Hot off the Shelf: What I'm reading ' 'I capture the castle' by Dodie Smith

*No spoilers*

I gave this a four out of five on Goodreads and I still don't know whether that was the right decision.

(Image credit)

I just got an overwhelming feeling of 'British'. I think perhaps most of all in the description of the poverty suffered by the Mortmain family in the beginning of the story. It's all a very quaint sort of poverty - crumbling castle, with no furniture because it's all sold, and everyone in the village being very nice to them and giving them books and the occasional ham so they don't totally starve. There's no illness, no dysentery, everyone can read and write. I just found it all a bit make believe and insulting to those suffering from dire poverty. I understand that there are different kinds of poverty, and their situation is by no means desirable but my main bug bear was this:

The only reason they're in this poverty is because everyone in the house old enough to earn money wants to earn it creatively, and they've all lost their 'spark' (poor dears). Daddy Mortmain has writer's block, Step Mummy Mortmain can't be bothered to go and pose for paintings as she used to. Older sister Rose Mortmain is literally just sitting around waiting for someone rich to come and marry her and Cassandra Mortmain (our first person narrator) is too busy practicing her shorthand writing the damn story to be of much use. Thomas Mortmain, the youngest child, is still at school and so at least has that excuse. 

This was my biggest issue with this book - practically none of the characters I found likable. I found everyone a bit selfish. Stephen seems to be the only hard worker in the whole novel and mainly has a solid moral compass unlike everyone else. I suppose the vicar's okay too. Everyone else is just kidding themselves and being selfish or lazy or mopey. 

Literally everyone in this book (Image credit)

So why the four stars? Because Dodie Smith can WRITE. This is the first book of hers I have read. It was also, weirdly, the first one she wrote. She made me keep turning the page. She made me read like a crazy person, until my eyes hurt. She managed to get me to enjoy a story in which I detested nearly all of the characters. I don't think an author has managed that before for me. I could picture everything. I could see Topaz wandering naked in the fields. I could feel the freezing moat that Cassandra and Neil swam in. And I needed to know what happened next no matter what. This book enraged me, and I fell in love with it.

You can tell I haven't done a review in a while. This one is all over the place. I'll try better next time. But for now, go and read this book. I didn't know whether to burn it at the end or start it again. 

Over and out.

P.s: Literally just read a commet about this book on Goodreads "If you like Jane Austen, you'll love this". I think here lies my issue. I bloody hate Jane Austen.