I first read Possession
when it came out in 1990, then again for my book club a few years later. Now, a quarter of a century later still, I
have revisited this favorite book in order to discuss it with a much younger,
but much more erudite, friend. The rewards
of rereading it were substantial. The
basic plot is that two contemporary scholars, working independently, discover a
possible very personal connection between two famous Victorian poets, Randolph
Henry Ash and Christabel LaMotte. Within
the framework of the 1980s story, we learn through the poets’ letters, poems,
and fairy tales, as well as others’ diaries and modern-day scholarly research–
all written by Byatt and all excellent – how their connection developed, how in
influenced their work, and what the startling outcome of their relationship
was. Soon other scholars and interested
parties begin to get wind of this possible discovery, which will change
everything they believed they knew about these writers. And a chase is on. Weaving together mythology, spiritualism,
Victorian sensibility, Pre-Raphaelitism,
natural history, and modern-day scholarship and feminism, Byatt skillfully
keeps all these balls in the air while at the same time creating an engaging love
story and convoluted mystery. You do
have to have a certain tolerance for a lot of long poetry and flowery letters –
I loved them all. To get the most out of
the novel, don’t skip anything! Just
ravishing! 555 pp.
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