Falling Angels

Rating:
Summary: Angels come in many forms.
Review: This is evident in the newest book from the outstanding author of GIRL WITH A PEARL EARRING. The era is turn of the century Edwardian England and our storyline is unique and enriching.

Kitty Coleman is young, beautiful, educated, and very married by the conventions of the time. She feels stifled and unfulfilled. Her daughter Maude has learned to deal with her all too distant mother, and is only too happy to meet and make friends with Lavinia, a young girl her age who moves in next door. Lavinia's mother Gertrude Waterhouse is the epitome of what society expects of a woman in her day and age, and finds Kitty Coleman's manner to be scandalous.

I enjoyed the unique storyline in which the girls become friends with the gravedigger's son; it is in the graveyard that the main characters all meet again and again. The author introduces some fascinating historical information about the grieving process and the plot spirals as Kitty becomes involved in the ever-burgeoning Suffragette movement.

The last 100 pages of the book take off and left me stunned. Chevalier is a talented author that certainly bears watching as well as reading. I would give this book 4.5 stars. [e-mail] 12/25/01

Rating:
Summary: social upheavals in Edwardian England
Review: I read this book first, and I thought that it portrayed the often-times not-so-subtle changes that Edwardian England was facing. I liked the way the author wrote to allow all of the characters involved to give their opinions on what was going on around them. In other novels depicting this era, all too often only one side is presented (i.e., the upper class), so it was nice to see the point of view of the maid Jenny, for example.
I also thought that the way of presenting the (social) changes faced by Edwardian Britons was interesting--2 girls the same age, yet with very different views on the world (society) and their place in it. In this respect, she mimics another novel set in the same time period, but does not carry it off as well because the two girls were supposed to be FRIENDS. I think that it is unlikely that the girls would have become friends given the differences in their social standing as well as their families' outlook (the Colemans' forward-looking; the Waterhouses' backward-looking). If you want to read a novel in which these issues are better addressed, I suggest the "Flambards" trilogy by K.M. Peyton. ("Flambards", "Edge of the Cloud", and "Flambards in Summer") These novels cover roughly the same time period (1908-1918), but illustrate the changes and upheavals, including the First World War, faced by Edwardian Britain in a far better way because of the relationships between the characters (family members), the strength of the main character, Christina, and how she has changed to deal with this new world. If you are interested in non-fiction, I highly recommend Vera Brittain's "Testament of Youth" (autobiographical, covers the years 1900-1925) and gives a very good portrait of Edward Britain because the author is writing from direct experience--she lived it!
"Falling Angels" is still a good read, though not as good as "Girl with the pearl earring".

Rating:
Summary: A beautiful, evocative step forward
Review: I confess I read this before "Pearl Earring," but I was utterly taken. By switching voices -- from two very different young girls to their mothers to such side characters as a serving maid -- Chevalier creates a fully fleshed portrait out of few words, each voice has its distinct viewpoint and very believable vocabulary and tone. The story that these voices build is wonderful and tragic, a realistic tale of the early 20th century. One brief paragraph, in particular, took my breath away -- only two sentences, but no more were needed. Afterward, entranced, I picked up her first novel and although I enjoyed it, I found it clumsy and verbose in comparison.

This is a much less conventional novel, but (I think) a superior one. Delicate, evocative -- like a gesture drawing of few lines but much feeling.

clea simon - author of "Fatherless Women" and "Mad House"

Rating:
Summary: Not "Pearl Earring" but Still Excellent
Review: The problem with writing a first novel that does as well as "Girl With a Pearl Earring" is that readers will expect the same quality of writing and plot the next time. Although Tracy Chevalier's "Falling Angels" is not equal to her last effort, it is nonetheless an absorbing story involving vivid characters and events. Chevalier does not shy away from major themes such social status, adultery, an rearing children, and, like her last novel, she weaves history almost effortlessly into the plot. Despite unnecessary shifting of point of view among the chracters, "Falling Angels" was still a great read. Highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I was so disappointed with this novel. I loved "Girl with a Pearl Earring" and felt this didn't even come close. While some of the historical detail was interesting, this story wasn't at all captivating. I even started to feel I should have paid less for this book since half the pages are blank and others are only a paragraph.

Rating:
Summary: Angels Falling Asleep, More Like It
Review: After reading "Girl With A Pearl Earring", I was very fond of the writing style Ms. Chevalier utilized. The story was so distinct and vivid, as well as the character devolpmentation. However, this is not so with "Falling Angels." The characters were not well developed; instead they were carbon opposites of each other. Was the friendship between Livy and Maude realistic at all? No--they were so different, it seemed the only thing they had in common was age and fun at the cemetary. It is not fathomable that they would have been friends. The plot itself was frustratingly predictable as well; I only kept reading to make sure I was correct.What was the point of so many choppy points of view? Did she consider it to be a fancy literary device? I had to will my eyes to stay open! While Ms. Chevalier did demonstrate more of her impressive knowledge of period life, the overall story is dull, predictable, unrealistic, and choppy. Perhaps she was trying too hard to impress us as with her other novel.

Rating:
Summary: Didn't want to put it down!
Review: This book was hugely enjoyable. I raced through it, not wanting to stop reading for anything (like, say, food or sleep). The interweaving of the elaborate and stylized mourning rituals of the Victorians with the story line about the Suffragettes made for a riveting read. I also greatly appreciated the use of the different characters as narrators, each of whom had a unique and different point of view on the same events. This technique made the book really come alive in my mind.

Rating:
Summary: Falling Angels by Tracy Chevalier
Review: An excellent read. This is the first time I have read Tracy Chevalier and now I am hooked! A window on Victorian values and life through the eyes of both children and adults. Each chapter written by a different character in the book. Don't be put off by the obsession with the Graveyard at the beginning of this novel! I would now like to read 'Girl with the Pearl Ear-ring' also by Tracy Chevalier.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing second effort
Review: I very much liked Girl with a Pearl Earring. The writing was restrained and displayed an authentic voice. But Falling Angels was a disappointment--I realised after about 60 pages that I had no real interest in the story or characters, all of whom came across like twentieth-century retreads of Edwardian stereotypes. So I skipped to the end to see what narrative point all of the build-up had been heading to--pretty predictable stuff.

Rating:
Summary: Long Term Author
Review: "Girl With A Pearl Earring", by Tracy Chevalier was a tremendously successful book that meant her second effort would have very high expectations waiting for it. Her second novel, "Falling Angels", is a very good work for a variety of reasons.

The author did not take the easy and often traveled path of just repeating a formula that was a success for her. Ms. Chevalier could easily have picked a new piece of art and spun another well-conceived narrative. The number of books that could be written in this manner is nearly infinite. As a writer she had both the confidence in herself, and the respect for her readers to present an entirely different type of tale, and to utilize a very different format from her first work. This story is related by the characters themselves, the reader is not given a single point of view, rather is the beneficiary of the views of many on the same event. The experience is made more interesting as the reader hears from characters that range in age from their first decade, to their seventh or eighth. Author Julian Barnes also used this format with great skill in, "Talking It Over", and the sequel, "Love Etc." The characters were not as far ranging, however the stories were wonderful.

"Falling Angels", begins with the death of both Queen Victoria, and the time period that adopted her name. It is here that the writer introduces us to two families, both with daughters, but from different stations in the English view of society. Much of what the reader experiences is the youthful view of the daughters, which is, combined with the thought of a young man, a gravedigger's son. And much of what we read of takes place in, around, or as the result of events in a cemetery. An odd locale perhaps, however it is not used a locale for evil, or other familiar themes that easily come to mind. Ms. Chevalier uses this space as a focal point for the development of the younger players in the work, as well as an area that should not, but does, bring out the lesser qualities of the adults.

This is also the era of women marching and being imprisoned for their desire to vote. This is again used to show the divisiveness amongst otherwise friendly relations, and the tragedy to which extreme opinion can lead.

Those expecting a variation on her first book may at first be disappointed. However for those who continue with the work I believe they will find the novel well conceived, well written, and finally will be pleased to know that this writer is not going to rest on her laurels and churn out repetitive work. The book may not be without flaws, however, happily this is a writer at the beginning of her career, a career that promises a great many wonderful books.