Welcome to Litsy!

In this, the third book in Byatt's quartet, we find Frederica fleeing an increasingly abusive marriage and trying to find a life in a 1960s world that recognises her as a mother/wife only, never flesh and blood. Woven in between Frederica's story is a grotesque, fantasy, novel which will later be tried for obscenity.

As with all Byatt, the writing is as literate and rich with cultural references as you could hope.

Just magnificent.

'Everything in England', this journalist writes, 'comes back to the inextricable links between our educational system, privilege, or lack of it, and sex...'

There is truth to these words yet!

'I feel I'm on trial for reading books.'
'You are. Partly.'
'I wouldn't be if I were a man.'
'Perhaps not. I know a couple - early thirties, can't have children, desperate to adopt. The social worker concerned in vetting them sent in a report saying "Plausible couple, well-intentioned. Too many books in the house. Wife reads." '

"It might begin:" #firstlinefridays

Here we go. Over 600 pages of magical, literary fiction It's been a while since I last read Byatt but that feeling is still there. In fact she is one of my favourite authors. The beauty and richness of her writing is unmistakable. #asbyatt #literaryfiction #longread

Sometimes I see big fat books and wonder "Hm. If I read more of these would my litfluence number be higher?" #bigfatbooks #chunkers #litfluence

Language rustles around her with many voices, none of them hers, all of them hers.