A review by serendipitysbooks
The House of Doors by Tan Twan Eng
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The House of Doors is a rich multi-layered novel with multiple interwoven threads. Most of the novel is set in the Penang, part of the Straits Settlements, then a British colony and now part of Malaysia, in the 1920s. One of my favourite aspects of the novel was how transportative it was. I felt totally immersed in the Penang of the 1920s - the landscape, the sights and sounds, and most especially the workings of the colonial expat community.
The action really begins with the novelist W Somerset Maugham visiting Robert Hamlyn, an old school friend, and his wife Lesley and from there unspools in several equally intriguing directions. One key thread involves Maugham himself, his sham marriage, his ill-health, relationship with his male secretary, a major financial crisis which falls him, and his desperate need to produce a new book. Another key thread is the story Lesley tells him about her friend Ethel Proudfoot, who was accused of murder after shooting a man she claimed tried to rape her. The courtroom scenes made for compelling reading, especially when I learnt that this was a real case. Another key strand involves Sun Yat Sen’s arrival in Penang, his efforts to drum up support, particular financial, for his plans to overthrow the Chinese emperor and Lesley ‘s involvement in the cause. There is all sorts of forbidden love - love that defied marital bounds, racial boundaries, and accepted gender based sexuality - love that highlights the gaps between public and private selves. The story also showed the relative powerlessness of women. Lesley is expected to bow to the whims of her husband, while the twist in Ethel’s case is shocking and clearly highlights female disempowerment. Tying much of this together was the theme of memory and storytelling - whose memories can we trust and who has the right to tell our stories, questions that are still very relevant today.
The action really begins with the novelist W Somerset Maugham visiting Robert Hamlyn, an old school friend, and his wife Lesley and from there unspools in several equally intriguing directions. One key thread involves Maugham himself, his sham marriage, his ill-health, relationship with his male secretary, a major financial crisis which falls him, and his desperate need to produce a new book. Another key thread is the story Lesley tells him about her friend Ethel Proudfoot, who was accused of murder after shooting a man she claimed tried to rape her. The courtroom scenes made for compelling reading, especially when I learnt that this was a real case. Another key strand involves Sun Yat Sen’s arrival in Penang, his efforts to drum up support, particular financial, for his plans to overthrow the Chinese emperor and Lesley ‘s involvement in the cause. There is all sorts of forbidden love - love that defied marital bounds, racial boundaries, and accepted gender based sexuality - love that highlights the gaps between public and private selves. The story also showed the relative powerlessness of women. Lesley is expected to bow to the whims of her husband, while the twist in Ethel’s case is shocking and clearly highlights female disempowerment. Tying much of this together was the theme of memory and storytelling - whose memories can we trust and who has the right to tell our stories, questions that are still very relevant today.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation
Moderate: Murder, Racism, Gun violence, and Homophobia