The Passion
5 journalers for this copy...
I read this about ten years ago. As I recall, my reaction was, "This is the sort of thing I would have thought I'd love, but...." Certain isolated scenes still stick in my mind, though (something about the main character confronting the woman who has her heart in a room... shadows, curtains? tense scene; something at an army camp in winter; the ending, in a monastery?)
First published 1987.
The Passion is set in Napoleonic France and tells the tale of the young naïve Henri (a soldier who cooks for the insatiable Napoleon) and the more worldly Villanelle (a prostitute who has been sold to his insatiable army). The two meet while deserting during the cruel “zero winter” of the Russian campaign and together make the dangerous trek to ViIlanelle’s Venetian home. In entwining their narratives, Jeanette Winterson conjures a world in which the historical facts of Napoleon’s march across Europe can be set beside the magical realm of stolen hearts, webbed feet, and women who can walk across water.
The novel contrasts the paternal imperialism of Napoleonic France with the shifting and unmappable landscape of Venice, a place of chance and paradox in which rules, even those of identity and sexuality, can be easily flouted. Henri’s obsession with the inevitable passage of time is contrasted against Villanelle’s more sensuous association with the mutability of space. This also evokes two models of love: Henri’s deifying adoration of his Emperor is contrasted against Villanelle’s passion for her female lover which forces her to — quite literally — risk her beating heart. Although Villanelle and Henri eventually become lovers, and even have a child, the two can never really be reconciled. Which of the two characters is really free is not obvious in this novel of reversals and contradictions. Still, as Winterson reminds us throughout the novel: “Trust Me, I’m Telling You Stories.” — Nicky Marsh in 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die
The Passion is set in Napoleonic France and tells the tale of the young naïve Henri (a soldier who cooks for the insatiable Napoleon) and the more worldly Villanelle (a prostitute who has been sold to his insatiable army). The two meet while deserting during the cruel “zero winter” of the Russian campaign and together make the dangerous trek to ViIlanelle’s Venetian home. In entwining their narratives, Jeanette Winterson conjures a world in which the historical facts of Napoleon’s march across Europe can be set beside the magical realm of stolen hearts, webbed feet, and women who can walk across water.
The novel contrasts the paternal imperialism of Napoleonic France with the shifting and unmappable landscape of Venice, a place of chance and paradox in which rules, even those of identity and sexuality, can be easily flouted. Henri’s obsession with the inevitable passage of time is contrasted against Villanelle’s more sensuous association with the mutability of space. This also evokes two models of love: Henri’s deifying adoration of his Emperor is contrasted against Villanelle’s passion for her female lover which forces her to — quite literally — risk her beating heart. Although Villanelle and Henri eventually become lovers, and even have a child, the two can never really be reconciled. Which of the two characters is really free is not obvious in this novel of reversals and contradictions. Still, as Winterson reminds us throughout the novel: “Trust Me, I’m Telling You Stories.” — Nicky Marsh in 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die
Thanks so much for your donation Vasha!
This book is now part of the 1001-library. If you want to take this book from the library but don't know how to proceed, please refer to the library bookshelf.
Sent to sarahmangan.
Thanks! Looking forward to reading this!
Journal Entry 6 by sarahmangan at Nottingham, Nottinghamshire United Kingdom on Sunday, November 10, 2013
Wow! What a brilliant and unique book! I thoroughly enjoyed it. Winterson creates the voices of Henri and Villanelle so skilfully and I loved the story.
It's now going off to lamelemon as part of soffitta1's 1001 EU VBB. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
It's now going off to lamelemon as part of soffitta1's 1001 EU VBB. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
Journal Entry 7 by sarahmangan at Nottingham, Nottinghamshire United Kingdom on Saturday, November 16, 2013
Released 10 yrs ago (11/15/2013 UTC) at Nottingham, Nottinghamshire United Kingdom
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
Sorry it's taken me a while to get this to you - work has got in the way of me getting to the post office this week! Hope you enjoy the book :)
Safely picked up with thanks (love the BC postcard!) I've loved Jeanette Winterson so far so I'm ready for a great book :) Your choice from the VBB is also in the mail and should be arriving any day now.
You play, you win. You play, you lose. You play.
Yes, I am in love with Jeanette Winterson's poetic prose. I am very glad I am not in the habit of highlighting paragraphs, because otherwise this book would have been coloured from its first line to its last.
Her words are magic, and the down-to-earth fantasy so gripping and believable at the same time. I've met again common themes from earlier books of her I've read, and welcomed them warmly.
I'm telling you stories. Trust me.
Thank you very much for the opportunity. This book is once again available to 1001-library members.
Yes, I am in love with Jeanette Winterson's poetic prose. I am very glad I am not in the habit of highlighting paragraphs, because otherwise this book would have been coloured from its first line to its last.
Her words are magic, and the down-to-earth fantasy so gripping and believable at the same time. I've met again common themes from earlier books of her I've read, and welcomed them warmly.
I'm telling you stories. Trust me.
Thank you very much for the opportunity. This book is once again available to 1001-library members.
Spending the holidays en route to mcsar via Ythan's 350 VBB. Enjoy!
The book arrived quickly and in great shape. Thanks for sending. I look forward to reading this one, seeing how previous readers LOVED it. I hope I do too.
I am also in love with the book. It is brilliant and so beautifully written. It is true, while it has elements of fantasy, it is very believable and utterly compelling. This is the kind of book I can easily see myself re-reading again and again and enjoying it every time. This is my first read of the author and it won't be my last. What a talent!
