^ Cracknell and his skinned moles? 
Nah, I guess I prefer Luke and Spencer. Neither is out to change the other, or wants something he canāt have. Luke seems to fully realize the importance of the relationship at the moment he saves Spencerās life:
By the end, theyāre like an old married couple:
I loved when Spencer can give Luke what he needs, but I think my favorite couple was actually Francis and Stella. But what I really like about it, is that no one else has been able to connect with Francis and it seems like after they make that connection, his life becomes easier.
^^^ I forgot Francis and Stella ā¦ and yes!
Luke and Spencer make me think of Holmes and Watson: the eccentric genius and the friend who grounds him. Holmes needs Watson in much the same way that Luke needs Spencer.
The quote above re āa marriage of true mindsā (p. 411) references Shakespeareās Sonnet 116. Sarah Perry also alludes to it in Coraās comment to Will on p. 347: āBut sheās still your Stella, your star of the sea: love is not love which alters when it alteration finds!"
Here is the full sonnet. I think many pairings in the novel, platonic or romantic, are reflected in the words:
Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove.
O no! it is an ever-fixed mark
That looks on tempests and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandāring bark,
Whose worthās unknown, although his height be taken.
Loveās not Timeās fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickleās compass come;
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.
If this be error and upon me provād,
I never writ, nor no man ever lovād.
Looking at discussion question #9, all I can think of is to wrap things up ala The Electric Company: āā¦And what about Naomi?ā (Yes, my brain is stuck in the 70s.)
Soā¦what about Naomi?
I liked the early scene in the book where Joanna, John and Naomi are acting out a dangerous game of make-believeāplaying with fire, literally. It seemed very real to me. However, I think Joanna and Naomi are on completely different paths by the end of the novel, facing futures that will separate them even further. But isnāt that often how it is with childhood friends?
I found it hard to care about Naomi. I guess she was there to show yet another kind of friendship, but it never really worked for me. She seemed like a distraction from the main events, and I was always happy when we left her bits and went back to the other characters.
Thatās probably unfair of me. I think she does grow up after her little adventure. I was sad the way kids in elementary school seemed to be able to be friends with anyone, but as they got older they found it harder and harder to cross class/education lines. Music and sports were connectors - but if you werenāt involved in one of them - it was very easy to lose touch with former friends even though you were in the same school.
Mentioning Naomi sidetracks me to: āAnd what about Thomas?ā - a peripheral character but one I like. Perry has an ability to bring peripheral characters not only to life but rather to make them memorable: the Ambroses, Cracknell, Thomas.
I have less of an understanding of Naomi. She runs away because she fears the serpent but equally because sheās lost her support system in Joanna. I tend to think Perry uses Joanna or rather her unexplained absence to manipulate the reader re the serpent. Manipulation should be subtle and isnāt in this instance when Joanna ends up - dressed as a boy - falls into Joannaās arm when the ādreadā of the serpent is no longer needed and returns home with nary a harsh word from her father. It didnāt work for me.
I wonder how dangerous Naomiās adventure was. There is a scene in the book when she visits the bar, where it is hinted that there are men ready to take advantage of her. I imagine she is dressed as a boy to protect herself, and hopefully it worked. Still, even for boys, being on oneās own in Victorian England was no piece of cake (as Dickens Oliver could attest).
Just popping in to say I set aside hours yesterday to finish the book, which I liked so much. Now Iām enjoying reading the discussion. I had read half of the book when so many things in our country happened - hurricanes, and Las Vegas, I was distracted.
It was a great selection !
^ Iām glad you enjoyed it! Looking forward to reading your comments. Iād also love to hear from lurkers out there who I think have read the book (@silverlady?).
I was very worried that something really bad would happen to Naomi. She was extremely lucky.
I donāt think Naomi and Joanna will be close friends in the future. I agree that Naomi matured after running away and think Joanna did as well. Joanna learned how her actions can impact the life of another person.
I really liked the book. (It has been a busy October with an unexpected medical diagnosis, a church yard sale and our leaving for London and Paris today.). I really loved Cora and Stella. I really felt that they were meant to be friends. They together become the perfect āloverā of Will. Hard to explain, but he needs both.
I was struck by all of the friendships in the book. They werenāt superficial - which is what I sometimes think of the Victorian era. Everyone proper and restrained with no depth. There were real connectionst Corat with depth. I loved the preconceived notions of Will and Stella about Cora. After the first couple of chapters, I threw away all of my preconceived ideas and just enjoyed.
I will read the book again.
^^^ I enjoyed the preconceived notions also - including the one re a pastorās daughter that concluded with Joanna walking into the church.
I donāt remember the point where I realized the book was going to head in unexpected directions (at least for me). However, there were plenty of clues on the way to that point. @mathmom said it well in post #44:
So true! Maybe thatās one of the messages overallāthat no one human being can fill all the needs of another person. Weāre like the pieces of a great puzzle, where all the parts fit together, connected on many sides. Martha, for example, needs Cora, but she also needs Edward. And she needs Spencer too, although she feels a little guilty about that.
@ignatius you wrote about the novel going in āunexpected directionsā and Iām curious how it surprised you? In what way did it deviate from your expectations ??
Did you expect Cora and Will to live happily ever after?
Favorite relationship Cora and Stella, (well maybe most memorable characters).Stellaās Blue fixation was brilliant because it ācleavesā her in my brain.
Also, wowed by Perryās writing, and enjoyed the āfeminist " and " politicalā themes.
Delighted at the āmeet/cuteā first meeting of Cora and Will as mentioned my Mary13.
Loved that Naomi wasnāt raped, or sexually abused,as I feared after the groping in the bar scene.
Enjoyed that there werenāt many dark aspects within the plot, except for the silly " Essex serpent". Ok, those skinned moles, gross.
Disliked how the mysterious Essex serpent plot was resolved, underwhelmed.
There were more than a few times I spoke aloud " no,no, no" (yes the forest escapade was one of those moments) ā¦and, gasped at the surprising developments- finding the book suspenseful and a page turner at the end.
I envisioned Kate Winslet as Cora, and I thoroughly liked this āimperfectā character.
Book cover won an award, and glad I actually had the book.
Funny moment - while checking out the book at the library, the new woman at the desk, rubbed her hand over the cover, and remarked what an unusual cover, and hoped the book lived up to that unique artwork,
It certainly did.
Iām not ignatius, but for some reason I was convinced for the longest time that the novel was going to be a bit of a thriller mystery where Cora goes off looking for fossils and instead solves the mystery of the man who dies in the first chapter. (Who was actually murdered and not the victim of a drunken accident - so of course more murders would have to ensue.) I donāt know what review made me think this was plausible, but while that might have been a fun book, Iām pretty sure what we got was a lot more interesting!
^ Forgot about that guy!
I guess I thought the book would be more plot-driven - a quest in search of the Essex serpent. Instead the book focuses on the characters with the āserpentā of less import than relationships. When Will and Cora meet-cute and Spencerās unrequited love for Martha slides into the story, I then thought we headed into romance novel territory (while still expecting the serpent to surface). Instead of romance though, we had such a variety of interrelationships between the characters: main characters - yes, but also minor characters such as Thomas with Naomi, Luke to Edward to Martha, the Ambroses with the Ransome children and so on.
Like @SouthJerseyChessMom, Iām glad I have the book for its cover.
I think marketers - even reviewers - did the book a disservice by not handling its descriptors well.
Hereās a very positive review of the book: http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/the-essex-serpent-by-sarah-perry-book-review-a-thing-of-beauty-inside-and-out-a7072981.html
In re @SouthJerseyChessMom and @ignatiusā observations, note the first sentence:
Also, hereās a more detailed, interesting review from The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/jun/16/the-essex-serpent-sarah-perry-review-novel
^ Worth clicking on the link if only to see the 1669 woodcut: āThe Flying Serpent or Strange News Out of Essex.ā Sarah Perry roots her tale in legend. Hereās her own account: http://blogs.bl.uk/living-knowledge/2016/08/on-the-trail-of-the-essex-serpent.html