Friday, December 22, 2006
book report: Beyond Black
Beyond Black
by Hilary Mantel
I was excited to read this book, as it was described as a funny and mysterious story about a psychic who actually communicates with the spirits. But I was pretty disappointed with it. The writing is tight and evocative, but the plot is hardly extant.
The main character is the psychic, a woman named Alison who was horribly abused as a child by the men who were the clients of her prostitute mother. At a performance, Alison meets Colette, a brittle, angry woman who has just left her husband. Alison proposes that Colette become her manager, and Colette accepts. Colette takes over Alison's business matters and makes her very successful, but both of them continue to be sad, angry, and unable to examine their own problems.
While the world that Mantel describes is fascinating,and her writing is very good, the book left me cold. Neither Alison nor Colette change very much during the course of the book, which takes place over 7 years. Usually a story sees some change in a character, or something interesting happens, but that is not the case here. Kind of a letdown.
by Hilary Mantel
I was excited to read this book, as it was described as a funny and mysterious story about a psychic who actually communicates with the spirits. But I was pretty disappointed with it. The writing is tight and evocative, but the plot is hardly extant.
The main character is the psychic, a woman named Alison who was horribly abused as a child by the men who were the clients of her prostitute mother. At a performance, Alison meets Colette, a brittle, angry woman who has just left her husband. Alison proposes that Colette become her manager, and Colette accepts. Colette takes over Alison's business matters and makes her very successful, but both of them continue to be sad, angry, and unable to examine their own problems.
While the world that Mantel describes is fascinating,and her writing is very good, the book left me cold. Neither Alison nor Colette change very much during the course of the book, which takes place over 7 years. Usually a story sees some change in a character, or something interesting happens, but that is not the case here. Kind of a letdown.
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