Monday 22 February 2016


I had high hopes of this autobiographical coming-of-age novel, published in 1938 by New Zealand writer Robin Hyde, mostly because it's a forthcoming Persephone title. But oh, dear ... it isn't an easy book to read, that's partly her style of writing - too disjointed and self-consciously poetical for me - but also I found it profoundly depressing. Apparently, the author struggled with writing it and I'm afraid that I struggled reading it. It feels like every character is groping through life with one hand tied behind them, that disappointment and loss are somehow pre-ordained. Godwits are birds that migrate north at the end of the New Zealand summer. These New Zealanders are English, but not English. To me, it felt as if New Zealand was suffocating every single one of them None of the men will ever commit - you know in your bones that your illegitimate baby will die and it does - you'll never get to use the lovely things in your bottom drawer - you'll never escape to England and even if you do, you'll die as soon as you get there. And the latter is exactly what happened to Robin Hyde herself who did eventually make it to England but committed suicide in 1939 only months after she arrived.
Eliza Hannay in the novel is Robin Hyde herself. There are wonderful portraits of her mother and Carly, the properly-behaved older sister who aches for marriage but whose 'understanding' with a young man comes to nothing. The failure of her modest Plan B for the rest of her life is heartbreaking ... you feel this opening chasm of desolation, that her life is finished at 24.
I skim-read quite a lot of this book - I very nearly abandoned it because I'd find myself becalmed and bored when it seemed to be going nowhere - and yet in the passages where it came to life, it rather reminded me of Cider with Rosie. Well, only slightly. A joyless Cider with Rosie with little hope of ever walking out one midsummer morning.

11 comments:

Cosy Books said...

Well, that sounds a bit bleak, Mary. At first I thought perhaps dreary February isn't the time to read this book but something tells me June is hardly going to put a shine on things.

mary said...

One of those books that I finished with a feeling of gosh, I'm glad to see the back of that! No, I don't think better weather would improve it, Darlene! I was on the point of abandoning it several times - but then I'd hit a passage that gave it a lift, so I persevered and it did get better towards the end. I did wonder if a NZreader would feel differently about it. I'm going out with a NZ friend tonight but she says that she read it so many years ago that she's forgotten it.

Sue in Suffolk said...

Oh dear that sounds a bit too depressing, think I'll bypass that one even though I usually love Persephone choices

mary said...

It's not one I'd recommend, Sue -plenty more to choose from!

Sue said...

I was just quizzing my two best NZ friends about RH a couple of weeks ago (I'd seen that Persephone was going to re publish her work). And, they were slightly ambivalent about her; apparently she was/is quite a big deal in NZ still and bits of her poetry are embedded in public sculpture etc. Both had read her novel many years ago and her poetry but thought her life possibly more interesting than her work.I'm not sure I can cope with such a despondent read at the moment, much as I try and keep up with the Persephones...just finishing David Aaronovitches Party Animals, which I am really enjoying.

Sue said...

Oh, have just looked properly at the other comments: are most of your readers called Sue? I'll bet we're all 50, too...

mary said...

Several Sues, Sue - and I do get confused by you all sometimes, although you do get to know the different voices - and sometimes I think, 'That doesn't sound like Sue', and realise it's a different Sue! I think everybody who reads this blog is 50! At least!
Party Animals sounds interesting.

Lucille said...

Thank you for sparing me. Lucille (age 62 my best friend was called Sue.)

mary said...

If it's any consolation to the many Sues, when I was at (convent) school there were an awful lot of Marys! I think we need a Sue revival so they can't date you so easily. Look at Lily - they're all either 90 or eight!

Sunday Taylor said...

It's disappointing when our hopes are high for a book. I'm glad to read your review of this one. As you said, there are so many good Persephone titles to choose from! By the way, one of the best new books I've read in a long time is Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff. I wonder if you've read this one.

mary said...

I was reading it over Christmas, Sunday; I didn't really warm to it, I think because I found both the characters so irritating. But then Christmas isn't the best time forgeting engrossed in a book.
I'm sure you'll have read it but Mr and Mrs Bridge (Evan S Connell) is my absoslsute favourite for two sides of a marriage.