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A review by slippy_underfoot
The Sweet Dove Died by Barbara Pym
4.0
Another captivating, mature, character piece from Pym.
Leonora is an elegant woman in her middle age who encounters James and his uncle Humphrey at an auction. Both men are captivated by her beauty and poise, something which Leonora thrives on as long as no-one expects to shift the relationship into the bedroom. Humphrey sees a potential wife, James’s attraction is - like his sexuality - a bit more ambiguous.
These three main characters revolve around each other, Humphrey wanting to be part of Leonora’s life, Leonora wanting to be all of James’s. They find an awkward equilibrium for a short while, until events take a revealing turn due to Leonora’s insistence on perfection in all things.
Pym always does such graceful character work, adding shade and detail almost imperceptibly, in the same way the slow passage of afternoon sunlight through a window gradually shifts the shadows in a room. We can start the day in a pleasant mood with a pleasant person and by the time they have left the house, gone to town, and dined we have seen all the facets of their character in their reponse to the mundanities and trivialities they encounter. In this way Pym is able to finely illuminate the points at which adoration becomes obsession and fondness turns to loathing.
This book presents differing types of intimate relationship founded on anything but romantic love, and finds all of them, to a degree, oppressive and destructive. Even the casual sexual encounters don’t seem to be at all satisfactory for those involved in them.
The fracturing of such flawed characters could, in many other hands, elicit a “so what” shug, but the richness of characterisation here is such that we can always find some sympathy for those who feel out of time out of place, and out of hope.
Leonora is an elegant woman in her middle age who encounters James and his uncle Humphrey at an auction. Both men are captivated by her beauty and poise, something which Leonora thrives on as long as no-one expects to shift the relationship into the bedroom. Humphrey sees a potential wife, James’s attraction is - like his sexuality - a bit more ambiguous.
These three main characters revolve around each other, Humphrey wanting to be part of Leonora’s life, Leonora wanting to be all of James’s. They find an awkward equilibrium for a short while, until events take a revealing turn due to Leonora’s insistence on perfection in all things.
Pym always does such graceful character work, adding shade and detail almost imperceptibly, in the same way the slow passage of afternoon sunlight through a window gradually shifts the shadows in a room. We can start the day in a pleasant mood with a pleasant person and by the time they have left the house, gone to town, and dined we have seen all the facets of their character in their reponse to the mundanities and trivialities they encounter. In this way Pym is able to finely illuminate the points at which adoration becomes obsession and fondness turns to loathing.
This book presents differing types of intimate relationship founded on anything but romantic love, and finds all of them, to a degree, oppressive and destructive. Even the casual sexual encounters don’t seem to be at all satisfactory for those involved in them.
The fracturing of such flawed characters could, in many other hands, elicit a “so what” shug, but the richness of characterisation here is such that we can always find some sympathy for those who feel out of time out of place, and out of hope.