Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss opens with a scene of a young woman being prepared as a sacrifice or for an execution. The details echo those of the 16 year old Yde girl and the Windeby girl.
Then we are introduced to the current situation in which seventeen-year-old Silvie and her parents are participating in an iron age reenactment along with a university professor and his students.
Set in Northumberland in the 1990's, the descriptions of the small camp, forest, and countryside do create a feeling of an earlier time. However, the group is not far from civilization, and Molly, one of the students, makes clandestine use of a near by convenience store.
Moss creates the feeling of isolation and repression immediately in taut descriptions that involve more than the physical setting. Professor Slade is pretty easy-going, but Silvie's father Bill is not, and it is clear that he would like his dictatorial and controlling views to be accepted by more than his wife and daughter.
Physically and emotionally abusive, the father tries to keep a wall around his family and particularly around Silvie. If the others are aware, only Molly seems concerned. Retreating to the past is, for the students, an exercise for credit, but for Bill it carries much more weight. Silvie and her mother are only there because of Bill.
Ghost Wall is actually a novella, but it didn't feel like one because of its density--packing so much in so few pages. There are numerous themes, each handled in an understated manner that seeps into your consciousness. I was both pleased and frustrated by the conclusion which was a little rushed, and I was curious about some of the outcomes, wanting to know more.
There are walls aplenty--physical, mental, social, and metaphysical--and plenty to think about in this short book.
NetGalley/Farrar, Straus & Giroux
General Fiction/Coming of Age. Jan. 8, 2018. Print length: 144 pages.
I've heard so much praise for Sarah Moss but have yet to read any of her books! This is the story of my life. LOL My library only has her NF book Names for the Sea so that is probably what I will start with.
ReplyDeleteIf your are interested in books about bog people, I have actually read two mysteries that feature them. You may have read them already since you read so much but they are The Grave Tattoo by Val McDermid and Haunted Ground by Erin Hart. :D
I have read The Grave Tattoo, but not Haunted Ground. Thanks, Ruthiella. :)
DeleteIt sounds like Moss is good at creating just the right atmosphere--and in a novella! That's impressive in and of itself. I haven't tried anything by Sarah Moss.
ReplyDeleteI'm not usually a fan of novellas, and if I'd known that it was a novella, I probably would have missed an intriguing book!
DeleteThis one's been on my To Read list for awhile. The whole iron age reenactment is what first interested me. Though it sounds like Moss could have written a few more pages at the end to keep it from feeling so rushed. :)
ReplyDeleteThe end is the only thing that felt a bit rushed. And although there is a definite conclusion, I still wanted to know a little more about what happened next!
DeleteI haven't read anything by this author; and this sounds like an interesting one given the density and the premise.
ReplyDeleteI've read a couple of books that mentioned bog bodies and it's fascinating. Reminds me a bit of the Elly Griffiths mysteries! Sounds like an interesting read!
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