Zennor in Darkness by Helen Dunmore

Helen Dunmore's Zennor in Darkness, published in 1993 when she was 40, was her first adult novel.  Dunmore had previously published short stories and books for children, but the two novels she had written in her twenties weren't good enough, she felt.  According to an article in the Guardian, she had been working on a short story and something clicked.  She notes she had "taken off the brakes".  "I wanted to write about a particular person, a particular time, a particular place."  The person is D.H. Lawrence, the place Cornwall and the time is WWI. 

In 1916-1917 D.H. Lawrence bought a cottage on the coast where he and his German-born wife Frieda settled.  Of course the tumultuous period with the war and Lawrence being such a controversial figure makes for interesting reading.  Zennor in Darknessis an ambitious novel, which I quite enjoyed though it was perhaps not (for me) a perfect novel.  Still, it's an impressive start for a woman who later goes on to win the Orange Prize and be nominated for both the Booker and Whitbread.  This first novel garnered her the McKitterick Prize (an award for a first novel for someone over 40).

The D.H. Lawrence Dumore writes about is not the author.  Not exactly anyway.  Although it goes unmentioned in the story he was at the time writing Women in Love (a novel I started reading but didn't finish.  I wasn't ready for Lawrence, I think, but now really feel I must try harder to read him).  Rather the Lawrence in this story is someone who is escaping the tensions of London.  His novel The Rainbow had been published in 1915 and had been prosecuted in an obscenity trial resulting in all copies being removed and destroyed in England. 

Zennor is meant to be a refuge, but it's a small place and the people look on outsiders as near-foreigners.  A Londoner (though Lawrence was born in the Midlands) would be bad enough let alone a German woman who wears red stockings and hangs multicolored curtains in her windows.  Surely a sign she must be sending signals to the U-boats stalking the Cornish coast.  Lawrence spends his time working in his garden and lending a hand at a local farm.  Frieda is slightly older and an unusual woman--passionate and bohemian without a care for what others think of her, which is enough to cause a stir amongst the people of Zennor. 

Sharing the stage in this novel with the Lawrences is Clare Coyne, the only daughter of a widowed Catholic man born a gentleman but a lesser son.  He married a lady's maid and returned with her to her native Cornwall where she died of TB when Clare was just a baby.  Francis Coyne raises his daughter mostly alone.  Their relationship is not exactly a close one, but they get on well enough.  Clare cares for the house and cooks the meals, and Francis works on his book about local plant life, but they lead a starched existence with each other.  She feels she can only relax with her mother's family, of which there is an abundance.  Aunts and uncles and cousins. 

And it is with her cousin Hannah and another friend, swimming in the sea one afternoon where the story begins.  There's a celebratory feel in the air as Hannah's brother John William is coming home on leave.  Clare is particularly close to both Hannah and John William, the three having grown up together and spent many happy hours in each other's company.  Friendship blossoms into something more between Clare and John William, but there's the war which is consuming and destroying so many young men, even the ones who come home apparently so safe.  Their romance is intense and secretive.  So usual is it to see them together that no one, especially Clare's father, even realizes they share something more than everyday family ties.  John William, despite his working class upbringing, has dreams and talents that he hopes to pursue.  He has even risen in the ranks to become an officer, but no one understands that even after two years of war experience, coming through seemingly unscathed, he is not undamaged by it all. 

As I was reading I couldn't decide whether this was Clare's story or D.H. Lawrence's, and therein lies the occasional disjointed feeling that I had while reading.  I can never decide in a case like this whether it's fine to insert an actual person into a story or if a fictional creation would work just as well and facts were simply borrowed from reality.  The characters are so inextricably linked, however, that the story could not play out without one or the other.  The Lawrences befriend Clare, and prying eyes make assumptions that aren't always correct--especially when they see Clare with Lawerence who encourages her in her talent for drawing.  There is rumor and innuendo in the air already because of the war, and there is also fear and mistrust.  Young men are dying and some families, like Clare's uncles, are doing their best to keep their sons safe at home, but always the army's reach is long.  Several years into the war and now even the rejected men are being called up.  Into this swirl of family drama comes a misunderstanding that has repercussions that affect not only the Lawrences but Clare as well.

Despite that occasional uneven feel to the story, I really liked this book.  The descriptions of Cornwall are lush and vivid and the place comes alive.  I also loved the lyrical feel to the prose and it wasn't until well into the story that I realized that Dunmore writes in present tense, which I know some readers find irksome.  For me it didn't detract or call attention to itself but I simply fell into the story and into the minds of the characters.  Some of the best passages describe the rhythms of the sea and often the characters actions reflect that rhythm.  There is much to like about this story, definitely one to look for if the place and period appeals to you.

I read Dunmore's A Spell of Winterin my pre-blogging days, which I recall liking, and hope to read more of her books eventually.  I'm sure I have several more by her on my reading pile.

This was the first book in Caroline's 2012 Literature and War Readalong.  You can read her thoughts on the book here.  Next up is Sebastian Barry's A Long Long Way for February 27.

Comments

[Marg]

I have read a couple of Dunmore's books but I do intend to read more. I like the idea of this setting a lot. *off to check the library catalogue*

Thanks for mentioning Caroline's challenge. I hadn't heard of it before.

[Danielle]

Marg--The setting really makes this book. I hope you find a copy as it is well worth a read. I'm looking forward now to reading more of her work as well. And do check out Caroline's readalong--she has lots of interesting books lined up!

[Caroline]

I loved this book and didn't think it felt uneven at all. I liked how the consciousnessof one person changed into that of another. I felt the poet writing. As good as The Siege is, that's the book of a novelist while Zennor in Darkness is the book of a poet.
I've read Lawrence's letters and thought she was very true to him. I think he is a rare case in which the man and the writer were one.
I think I will read her novels chronologically from now on. I'm interested what stages there are between this book and the later ones.
Thanks for joining and the link.

[Danielle]

Caroline--Uneven was probably not the best word to use to describe what I was feeling, because I really did love the story, too. I think there was a disjointed feel because I was thinking of Lawrence as he is--a real person dropped into a fictional story, which is based of course on reality. I just wasn't sure who was meant to be the focus-the Lawrences or Clare--and felt myself 'broke' between the two. Otherwise it really flowed very nicely, and I also thought it was a book written by a poet. I'll be interested in reading her later books now, too. I didn't really know anything about DH Lawrence going into the book, but have read a very little bit since and am sure I will read more.

[Kathy]

I love the cover of the book! Sounds like an interesting and unusual read. I've never read D.H. Lawrence or Dunmore.

[sagustocox]

This sounds interesting. We've added your review link to the WWI reviews page at War Through the Generations.

[Liz F]

I love Helen Dunmore's books and the period is fascinating but I absolutely loathe D H Lawrence, having had to study one of his books for A-Level and hating every moment of it, so I am rather torn!
Perhaps one to put on the list and wait and see if it crosses my path!

[Stefanie]

Sounds like an interesting book. It's a good question though, what would the book have been like if all the cahracters were entirely fictional? Especially if you are left confused over whose story it really is. If it is Clare's why bothering creating a fictional Lawrence.

[nomadreader]

I've read three of Dunmore's novels and plan to dip into several more this year too. This one sounds so intriguing, and as I've read some of her more recent novels, I'm curious to go back to the beginning and try this one.

[Kailana]

I had hoped to read this but my library didn't have it. I have just read the one Dunmore, which I really enjoyed, and really want to read more by her in the future.

[kathleen]

The setting alone attracts me to this one.

[Danielle]

Kathy--I did try Lawrence once but I think the timing wasn't right--and too many books on at once as I set the book aside. Will try again, though. I do know I like Helen Dunmore and will read more of her work at some point!

Sagustocox--Thanks so much. I need to check out your review list--I expect there are all sorts of wonderful books to discover there!

Liz--Nothing like having to study an author so intensely in school to pretty much ruin him/her forever after! :) I have had those in my past as well. I've not read a Lawrence novel (well, actually did read one shorter less famous work, but it was so long ago I don't think I can count it now). You might still like the Dunmore, though, as Lawrence doesn't play a huge rols--strange as that sounds. One to look for in the Oxfam shop perhaps!

Stefanie--I think it was meant to be more of a DH Lawrence story, though Clare seems to be more of a main character. I think I wasn't really meant to separate the characters out like I have done, which is what is causing me trouble I think. I really liked Clare, though. Maybe his story was just too good to try and fictionalize it--I think it was what inspired her to begin with. Still, I think inserting real characters into fiction can be tricky. I still enjoyed the story, but maybe am thinking too hard about it?! :)

Nomadreader--It seems as though I've only read early novels now, and must try one of her more recent books. I have The Siege on hand, so perhaps will start there. I do like her writing style and am curious how her more recent novels compare.

Kailana--Too bad your library doesn't have this. Mine didn't either so I looked for a used copy--bit banged up but it reads the same! :) I bet her later novels will be easier to get ahold of, but this is worth keeping an eye out for! I want to read more, too.

Kathleen--The setting is wonderful. And for that alone it's worth reading, though there is also lots of other good stuff there.

[litlove]

I confess that I began a Dunmore novel many years ago and abandoned it after about 70 pages. She writes in a way that is vivid and disturbing and it sort of made me feel a bit queasy. I mean, she is clearly a very good writer indeed to provoke such a strong response in me, so it's not her quality that's in any way in doubt. Donna Tartt writes a bit like that too, and I haven't managed to finish one of her books, either. I am a wimp! :-)

[Danielle]

Litlove--I think I do know what you mean. She is very vivid, which can be a good thing if you like that type of writing and depending also what she's describing! I keep meaning to read Donna Tartt's book, but I can't seem to get past the first 30 pages or so--not sure why--as I like her writing--too many other books clamoring for attention I think. Some other poor book will always get turned away. I don't think you're a wimp at all--just know what you like and why not spend time with those sorts of books instead--that is what I do too! :)