Monday, December 04, 2006
Falling Anges by Tracey Chevalier
Everything starts with two families from different walks of life who visit their family's graves, which happen to be next to each other. The Coleman's grave is decorated with an urn, which becomes a symbol of their beliefs and modern social views, while the Waterhouses's grave is ornate with an angel representing their traditional beliefs. Their daughters of similar age, the quiet Maude Coleman and the spoiled Lavinia Waterhouse start playing together around the graveyard and meet one of the digger's son, Simon Field. Their lives are linked closer even more when the Waterhouses move next door to the Colemans.
The story revolves around the graveyard and its diggers and director, John Jackson, between the Coleman and Waterhouse families, and between traditional and modern views applied to their lives.
The girls become good friends and grow up together, but their lives revolve around the graveyard and their friendship with Simon. Society also changes little by little, with suffragetes's movement pushing for more liberties for women. Kitty Comeman, Maude's mother, after an abortion about which her family knows nothing, decides to be part of the movement and throws herself completely into it neglecting her duties to he family. Her decisions and those of Gertrude, Lavinia's mother, who wants to be different front Kitty, although she secretly admires, envies and despises her at the same time, change their family's lives irremediably during the first suffragettes public meeting.
The narrative is told from the point of view of different characters, even from that of the Colemans's maid and cook. Thus, the multiple perspectives endevour to add to the story, bring details about the characters telling the story and about how they view what is happening around them and to the others.
The story revolves around the graveyard and its diggers and director, John Jackson, between the Coleman and Waterhouse families, and between traditional and modern views applied to their lives.
The girls become good friends and grow up together, but their lives revolve around the graveyard and their friendship with Simon. Society also changes little by little, with suffragetes's movement pushing for more liberties for women. Kitty Comeman, Maude's mother, after an abortion about which her family knows nothing, decides to be part of the movement and throws herself completely into it neglecting her duties to he family. Her decisions and those of Gertrude, Lavinia's mother, who wants to be different front Kitty, although she secretly admires, envies and despises her at the same time, change their family's lives irremediably during the first suffragettes public meeting.
The narrative is told from the point of view of different characters, even from that of the Colemans's maid and cook. Thus, the multiple perspectives endevour to add to the story, bring details about the characters telling the story and about how they view what is happening around them and to the others.
# posted by Gina @ 3:41 PM 
