A fascinating journey to 18th century London and the English countryside at the time of the French Revolution. The book is a slight departure from the other Chevalier novels I have read, as the focus is on 2 different historical figures - William Blake and Philip Astley, and their interactions with the fictional characters of the book. As always, the author made you feel as if you were living in that time period, and it was not an idyllic time! The book definitely highlighted the hardships of the common people at the time, and their struggles just to keep a roof overhead and feed their families. It also told the sad story of how quickly children of that age were forced to "grow up" and work in factories or at a trade so that they could add to their families' income, often with long hours in hazardous occupations. I thoroughly the book.

I really enjoyed this one. It can be read on several levels and if you have a saga reader in your family who only goes for story rather than depths, they will like this just as much as someone exploring all the nuances about innocence and experience. A satisfying read.

It was intriguing at first but it quickly lost all point. The ending was also very underwhelming, I'd have loved 20-30 more pages to wrap things up nicely. I think I'll be getting rid of my copy after my August wrap up.

I picked this book up at Goodwill because I remember, or thought I remembered, liking "Girl with a Pearl Earring." It's been a long time since I read that.

"Burning Bright" takes place over 5 months in England in 1792. The Kellaway family, attempting to leave a tragic loss behind, pick up and move from bucolic Dorchester to busy London with their two children, Maise and Jem. They struggle and cope in equal measure, and the children grow up quickly, albeit not always quickly enough. The family forms friendships and comes to terms with their new life.

The book is an interesting read if you want a great description of life at the time- I could almost smell the coal fog in the air. What it lacked most of the time was tension which made it a bit of a slog until the end. I'll probably leave her books to others to enjoy.

This was a good story, but didn't have the most captivating plot. It took a while to get into it and still I felt like I was waiting for more. The characters were good, if a little under-developed. I would have liked to know more about Mr. Blake and his "revolutionary" ties. I would also like a little more emotion from Jem and Maisie. This book was not as good as "Girl with a Pearl Earring", so I was a little disappointed. I was left thinking "that was it?" when I finished. It got better in the end, but I still wasn't totally hooked. A quick and entertaining enough read. I still look forward to reading other books by Chevalier.

Ho finito L'innocenza

Per ora il romanzo meno riuscito che abbia letto, tra quelli della Chevalier.
Il mio preferito è Strane creature, anche se l’ho conosciuta grazie alla La ragazza con l'orecchino di perla.
Anche Falling Angels, quello sulle suffragette, mi è piaciuto, ma qui la presenza di William Blake è una forzatura inutile. I 3 ragazzi avrebbero potuto vivere accanto a chiunque e il romanzo si sarebbe sviluppato nello stesso modo. Ha più impatto storico il signor Astley e il suo circo delle incisioni di Blake, che si muove sullo sfondo come uno zio eccentrico più che come un poeta. Persino l’eco della rivoluzione francese è debole.
Francamente mi aspettavo un contesto storico più dettagliato, più accurato, come mi ero abituata nei romanzi precedenti.
Non che la storia di Jem, Maggie e Maisie sia brutta, per carità: ma è una storia neutra, senza alti né bassi, piacevole per passare un pomeriggio rilassante e nulla più.

Having read several other of Tracy Chevalier’s novels and thoroughly enjoyed them, I was hoping that this would be my ch the same. Unfortunately, for me it wasn’t anywhere near as good as Girl With a Pearl Earring, or Falling Angels. It wasn’t terrible though. Chevalier writes beautifully, and has a wonderful way of describing the surroundings of the story, which really helps you to envisage yourself there. It just seemed to lack an actual plot.
The storyline focuses mainly on three teenage children, their relationships, and their transition from childhood into adulthood. A supporting character in the book is the famous poet and artist William Blake. The children spy on him to begin with, as he appears to be strange, yet fascinating to them. As they get to know him, they discover him to be a talented, warm, friendly, intelligent man, who they can rely upon and who they trust.
Phillip Astley’s circus/amphitheatre lends itself as a main location, and topic in the book. Chevalier does a wonderful job of describing the sights and sounds of the 18th century circus, which almost allows you to believe you’re there. She breathes life into Lambeth and the circus performer’s lives.
Despite this, I just found the story to be weak, and in total honesty, I was bored. I think largely this was due to the complete lack of a plot.

Second reading. I guess I'm rereading all of Tracy Chevalier - and reading what I have not already read.
I had forgotten most of this one. Not sure why. But perhaps because there were again many characters to keep up with at the beginning - and partly also because William Blake is really not the main character, but a sort of fulcrum around which Jem and Maggie and their lives in London revolve. Or perhaps it's the unusual character of Blake himself - a dissenter and an unbending supporter of the revolution in France who nevertheless is detached from the quotidian by his visions of another world of humans caught in the tension between opposites - "Not just light, but dark. Not just at peace, but at war. Not just innocent, but experienced."

The innocent Kellaway family arrives from Dorset and meets the experienced Butterfield family; innocents Jem and Maisie meet Maggie, the girl who knows London with all its cracks and crannies and all its people on the make for whatever they can get out of each other.

Jem perceives that Mr. Blake embodies the opposites - "distant yet close in his attention, an adult and yet childlike." Jem has something of this in himself, and Maggie's hard shell begins to crack as Jem notices her inner self - "He liked watching her when she didn't know it, so happy and absorbed."

London is a major character too.
"Westminster Bridge itself was a shadowy hump over which two rows of lamplights marched. Beyond them London hung like a heavy black coat.'
"It (the Thames) reminded him of a herd of cows in the dark, breathing heavily and squelching their hooves in the mud. He took a deep breath -- like cows, the river smelled of a combination of fresh grass and excrement, of what came in and what went out of the city."

Ralph Vaughan Williams wrote a wonderful setting for voice and oboe of ten of Blake's poems. It's worth seeking out. I always wanted to sing it but never managed to.
This poem is among them:
"I wander through each chartered street Near where the chartered Thames does flow And mark in every face I meet Marks of weakness, marks of woe. In every cry of every man In every infant's cry of fear In every voice, in every ban The mind-forged manacles I hear."

And of course, "Tyger, tyger, burning bright In the forests of the night What immortal hand or eye Could frame thy fearful symmetry?" Who or what is the tiger? I have some ideas now.

A good emotional poignant read through tough times this author is so good at it

«La tensione fra due forze contrarie fa di noi ciò che siamo. Noi le abbiamo entrambe, mescolate nel cuore, dove si danno battaglia e mandano scintille. Non siamo solo luce, ma anche tenebra, non abbiamo solo la pace ma anche la guerra. Siamo innocenti eppure smaliziati […] E c’è una lezione che faremmo bene a imparare: il mondo si rispecchia intero in ogni fiore».

Quando un romanzo della Chevalier finisce, qualcuno nel mondo si ritrova con la testa ciondoloni da un lato, una guancia appoggiata al pugno chiuso, il gomito puntellato sul tavolo, a chiedersi perché abbia intrapreso quella lettura e cosa sperava di trovarvi che invece non c’è.
Dopo aver letto due libri di questa autrice statunitense (il primo fu Strane creature), ho infatti l’impressione che la sua scrittura continuerà sistematicamente a mancare l’obiettivo che io pretendo da essa, lasciandomi perplessa e spazientita. E, se sono un po’ dura, è perché mi rattrista pensare che un romanzo di così belle promesse come L’innocenza, che scomoda persino il signor William Blake, finisca per non mantenerne alcuna.

Londra, fine Settecento. La famiglia Kellaway si trasferisce dal bucolico Dorsetshire alla caotica capitale inglese inseguendo un circo. Di essa fanno parte Thomas, intagliatore di sedie, sua moglie e due figli adolescenti, Jem e Maisie. Maisie si innamora di John, acrobata a cavallo, donnaiolo e figlio del proprietario del circo. Jem si innamora (ma non lo sa) di Maggie, monella londinese che nasconde un segreto. Vicini di casa dei Kellaway sono niente di meno che William Blake, poeta e incisore dalle scomode idee politiche, e la sua consorte. Il tutto è condito da una buona dose di pericolosa nebbia, pub, tagliagole, sfruttamento e prostituzione minorili, innocenza rubata, poesia…

Sembrerebbe un romanzo fantastico, neh? Ecco perché mi arrabbio: poteva essere un romanzo storico davvero ben riuscito, se la Chevalier non si fosse limitata ad accennare a ognuno di questi elementi senza approfondirne alcuno (sulla questione dell’approfondimento si veda alla voce: caratterizzazione psicologica mancata dei personaggi). Non basta la varietà degli ingredienti per fare una buona insalata: bisogna condirla. E, a mio avviso, qui c’è poco sale.
Persino il Blake tratteggiato dall’autrice risulta appena abbozzato, non più che una figura trasognata, estremamente gentile e con i Canti dell’Innocenza sempre sulle labbra. E qui lasciate che esprima tutto il mio risentimento verso le scelte editoriali: sono d’accordo sul fatto che i versi di Blake di cui la Chevalier infarcisce la narrazione andassero tradotti, ma non si poteva scegliere una traduzione graziosa, che almeno non tradisse l’irrinunciabile musicalità dell’originale? Incontrare i Canti dell’Innocenza e i Canti dell’Esperienza in questa veste mi suscita un moto di spontanea repulsione. Vi sfido a confrontare (rigorosamente con lettura ad alta voce):

Io mi aggiro per ogni strada urbana,
dell’urbano Tamigi lungo il corso,
e impressi in ogni volto segni incontro,
segni di sofferenza e abbattimento.
In ogni grido di qualunque Uomo,
nel pianto di paura d’ogni Bimbo,
in ogni voce e proibizione avverto
le manette forgiate dalla mente.

Con:
I wander thro’ each charter’d street,
Near where the charter’d Thames does flow.
And mark in every face I meet
Marks of weakness, marks of woe.
In every cry of every Man,
In every Infants cry of fear,
In every voice: in every ban,
The mind-forg’d manacles I hear…

Tutta questa filippica e alla fine hai dato ben 3 stelline?, vi starete chiedendo. Certo, perché L’innocenza non è un brutto romanzo. Solo, secondo me non è abbastanza bello. È in queste sfumature che si annida il risentimento del lettore.

I have long been a fan of Tracy Chevalier and find that she has a wonderful way of weaving life into history. I was immediately taken with Burning Bright and thoroughly enjoyed it.
It made me want to learn more about Blake.
Looking back at my evaluation of her other books, I wonder why I only gave four stars to Fallen Angels, or The Girl with the Pearl Earring, which I enjoyed just as much as Burning Bright.
My favourite is definitely Remarkable Women and I am looking forward to reading her latest.

I got bored with this one after about 75 pages. The characters were fine but the pace was far too slow. Also, there is a fine line between creating atmosphere and simply filling pages with adjectives and lists.