- Hardcover: 288 pages
- Publisher: Fourth Estate; First Edition edition (3 Aug 2000)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1857026829
- ISBN-13: 978-1857026825
- Product Dimensions: 23.4 x 15.8 x 3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 860,382 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
| |||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details |
More About the Author
Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Fairy tales are stuffed to the brim with dark woods--dark woods in which dwarves and hermits lurk, trees bleed when struck with an axe and princes and princesses are tested to within a hair's breadth of their lives. When Benedick Hunter finds a book of fairy tales written by his mother he knows there are dark woods within but is unaware of just how dangerous fairy tales can be. In A Dark Wood is his journey to discover his mother's secrets, the truths behind her stories and why she committed suicide when he was still a child. This is also a journey to find out more about himself, his "amorphous moods" and the "stink of failure" that plagues him following a divorce and a long spell of unemployment.
In A Dark Wood unravels through a matrix of fairy tales and half-forgotten memories leading from London in the 1960s to present-day New York and the white verandaed houses of North Carolina (hemmed in, of course, by dark woods). It's Amanda Craig's fourth novel, following the acclaimed A Vicious Circle, which is currently being developed for BBC television. Craig confirms with this novel that she is a voice to listen to, a bold writer who is not frightened to deliver a harrowing read. That said, In A Dark Wood has a lighter side and is shot through with a magical feel--as all good fairy tales should be.--Jane Honey
Review
‘An intelligent and gripping novel. Wonderful, page-turning storytelling.’ The Times
‘Exhibits the same incisiveness and intelligence as her acclaimed “A Vicious Circle”. Witty and disturbing, it is a novel of both accomplishment and charm.’ Daily Mail
‘A book within a book, a rich plot with plenty of on-the-edge-of-your-seat suspense, an abundance of quirky but believable character…“In A Dark Wood” is an elegant anti-fairy tale for adults that keeps you guessing until the last few pages.’ Daily Express
‘An eerie novel full of fairytale menace…beguilingly told and hypnotic.’ Independent on Sunday
'A tour de force.' Spectator
'Vivid and enchanting, ‘In A Dark Wood’ is an affirmation of storytelling.' New Statesman
‘Terrifyingly intense…Craig’s triumph is to underscore the way in which society treats emotions as a disability.’ Financial Times
‘Predominantly comic and reassuring … a triumph for sanity.’ Time Literary Supplement
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The "Bookworms in Brussels" (a small reading group of seven women - and five different nationalities) went into "In A Dark Wood" in the deepest dark of December and came out much wiser, superbly entertained and finally ... relieved! (but I'm not allowed to say why).
The story is perfectly convincing, as are the characters. The contrast between every day's trials and tribulations, parenthood (all the mothers marvelled at the description of the two irresistible little monsters!), madness & drama and the fairy tales and poems "... and when your heart begins to fail it's like a ship without a sail..." works beautifully. The narrative is witty and full of insight, the fairy tales enchanting, the characters, whether loveable or despicable, are all very vivid. We suffered, and suffered with poor Benedick, and it is a great compliment to the author that - unless you are familiar with manic-depressive cases - you are, literally, kept in the dark until the very end. Do read it!
Inger Løvschall (a Dane in Brussels)
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Benedick Hunter is having what at first appears to be a middle-aged crisis. He's an actor who hasn't had any steady work recently. His wife is divorcing him and he bickers constantly with his pompous father. He finds little joy from taking care of his imaginative, but demanding young children. Benedick lives off from the small amount of royalties from his mother's children's books. After rediscovering one of these collection of fairy tales he begins reading the stories for deeper personal meanings. He's compelled to follow a trail of his mother's old friends who are scattered over Britain and America like a trail of breadcrumbs. The mysteries contained in her subversive fables lead him to his mother's childhood home and the truth about his family that has been hidden from him. Gradually he learns that his alienation from society and erratic behaviour has its roots in a mental illness. But he has to descend into the darkest psychological depths in order to learn how to live with this disorder.
In this beautiful and moving novel, Craig manages to write very convincingly about a man's perspective of the world. Benedick's personal aspirations are clouded by despair in a way that prevents him from also appreciating all the loving people he has in his life. Unfortunately, he has also inherited a lot of pain and bitterness from his mother's life, many of the facts of which have been hidden from him. We are also given many funny details about the cultural differences between America and England. What the author also does so extraordinarily well is show a blend of light and dark in this central character's psychology. He does a number of detestable things. Yet we are given insight into them and understand they are acts of desperation brought about through a mental illness he can‘t control. Craig pays tribute to the important and complex work of Angela Carter who was dubbed the Fairy Godmother of British fiction. She does this by insisting that fairy tales have a much deeper meaning than what appears on the surface. The raucous emotions and terrible violence they depict just may be a greater reflection of reality than we care to admit. The psychological demons which hound many people are indeed more terrifying than the creatures who lurk in the dark woods of fairy tales. By blending the story of Benedick’s travels with a number of creative fairy tales, Craig gives us a lot of insight into this while producing an enthralling story.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I could not stop reading. The narrative drew me on from page to page. The main character's extreme unpleasantness almost turned me away but fortunately, I persisted and was well rewarded with a moving experience of the horror of depression which turns the sufferer into a beast. The author's understanding of this state is superb, and then her description of his mania which becomes interlaced with passionate love takes the reader on a journey of understanding. Well worth reading.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Wonderful
I read this book a few years ago, but it remains a favourite, it really is beautifully written, plotted, and sympathetic to the frailties of human nature.
Published 11 months ago by Maylondon
Sad, beautiful and haunting
Darker and more heartbreaking than her other books this fine writer weaves powerful myths and fairy stories through the journey made by the central character, an actor coming to... Read more
Published on 13 April 2006 by Lady Fancifull
wonderful! the pace of a thriller, exquisitely written
This is a wonderful, wonderful novel. Not only is it exquistely well-written, it is a kind of detective story that you can't put down. Read more
Published on 19 July 2001
worlds within worlds
A fascinating and provoking novel. It's a good read, but it also has lots to say about different worlds; the fairytale world, the real world, the world of madness, the worlds of... Read more
Published on 4 Dec 2000
Elegant writing, masterly build up of tension
Craig writes with an elegant style that is a joy to read about a difficult subject that I for one knew little about - manic depression. Read more
Published on 20 Nov 2000
splendid addition to the craig oeuvre-in-progress
I loved the mixture of dark and light in this novel--and I loved that Craig took a minor figure from A Vicious Circle (Georgina's husband) and gave him his own book. Read more
Published on 27 Oct 2000 by Rachel Carpenter
A poignant psychodrama. Read it!
This is a poignant, pacey psychodrama. The characters are vividly, but sensitively drawn and, like all Amanda Craig's novels, there is a wry underlying humour despite the darkness... Read more
Published on 24 Oct 2000
Wonderful, engaging story based on life of Sylvia Plath
What a wonderful story! Based in Primrose Hill, London and the American south, this book explores parenthood, manic-depression, and the complex relationship between Britons and... Read more
Published on 20 Oct 2000
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
