Talking to the poets, telling them your name

[sovay]

Prompted, I assume, by the five minutes of Absolute Hell (1991) I watched last night on rydra_wong's recommendation, I dreamed of watching some nonexistent television featuring Bill Nighy. He was playing one of M. John Harrison's indescribably seedy urban magicians: I really minded the adaptation not existing when I woke. He was perfect.

I continue to feel that my intelligence has been siphoned out through my alveoli, but I got out for a walk with spatch before the afternoon clouded over, the elm leaves were sun-translucent green and the dogwood next door is flowering in two colors, and I have a new shirt which I believe is meant for going to the beach in. I am reading Christianna Brand's Green for Danger (1944) and enjoying it very much despite its dissimilarities to the 1946 film version which I encountered first. Since I own a couple of her art books, I don't think of her as having vanished as fully as it seems she did from the perspective of Hollywood and TV, but this is a nice article about Wendy Froud.

Comments

[skygiants]

Martin Edwards in The Golden Age of Murder was so RUDE about Christianna Brand, he keeps bringing up bits of gossip that she dropped in introductions to other people's books and being like 'IF one can believe what Brand says' which he doesn't do with anyone else! Which, conversely, had the effect of making me want to read a bunch more brand.

[sovay]

Martin Edwards in The Golden Age of Murder was so RUDE about Christianna Brand, he keeps bringing up bits of gossip that she dropped in introductions to other people's books and being like 'IF one can believe what Brand says' which he doesn't do with anyone else!

He's so complimentary about her in the introduction to this edition of Green for Danger, I would never have guessed!

"The book's strength owes much to the impressive plot and interesting characterisation, but also a good deal to Christianna Brand's compelling evocation of life in England at a time of national crisis . . . Opinions vary as to which novel is her masterpiece; this book is my personal choice."

Now that you have told me that he describes the plots right up to the point of suspense but no further, I couldn't help noticing he did it in the introduction, too.

Which, conversely, had the effect of making me want to read a bunch more brand.

Of the three and a half novels of hers I have read so far, Green for Danger is definitely the strongest, although as a collection of characterizations I really enjoyed London Particular (1952). Death in High Heels (1941) is very obviously the kind of first novel where the author learned to write a novel in the process and Heads You Lose (1941) interested me most for its handling of its Jewish character and its full bore WTF. I am coming to the conclusion that in every one of her novels Brand dumps a bucket of red herrings over the reader's head, the only consolation being that the characters get splashed also.

[troisoiseaux]

Which, conversely, had the effect of making me want to read a bunch more brand.

As always I must plug The Crooked Wreath, which is my favorite on the basis of character dynamics, but I agree that Green for Danger is objectively Brand's best.

[sovay]

As always I must plug The Crooked Wreath, which is my favorite on the basis of character dynamics, but I agree that Green for Danger is objectively Brand's best.

Nonetheless, your recommendation is noted!