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These essays are culled from Mantel’s semi-regular contributions to the London Review of Books over a period of many years. Most are based on books she’s reviewing, chosen because they’re of interest to her for one reason or another. The story of a medium prosecuted for being a witch—in the 1940s—greatly interests Mantel, and so interested me, especially as it turns into an indictment of the type of people (gender- and class-wise) deemed guilty. There is, therefore, a temptation to write afterthoughts into these pieces, to embellish them with later and better thinking. I have not done that, but left them as they were--mantelpieces littered with to-do lists, and messages form people I used to be.” From the Introduction This collection of essays spans a 30 year period: 1987-2017, so it’s understandable Mantel might have been tempted to make some changes. But no changes were needed. Watching her mind at work, pondering all manner of subjects from monarchy to witchcraft, was awe-inspiring. I rather admire Hilary the most when she is being deliciously mean as well as rigorously intellectual. A skill she applies across a surprising breadth of topics.
Mantel Pieces: Royal Bodies and Other Writing from the Mantel Pieces: Royal Bodies and Other Writing from the
The most famous essay in this collection of pieces that Mantel wrote from the London Review of Books is Mantel’s “Royal Bodies”. The response to this essay was in part anger, in particular because of a description of Kate Middleton that describes as a “jointed doll on which certain rags are hung . . . a shop-window mannequin with no personality of her own, entirely define by what she wore” (269) and “Kate seems to have been selected for her role of princess because she was irreproachable: as painfully thin as anyone could wish” (271) and perhaps most damningly “What does Kate read? It’s a question” (271).
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Her awareness of her own body makes her acutely aware of others, as when she considers the ill health of Henry VIII. "Historians &, I'm afraid, doctors, underestimate what chronic pain can do to sour the temper & wear away both the personality and the intellect."⠀ I will never read most of the twenty books that make up the substance of Mantel Pieces but that doesn’t matter. Each review is a little jewel in itself - exhaustively researched and written in clean, lucid prose.
MANTELPIECE | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary MANTELPIECE | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary
Two, on very personal topics, were my favorites. One covered meeting her stepfather when she was four years old, where to my memory, she totally nailed the viewpoint from that age. Another, the frank depiction of her horrific experience in the hospital after surgery, felt like a public service announcement wrapped in a horror story. “None of us thinks the complication rate applies to us.” Overall, what I enjoyed most was her approach to writing about history, summed up for me in these two quotes: Anderson's book begins, as it should, with the prodigal, the violent, the gross. But what do you expect? Madonna's wedding was different from other people's. Interspersed among the essays themselves are photocopied correspondences between Mantel and her LRB editor, Mary-Kay Wilmers. Many of these are a chore to make out, being both tiny and handwritten, and since they seem to be selected almost at random I'm not really sure what the benefit will be for most readers. Fun if you'd like a glimpse at how the sausage is made, I suppose.
The Hair Shirt Sisterhood – on women saints and suffering. I was reminded a little of The Nun’s Tale by Candace Robb here, probably because of the description of how some of these women sought out suffering While this essay was written and published well before Meghan married Harry, Mantel’s comments about how Kate is perceived in some ways predict some of the vitriol directed toward Meghan (the majority of the vitriol can be “explained” by racism). A royal body, a female royal body, is only of interest because it is something that has no personality. Meghan has personality in spades. We know Meghan reads. It’s important to ensure that your solid oak products are ethically sourced and of the very highest quality. By choosing to buy from a well-established brand like UK oak, you know that you’ll get exactly what you expect. Our mantel pieces are beautifully crafted and built to last.
Mantel Pieces: The New Book from The Sunday Times Best
My favourite “piece” wasn’t a review at all but an essay called 'Meeting the Devil' written on the harrowing aftermath of her medical procedure. I can’t imagine a more intense, graphic telling. This is part of a series of diary writings that reflect on her experiences in Saudi Arabia and meeting her step-father, as well.In both women, Mantel recognises how much the dead follow the living around & that to be alive is to be haunted. Her memoir, Giving Up The Ghost, explores this in respect to her own life & draws out her other great preoccupation: bodies & how they limit our world. ⠀
Hilary Mantel Takes On Royals and Rebels in a Book of Essays Hilary Mantel Takes On Royals and Rebels in a Book of Essays
The debilitating pain of her endometriosis was initially treated with antipsychotics & then abdominal surgery that left her infertile, treated with steroids that transformed her body. ⠀ Another GR reviewer calls Mantel Pieces an "inessential" Mantel book. I don't know anything about that, I've only read this and the Cromwell novels, but it's definitely one of those collections you shouldn't feel guilty for not reading straight through; if you're like me, you'll probably like it better if you don't. These, in my opinion, were the highlights: The Murder of James Bulger – what does a murder and the children’s crusade have in common? The question ‘at what age are children responsible for the things they do, especially the horrific things they sometimes do’.Our current royal family doesn't have the difficulties in breeding that pandas do, but pandas and royal persons alike are expensive to conserve and ill-adapted to any modern environment It's reassuring to see her research in action and to appreciate to what extent it props up her fiction - she ably resists the impulse to infodump everything she knows in her novels, but the foundations as evidenced here are deep and secure.
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