her, Harry resolves to make her his wife. Georgina is fearless, while Winifred dreams of being invisible. Gale illustrates the difference between the two boys through their choice of sweethearts, sisters Georgina and Winifred Wells. For stammering Harry, it’s a minefield of potential embarrassments. For gregarious Jack, life is one big boy’s own adventure. His closest companion is his younger brother, though the two aren’t remotely alike. Shortly afterwards, we meet Harry Cane as a younger man – orphaned but comfortably off, with a nervous disposition and a speech impediment. A quotation from 1896 informs us that Turkish baths were used in the treatment of mental disorders. A man called Harry is escorted from his room by two sinister male attendants and forcibly submerged in a bathtub full of water. The opening scene plunges us straight in. His first truly historical novel, it begins in Edwardian England before setting sail for the western prairies of Canada. Published in 2015 and shortlisted for the Costa Award, A Place Called Winter is Patrick Gale’s queerest novel in years. My last post about EM Forster and Maurice got me thinking about another much-loved, more recent read. Paul Burston - Author of "The Closer I Get"
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |