Meeting the English
A Novel
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4.0 • 1 Rating
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
"Exceptional . . . Clanchy has a wincingly accurate eye for social comedy, a vivid descriptive sense, and profound understanding of her characters. This is a delectable read." --Daily Mail (UK)
In response to an advertisement, Struan Robertson, orphan, genius, and just seventeen, leaves his dour native town in Scotland, and arrives at a creaky mansion in London in the freakishly hot summer of 1989. His job, he finds, is to care for playwright and one-time literary star Phillip Prys, dumbfounded and paralyzed by a massive stroke, because, though Phillip's two teenage children, two wives, and a literary agent all rattle 'round his large house, they are each too busy with their peculiar obsessions to do it themselves. As the city bakes, Struan finds himself tangled in a midsummer's dream of mistaken identity, giddying property prices, wild swimming, and overwhelming passions. For everyone, it is to be a life-changing summer.
Kate Clanchy's Meeting the English is a bright book about dark subjects--a tale about kindness and its limits, told with love. It is a coming of age story for anyone who has ever felt themselves to be an outsider; a love story for the awkward; and a comedy for anyone who has ever lived in a family. Written by an acclaimed writer of poetry, non-fiction, and short stories, this glorious debut novel is spiked with witty dialogue and jostling with gleeful, zesty characters.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this trenchant debut novel, poet and memoirist Clanchy (Antigona and Me) reveals her humor, humanity, and striking facility with language amid potentially tragic events. The felling of a onetime famous playwright, Phillip Prys, by a stroke in his London home mirrors the dismantling of authoritarian world powers in 1989. Earnest and sensitive 17-year-old Struan Robertson, persuaded by his English teacher to apply for a position as Phillip's caretaker, travels from central Scotland to meet Phillip's dysfunctional family his children, Juliet and Jake; their mother, Myfanwy; and his current wife, Shirin whose compassion for Phillip varies. The summer is exceptionally hot, and while their elders struggle variously to adjust to Phillip's incapacity, the younger generation is in heat. By the novel's end, all the characters have faced trials that uncover inner tenderness. Clanchy shifts the narrative perspective among Struan, Phillip, Juliet, and Myfanwy, interlacing poignant analogy, vivid description, and nuanced characterization with arresting metaphor. A glossary of English slang would be useful for most American readers, but this novel will amuse and captivate regardless.
Customer Reviews
A bit unexpected and a touch uneven
A bit unexpected and a touch uneven, Meeting the English by Kate Clanchy has some of the hallmarks of a great story, tempered by some odd quirks and inclusions that just didn’t feel quite authentic.
The protagonist, Struan, has come to London from a small Scottish village, to take care of a semi-famous playwright after his stroke. The pointed narrative from Struan is pure genius, taking the best of social commentary and composing it with pointed wit, delivered in a somewhat offhanded manner. This aids in the poking fun of “Englishness” which is often a somewhat ‘learned’ behavior, characterized by so many ‘rules’ and copycats in society and celebrity. With lighthearted humorous moments, Clanchy manages to keep the story on just this side of schmaltzy nostalgia, as set in the 80’s, as with all stories that ‘look back’ the remembering is often more compelling than the actual time.
Aside from Struan, we have Phillip the playwright and his rather pretentious and spoilt ways, his ex-wife, the current wife and two children: all dysfunctional in their own way, and Struan’s quick assessment and narrative about the individuals: never truly mean spirited, but pointed in a way that provides readers with instant references that aid in their understanding. There is no great display of emotion here, much of the humor comes from the little connections that readers make to the descriptions and details that Struan provides. Some deadpan, some funny just because the similes used are at once ridiculous and utterly apt, this was a fun read with plenty to enjoy.
A novel that is both typically English and wholly global, I’ll be sure to look for more from this author.
I received an ebook copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.