This book was recommended by my mom, and I was immediately interested in the story of Edward Dickens, and a fictional guess at what his life might have been like after emigrating to Australia just before his famous father, Charles Dickens, passed away.
This book tells its story in front of a deep background of all of Charles Dickens’ works, but while it may help to have read his novels it isn’t essential to digest what goes on here. Edward Dickens (nicknamed Plorn) is a young man of seventeen when we meet him, and we watch his approach to manhood and finding himself a place outside the colossal shadow of his father.
There were a lot of bad situations that he could have found himself in, but the book is written in a sort of wholesome, positive way that made it a pleasure to read. Sinking into the history and scenery of colonial Australia in the early 1900’s was captivating, and I especially appreciated the story of someone moving overseas to find themself – “the place that concentrated the forces of his soul.”
I enjoyed the attention to detail and the thorough research in this book. Recently I read The Spanish Daughter, which took place on a cacao plantation, and I lamented the lack of detail in the processes there. This book goes into great detail of the sheep and wool industry, and the tremendous scale and skill needed to supply England with the fabric it demanded for their suits and fashion of the day.
I’ve read Great Expectations long ago and certainly didn’t appreciate its literary qualities at the time, but people that have read most of Dickens’ works will surely be satisfied with this tale.
I’ll miss reading about Edward Dickens – a quick check of his Wikipedia page after completing this book showed a short and relatively uneventful life. I’m glad the author decided to breathe something new into Plorn’s story.
