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Chargement... Coldwaterpar Mardi McConnochie
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Inscrivez-vous à LibraryThing pour découvrir si vous aimerez ce livre Actuellement, il n'y a pas de discussions au sujet de ce livre. Coldwater is an Australian island, home of a penal colony which Captain Wolf rules with an iron hand. He lives there with his daughters: Charlotte, Emily and Anne. His son Branwell passed away and is buried close by. Captain Wolf finds himself obsessed with the proper management of the barracks. He must squash any individualism, crush any uprising, negate any threat to himself.... and his daughters. As you have probably guessed, Coldwater is a tale of the Bronte family, reimagined. While I enjoyed the bleak setting of the island, in my mind, it wasn't quite a sufficient replacement for the moors. Brontes belong on the moors. I loved the language of this book. I found myself reading parts of it out loud just to slow myself down and savor the words a little longer. As for the story, the two main viewpoints are from Captain Wolf and Charlotte, who are the two dominant personalities. I didn't care for Captain Wolf at all. What I did enjoy was the adventures of the sisters. I won't say much more because I don't want to spoil it. But let me just say that the genesis of the dark Byronic heroes you find in Bronte books are here, in Coldwater. I found this book on a shelf for $1. Not expecting much but recongizing the Bronte first names in it, I bought it, read it, and found myself to enjoy it. Since then, I've read it a second time. For another book about the Bronte family, try James Tully's "The Crimes of Charlotte Bronte." I'd expain the title, but I'd spoil everything. Just remember, both of these books are fiction. aucune critique | ajouter une critique
A beautiful and mesmerizing debut,Coldwateris the tale of three sisters, the dangers of isolation, and the explosive repercussions when seemingly absolute power is challenged. Charlotte, Emily, and Anne Wolf live on Coldwater, a penal colony off the coast of Australia, where their father, Captain Wolf, rules the household with the same unyielding sternness he imposes on the inmates. The young women rarely venture beyond their corner of the island and meet no one but the prison guards. Their imaginations, however, know no boundaries, and together the three conjure up complex and magical lands. They vow to become novelists, dreaming of literary fame and of lives far from the harsh desolation of Coldwater. As governor of the convict island, Captain Wolf is working on a masterpiece of his own–the perfect prison. His theories of prison management have proven remarkably effective: During his tenure, not one prisoner has escaped. The arrival of an unusual convict from famine-stricken Ireland seems an opportunity to create a model prisoner–until one of his daughters becomes obsessed with the handsome young man and the delicate balance the family has constructed is shaken beyond repair. This remarkable story grew from the author’s lifelong curiosity about the Brontë sisters and their classic novels. Taking the few seeds that history reveals about Charlotte, Anne, and Emily Brontë, McConnochie has skillfully reimagined their lives and created a work of fiction as imbued with passion as their novels and as psychologically riveting as any contemporary thriller. Mardi McConnochie’s first novel, told through the eyes of the Wolf sisters, is an unforgettable portrait of the love and fear, the trust and betrayal, and the potential for freedom in one extraordinary family. Aucune description trouvée dans une bibliothèque |
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Google Books — Chargement... GenresClassification décimale de Melvil (CDD)823.92Literature English & Old English literatures English fiction Modern Period 2000-Classification de la Bibliothèque du CongrèsÉvaluationMoyenne:
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The girls realize after their father is shot (it happens on the first page) that they need to try to take control of their own lives, and so they set about trying to earn money the only way they can--by writing. They know it's not a very practical plan when they live in Australia and all the publishers are in England, half a world a way, but what other hope do they have? Their father won't be around forever.
I really don't know why this is rated so poorly because I thoroughly enjoyed it. Maybe people are upset that the lives of these classic authors are so very fictionalized? I haven't read reviews yet to see what's going on.
I love Jane Eyre and I tend to love Gothic stories. Seeing Charlotte Brontë in her own Gothic story was a treat for me. Emily irritated the heck out of me, but Wuthering Heights irritated the heck out of me too, so I thought she was well-represented. I haven't read any of Anne's work although I intend to. The island is so gloomy and atmospheric that it becomes a character in its own right.
I felt so very bad for these sisters. Growing up alone like they have, they aren't really fit for anything. They don't have any "society" to go out into. The only people they see besides their own family are the officers of the prison. They aren't really stimulating companions. They've had such sad, hard lives too. Even before they came to the island, there was tragedy in the family that left them all reeling. None of them have really recovered. As more of their past is revealed, I was more and more horrified of what had happened and how they had each reacted.
If you don't mind reading about real people in a completely fictional setting, I recommend this for a good, Gothic read. This is the perfect time of year to pick up a book like this. Cold howling wind outside, cold howling wind between the pages, but you're nice and cozy with a blanket and a cup of tea. Sounds like heaven to me. ( )