Day 11 – A Book You Hated
I was looking so forward to reading this book. What a disappointment! The main character, who was the narrator, not only lacked a name, she appeared to lack a brain as well. Unbelievably naive, her actions did not run to logical conclusions and I kept finding myself ready to tear my hair out as she acted as a door mat for her older husband. He finally reveals to her that he murdered his first wife and the only emotion she appears to experience is joy, as that means he loves her and not Rebecca. Good grief!
I did not find Mrs. Danvers scary at all.
Here is a taste of the main character’s amazing, stimulating conversation:
“Yes?” I said.
“Yes,” I said.
“Yes,” I said.
and another somewhat more lively conversation
“Not so very well,” I said.
“No.” I said.
“Very pretty,” I said.
“I’m so glad,” I said.
“No, I’m afraid I don’t,” I said.
“How nice,” I said.
“Yes,” I said.
“Really?” I said.
How any publisher decided to print such drivel, I’ve yet to understand.
I’ve read that du Maurier struggled with writing this book and I believe it shows. The plot felt so heavily manipulated that it resembled a lump of pock-marked clay ……… uninteresting and unappealing.
I will say, however, that she wrote some beautiful descriptions, especially in the beginning of the book. It’s the one redeeming feature.
