A review by jmatkinson1
The Illness Lesson by Clare Beams
4.0
Philosopher Samuel has already suffered much, the failure of a commune project and the death of his wife plus a fiction written by his brother that casts him in a bad light. When a strange flock of red birds arrives on his property Samuel decides it is time for something new and he sets up a school designed to educate young ladies to think. In the 1870s in New England this is thought of as very progressive and even his daughter Caroline is cynical. As the students begin to fall ill with strange symptoms an old physician friend is brought in but his treatment method shocks Caroline to the core.
This is a very thought-provoking book which is shocking yet very quietly written. The back-story of the failure of the commune is hinted at darkly and the details that inspired the novel about Samuel's marriage are also shrouded yet they provide a sense of history repeating itself as the tragedy unfolds. I found this story sucked me in and the birds act as an extended metaphor throughout with their unusual behaviour, magpie tendencies and 'nesting'. This is a powerful story about women and the control of their own lives.
This is a very thought-provoking book which is shocking yet very quietly written. The back-story of the failure of the commune is hinted at darkly and the details that inspired the novel about Samuel's marriage are also shrouded yet they provide a sense of history repeating itself as the tragedy unfolds. I found this story sucked me in and the birds act as an extended metaphor throughout with their unusual behaviour, magpie tendencies and 'nesting'. This is a powerful story about women and the control of their own lives.