Angela Carter

Yes? No?

who?

Author I'm studying.

'The Magic Toyshop' - book about three children of a privaleged background who are orphaned, and sent to live with their uncle, his wife, and her brothers. It focuses on the eldest girl, and the awakening of her sense of self. It's a gorgeous book - and the way it's written is the most important part.

'Wise Children' - Colourful tale of twin girls, the illegitamate children of a well known man in showbusiness, and their story right through until they are pensioners, disgracing themselves at their father's 100th birthday party. It's old fashioned showbusiness - music halls, glamour, sex.

There are others that I haven't read. She also wrote a number of short stories I'm working my way through that are so far stimulating my creative imagination as it hasn't been stimulated for a while. There are a number of themes running through both novels which I'm trying to find in the short stories, and strangely, I've found the metaphor 'hairpins raining down like hail', or something similar, about 4 times. She is sometimes described as a feminist writer - but only in the most subtle(ie not men-hating), and therefore effective, ways.

I particularly recommend 'The Magic Toyshop'.

Only read bits and pieces, so far, such as Shadow Dance, Nothing Sacred and The Magic Toyshop. Think I'll have to read a bit more, she's got me intrigued.

I think you'd really like her books Kerrie - I recommend The Magic Toyshop as the first one though! Although the style is obviously similar in her books, they read very diffferently.

I had never heard of her either until one of the books was on my uni reading list - ad I'm an avid reader. But i'm surprised she's not more well-known considering how good she is.