Wednesday, April 22, 2009

The enigmatic Miss Mole

One of the many joys of visiting my dear friend at 60going16 is the certainty of finding something special to read. That is true of her blog and of her home and when I visited her last week she allowed me to borrow this splendid old Virago Modern Classic from her impressive collection.

First published in 1930, Miss Mole by E.H. Young, is the best novel that I have read recently. It has an intriguing heroine, mystery, a plot that grips the reader to the final paragraph and wonderful language. I recommend it to aspiring novelists, especially any who might be tempted to enrol on a "creative writing" course. (My views on such courses are too savage to publish.)

Let me start with the language: this book would have been an ideal choice for teachers in the good old days of English Language 'O' level. It has deliciously long sentences with lots of phrases and subordinate clauses, perfect for parsing. Some paragraphs cover a whole page and even spill over onto another! I was tempted to copy some of it in Microsoft Word just to see the frenzied response of the Office Assistant.

The enigmatic heroine, Miss Hannah Mole, is rather plain and shabby, except for her shoes. She has spent the years since the end of the Great War as companion to a series of unappreciative elderly women, sustained only by her intelligence, imagination and sense of fun:

Who would suspect her of a sense of fun and irony, of a passionate love for beauty and the power to drag it from its hidden places? Who could imagine that Miss Mole had pictured herself, at different times, as an explorer in strange lands, as a lady wrapped in luxury and delicate garments, as the mother of adorably naughty children and the inspiringly elusive mistress of a poet?

While her employers want nothing more than a self-effacing manager of mending, fetching and carrying, we readers are drawn into the secret world of Miss Mole's longings and the gradual revelation of her mysterious past.

Miss Mole's latest appointment is as housekeeper in the home of a non-Conformist minister. Miss Mole is a non-conformist in a more general sense, something she tries to keep hidden from the genteel, propriety-bound people around her but the rather disreputable elderly next-door neighbour recognises her as a kindred spirit and calls her Miss Fitt. To say more about the person she really is would be to spoil the book for would-be readers. I suggest that you meet her and judge for yourself.

11 comments:

  1. I just came across your review -- I am reading this book right now! I'm not far along but it has come highly recommended by others who enjoy Virago Modern Classics, and I love the writing so far as well.

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  2. Laura, I hope it holds your interest right to the end, as it did mine. I love all Virago Modern Classics but I thought this was specially good.

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  3. Sounds like a book I’d enjoy – but I can’t find it here. My bookstore (on the web) has The Misses Mallet, but not “Miss Mole”. I’ll keep looking for it.
    Margaretha

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  4. Margaretha, I think you will really like the character of Miss Mole. I will have to return the copy I borrowed but I found some used copies on Amazon for as little as 50p.

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  5. Please, please share your views on creative writing courses. I feel they may be akin to mine on "media studies".

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  6. I’ll look into it again – I checked postage from Amazon yesterday. I think it was 0.90p per book plus 3.90£ for every package overseas, it really isn’t a lot of money, unless you’re broke – which I am.
    Margaretha

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  7. I'm so glad you enjoyed Miss Mole, M, I knew you would.

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  8. Margaretha, I ordered something from Amazon with a very high postage. The sender was apologetic and said the rate was set by Amazon and not the seller. He enclosed a gift because of his embarrassment.

    I hope your library can find a copy. If not, you will have to wait for the next Give a Friend a Book Day and see what the mail man brings you.
    Maureen

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  9. Rattlingon - Have been to see your blog and I think my views on creative writing courses will be EXACTLY like yours on media courses. I don't need to say more!

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  10. Thank you for such a good post, Maureen. I have a fondness for older, single women. In my personal experience as a group they are among the most interesting people I've ever known. I had two 'maiden' aunts, and I adored them. They were what you might call custodians of their families. They kept track of everyone's birthdays, down to the newest additions, and always enclosed money in the annual cards. One of them died dead broke, and the other was quite rich. The latter was a school teacher, lived in an apartment, didn't travel, and left a lot of money to each of her several nieces and nephews. I think some of what I appreciate in single women is there is so much more than society acknowledges or even suspects is there. Take the singing sensation of the world right now. Though I am sick and tired of the references to her looks, what I do like is that she is a great example of the wonders who are all around us, living their lives. I read about them often in books, esp. British books. Men and women who live wonderful lives reading or gardening or visiting or knitting - lives that are the fabric of community life in often quiet ways. Sorry to go on so long, but this is a subject very dear to my heart. Thanks again and I'll get this book next year!

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  11. Thank you for such an interesting comment, Nan. Is your self-imposed ban on buying books still holding? You are being very good!

    My sister is the "maiden aunt" of our family. She looked after our parents and still lives in the family home. Like your aunts, she keeps everyone informed about family events, drives people to appointments and puts cheques in birthday cards and does all the little things that people don't appreciate until they stop.

    having said all of that, Miss Mole is decidedly different and I'm sure you will enjoy reading about her.

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