I begin with a writer whose wit, ingenuity and playfulness has never been surpassed. This is the best photo I could find of Carroll. Here, we see him surrounded by his favourite kind of readers... Children. The MacDonalds adored Carroll's work, encouraging him to extend and publish a short, hand-written story about a little girl's adventures "underground". Thus, generations of readers were ensured the incredible adventures of Alice.
The charm of Carroll's writing lies in a genuine, organic love of words and contradictions. The silly, adult world gets a well-deserved mocking at every opportunity. Alas, since the stories are now in "the public domain", film-makers and critics have done their best to suck all the delicate charm and playfulness out of this great wordsmith's work. But children always "get" Carroll straight away... Herein, lies the secret power of his stories.
I dare you not to smile when reading Carroll... Now I'm off to see the Cheshire Cat...
Left is a picture of the sublime Elizabeth Barrett Browning. Her intellectual focus, gentle poignant poetry and breathtaking essays are works of pure genius. Often overlooked today, she is one of the few women of her Age offered a Laureateship at Oxford. To my delight, she turned this prestigious post down! Preferring, no doubt, to escape the confines of England and her tyrannical father.
Eloping to Italy, her writing and health blossomed. Now that's what I call adventure!
What can I say about Mr King? Well, his inventiveness, powerful sense of drama and wonderfully crafted characters make his books addictive "page turners". I've often raced through his books within a few days.... Rather like well-known rock bands, he often mentions "retiring", then rattles-off a new, stunning best-seller! Few writers have shown such prolific, entertaining talent. The man is a total natural.
I have no trouble comparing King to Dickens. Since I've heard Stephen admires Dickens, I'm doubly pleased to endorse him here. The similarity is subtle, but deep. Like Dickens, Stephens' characters are believable, poignant and often tragic. Both writers also share a strong sense of Natural Justice; the basis of much outstanding literature.
Like many fans, I "discovered" King through his films. But, I'll tell you a secret: His books are even better...
By the tender age of 22, this gorgeous, talented young woman had written "Frankenstein". As literary achievements go, this must rank as one of the greatest. The short-comings of science, flawed human ambition (and let's face it "male ambition") are all provided to her readership via an incredible, gripping drama. It's her best known novel, but there's so much more to Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley.
I'm told she did not write the very first "gothic" novel, but surely- she popularized the form. In my estimation, she is a visionary, foreseeing the modern dilemmas of genetic engineering that we now face in the 21st Century.
One also has to admire her for tolerating the extraordinary man she married: Percy Bysshe Shelley. To her credit, she declined to accept Percy's notions of "free love", overlooked the fact Percy's first wife committed suicide, and continued to promote Percy's written work after his untimely death.
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