The Critic: Rosa Abbott

The Book: Wise Children, Angela Carter

"A mock-memoir, Wise Children chronicles the existence of two batty septuagenarian ex-chorus girls, twins Nora and Dora Chance, and the ways in which their bawdy, chaotic lives clash with the elite Hazard Dynasty from which they descend... illegitimately. Perennially seeking acceptance (or even acknowledgment) from their Shakespearean-actor father, the girls pull out every stop to catch his eye during their eventful lives. But though dark undertones linger, the resilience and wit of the leading ladies transform this bleak tale of poverty and rejection into a whirlwind celebration of life. Carter’s compelling and original narrative style renders this a feminist masterpiece."

Discover Mariella Frostrup's 2011 reading list here

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