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| Photo Credit I Bella West |
I must be
one of Fay Weldon's newest (if not youngest) fans.
And I may become one of her
noisiest as we are both singing from the same hymn sheet when it comes to the pleasure holding books in your hands and the conflict of the e-book! But first, things first - let us invite you to meet her.
One of the perks of being House Poet
for Beatons is getting occasional review copies - and stealing from the blurb
from Fay's publishers, Head of Zeus, about her latest book - 'Mischief'... they
say, 'Now, here
is Fay Weldon in her own words.'
'Of course,
they're talking about reading her words, but if you come to Beatons Blandford
Forum one Sunday in mid-March you can HEAR Fay, indeed meet her - thanks to some superb organisation by Helen Cooper - at an event in
aid of the Corn Exchange Challenge to raise funds for Blandford's Regeneration Project
What: Fay Weldon in Conversation
... and of course reading and
signing copes of her new book, Mischief
When: Sunday 22nd March 2015, 4.30 to 6 pm
Cost: £6.99 per
person (limited numbers)
This also entitles you to £2
off the cover price of Mischief!
(note: tea and cake NOT
included in ticket price!)
Tickets: From Beatons Blandford, Blandford TIC, the
Council Offices
or by e-mailing: helen@heraga.co.uk.
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| Jacket Design by Charlotte Jade |
Mini-Review Number 1: Before I
spread some Mischief, can I just mention that I'm fingering the hardback edition
and that I want to SCREAM very loudly that it has THE most stunningly
beautiful jacket by illustrator, 'Charlotte Jade' as you can see (in what I think is
tea-spill-free material). For the vibrant matching turquoise end papers and
greyscale title pages and introduction the designers at Head of Zeus Publishing
have to be applauded. See Fay's quote at
the end about the aesthetics of paper - it really is a book to treasure.
So, to the
contents of Mischief!
It includes
a new novella - 'The Ted Dreams' which has me fighting off my own as I try
to read just one more page before going to bed... and four decades' worth of
short stories. Of these, I've indulged in 'A Gentle Tonic Effect' so far (very occupied with Beatons Chester launch preparations at the mo). So glad that's where my fingers landed. It's wicked, brilliantly crafted - eight un-put-downable pages multi-layered with uneasy
truths about the human psyche. And a must for all therapists and counsellors to
read!
I'm enjoying
the book enough to have earmarked it for a full review in our Summer Reads
feature in July.
Oh, and I am
green with envy for all you lucky Dorset and Wiltshire fans who are snapping up
tickets. I can't make the event - and nor will you unless you get your tickets quick! But who
knows, may be my path will cross with Fay's and we can share a pot of Beatons Brew
together.
In the
meantime, I leave you with a snippet of 'Fay Weldon in her own words':
'And then the e-book came along, the naked
text without the frills of publisher's advocacy, jacket, blurb, writer's photo:
Look at me! Read this book! ... 'Good' writing is so much to do with an
aesthetic, with a resonance of language which is more apparent on paper than on
a screen.'
Ironically, 'The Ted Dreams'
was published as an e-book before going into this volume - and it's so plot-rich
that it no doubt sings from the screen in its nakedness. However, give me a
physical book to contemplate upon, feel, finger and slowly relish undressing
every time...