[This post has been in a state of draft since December. Time to post it or trash it.]
I’m a voyeur. When it comes to books, that is. Susan Hill’s Howards End is on the Landing promised a life in books laid bare, and I wanted a peek.
Last week, with snow drifts building up outside, I curled up and dug in. Shortly thereafter I was faced with a dilemma: Should the book be returned to the library mostly unread, or should I keep going?
Before going further with this, I’d like to make one thing clear: this post is based entirely on my understanding of what I read, and is fueled as much by a visceral reaction as anything else. I am in no way saying that this book would not be a good fit for someone else.
“Only look at the rubbish available in book form. Some are quickly read, been, gone. You don’t read many thrillers twice.”
My sneaking suspicion is that Susan Hill would consider the bulk of my personal favorites rubbish. At heart, I am a genre reader. The stories found in the fantasy, mystery and romance aisles are my happy places. My go to places. My you-can-be-yourself-in-these-pages places. The subjective sense of being frowned upon for my taste lodged itself in my gut as I read Howards End is on the Landing; I couldn’t shake it no matter how many steps back I tried to take. As a result, I felt alienated from Hill and her reading world.
Regarding the latter part of the snippet above: as far as I’m concerned, thrillers and romantic suspense are kissing cousins, and there have been plenty of r/s novels that I’ve reread.* Those books are like comfort food, wonderful in their formulaic, guaranteed-endorphin-rush ways.
Willing to believe that my initial reaction might have been knee-jerk, I kept reading.
Instead of the “Warning! Danger! Danger!” wail that should have gone off straight away, hope welled up in me when Hill set her sights on mystery novels, specifically those from the “Golden Age of the Detective Story.” It was something so small – and not even personal to me – that gave me pause. Of Dorothy Sayer’s classic characters, Hill said:
…the Wimsey-Harriet Vane love story is embarrassing…
I picked up Sayer’s first novel at a bookstore one day specifically because I had been sold on the Wimsey-Vane relationship by a book blogger I respect. Nice way to rip out a book lover’s heart, that. Point out how embarrassing you find a couple that many hold so dear without much of a constructive explanation. Had Hill said this of a literary couple I love, it would have been tantamount to receiving a slap to the face or a punch in the gut.**
It was shortly after that oh-so-brief but impactful snippet that I put the book down. It seemed my sensitivities were getting in the way. Howards End is on the Landing is personal to Hill’s book life; it’s imbued with her taste, her opinions. Intellectually, I get that. It was the delivery that I found abrasive. That I felt my preferences were being stomped on made it impossible for me to set them aside to read objectively.
A week after putting it down I decided to return the book to the library unfinished. As much as I enjoyed the descriptions of Hill’s reading places, the nooks in her home carved out for books and those that became impromptu shelves, the rest was not for me. I do believe, however, that many will take to Howards End is on the Landing, finding Hill’s take on books either fascinating or informative.
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*I distinctly remember discovering Jayne Ann Krentz in high school – I devoured her novels with the same voracity I would apply to a plate of deliciously chewy chocolate chip cookies. Recalling those days buried in her books – or, better, rereading them – brings back the same light-hearted happiness I felt then. I still have every one of those novels and have no intention of parting with them.
**Melodramatic? Maybe. But I believe we all have something – a book, a character – we find ourselves so attached to that any slight, however unintentional or reasonable, hurts.
“It was the delivery that I found abrasive. That I felt my preferences were being stomped on made it impossible for me to set them aside to read objectively.”
Yes. Between you and Claire at Paperback Reader (who pointed out how arrogantly dismissive Hill is of genre fiction in general, and of Terry Pratchett in particular), I don’t think this book would work for me at all either. I don’t mind divergence of opinions at all – that’s what literature is all about, after all – but I DO mind it when people use that as an excuse to belittle others.
After reading your comment I swung by Paperback Reader; I agree with everything Claire said. (I’ll also admit to feeling a measure of relief in the knowledge that it wasn’t just me.)
It seemed to me, even when the subject shifted closer to what might typically be considered genre fiction – yes, even those Golden Age detective novels – there was always a “beneath me” vibe, and, like I said, I couldn’t shake it. I’ve no problem whatsoever with someone saying ‘this wasn’t my cup of tea’, but not when it’s served up with a heaping dose of censure.
If I could comment a picture of my face being super shocked at such a description of the Wimsey-Vane relationship, I would do that. Susan Hill sounds like she would irritate me for a number of reasons even without this though — she had a hissy a while ago over something to do with the line between professional and non-professional writers, and it made her sound like such a jerk.
Oh, I had quite the look on my face when I read it, I’m sure. And I haven’t even tackled Sayer’s books (yet). The two brief snippets I quoted here were just the tip of the iceberg, really. All the way around the delivery ruffled my feathers.
Now that you mention it, I vaguely recall seeing something about that, but didn’t realize as I was trying to work my way through Howards End is on the Landing that it was the same author. Huh.
“My sneaking suspicion is that Susan Hill would consider the bulk of my personal favorites rubbish.” From the quote you included, I would definitely suspect that too! She comes across as a real snob.
Even though you didn’t finish this, I’m so glad you wrote this post. I not only loved reading it – being wonderfully written, articulate, and spoke to me on a personal level – but I found it really useful insight on a book I was curious about. (That sounds really formal sorry – I have a piercing headache all of a sudden!)
I’m very curious about this Wimsey-Vane Sawyer book now… I have one of hers but I don’t know what characters are in it. I think it’s called Whose Body?
Thank you! (And ouch! Hope your headache is well and truly gone.)
Whose Body? is the first Lord Wimsey novel, but Nymeth commented on another post of mine and, thankfully, set me straight about the Wimsey/Vane books. The first one of those is Strong Poison. (If I’m reading her comment correctly, which these days, who knows!) I bought both and one of these days may actually get around to reading them.