A review by unabridgedchick
The Margaret-Ghost by Barbara Novak

4.0

This rich but ultimately heartbreaking novel tells the story of Angelica Bookbinder, a fictional professor striving for tenure at Harvard, and her research subject, real-life feminist and New England intellectual Margaret Fuller. As Angelica researches Fuller's life, her own life begins to mirror Fuller's romantic struggles. Occasionally, this novel reads like a biography (leading me to wonder why Novak didn't just write one) but at the same time, the academic formality melts well with Novak's staccato narrative. Novak's strength does not come from her characters; often, she relies on thin stereotypes (I find the rapacious lesbian women studies professor to be a tired caricature, which Novak sadly trots out). Angelica is painted sparsely and develops best when ruminating over Fuller's life; it is when Novak forces her to interact with her contemporaries that the story feels a bit over-the-top (some readers, I've read, found Novak's depiction of Angelica's attempts at lesbianism to be homophobic while others found it more satirical). Instead, it is the poem-like prose that grabs the reader. As a geography major and Bostoner, I found Novak's use of place as character to be a satisfying element, but those not from Boston might find her emphasis on street names and Harvard landmarks tiring. In the end, this is a tasty novel about a fascinating and little known historical character.