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A review by thereadingmum
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
"Contemplation seems to be about the only luxury that costs nothing."
Cassandra Mortmain and her family are in dire financial straits because her father, who wrote one critically successful book, can't seem to write anymore and no one else in the family is able to earn a living. Then their landlord dies and his estate passes on to the Cottons from America. There ensues romance, personal growth and a bit of familial kidnapping.
Cassandra is a likeable character, but that initial assessment of Simon that she is "consciously naive" rings very true. Maybe it is because she has been so sheltered, but she seems much younger than a 17-year-old.
I suppose I need to remember who wrote this and in what period, but why can't any of the family besides Stephen, who is a sort of adoptive son, do any menial work so they don't starve?! It absolutely boggles my mind that four healthy adults have totally ridiculous excuses for not working. I am particularly irked by Rose and James, the father. She is made out like a genteel Victorian lady who was only brought up to do needlepoint and manage a household. Yet she can't do EITHER! How anyone can fall in love with her is just beyond me. Then there's James. I get that he has writer's block, but he is the man of the house and in those times it meant he had to provide for his family. So why didn't he and why did the WHOLE family coddle him so much!?
Then there's his work, which sounds a lot like Duchamp's Fountain. Go Google it.
"No one will ever know why a creator creates the way he does. Anyway, your father had a very distinguished forerunner. God made the universe an enigma."
The end chapter of I Capture the Castle sounds like a lecture to me personally about my abandoment of Ulysses last month. While I agree with some parts of it, I don't agree that it applies to literature. Literature as an art form must make the reader think or feel, yes, but not work so very hard to "get it". It can be subtle and require a reread, but in my opinion, a plot, proper characters and some structure are essential. Otherwise I'd be reading poetry instead.
You could see where the romance bits were going miles ahead and I was sorry that at least one coupling didn't go off. I enjoyed Cassandra's voice though and this carried through much of the book for me.
Cassandra Mortmain and her family are in dire financial straits because her father, who wrote one critically successful book, can't seem to write anymore and no one else in the family is able to earn a living. Then their landlord dies and his estate passes on to the Cottons from America. There ensues romance, personal growth and a bit of familial kidnapping.
Cassandra is a likeable character, but that initial assessment of Simon that she is "consciously naive" rings very true. Maybe it is because she has been so sheltered, but she seems much younger than a 17-year-old.
I suppose I need to remember who wrote this and in what period, but why can't any of the family besides Stephen, who is a sort of adoptive son, do any menial work so they don't starve?! It absolutely boggles my mind that four healthy adults have totally ridiculous excuses for not working. I am particularly irked by Rose and James, the father. She is made out like a genteel Victorian lady who was only brought up to do needlepoint and manage a household. Yet she can't do EITHER! How anyone can fall in love with her is just beyond me. Then there's James. I get that he has writer's block, but he is the man of the house and in those times it meant he had to provide for his family. So why didn't he and why did the WHOLE family coddle him so much!?
Then there's his work, which sounds a lot like Duchamp's Fountain. Go Google it.
"No one will ever know why a creator creates the way he does. Anyway, your father had a very distinguished forerunner. God made the universe an enigma."
The end chapter of I Capture the Castle sounds like a lecture to me personally about my abandoment of Ulysses last month. While I agree with some parts of it, I don't agree that it applies to literature. Literature as an art form must make the reader think or feel, yes, but not work so very hard to "get it". It can be subtle and require a reread, but in my opinion, a plot, proper characters and some structure are essential. Otherwise I'd be reading poetry instead.
You could see where the romance bits were going miles ahead and I was sorry that at least one coupling didn't go off. I enjoyed Cassandra's voice though and this carried through much of the book for me.