BRIDESHEAD REVISITED, by Evelyn Waugh, copyright 1944/1945 and then Laura Waugh made a renewed copyright in 1972/1973. My book was published by Back Bay books which looks to be a division of Little Brown and Company. The cover page says that is a companion to the PBS television series, so I might have to watch it. This is a book that starts in the 1940's because WWII is happening and Evelyn Waugh was recuperating in the Chagford and writing this book.
The book starts off with the narrator of the story Charles Ryder coming with his unit to Brideshead, where they are to set up camp. This gets him to remember the past and the people who lived at Brideshead. The Flyte family is a well-to-do family of four children, an estranged father who does not live at either of the properties and his wife who is very pious. Charles is introduced to this family through college, Sebastian Flyte becomes one of his college friends. It is interesting because there is very much more than a casual relationship between the two men.
We see multiple relationships and alliances, dissolution of the same and the feeling that all is not right with any of the characters. It is a nice historical piece written at the time of conflict. I am amused by the feeling you get as we got closer to the actual time line of Charles Ryder, the belief that the war would not come to much, followed by Germany not having enough money to wage war, followed by the bombings and still the feeling that it was happening to others. An interesting perspective.
It was a pretty fast read and the characters are intricately woven, I may have to look up some of his other books. History and relationships fascinate me.
No comments:
Post a Comment