A Masterpiece, 11 Aug 2008
This book is probably a masterpiece. One woman's desperate quest for freedom, and the fatal futility of it as she ventures in a wrong direction. It's a tragedy of the human race: too great to live by rules, too small to be free. Overgrown for crude conventions, dwarfed by the challenges when you break them.

Madame Bovary can't bear her mediocre existence. She loathes her role of the wife of a village doctor; she has no regard for her womanly duties; she cares little about public opinion. She breaks free from it all, and how? In the most conventional way: she takes lovers. Her affairs bring her no love and only fleeting moments of satisfaction. She eventually incurs debts and poisons herself on the day bailiffs raid her house, unable to take the shame.

Could she be blamed for this amateur attempt to make some sense of her life? What other avenues could she explore? There hardly were any opportunities open to women those days to establish themselves professionally. She certainly lacked guidance to become a scholar (she did try to read philosophers, but it didn't take off). She also lacked imagination to make something special of her life, and she didn't find any worthy cause.

She was a product of her class, her upbringing and her society, who dared to question its norms. She thought she was breaking free from those norms, but in reality she was reinforcing them. Norms are not imposed externally. They are within you. They are the building material of your psychic, they guide your actions, and this is the tragedy. But it was still a courageous quest.

The author deserves admiration for being so non-judgemental in this sensitive situation. A woman who cheats on her devoted husband, meanwhile squandering his wealth. She, who selfishly drives her child to the life of an orphan and a pauper. But you close the book feeling only sympathy and sadness at the ways of the world. There's not a trace of moralising here, just a human story.

This book is not an entertainment, not a recreational read. At times the prose becomes too heavy, too crowded. It appears to be in want of finer editing. Do read it if you're prone to think. Don't read it if you want to kill your time.


Beautiful, 13 Mar 2008
How does a man write as though he were a woman?

This was well written, knuckle bighting beautiful stuff.
I read a little of how this book has been recieved before I opened the book. I laughed at all the people who claimed that they were Madame Bovary. But to my dismay I too am her! This book has taught me so much about myself.

I find it very hard to get emotionally involved in a book written by a man I just don't feel that they ever understand the mind of a woman but Mr Flaubert sure does.

This book is highly reccomended by my good self. The advice I give you is to put a weekend aside and read this in one huge chunk, it's much nicer that way. I have a memory now of an amazing weekend of self discovery and some of the finest fiction I have ever encountered.

Surprisingly modern writing, 11 Jul 2007
I can well understand how controversial this novel was when it was first published. Overall it is a vicious portrayal of small town France. Most of the characters are revealed to be self-seeking and vain. At the heart of the story is Emma Bovary - and Flaubert is, I feel, ambivalent in his attitude to her. He sometimes describes her very favourably and at others as selfish hard-hearted. And we as readers share this ambivalence - is she a cruel temptress who cares little for her own child or is she a victim of the social mores and unable to act independently? Certainly the book highlights how women of the time could only find happiness and fulfilment through a male partner.

The ending is prolonged and horrific. Was Flaubert hoping to attract our sympathy for the hapless Emma or was he ensuring that she was suitably punished for her infidelities?

The writing is splendid - surprisingly modern and beautifully descriptive. I am sorry I let this book sit unread on my bookshelf for so long?




Yeah but No but Yeah but..., 11 Jul 2007
I've always maintained that one shouldn't review a book they've studied there are many outside influences bearing down on your reading of the text: enjoyment of class, attitude towards school/teacher, and not least what you're being TOLD to think by teachers, notes and so on. Nevertheless I thought I'd just comment briefly here to clarify the last reviewer's point.
It is my opinion that although Emma is the original footballer's wife (or at least wannabe since by no stretch of the imagination could one ever equate Charles with a Beckham) Madame Bovary is NOT the original trashy novel.
It is no secret that Flaubert was aware of "betise". He thought people were stupid, their words worthless, their feelings fickle and their actions silly to the point of danger (Yes says the pharmacist let's see if we can't cure this man's club foot...). What is unclear is whether the reader, especially the reader who sees this, is included in the generalisation or even whether Flaubert considered himself to be guilty of "betise". And if not why not? This complex thematic point, as well as Flaubert undeniable mastery of language (particularly his pitiless satire of cliche), drags MB from the pastel pink dustcover of (help me with some names here) the average chick lit and into the gentlemanly(/womanly) company of the classics.
This was clearly understood by the previous reviewer but may not be understood clearly, if you understand what I clearly mean?
Also enough with giving Emma all the gip, Homais was a fool (one of a sea of fools) too. If she is Coleen McLoughlin then Homais is who? Jeremy Clarkson? Someone who claims they know a lot, all, the best but really just believes what they read in the papers. Oh wait that's Bono.

The original trashy novel!!, 14 Apr 2006
It is amazing that this book was written by a man because it appeals so well to the woman's senses. It appears a universial fact that women love Holby city and trashy soaps, well this novel is the two genres combined into one. Emma Bovary is the ultimate footballer's wife, spending lashiously and flirting seductively. With Flaubert's amazingly presise language this book is as enjoyable as devouring a whole chocolate cake without the calories!

A Masterpiece, 11 Aug 2008
This book is probably a masterpiece. One woman's desperate quest for freedom, and the fatal futility of it as she ventures in a wrong direction. It's a tragedy of the human race: too great to live by rules, too small to be free. Overgrown for crude conventions, dwarfed by the challenges when you break them.

Madame Bovary can't bear her mediocre existence. She loathes her role of the wife of a village doctor; she has no regard for her womanly duties; she cares little about public opinion. She breaks free from it all, and how? In the most conventional way: she takes lovers. Her affairs bring her no love and only fleeting moments of satisfaction. She eventually incurs debts and poisons herself on the day bailiffs raid her house, unable to take the shame.

Could she be blamed for this amateur attempt to make some sense of her life? What other avenues could she explore? There hardly were any opportunities open to women those days to establish themselves professionally. She certainly lacked guidance to become a scholar (she did try to read philosophers, but it didn't take off). She also lacked imagination to make something special of her life, and she didn't find any worthy cause.

She was a product of her class, her upbringing and her society, who dared to question its norms. She thought she was breaking free from those norms, but in reality she was reinforcing them. Norms are not imposed externally. They are within you. They are the building material of your psychic, they guide your actions, and this is the tragedy. But it was still a courageous quest.

The author deserves admiration for being so non-judgemental in this sensitive situation. A woman who cheats on her devoted husband, meanwhile squandering his wealth. She, who selfishly drives her child to the life of an orphan and a pauper. But you close the book feeling only sympathy and sadness at the ways of the world. There's not a trace of moralising here, just a human story.

This book is not an entertainment, not a recreational read. At times the prose becomes too heavy, too crowded. It appears to be in want of finer editing. Do read it if you're prone to think. Don't read it if you want to kill your time.


Beautiful, 13 Mar 2008
How does a man write as though he were a woman?

This was well written, knuckle bighting beautiful stuff.
I read a little of how this book has been recieved before I opened the book. I laughed at all the people who claimed that they were Madame Bovary. But to my dismay I too am her! This book has taught me so much about myself.

I find it very hard to get emotionally involved in a book written by a man I just don't feel that they ever understand the mind of a woman but Mr Flaubert sure does.

This book is highly reccomended by my good self. The advice I give you is to put a weekend aside and read this in one huge chunk, it's much nicer that way. I have a memory now of an amazing weekend of self discovery and some of the finest fiction I have ever encountered.

Surprisingly modern writing, 11 Jul 2007
I can well understand how controversial this novel was when it was first published. Overall it is a vicious portrayal of small town France. Most of the characters are revealed to be self-seeking and vain. At the heart of the story is Emma Bovary - and Flaubert is, I feel, ambivalent in his attitude to her. He sometimes describes her very favourably and at others as selfish hard-hearted. And we as readers share this ambivalence - is she a cruel temptress who cares little for her own child or is she a victim of the social mores and unable to act independently? Certainly the book highlights how women of the time could only find happiness and fulfilment through a male partner.

The ending is prolonged and horrific. Was Flaubert hoping to attract our sympathy for the hapless Emma or was he ensuring that she was suitably punished for her infidelities?

The writing is splendid - surprisingly modern and beautifully descriptive. I am sorry I let this book sit unread on my bookshelf for so long?




Yeah but No but Yeah but..., 11 Jul 2007
I've always maintained that one shouldn't review a book they've studied there are many outside influences bearing down on your reading of the text: enjoyment of class, attitude towards school/teacher, and not least what you're being TOLD to think by teachers, notes and so on. Nevertheless I thought I'd just comment briefly here to clarify the last reviewer's point.
It is my opinion that although Emma is the original footballer's wife (or at least wannabe since by no stretch of the imagination could one ever equate Charles with a Beckham) Madame Bovary is NOT the original trashy novel.
It is no secret that Flaubert was aware of "betise". He thought people were stupid, their words worthless, their feelings fickle and their actions silly to the point of danger (Yes says the pharmacist let's see if we can't cure this man's club foot...). What is unclear is whether the reader, especially the reader who sees this, is included in the generalisation or even whether Flaubert considered himself to be guilty of "betise". And if not why not? This complex thematic point, as well as Flaubert undeniable mastery of language (particularly his pitiless satire of cliche), drags MB from the pastel pink dustcover of (help me with some names here) the average chick lit and into the gentlemanly(/womanly) company of the classics.
This was clearly understood by the previous reviewer but may not be understood clearly, if you understand what I clearly mean?
Also enough with giving Emma all the gip, Homais was a fool (one of a sea of fools) too. If she is Coleen McLoughlin then Homais is who? Jeremy Clarkson? Someone who claims they know a lot, all, the best but really just believes what they read in the papers. Oh wait that's Bono.

The original trashy novel!!, 14 Apr 2006
It is amazing that this book was written by a man because it appeals so well to the woman's senses. It appears a universial fact that women love Holby city and trashy soaps, well this novel is the two genres combined into one. Emma Bovary is the ultimate footballer's wife, spending lashiously and flirting seductively. With Flaubert's amazingly presise language this book is as enjoyable as devouring a whole chocolate cake without the calories!

The Loving Spirit, 28 Sep 2007
I have read quite a few du Maurier books and have found them all thought provoking and spell binding, with a real insight into human nature and absorbing plots - apart from this one! I struggled to read it to the end, it took me over 6 months, her others usually take 3 - 4 days! This seemed to be an overly romantic family narrative, that just plodded on with no real depth or plot to it. I'm just very glad that I read some of her others first, or I would have seriously missed out! If you like sickly-sweet romantic sagas than you'll love this, but if you're expecting a striking, gripping tale with a twist (think 'Rebecca','My Cousin Rachel','Rule Britannia' etc)then avoid like the plague!

Great Book, 25 Jul 2007
A book that re-introduced me to reading after a long pause I call `readers block'. It's a passionate tale about family. Maurier uses time as the backdrop & paints a vivid picture of Cornwall during these different periods. Captured my imagination.

My daughter's favourite book, 04 Sep 2006
This is a wonderful story - typical of du Maurier and its atmosphere is one of genuine grief and sadness. It has the capacity to make you cry and you cannot say that about many books! My daughter read this when she was about fourteen and has never forgotten it. She often speaks about it now - this says a lot for the book's content - that it should make such an impression and for it to last for over thirty years.

Enchanting and as du Maurier as ever!, 22 Aug 2000
Fascinating spellbounding characters, du Maurier describes another thrilling family portrait. You can't put it down until you've finished reading, and you would like to start again!

A Masterpiece, 11 Aug 2008
This book is probably a masterpiece. One woman's desperate quest for freedom, and the fatal futility of it as she ventures in a wrong direction. It's a tragedy of the human race: too great to live by rules, too small to be free. Overgrown for crude conventions, dwarfed by the challenges when you break them.

Madame Bovary can't bear her mediocre existence. She loathes her role of the wife of a village doctor; she has no regard for her womanly duties; she cares little about public opinion. She breaks free from it all, and how? In the most conventional way: she takes lovers. Her affairs bring her no love and only fleeting moments of satisfaction. She eventually incurs debts and poisons herself on the day bailiffs raid her house, unable to take the shame.

Could she be blamed for this amateur attempt to make some sense of her life? What other avenues could she explore? There hardly were any opportunities open to women those days to establish themselves professionally. She certainly lacked guidance to become a scholar (she did try to read philosophers, but it didn't take off). She also lacked imagination to make something special of her life, and she didn't find any worthy cause.

She was a product of her class, her upbringing and her society, who dared to question its norms. She thought she was breaking free from those norms, but in reality she was reinforcing them. Norms are not imposed externally. They are within you. They are the building material of your psychic, they guide your actions, and this is the tragedy. But it was still a courageous quest.

The author deserves admiration for being so non-judgemental in this sensitive situation. A woman who cheats on her devoted husband, meanwhile squandering his wealth. She, who selfishly drives her child to the life of an orphan and a pauper. But you close the book feeling only sympathy and sadness at the ways of the world. There's not a trace of moralising here, just a human story.

This book is not an entertainment, not a recreational read. At times the prose becomes too heavy, too crowded. It appears to be in want of finer editing. Do read it if you're prone to think. Don't read it if you want to kill your time.


Beautiful, 13 Mar 2008
How does a man write as though he were a woman?

This was well written, knuckle bighting beautiful stuff.
I read a little of how this book has been recieved before I opened the book. I laughed at all the people who claimed that they were Madame Bovary. But to my dismay I too am her! This book has taught me so much about myself.

I find it very hard to get emotionally involved in a book written by a man I just don't feel that they ever understand the mind of a woman but Mr Flaubert sure does.

This book is highly reccomended by my good self. The advice I give you is to put a weekend aside and read this in one huge chunk, it's much nicer that way. I have a memory now of an amazing weekend of self discovery and some of the finest fiction I have ever encountered.

Surprisingly modern writing, 11 Jul 2007
I can well understand how controversial this novel was when it was first published. Overall it is a vicious portrayal of small town France. Most of the characters are revealed to be self-seeking and vain. At the heart of the story is Emma Bovary - and Flaubert is, I feel, ambivalent in his attitude to her. He sometimes describes her very favourably and at others as selfish hard-hearted. And we as readers share this ambivalence - is she a cruel temptress who cares little for her own child or is she a victim of the social mores and unable to act independently? Certainly the book highlights how women of the time could only find happiness and fulfilment through a male partner.

The ending is prolonged and horrific. Was Flaubert hoping to attract our sympathy for the hapless Emma or was he ensuring that she was suitably punished for her infidelities?

The writing is splendid - surprisingly modern and beautifully descriptive. I am sorry I let this book sit unread on my bookshelf for so long?




Yeah but No but Yeah but..., 11 Jul 2007
I've always maintained that one shouldn't review a book they've studied there are many outside influences bearing down on your reading of the text: enjoyment of class, attitude towards school/teacher, and not least what you're being TOLD to think by teachers, notes and so on. Nevertheless I thought I'd just comment briefly here to clarify the last reviewer's point.
It is my opinion that although Emma is the original footballer's wife (or at least wannabe since by no stretch of the imagination could one ever equate Charles with a Beckham) Madame Bovary is NOT the original trashy novel.
It is no secret that Flaubert was aware of "betise". He thought people were stupid, their words worthless, their feelings fickle and their actions silly to the point of danger (Yes says the pharmacist let's see if we can't cure this man's club foot...). What is unclear is whether the reader, especially the reader who sees this, is included in the generalisation or even whether Flaubert considered himself to be guilty of "betise". And if not why not? This complex thematic point, as well as Flaubert undeniable mastery of language (particularly his pitiless satire of cliche), drags MB from the pastel pink dustcover of (help me with some names here) the average chick lit and into the gentlemanly(/womanly) company of the classics.
This was clearly understood by the previous reviewer but may not be understood clearly, if you understand what I clearly mean?
Also enough with giving Emma all the gip, Homais was a fool (one of a sea of fools) too. If she is Coleen McLoughlin then Homais is who? Jeremy Clarkson? Someone who claims they know a lot, all, the best but really just believes what they read in the papers. Oh wait that's Bono.

The original trashy novel!!, 14 Apr 2006
It is amazing that this book was written by a man because it appeals so well to the woman's senses. It appears a universial fact that women love Holby city and trashy soaps, well this novel is the two genres combined into one. Emma Bovary is the ultimate footballer's wife, spending lashiously and flirting seductively. With Flaubert's amazingly presise language this book is as enjoyable as devouring a whole chocolate cake without the calories!

The Loving Spirit, 28 Sep 2007
I have read quite a few du Maurier books and have found them all thought provoking and spell binding, with a real insight into human nature and absorbing plots - apart from this one! I struggled to read it to the end, it took me over 6 months, her others usually take 3 - 4 days! This seemed to be an overly romantic family narrative, that just plodded on with no real depth or plot to it. I'm just very glad that I read some of her others first, or I would have seriously missed out! If you like sickly-sweet romantic sagas than you'll love this, but if you're expecting a striking, gripping tale with a twist (think 'Rebecca','My Cousin Rachel','Rule Britannia' etc)then avoid like the plague!

Great Book, 25 Jul 2007
A book that re-introduced me to reading after a long pause I call `readers block'. It's a passionate tale about family. Maurier uses time as the backdrop & paints a vivid picture of Cornwall during these different periods. Captured my imagination.

My daughter's favourite book, 04 Sep 2006
This is a wonderful story - typical of du Maurier and its atmosphere is one of genuine grief and sadness. It has the capacity to make you cry and you cannot say that about many books! My daughter read this when she was about fourteen and has never forgotten it. She often speaks about it now - this says a lot for the book's content - that it should make such an impression and for it to last for over thirty years.

Enchanting and as du Maurier as ever!, 22 Aug 2000
Fascinating spellbounding characters, du Maurier describes another thrilling family portrait. You can't put it down until you've finished reading, and you would like to start again!

HHHmmmmm, 04 Jul 2008
I came on here and read the reviews for this book and thought oh this is going to be good even though one person had disagreed and I now have to agree with them.
Thank god this was only 172 pages long. Some parts I found boring others I thought were starting to get good then it went back to boring. I mean who wants to read a chapter on how somoeone has a poo!!!!!!!!!

'Nice' but is that enough?, 02 Apr 2007
I'm afraid I disagree [...].

It certainly is a nice book to read but I found myself having to really get involved with the characters in order to actually become interested. The setting is good - post Second World War France but that was never discussed in great detail. Occasional references to the Jewish people living in the community and relations with German soldiers. However the French culture never seemed to be discussed. Maybe this is my own lack of understanding of French art and philosophy at the time.

The plot itself is simple, 2 girls who are cousins find out a secret. The chapters (as mentioned) inform on the lifestyle the girls and their respective families live. The writing style is good and Roberts does give you an insight into the relationship between two peers of their age. Pleased this was a short book and one which I wouldn't read again.

A chance to intimately relate with a great writers' creativity and inspiration, 04 Jan 2007
One of my favourite authors who has inspired me in so many ways. I was fortunate enough to meet her on the Greek island of Skyros on one of her "Writers Lab" workshops during 2006. She continues to offer the opportunity to aspiring writers to get together and share ideas with regular workshops in both Greece and on the Thai island of Koh Chang. I understand the next workshop in Thailand is happening in January 2007 with a further workshop later in the year in Greece.

Sharing time with a fantastic author, blissful weather and fine company - that really is a good start to the New Year.


One to treasure, 25 Jun 2003
Given its French setting, I would immediately recommend this exquisitely written novel to anyone who has marvelled over the consummate skill behind Monet’s Impressionist paintings of Rouen Cathedral: indistinct blurs which come into focus when you step away from them. And, in a literary context, one of those novels about a difficult and ambiguous past, where the reader reconstructs that past along with the main characters.
Considering that so little is explicitly said, the summer spent by two adolescent girls in post-Second World War France is vividly rendered. The allusive titles of the chapters - “The Frying-Pan”, “The Oranges”, “The Ironing-Board” - are an important clue to the oppressively domestic setting, but also to the way in which deep and disturbing truths lie behind apparently ordinary objects. And the same is true of words. “Her words shot out in a clatter”, reads one sentence about half-way through the narrative. And, throughout the novel, words do indeed clatter, and resound and reverberate, echoing and amplifying earlier words, combining to show how deep and unpleasant truths are to be found beneath platitudinous surfaces.
The veneer of civilised behaviour is always thin and precarious in Michèle Roberts’s novel. And there are dark forests and dark cellars to mirror the dark secrets the novel gradually unfolds. The whole novel is a dark diamond, and one which demands to be contemplated more than once.

A stunning book, 29 Oct 2002
Michele Roberts's 'Daughters of the House' is an eminently re-readable book, haunting and beautiful. Taking as its central conceit the sanitised figure of St. Therese, the novel examines the circumstances bringing her to this point, revealing a web of intrigue and betrayal.

One of Roberts's preoccupations in this novel is the nature of relationships between women, particularly as young girls fighting for both individuality and acceptance. Therese and her 'cousin' Leonie exist almost as the mirror of one another, bound together by their exclusion from family secrets.

The novel is beautifully written, but unobtrusively so; it is carefully constructed to portray a sense of the pre-linguistic state in which the girls exist. It's a truly extraordinary book that I've read at least half-a-dozen times, and will be reading again; every reading reveals another slant, just as Roberts looks beyond the saint to the woman.

The Virgin Mary haunts this book, suggesting the paradoxical nature of femininity that Leonie and Therese are expected to conform to; in this sense, Michele Roberts can be seen as a successor to Margaret Atwood and Sylvia Plath.

In short: this is a fantastic book, well worth putting time aside for, both to read it, and then simply to consider the points it raises. Wonderful, and highly recommended.

A Masterpiece, 11 Aug 2008
This book is probably a masterpiece. One woman's desperate quest for freedom, and the fatal futility of it as she ventures in a wrong direction. It's a tragedy of the human race: too great to live by rules, too small to be free. Overgrown for crude conventions, dwarfed by the challenges when you break them.

Madame Bovary can't bear her mediocre existence. She loathes her role of the wife of a village doctor; she has no regard for her womanly duties; she cares little about public opinion. She breaks free from it all, and how? In the most conventional way: she takes lovers. Her affairs bring her no love and only fleeting moments of satisfaction. She eventually incurs debts and poisons herself on the day bailiffs raid her house, unable to take the shame.

Could she be blamed for this amateur attempt to make some sense of her life? What other avenues could she explore? There hardly were any opportunities open to women those days to establish themselves professionally. She certainly lacked guidance to become a scholar (she did try to read philosophers, but it didn't take off). She also lacked imagination to make something special of her life, and she didn't find any worthy cause.

She was a product of her class, her upbringing and her society, who dared to question its norms. She thought she was breaking free from those norms, but in reality she was reinforcing them. Norms are not imposed externally. They are within you. They are the building material of your psychic, they guide your actions, and this is the tragedy. But it was still a courageous quest.

The author deserves admiration for being so non-judgemental in this sensitive situation. A woman who cheats on her devoted husband, meanwhile squandering his wealth. She, who selfishly drives her child to the life of an orphan and a pauper. But you close the book feeling only sympathy and sadness at the ways of the world. There's not a trace of moralising here, just a human story.

This book is not an entertainment, not a recreational read. At times the prose becomes too heavy, too crowded. It appears to be in want of finer editing. Do read it if you're prone to think. Don't read it if you want to kill your time.


Beautiful, 13 Mar 2008
How does a man write as though he were a woman?

This was well written, knuckle bighting beautiful stuff.
I read a little of how this book has been recieved before I opened the book. I laughed at all the people who claimed that they were Madame Bovary. But to my dismay I too am her! This book has taught me so much about myself.

I find it very hard to get emotionally involved in a book written by a man I just don't feel that they ever understand the mind of a woman but Mr Flaubert sure does.

This book is highly reccomended by my good self. The advice I give you is to put a weekend aside and read this in one huge chunk, it's much nicer that way. I have a memory now of an amazing weekend of self discovery and some of the finest fiction I have ever encountered.

Surprisingly modern writing, 11 Jul 2007
I can well understand how controversial this novel was when it was first published. Overall it is a vicious portrayal of small town France. Most of the characters are revealed to be self-seeking and vain. At the heart of the story is Emma Bovary - and Flaubert is, I feel, ambivalent in his attitude to her. He sometimes describes her very favourably and at others as selfish hard-hearted. And we as readers share this ambivalence - is she a cruel temptress who cares little for her own child or is she a victim of the social mores and unable to act independently? Certainly the book highlights how women of the time could only find happiness and fulfilment through a male partner.

The ending is prolonged and horrific. Was Flaubert hoping to attract our sympathy for the hapless Emma or was he ensuring that she was suitably punished for her infidelities?

The writing is splendid - surprisingly modern and beautifully descriptive. I am sorry I let this book sit unread on my bookshelf for so long?




Yeah but No but Yeah but..., 11 Jul 2007
I've always maintained that one shouldn't review a book they've studied there are many outside influences bearing down on your reading of the text: enjoyment of class, attitude towards school/teacher, and not least what you're being TOLD to think by teachers, notes and so on. Nevertheless I thought I'd just comment briefly here to clarify the last reviewer's point.
It is my opinion that although Emma is the original footballer's wife (or at least wannabe since by no stretch of the imagination could one ever equate Charles with a Beckham) Madame Bovary is NOT the original trashy novel.
It is no secret that Flaubert was aware of "betise". He thought people were stupid, their words worthless, their feelings fickle and their actions silly to the point of danger (Yes says the pharmacist let's see if we can't cure this man's club foot...). What is unclear is whether the reader, especially the reader who sees this, is included in the generalisation or even whether Flaubert considered himself to be guilty of "betise". And if not why not? This complex thematic point, as well as Flaubert undeniable mastery of language (particularly his pitiless satire of cliche), drags MB from the pastel pink dustcover of (help me with some names here) the average chick lit and into the gentlemanly(/womanly) company of the classics.
This was clearly understood by the previous reviewer but may not be understood clearly, if you understand what I clearly mean?
Also enough with giving Emma all the gip, Homais was a fool (one of a sea of fools) too. If she is Coleen McLoughlin then Homais is who? Jeremy Clarkson? Someone who claims they know a lot, all, the best but really just believes what they read in the papers. Oh wait that's Bono.

The original trashy novel!!, 14 Apr 2006
It is amazing that this book was written by a man because it appeals so well to the woman's senses. It appears a universial fact that women love Holby city and trashy soaps, well this novel is the two genres combined into one. Emma Bovary is the ultimate footballer's wife, spending lashiously and flirting seductively. With Flaubert's amazingly presise language this book is as enjoyable as devouring a whole chocolate cake without the calories!

The Loving Spirit, 28 Sep 2007
I have read quite a few du Maurier books and have found them all thought provoking and spell binding, with a real insight into human nature and absorbing plots - apart from this one! I struggled to read it to the end, it took me over 6 months, her others usually take 3 - 4 days! This seemed to be an overly romantic family narrative, that just plodded on with no real depth or plot to it. I'm just very glad that I read some of her others first, or I would have seriously missed out! If you like sickly-sweet romantic sagas than you'll love this, but if you're expecting a striking, gripping tale with a twist (think 'Rebecca','My Cousin Rachel','Rule Britannia' etc)then avoid like the plague!

Great Book, 25 Jul 2007
A book that re-introduced me to reading after a long pause I call `readers block'. It's a passionate tale about family. Maurier uses time as the backdrop & paints a vivid picture of Cornwall during these different periods. Captured my imagination.

My daughter's favourite book, 04 Sep 2006
This is a wonderful story - typical of du Maurier and its atmosphere is one of genuine grief and sadness. It has the capacity to make you cry and you cannot say that about many books! My daughter read this when she was about fourteen and has never forgotten it. She often speaks about it now - this says a lot for the book's content - that it should make such an impression and for it to last for over thirty years.

Enchanting and as du Maurier as ever!, 22 Aug 2000
Fascinating spellbounding characters, du Maurier describes another thrilling family portrait. You can't put it down until you've finished reading, and you would like to start again!

HHHmmmmm, 04 Jul 2008
I came on here and read the reviews for this book and thought oh this is going to be good even though one person had disagreed and I now have to agree with them.
Thank god this was only 172 pages long. Some parts I found boring others I thought were starting to get good then it went back to boring. I mean who wants to read a chapter on how somoeone has a poo!!!!!!!!!

'Nice' but is that enough?, 02 Apr 2007
I'm afraid I disagree [...].

It certainly is a nice book to read but I found myself having to really get involved with the characters in order to actually become interested. The setting is good - post Second World War France but that was never discussed in great detail. Occasional references to the Jewish people living in the community and relations with German soldiers. However the French culture never seemed to be discussed. Maybe this is my own lack of understanding of French art and philosophy at the time.

The plot itself is simple, 2 girls who are cousins find out a secret. The chapters (as mentioned) inform on the lifestyle the girls and their respective families live. The writing style is good and Roberts does give you an insight into the relationship between two peers of their age. Pleased this was a short book and one which I wouldn't read again.

A chance to intimately relate with a great writers' creativity and inspiration, 04 Jan 2007
One of my favourite authors who has inspired me in so many ways. I was fortunate enough to meet her on the Greek island of Skyros on one of her "Writers Lab" workshops during 2006. She continues to offer the opportunity to aspiring writers to get together and share ideas with regular workshops in both Greece and on the Thai island of Koh Chang. I understand the next workshop in Thailand is happening in January 2007 with a further workshop later in the year in Greece.

Sharing time with a fantastic author, blissful weather and fine company - that really is a good start to the New Year.


One to treasure, 25 Jun 2003
Given its French setting, I would immediately recommend this exquisitely written novel to anyone who has marvelled over the consummate skill behind Monet’s Impressionist paintings of Rouen Cathedral: indistinct blurs which come into focus when you step away from them. And, in a literary context, one of those novels about a difficult and ambiguous past, where the reader reconstructs that past along with the main characters.
Considering that so little is explicitly said, the summer spent by two adolescent girls in post-Second World War France is vividly rendered. The allusive titles of the chapters - “The Frying-Pan”, “The Oranges”, “The Ironing-Board” - are an important clue to the oppressively domestic setting, but also to the way in which deep and disturbing truths lie behind apparently ordinary objects. And the same is true of words. “Her words shot out in a clatter”, reads one sentence about half-way through the narrative. And, throughout the novel, words do indeed clatter, and resound and reverberate, echoing and amplifying earlier words, combining to show how deep and unpleasant truths are to be found beneath platitudinous surfaces.
The veneer of civilised behaviour is always thin and precarious in Michèle Roberts’s novel. And there are dark forests and dark cellars to mirror the dark secrets the novel gradually unfolds. The whole novel is a dark diamond, and one which demands to be contemplated more than once.

A stunning book, 29 Oct 2002
Michele Roberts's 'Daughters of the House' is an eminently re-readable book, haunting and beautiful. Taking as its central conceit the sanitised figure of St. Therese, the novel examines the circumstances bringing her to this point, revealing a web of intrigue and betrayal.

One of Roberts's preoccupations in this novel is the nature of relationships between women, particularly as young girls fighting for both individuality and acceptance. Therese and her 'cousin' Leonie exist almost as the mirror of one another, bound together by their exclusion from family secrets.

The novel is beautifully written, but unobtrusively so; it is carefully constructed to portray a sense of the pre-linguistic state in which the girls exist. It's a truly extraordinary book that I've read at least half-a-dozen times, and will be reading again; every reading reveals another slant, just as Roberts looks beyond the saint to the woman.

The Virgin Mary haunts this book, suggesting the paradoxical nature of femininity that Leonie and Therese are expected to conform to; in this sense, Michele Roberts can be seen as a successor to Margaret Atwood and Sylvia Plath.

In short: this is a fantastic book, well worth putting time aside for, both to read it, and then simply to consider the points it raises. Wonderful, and highly recommended.

Bound to Become a Classic of the Genre, 25 Mar 2006
The stories in 'Read By Dawn' involve very little 'slash, blood and gore'. They don't need it.

Instead, they captivate the readers' imaginations with intrigueing plot devellopments.

The chill factor stems from the fact that almost any of these stories could really happen. In most of these storiess, the protagonists could be you or I, or the parent or child next door.

The opening situations are familiar. As readers, we recognize the worlds in which these people live, their routines and daily concerns. We know something bad is going to happen - something very bad indeed.

The authors skilfully lead us on, luring us deeper and deeper into their stories as events spiral out of control. Some protagonists escape, others will be 'Dead by Dawn'.

It is the very realism of these stories, the fact that they could happen on our very doorstep tomorrow, that makes this collection so special. Some of the stories leave us unquiet for long after, wondering if this horror could perhaps happen to us, or to someone we love.

In Rayne Hall's chilling 'The Bridge Chamber', three children play inside the masonry of an old railway bridge, exploring tunnels and corridors within the structure. They all are afraid of the dark spaces and where they may lead, but each fears the others' derision more. Rather than admit how scared she is and get bullied, Garnet pretends to be familiar with one particular tunnel and claims that it leads to a chamber. When she realises the truth, it is too late. This is a story which will disquiet the reader for long afterwards, wondering what they might do if trapped in the same situation.

Equally frightening is 'The Face in the Glass' by Brian G Ross, a flash-length story which disturbs by its plausibility. Given an inquisitive toddler and a distracted mum, how easily could this tale become true!

Another short, simple yet powerful piece is 'What Betty Saw' by Joel Jacobs. The author defies conventional story structure by explaining the character, with the actual 'plot' taking up only a few sentences at the end. On first reading, I was disappointed. It was so simple. But then the story wouldn't let me go. Two weeks after first reading it, it still spooks in my mind. If I were in Betty's place, would I tell anyone? How would I react, what would I do?

Ramsey Campbell's 'Place of Revelation' allows us to share the experiences of a boy who is being singled out by his uncle for a special kind of education. The boy can prove that he is up to his uncle's high expectations of him, but does he want this to happen? And more importantly, will he be able to stand up for himself? I sympathised with the boy entirely.

In David Hutchinson's 'The Sutherland King', an annual baking contest leads to friendly rivalry among women friends - and to macabre twists, the last of which took me entirely by surprise.

Very few of the stories rely on the supernatural for scares. Michele Lee's werewolf crime story 'Bloodwalker' reminds me of the way Laurell K Hamilton writes about vampires, and Ralph Robert Moore in 'The Little Girl Who Lives in the Woods' introduces a very human ghost - or is it a ghostly human?

There are many more dark jewels in this treasure box - 28 stories altogether -, and no doubt every reader will pick her or his own favourites. I loved most of the tales, especially for their plausibility and their disquieting 'after effects', and believe this is one of the best horror anthologies ever published.

If you enjoy this anthology, I also recommend 'Dark Delicacies', a collection of contemporary horror stories by great writers such as William F Nolan, Clive Barker, D. Lynn Smith, Ramsey Campbell, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro.

A Masterpiece, 11 Aug 2008
This book is probably a masterpiece. One woman's desperate quest for freedom, and the fatal futility of it as she ventures in a wrong direction. It's a tragedy of the human race: too great to live by rules, too small to be free. Overgrown for crude conventions, dwarfed by the challenges when you break them.

Madame Bovary can't bear her mediocre existence. She loathes her role of the wife of a village doctor; she has no regard for her womanly duties; she cares little about public opinion. She breaks free from it all, and how? In the most conventional way: she takes lovers. Her affairs bring her no love and only fleeting moments of satisfaction. She eventually incurs debts and poisons herself on the day bailiffs raid her house, unable to take the shame.

Could she be blamed for this amateur attempt to make some sense of her life? What other avenues could she explore? There hardly were any opportunities open to women those days to establish themselves professionally. She certainly lacked guidance to become a scholar (she did try to read philosophers, but it didn't take off). She also lacked imagination to make something special of her life, and she didn't find any worthy cause.

She was a product of her class, her upbringing and her society, who dared to question its norms. She thought she was breaking free from those norms, but in reality she was reinforcing them. Norms are not imposed externally. They are within you. They are the building material of your psychic, they guide your actions, and this is the tragedy. But it was still a courageous quest.

The author deserves admiration for being so non-judgemental in this sensitive situation. A woman who cheats on her devoted husband, meanwhile squandering his wealth. She, who selfishly drives her child to the life of an orphan and a pauper. But you close the book feeling only sympathy and sadness at the ways of the world. There's not a trace of moralising here, just a human story.

This book is not an entertainment, not a recreational read. At times the prose becomes too heavy, too crowded. It appears to be in want of finer editing. Do read it if you're prone to think. Don't read it if you want to kill your time.


Beautiful, 13 Mar 2008
How does a man write as though he were a woman?

This was well written, knuckle bighting beautiful stuff.
I read a little of how this book has been recieved before I opened the book. I laughed at all the people who claimed that they were Madame Bovary. But to my dismay I too am her! This book has taught me so much about myself.

I find it very hard to get emotionally involved in a book written by a man I just don't feel that they ever understand the mind of a woman but Mr Flaubert sure does.

This book is highly reccomended by my good self. The advice I give you is to put a weekend aside and read this in one huge chunk, it's much nicer that way. I have a memory now of an amazing weekend of self discovery and some of the finest fiction I have ever encountered.

Surprisingly modern writing, 11 Jul 2007
I can well understand how controversial this novel was when it was first published. Overall it is a vicious portrayal of small town France. Most of the characters are revealed to be self-seeking and vain. At the heart of the story is Emma Bovary - and Flaubert is, I feel, ambivalent in his attitude to her. He sometimes describes her very favourably and at others as selfish hard-hearted. And we as readers share this ambivalence - is she a cruel temptress who cares little for her own child or is she a victim of the social mores and unable to act independently? Certainly the book highlights how women of the time could only find happiness and fulfilment through a male partner.

The ending is prolonged and horrific. Was Flaubert hoping to attract our sympathy for the hapless Emma or was he ensuring that she was suitably punished for her infidelities?

The writing is splendid - surprisingly modern and beautifully descriptive. I am sorry I let this book sit unread on my bookshelf for so long?




Yeah but No but Yeah but..., 11 Jul 2007
I've always maintained that one shouldn't review a book they've studied there are many outside influences bearing down on your reading of the text: enjoyment of class, attitude towards school/teacher, and not least what you're being TOLD to think by teachers, notes and so on. Nevertheless I thought I'd just comment briefly here to clarify the last reviewer's point.
It is my opinion that although Emma is the original footballer's wife (or at least wannabe since by no stretch of the imagination could one ever equate Charles with a Beckham) Madame Bovary is NOT the original trashy novel.
It is no secret that Flaubert was aware of "betise". He thought people were stupid, their words worthless, their feelings fickle and their actions silly to the point of danger (Yes says the pharmacist let's see if we can't cure this man's club foot...). What is unclear is whether the reader, especially the reader who sees this, is included in the generalisation or even whether Flaubert considered himself to be guilty of "betise". And if not why not? This complex thematic point, as well as Flaubert undeniable mastery of language (particularly his pitiless satire of cliche), drags MB from the pastel pink dustcover of (help me with some names here) the average chick lit and into the gentlemanly(/womanly) company of the classics.
This was clearly understood by the previous reviewer but may not be understood clearly, if you understand what I clearly mean?
Also enough with giving Emma all the gip, Homais was a fool (one of a sea of fools) too. If she is Coleen McLoughlin then Homais is who? Jeremy Clarkson? Someone who claims they know a lot, all, the best but really just believes what they read in the papers. Oh wait that's Bono.

The original trashy novel!!, 14 Apr 2006
It is amazing that this book was written by a man because it appeals so well to the woman's senses. It appears a universial fact that women love Holby city and trashy soaps, well this novel is the two genres combined into one. Emma Bovary is the ultimate footballer's wife, spending lashiously and flirting seductively. With Flaubert's amazingly presise language this book is as enjoyable as devouring a whole chocolate cake without the calories!

The Loving Spirit, 28 Sep 2007
I have read quite a few du Maurier books and have found them all thought provoking and spell binding, with a real insight into human nature and absorbing plots - apart from this one! I struggled to read it to the end, it took me over 6 months, her others usually take 3 - 4 days! This seemed to be an overly romantic family narrative, that just plodded on with no real depth or plot to it. I'm just very glad that I read some of her others first, or I would have seriously missed out! If you like sickly-sweet romantic sagas than you'll love this, but if you're expecting a striking, gripping tale with a twist (think 'Rebecca','My Cousin Rachel','Rule Britannia' etc)then avoid like the plague!

Great Book, 25 Jul 2007
A book that re-introduced me to reading after a long pause I call `readers block'. It's a passionate tale about family. Maurier uses time as the backdrop & paints a vivid picture of Cornwall during these different periods. Captured my imagination.

My daughter's favourite book, 04 Sep 2006
This is a wonderful story - typical of du Maurier and its atmosphere is one of genuine grief and sadness. It has the capacity to make you cry and you cannot say that about many books! My daughter read this when she was about fourteen and has never forgotten it. She often speaks about it now - this says a lot for the book's content - that it should make such an impression and for it to last for over thirty years.

Enchanting and as du Maurier as ever!, 22 Aug 2000
Fascinating spellbounding characters, du Maurier describes another thrilling family portrait. You can't put it down until you've finished reading, and you would like to start again!

HHHmmmmm, 04 Jul 2008
I came on here and read the reviews for this book and thought oh this is going to be good even though one person had disagreed and I now have to agree with them.
Thank god this was only 172 pages long. Some parts I found boring others I thought were starting to get good then it went back to boring. I mean who wants to read a chapter on how somoeone has a poo!!!!!!!!!

'Nice' but is that enough?, 02 Apr 2007
I'm afraid I disagree [...].

It certainly is a nice book to read but I found myself having to really get involved with the characters in order to actually become interested. The setting is good - post Second World War France but that was never discussed in great detail. Occasional references to the Jewish people living in the community and relations with German soldiers. However the French culture never seemed to be discussed. Maybe this is my own lack of understanding of French art and philosophy at the time.

The plot itself is simple, 2 girls who are cousins find out a secret. The chapters (as mentioned) inform on the lifestyle the girls and their respective families live. The writing style is good and Roberts does give you an insight into the relationship between two peers of their age. Pleased this was a short book and one which I wouldn't read again.

A chance to intimately relate with a great writers' creativity and inspiration, 04 Jan 2007
One of my favourite authors who has inspired me in so many ways. I was fortunate enough to meet her on the Greek island of Skyros on one of her "Writers Lab" workshops during 2006. She continues to offer the opportunity to aspiring writers to get together and share ideas with regular workshops in both Greece and on the Thai island of Koh Chang. I understand the next workshop in Thailand is happening in January 2007 with a further workshop later in the year in Greece.

Sharing time with a fantastic author, blissful weather and fine company - that really is a good start to the New Year.


One to treasure, 25 Jun 2003
Given its French setting, I would immediately recommend this exquisitely written novel to anyone who has marvelled over the consummate skill behind Monet’s Impressionist paintings of Rouen Cathedral: indistinct blurs which come into focus when you step away from them. And, in a literary context, one of those novels about a difficult and ambiguous past, where the reader reconstructs that past along with the main characters.
Considering that so little is explicitly said, the summer spent by two adolescent girls in post-Second World War France is vividly rendered. The allusive titles of the chapters - “The Frying-Pan”, “The Oranges”, “The Ironing-Board” - are an important clue to the oppressively domestic setting, but also to the way in which deep and disturbing truths lie behind apparently ordinary objects. And the same is true of words. “Her words shot out in a clatter”, reads one sentence about half-way through the narrative. And, throughout the novel, words do indeed clatter, and resound and reverberate, echoing and amplifying earlier words, combining to show how deep and unpleasant truths are to be found beneath platitudinous surfaces.
The veneer of civilised behaviour is always thin and precarious in Michèle Roberts’s novel. And there are dark forests and dark cellars to mirror the dark secrets the novel gradually unfolds. The whole novel is a dark diamond, and one which demands to be contemplated more than once.

A stunning book, 29 Oct 2002
Michele Roberts's 'Daughters of the House' is an eminently re-readable book, haunting and beautiful. Taking as its central conceit the sanitised figure of St. Therese, the novel examines the circumstances bringing her to this point, revealing a web of intrigue and betrayal.

One of Roberts's preoccupations in this novel is the nature of relationships between women, particularly as young girls fighting for both individuality and acceptance. Therese and her 'cousin' Leonie exist almost as the mirror of one another, bound together by their exclusion from family secrets.

The novel is beautifully written, but unobtrusively so; it is carefully constructed to portray a sense of the pre-linguistic state in which the girls exist. It's a truly extraordinary book that I've read at least half-a-dozen times, and will be reading again; every reading reveals another slant, just as Roberts looks beyond the saint to the woman.

The Virgin Mary haunts this book, suggesting the paradoxical nature of femininity that Leonie and Therese are expected to conform to; in this sense, Michele Roberts can be seen as a successor to Margaret Atwood and Sylvia Plath.

In short: this is a fantastic book, well worth putting time aside for, both to read it, and then simply to consider the points it raises. Wonderful, and highly recommended.

Bound to Become a Classic of the Genre, 25 Mar 2006
The stories in 'Read By Dawn' involve very little 'slash, blood and gore'. They don't need it.

Instead, they captivate the readers' imaginations with intrigueing plot devellopments.

The chill factor stems from the fact that almost any of these stories could really happen. In most of these storiess, the protagonists could be you or I, or the parent or child next door.

The opening situations are familiar. As readers, we recognize the worlds in which these people live, their routines and daily concerns. We know something bad is going to happen - something very bad indeed.

The authors skilfully lead us on, luring us deeper and deeper into their stories as events spiral out of control. Some protagonists escape, others will be 'Dead by Dawn'.

It is the very realism of these stories, the fact that they could happen on our very doorstep tomorrow, that makes this collection so special. Some of the stories leave us unquiet for long after, wondering if this horror could perhaps happen to us, or to someone we love.

In Rayne Hall's chilling 'The Bridge Chamber', three children play inside the masonry of an old railway bridge, exploring tunnels and corridors within the structure. They all are afraid of the dark spaces and where they may lead, but each fears the others' derision more. Rather than admit how scared she is and get bullied, Garnet pretends to be familiar with one particular tunnel and claims that it leads to a chamber. When she realises the truth, it is too late. This is a story which will disquiet the reader for long afterwards, wondering what they might do if trapped in the same situation.

Equally frightening is 'The Face in the Glass' by Brian G Ross, a flash-length story which disturbs by its plausibility. Given an inquisitive toddler and a distracted mum, how easily could this tale become true!

Another short, simple yet powerful piece is 'What Betty Saw' by Joel Jacobs. The author defies conventional story structure by explaining the character, with the actual 'plot' taking up only a few sentences at the end. On first reading, I was disappointed. It was so simple. But then the story wouldn't let me go. Two weeks after first reading it, it still spooks in my mind. If I were in Betty's place, would I tell anyone? How would I react, what would I do?

Ramsey Campbell's 'Place of Revelation' allows us to share the experiences of a boy who is being singled out by his uncle for a special kind of education. The boy can prove that he is up to his uncle's high expectations of him, but does he want this to happen? And more importantly, will he be able to stand up for himself? I sympathised with the boy entirely.

In David Hutchinson's 'The Sutherland King', an annual baking contest leads to friendly rivalry among women friends - and to macabre twists, the last of which took me entirely by surprise.

Very few of the stories rely on the supernatural for scares. Michele Lee's werewolf crime story 'Bloodwalker' reminds me of the way Laurell K Hamilton writes about vampires, and Ralph Robert Moore in 'The Little Girl Who Lives in the Woods' introduces a very human ghost - or is it a ghostly human?

There are many more dark jewels in this treasure box - 28 stories altogether -, and no doubt every reader will pick her or his own favourites. I loved most of the tales, especially for their plausibility and their disquieting 'after effects', and believe this is one of the best horror anthologies ever published.

If you enjoy this anthology, I also recommend 'Dark Delicacies', a collection of contemporary horror stories by great writers such as William F Nolan, Clive Barker, D. Lynn Smith, Ramsey Campbell, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro.

Disappointing - an old book repackaged., 23 May 2008
I really looked forward to this book, and was disappointed on receiving it to discover that it is not the story of Mary revisited by Michele Roberts, but her previous book 'The Wild Girl', published under a new title. I feel rather cheated!

A Masterpiece, 11 Aug 2008
This book is probably a masterpiece. One woman's desperate quest for freedom, and the fatal futility of it as she ventures in a wrong direction. It's a tragedy of the human race: too great to live by rules, too small to be free. Overgrown for crude conventions, dwarfed by the challenges when you break them.

Madame Bovary can't bear her mediocre existence. She loathes her role of the wife of a village doctor; she has no regard for her womanly duties; she cares little about public opinion. She breaks free from it all, and how? In the most conventional way: she takes lovers. Her affairs bring her no love and only fleeting moments of satisfaction. She eventually incurs debts and poisons herself on the day bailiffs raid her house, unable to take the shame.

Could she be blamed for this amateur attempt to make some sense of her life? What other avenues could she explore? There hardly were any opportunities open to women those days to establish themselves professionally. She certainly lacked guidance to become a scholar (she did try to read philosophers, but it didn't take off). She also lacked imagination to make something special of her life, and she didn't find any worthy cause.

She was a product of her class, her upbringing and her society, who dared to question its norms. She thought she was breaking free from those norms, but in reality she was reinforcing them. Norms are not imposed externally. They are within you. They are the building material of your psychic, they guide your actions, and this is the tragedy. But it was still a courageous quest.

The author deserves admiration for being so non-judgemental in this sensitive situation. A woman who cheats on her devoted husband, meanwhile squandering his wealth. She, who selfishly drives her child to the life of an orphan and a pauper. But you close the book feeling only sympathy and sadness at the ways of the world. There's not a trace of moralising here, just a human story.

This book is not an entertainment, not a recreational read. At times the prose becomes too heavy, too crowded. It appears to be in want of finer editing. Do read it if you're prone to think. Don't read it if you want to kill your time.


Beautiful, 13 Mar 2008
How does a man write as though he were a woman?

This was well written, knuckle bighting beautiful stuff.
I read a little of how this book has been recieved before I opened the book. I laughed at all the people who claimed that they were Madame Bovary. But to my dismay I too am her! This book has taught me so much about myself.

I find it very hard to get emotionally involved in a book written by a man I just don't feel that they ever understand the mind of a woman but Mr Flaubert sure does.

This book is highly reccomended by my good self. The advice I give you is to put a weekend aside and read this in one huge chunk, it's much nicer that way. I have a memory now of an amazing weekend of self discovery and some of the finest fiction I have ever encountered.

Surprisingly modern writing, 11 Jul 2007
I can well understand how controversial this novel was when it was first published. Overall it is a vicious portrayal of small town France. Most of the characters are revealed to be self-seeking and vain. At the heart of the story is Emma Bovary - and Flaubert is, I feel, ambivalent in his attitude to her. He sometimes describes her very favourably and at others as selfish hard-hearted. And we as readers share this ambivalence - is she a cruel temptress who cares little for her own child or is she a victim of the social mores and unable to act independently? Certainly the book highlights how women of the time could only find happiness and fulfilment through a male partner.

The ending is prolonged and horrific. Was Flaubert hoping to attract our sympathy for the hapless Emma or was he ensuring that she was suitably punished for her infidelities?

The writing is splendid - surprisingly modern and beautifully descriptive. I am sorry I let this book sit unread on my bookshelf for so long?




Yeah but No but Yeah but..., 11 Jul 2007
I've always maintained that one shouldn't review a book they've studied there are many outside influences bearing down on your reading of the text: enjoyment of class, attitude towards school/teacher, and not least what you're being TOLD to think by teachers, notes and so on. Nevertheless I thought I'd just comment briefly here to clarify the last reviewer's point.
It is my opinion that although Emma is the original footballer's wife (or at least wannabe since by no stretch of the imagination could one ever equate Charles with a Beckham) Madame Bovary is NOT the original trashy novel.
It is no secret that Flaubert was aware of "betise". He thought people were stupid, their words worthless, their feelings fickle and their actions silly to the point of danger (Yes says the pharmacist let's see if we can't cure this man's club foot...). What is unclear is whether the reader, especially the reader who sees this, is included in the generalisation or even whether Flaubert considered himself to be guilty of "betise". And if not why not? This complex thematic point, as well as Flaubert undeniable mastery of language (particularly his pitiless satire of cliche), drags MB from the pastel pink dustcover of (help me with some names here) the average chick lit and into the gentlemanly(/womanly) company of the classics.
This was clearly understood by the previous reviewer but may not be understood clearly, if you understand what I clearly mean?
Also enough with giving Emma all the gip, Homais was a fool (one of a sea of fools) too. If she is Coleen McLoughlin then Homais is who? Jeremy Clarkson? Someone who claims they know a lot, all, the best but really just believes what they read in the papers. Oh wait that's Bono.

The original trashy novel!!, 14 Apr 2006
It is amazing that this book was written by a man because it appeals so well to the woman's senses. It appears a universial fact that women love Holby city and trashy soaps, well this novel is the two genres combined into one. Emma Bovary is the ultimate footballer's wife, spending lashiously and flirting seductively. With Flaubert's amazingly presise language this book is as enjoyable as devouring a whole chocolate cake without the calories!

The Loving Spirit, 28 Sep 2007
I have read quite a few du Maurier books and have found them all thought provoking and spell binding, with a real insight into human nature and absorbing plots - apart from this one! I struggled to read it to the end, it took me over 6 months, her others usually take 3 - 4 days! This seemed to be an overly romantic family narrative, that just plodded on with no real depth or plot to it. I'm just very glad that I read some of her others first, or I would have seriously missed out! If you like sickly-sweet romantic sagas than you'll love this, but if you're expecting a striking, gripping tale with a twist (think 'Rebecca','My Cousin Rachel','Rule Britannia' etc)then avoid like the plague!

Great Book, 25 Jul 2007
A book that re-introduced me to reading after a long pause I call `readers block'. It's a passionate tale about family. Maurier uses time as the backdrop & paints a vivid picture of Cornwall during these different periods. Captured my imagination.

My daughter's favourite book, 04 Sep 2006
This is a wonderful story - typical of du Maurier and its atmosphere is one of genuine grief and sadness. It has the capacity to make you cry and you cannot say that about many books! My daughter read this when she was about fourteen and has never forgotten it. She often speaks about it now - this says a lot for the book's content - that it should make such an impression and for it to last for over thirty years.

Enchanting and as du Maurier as ever!, 22 Aug 2000
Fascinating spellbounding characters, du Maurier describes another thrilling family portrait. You can't put it down until you've finished reading, and you would like to start again!

HHHmmmmm, 04 Jul 2008
I came on here and read the reviews for this book and thought oh this is going to be good even though one person had disagreed and I now have to agree with them.
Thank god this was only 172 pages long. Some parts I found boring others I thought were starting to get good then it went back to boring. I mean who wants to read a chapter on how somoeone has a poo!!!!!!!!!

'Nice' but is that enough?, 02 Apr 2007
I'm afraid I disagree [...].

It certainly is a nice book to read but I found myself having to really get involved with the characters in order to actually become interested. The setting is good - post Second World War France but that was never discussed in great detail. Occasional references to the Jewish people living in the community and relations with German soldiers. However the French culture never seemed to be discussed. Maybe this is my own lack of understanding of French art and philosophy at the time.

The plot itself is simple, 2 girls who are cousins find out a secret. The chapters (as mentioned) inform on the lifestyle the girls and their respective families live. The writing style is good and Roberts does give you an insight into the relationship between two peers of their age. Pleased this was a short book and one which I wouldn't read again.

A chance to intimately relate with a great writers' creativity and inspiration, 04 Jan 2007
One of my favourite authors who has inspired me in so many ways. I was fortunate enough to meet her on the Greek island of Skyros on one of her "Writers Lab" workshops during 2006. She continues to offer the opportunity to aspiring writers to get together and share ideas with regular workshops in both Greece and on the Thai island of Koh Chang. I understand the next workshop in Thailand is happening in January 2007 with a further workshop later in the year in Greece.

Sharing time with a fantastic author, blissful weather and fine company - that really is a good start to the New Year.


One to treasure, 25 Jun 2003
Given its French setting, I would immediately recommend this exquisitely written novel to anyone who has marvelled over the consummate skill behind Monet’s Impressionist paintings of Rouen Cathedral: indistinct blurs which come into focus when you step away from them. And, in a literary context, one of those novels about a difficult and ambiguous past, where the reader reconstructs that past along with the main characters.
Considering that so little is explicitly said, the summer spent by two adolescent girls in post-Second World War France is vividly rendered. The allusive titles of the chapters - “The Frying-Pan”, “The Oranges”, “The Ironing-Board” - are an important clue to the oppressively domestic setting, but also to the way in which deep and disturbing truths lie behind apparently ordinary objects. And the same is true of words. “Her words shot out in a clatter”, reads one sentence about half-way through the narrative. And, throughout the novel, words do indeed clatter, and resound and reverberate, echoing and amplifying earlier words, combining to show how deep and unpleasant truths are to be found beneath platitudinous surfaces.
The veneer of civilised behaviour is always thin and precarious in Michèle Roberts’s novel. And there are dark forests and dark cellars to mirror the dark secrets the novel gradually unfolds. The whole novel is a dark diamond, and one which demands to be contemplated more than once.

A stunning book, 29 Oct 2002
Michele Roberts's 'Daughters of the House' is an eminently re-readable book, haunting and beautiful. Taking as its central conceit the sanitised figure of St. Therese, the novel examines the circumstances bringing her to this point, revealing a web of intrigue and betrayal.

One of Roberts's preoccupations in this novel is the nature of relationships between women, particularly as young girls fighting for both individuality and acceptance. Therese and her 'cousin' Leonie exist almost as the mirror of one another, bound together by their exclusion from family secrets.

The novel is beautifully written, but unobtrusively so; it is carefully constructed to portray a sense of the pre-linguistic state in which the girls exist. It's a truly extraordinary book that I've read at least half-a-dozen times, and will be reading again; every reading reveals another slant, just as Roberts looks beyond the saint to the woman.

The Virgin Mary haunts this book, suggesting the paradoxical nature of femininity that Leonie and Therese are expected to conform to; in this sense, Michele Roberts can be seen as a successor to Margaret Atwood and Sylvia Plath.

In short: this is a fantastic book, well worth putting time aside for, both to read it, and then simply to consider the points it raises. Wonderful, and highly recommended.

Bound to Become a Classic of the Genre, 25 Mar 2006
The stories in 'Read By Dawn' involve very little 'slash, blood and gore'. They don't need it.

Instead, they captivate the readers' imaginations with intrigueing plot devellopments.

The chill factor stems from the fact that almost any of these stories could really happen. In most of these storiess, the protagonists could be you or I, or the parent or child next door.

The opening situations are familiar. As readers, we recognize the worlds in which these people live, their routines and daily concerns. We know something bad is going to happen - something very bad indeed.

The authors skilfully lead us on, luring us deeper and deeper into their stories as events spiral out of control. Some protagonists escape, others will be 'Dead by Dawn'.

It is the very realism of these stories, the fact that they could happen on our very doorstep tomorrow, that makes this collection so special. Some of the stories leave us unquiet for long after, wondering if this horror could perhaps happen to us, or to someone we love.

In Rayne Hall's chilling 'The Bridge Chamber', three children play inside the masonry of an old railway bridge, exploring tunnels and corridors within the structure. They all are afraid of the dark spaces and where they may lead, but each fears the others' derision more. Rather than admit how scared she is and get bullied, Garnet pretends to be familiar with one particular tunnel and claims that it leads to a chamber. When she realises the truth, it is too late. This is a story which will disquiet the reader for long afterwards, wondering what they might do if trapped in the same situation.

Equally frightening is 'The Face in the Glass' by Brian G Ross, a flash-length story which disturbs by its plausibility. Given an inquisitive toddler and a distracted mum, how easily could this tale become true!

Another short, simple yet powerful piece is 'What Betty Saw' by Joel Jacobs. The author defies conventional story structure by explaining the character, with the actual 'plot' taking up only a few sentences at the end. On first reading, I was disappointed. It was so simple. But then the story wouldn't let me go. Two weeks after first reading it, it still spooks in my mind. If I were in Betty's place, would I tell anyone? How would I react, what would I do?

Ramsey Campbell's 'Place of Revelation' allows us to share the experiences of a boy who is being singled out by his uncle for a special kind of education. The boy can prove that he is up to his uncle's high expectations of him, but does he want this to happen? And more importantly, will he be able to stand up for himself? I sympathised with the boy entirely.

In David Hutchinson's 'The Sutherland King', an annual baking contest leads to friendly rivalry among women friends - and to macabre twists, the last of which took me entirely by surprise.

Very few of the stories rely on the supernatural for scares. Michele Lee's werewolf crime story 'Bloodwalker' reminds me of the way Laurell K Hamilton writes about vampires, and Ralph Robert Moore in 'The Little Girl Who Lives in the Woods' introduces a very human ghost - or is it a ghostly human?

There are many more dark jewels in this treasure box - 28 stories altogether -, and no doubt every reader will pick her or his own favourites. I loved most of the tales, especially for their plausibility and their disquieting 'after effects', and believe this is one of the best horror anthologies ever published.

If you enjoy this anthology, I also recommend 'Dark Delicacies', a collection of contemporary horror stories by great writers such as William F Nolan, Clive Barker, D. Lynn Smith, Ramsey Campbell, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro.

Disappointing - an old book repackaged., 23 May 2008
I really looked forward to this book, and was disappointed on receiving it to discover that it is not the story of Mary revisited by Michele Roberts, but her previous book 'The Wild Girl', published under a new title. I feel rather cheated!

most disappointing book, 07 Jul 2007
I went to listen to Michele Roberts at the Edinburgh book festival last year and bought this novel afterwards as it sounded like an interesting, high class chick lit kind of book. Chick lit it was, high class it was not. It was derivative, FULL of badly spelt Italian words (I am Italian. I know) and inaccuracies (like saying that Le Cinque Terre is on the Tuscan coast, when it is actually in Liguria) and at times, extremely coarse and vulgar, which just didn't fit in with the rest of the wishy washy, bland narrative. Characters were not engaging and the story line was rather trite and unappealing. It achieved the results of putting me off this author.

Very disappointing, 22 May 2007
I had to apologise to the book group last week as I had recommended this book, having heard that she was a great writer. Our book group has been going for over 12 years and this is the only book that every single one of us disliked - never have we been so unanimous in our opinions.
We could not engage with the heroine, found the plot flimsy, aimless and trivial and the characterisation was poor.
On a positive note the descriptions of food and family warmth were good and there were some beautiful descriptive extracts, but not enough to redeem the book. When we read the flattering blurb on the back of the book we howled with laughter. As a final comment one member said, 'At least it was short.'

A Masterpiece, 11 Aug 2008
This book is probably a masterpiece. One woman's desperate quest for freedom, and the fatal futility of it as she ventures in a wrong direction. It's a tragedy of the human race: too great to live by rules, too small to be free. Overgrown for crude conventions, dwarfed by the challenges when you break them.

Madame Bovary can't bear her mediocre existence. She loathes her role of the wife of a village doctor; she has no regard for her womanly duties; she cares little about public opinion. She breaks free from it all, and how? In the most conventional way: she takes lovers. Her affairs bring her no love and only fleeting moments of satisfaction. She eventually incurs debts and poisons herself on the day bailiffs raid her house, unable to take the shame.

Could she be blamed for this amateur attempt to make some sense of her life? What other avenues could she explore? There hardly were any opportunities open to women those days to establish themselves professionally. She certainly lacked guidance to become a scholar (she did try to read philosophers, but it didn't take off). She also lacked imagination to make something special of her life, and she didn't find any worthy cause.

She was a product of her class, her upbringing and her society, who dared to question its norms. She thought she was breaking free from those norms, but in reality she was reinforcing them. Norms are not imposed externally. They are within you. They are the building material of your psychic, they guide your actions, and this is the tragedy. But it was still a courageous quest.

The author deserves admiration for being so non-judgemental in this sensitive situation. A woman who cheats on her devoted husband, meanwhile squandering his wealth. She, who selfishly drives her child to the life of an orphan and a pauper. But you close the book feeling only sympathy and sadness at the ways of the world. There's not a trace of moralising here, just a human story.

This book is not an entertainment, not a recreational read. At times the prose becomes too heavy, too crowded. It appears to be in want of finer editing. Do read it if you're prone to think. Don't read it if you want to kill your time.


Beautiful, 13 Mar 2008
How does a man write as though he were a woman?

This was well written, knuckle bighting beautiful stuff.
I read a little of how this book has been recieved before I opened the book. I laughed at all the people who claimed that they were Madame Bovary. But to my dismay I too am her! This book has taught me so much about myself.

I find it very hard to get emotionally involved in a book written by a man I just don't feel that they ever understand the mind of a woman but Mr Flaubert sure does.

This book is highly reccomended by my good self. The advice I give you is to put a weekend aside and read this in one huge chunk, it's much nicer that way. I have a memory now of an amazing weekend of self discovery and some of the finest fiction I have ever encountered.

Surprisingly modern writing, 11 Jul 2007
I can well understand how controversial this novel was when it was first published. Overall it is a vicious portrayal of small town France. Most of the characters are revealed to be self-seeking and vain. At the heart of the story is Emma Bovary - and Flaubert is, I feel, ambivalent in his attitude to her. He sometimes describes her very favourably and at others as selfish hard-hearted. And we as readers share this ambivalence - is she a cruel temptress who cares little for her own child or is she a victim of the social mores and unable to act independently? Certainly the book highlights how women of the time could only find happiness and fulfilment through a male partner.

The ending is prolonged and horrific. Was Flaubert hoping to attract our sympathy for the hapless Emma or was he ensuring that she was suitably punished for her infidelities?

The writing is splendid - surprisingly modern and beautifully descriptive. I am sorry I let this book sit unread on my bookshelf for so long?




Yeah but No but Yeah but..., 11 Jul 2007
I've always maintained that one shouldn't review a book they've studied there are many outside influences bearing down on your reading of the text: enjoyment of class, attitude towards school/teacher, and not least what you're being TOLD to think by teachers, notes and so on. Nevertheless I thought I'd just comment briefly here to clarify the last reviewer's point.
It is my opinion that although Emma is the original footballer's wife (or at least wannabe since by no stretch of the imagination could one ever equate Charles with a Beckham) Madame Bovary is NOT the original trashy novel.
It is no secret that Flaubert was aware of "betise". He thought people were stupid, their words worthless, their feelings fickle and their actions silly to the point of danger (Yes says the pharmacist let's see if we can't cure this man's club foot...). What is unclear is whether the reader, especially the reader who sees this, is included in the generalisation or even whether Flaubert considered himself to be guilty of "betise". And if not why not? This complex thematic point, as well as Flaubert undeniable mastery of language (particularly his pitiless satire of cliche), drags MB from the pastel pink dustcover of (help me with some names here) the average chick lit and into the gentlemanly(/womanly) company of the classics.
This was clearly understood by the previous reviewer but may not be understood clearly, if you understand what I clearly mean?
Also enough with giving Emma all the gip, Homais was a fool (one of a sea of fools) too. If she is Coleen McLoughlin then Homais is who? Jeremy Clarkson? Someone who claims they know a lot, all, the best but really just believes what they read in the papers. Oh wait that's Bono.

The original trashy novel!!, 14 Apr 2006
It is amazing that this book was written by a man because it appeals so well to the woman's senses. It appears a universial fact that women love Holby city and trashy soaps, well this novel is the two genres combined into one. Emma Bovary is the ultimate footballer's wife, spending lashiously and flirting seductively. With Flaubert's amazingly presise language this book is as enjoyable as devouring a whole chocolate cake without the calories!

The Loving Spirit, 28 Sep 2007
I have read quite a few du Maurier books and have found them all thought provoking and spell binding, with a real insight into human nature and absorbing plots - apart from this one! I struggled to read it to the end, it took me over 6 months, her others usually take 3 - 4 days! This seemed to be an overly romantic family narrative, that just plodded on with no real depth or plot to it. I'm just very glad that I read some of her others first, or I would have seriously misse