The Magic Toyshop

Rating:
Summary: Sparkling.
Review: A tour de force for Angela Carter. This novel is a perfectly formed gem cut in the inimitable Carter style. The story of Melanie, the 'bourgeois screamer' and her journey 'through the mangle' in the form of her experiences in the magic toyshop is a gripping read which sheds much light on Carter's stance towards, among many things, the subjugation of women and the role they take, or are forced to take, in society. This being a Carter novel, the character of Melanie is particularly well drawn, and her exploits operate within the framework of numerous fairy tale paradigms, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty being the most obvious. Melanie is orpahned at the novel's outset and is transported 'from rural comfort' to the grimy, gritty, basic world of real life in london, in the form of her Uncle Philip's home and livelihood, the magic toyshop. There is very little truly magic about the toyshop however. Despite the numerous fairy tale motifs and subtle literary allusions woven into the novel's fabric ( the younger siblings are reliable literary jokes, while uncle philip is a wonderfully overblown carboard cut out of the melodramatic victorian villain) the plot makes Carter's renounciation, and eventual deconstruction of the role the patrairch takes in society clear. Carter may wish us to consider deeper issues, yet, as with all her work, there is a profound sense of fun imbuing the magic toyshop with an inherent readability. Melanie is of course an upper crust adoloscent thrown into a nightmarish, 'dirty' world, and we can take sadistic delight in observing her naivety, her bizzare reasoning, and her faltering steps into puberty. Yet Carter allows Melanie a strong elemnt of adaptibility: she rarely complains about the lot fate has thrown her, so the strength of the female (espacially when we consider the role of Aunt margaret and her moral immutability) is never far from our minds.
This was the first carter I read and I havent looked back since. The fairy tale elements and strong narrative, as well as the skillful characterization of Melanie ( a character in whom there is little reflection of Carter herself) make this an easy and enjoyable read, while there is plenty of meat in the prose for anyone to chew on: feminism, sixties culture, family units, growing up, romance and love, art, clothing and the nature of theatre, of drama itself, are all tackled in detail. Highly reccomended for carter virgins and afficiandos alike.

Rating:
Summary: A tour de force!
Review: Angela Carter has never failed to impress me. Her imagination knows no limits -- and she illustrates the same whenever she explores the realm of magical realism in her novels. The Magic Toyshop has gothic and mystical undertones that are perfect for the turbulent world of the young characters in the book. Melanie is quite a compelling character. Her struggles have unmistakable fairytale-like quality (Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty spring to mind). The aforementioned elements give the novel a rather unique brand of magical realism. This novel is beautiful, decadent and engrossing. It is difficult to describe the content of Carter's novel without spoiling some vital piece of information, so I won't recount further -- all I can do is share the joy of having read such literary work and recommend it most highly.

Rating:
Summary: OMG! What a book!
Review: Being the same age as the main character, Melanie, I simpathise with her situation, however feel that she is strong enough not to need it.
A young hopeful girl coming to terms with her self, and relishing in fantasies of life and love yet to come. She feels traped and held back, only realising what she had when her life comes tumbling down around her.
Orphaned and empoverished Melanie and her two younger siblings are sent to live with their 'Uncle Philipe' in London.
When Melanie arrives at her uncles home (The Magic Toy Shop), she finds him living in the squalor of down trodden London, running his houshold on next to nothing. There she meets 'The red people', Uncle Philipes mute wife, Auntie Margaret and her two brothers, Francie and Finn.
Her fantasies destroyed she must stay strong under the harsh, misogynistic, and violent reign of the puppet obsesed Philipe. Her only comfort being the strong yet strange bond between 'the red people'.
Gradually Melanie, finds herself falling, angainst her own will, for one the quirky and mysterious brothers Finn. Discovering that love is not way it seems in magazines and books.
However, Melanie's not so simple life takes a bizarre turn. Edding in a chaotic climax. You'll be itching for more when you've finished, and like my self wishing Angela had written a sequel.

Rating:
Summary: my favorite book by angela carter
Review: i have given this book away too many times - from now on, i'm keeping mine and buying new ones for my friends and lovers. i adore angela. i *ADORE* this book. it captures the grotesque heartbreak of adolescence with beauty and intelligence.

Rating:
Summary: Wise Children is better
Review: I read this book on the strength of "Wise Children" and I much preferred that book. There is nothing wrong with "The Magic Toyshop" but the story didn't resonate with me as much. Carter is a master at developing characters and this book is full of them. There is something decidedly creepy about this tale, but in an oddly pleasurable way. Definitely worth reading, and I will read more of her books.

Rating:
Summary: Very odd book, but beautifully written
Review: I was totally lost as to what to expect out of this novel. Angela Carter's descriptions, especially of people, are some of the best I've ever read. I just couldn't shake this sense of menace and impending doom while reading the book. It has very gothic overtones. I was very fearful for the characters. (It didn't help any that the cover is very creepy). I mean, it is rare that recently orphaned British children sent to live with their Uncle (whom they have never met) end up in happy circumstances (at least in Literature and Film *smile*). Still, very different and interesting, and I LOVED her descriptions. The plot was very weird and different. The ending left me with a "hmmm..." feeling. Oh well. I'm still glad I read it, but what a strange coming-of-age story.




Rating:
Summary: A Good Place to Begin Reading Angela Carter
Review: I've been knocked out by every Angela Carter book I've read, but for some reason this early effort is my favorite. It doesn't contain her most gorgeously drunken prose (I think that honor goes to "Wise Children") or showcase her unique storytelling gifts as well as her short fiction does, but it's a powerhouse all the same.

There are some great scenes here: the sensuality of the girl's private dream world at the beginning of the novel, the crushing finality when she and her brother arrive at their uncle's house and she realizes what a grim turn her life has taken, the descriptions of her brother, their monstrous uncle, his long-suffering wife and hapless brothers-in-law, the bizarre puppets her uncle creates.... This is highly imaginative stuff, and it doesn't let up for a minute.

"Nights at the Circus" and "Wise Children" are both very funny novels, and even their darkest episodes can't diminish the humor. "The Magic Toyshop" sinks into darkness very early on and remains there for most of the novel. But Melanie is such an engaging and sympathetic character that you never once give up hope that somehow, she'll find some kind of escape from the dismal world into which she's thrown.

If you've never read Angela Carter, this is a good place to start. It's a bit more traditional than many of her other novels, but it has plenty of bite and a set of characters you'll never forget.

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic
Review: It's truly excellent because of the fairy tale/children's story element. It's also a story about life in England for young people in the early 70's. Suddenly, what was at the center of English social life is in ruins, and young people with imagination find themselves as misfits. This is merely my take on what the novel might represent. If you are not interested in reading books this way, you will still find The Magic Toyshop mesmerizing, entertaining, controversial, or whatever type of reading experience you wish to have. Get it.

Rating:
Summary: OMG! What a book!
Review: This is an odd story: Melanie and her siblings live a life of middle-class luxury until their parents die in a aeroplane accident in America. It quickly becomes apparent that their father had not thought of this possibility, so the house contents are sold up and the children sent to live with their mysterious Uncle Phillip in London.

So far, so not odd, we have all read a rich kid becomes poor through circumstance story. But this one is odd in that Uncle Phillip is a stern disciplinarian who resides over a poverty stricken household of his silent wife and her two brothers. Melanie cannot figure out why this woman has married her awful uncle, a malevolent puppet maker who cares more for his wooden creations than his family. The situation in the household slowly deteriorates, with the ill will seeming to grow as the days go by, until everything becomes undone in the violent climax.

Melanie is a character that it is hard to sympathise with, as though we are given insight into both her internal mental state and the awful things around her, I ended the book still not feeling a really knew her. Without giving away the plot, there seems to be a lot of inevitability that doesn't quite ring true. Or perhaps the author was attempting to underline how some people's life is swept on the currents of events they have no control over. Either way, I thought that the characters were interesting, I only wish that I could have understood their motivations a little better.