Two Victorian Sensations

So just a quick review of The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins and Fingersmith by Sarah Waters, as previously mentioned. (note: I am not doing this at work, although I was tempted to!)

The Woman in White is the Victorian version (it was published in 1859) of a thriller -- what was known then as a 'sensation novel.' Not only was Wilkie Collins one of the first to write in the mystery genre, beating out Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes, by several decades, but he also combines social issues of the day (like the very limited rights of married women) with an exciting story and get this: humour. This is not the cutesy cozy mystery type of humour or even the creepy dark Hannibal Lecter style of humour either. It's found instead in fascinating, larger than life extremely quirky characters who may be villainous and selfish but are endlessly fun to read about.

Fingersmith was published in 2002, much more recently than The Woman in White, but it is inspired by it. Many of the plot elements of the older book are reworked in this one, such as the use of doubles in order to steal an inheritance. Insane asylums feature in both novels, as do drawing teachers, cantankerous uncles and charming villains. Again it is a Victorian novel of crime but with a strong feminist twist and an unconventional love story.

While I have enjoyed Sarah Waters' historical fiction in Tipping the Velvet as well as Fingersmith (she's also written a third novel set in the Victorian era, Affinity) -- her scenes have strong visuals and stay in the mind -- I have to say I enjoyed The Woman in White more. It seems so alive and full of energy, a myriad of characters teaming through the narrative, and no rules stopping them or the story. If that sounds good, Wilkie Collins also wrote another early mystery entitled The Moonstone, about a magnificent diamond stolen from India and what happens to it afterwards.

Alright, next review will be about some teen fiction! (The Victorians are fun, especially when it's a sensational melodrama, but still. Their books are in general far too long...)

Introducing CPL 2.0

And so I start to blog as part of my job. I have been blogging for about four years now on a variety of sites and have met friends around the world (even indirectly my husband!) through blogging. It's been a very rewarding experience.

Now as a research assistant at the Calgary Public Library, I'm taking part in some online training (known as CPL 2.0), hence the work blog. I'd also like to review books I've enjoyed here, because 'jardin de livres' or a garden of books is undoubtedly a library! And I am surrounded by many books, electronic and physical, every day at my job.

As far as the CPL 2.0 training questions go, I'm excited to be learning more about the internet, specifically Twitter. I've already used various online programs like Flickr and LibraryThing, but I'm so used to writing longer blog posts, that the thought of condensing a post down to 140 characters, when I don't text on a cellphone or enjoy using abbreviations, seems a bit intimidating. I'm sure practice will help, while learning with everyone else.

And as for books, I'm hoping to review Fingersmith by Sarah Waters and The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins soon!