Phyllis Paul: Twice Lost, Pulled Down, Invisible Darkness, A Little Treachery, more

[Extollager]

Please note, everyone, that I have posted these Phyllis Paul summaries here exclusively for the convenience of readers who would find them of interest for their own personal use -- for example, for deciding whether or not to spend a lot of money buying a used copy of one of the novels, or for help tracking characters if they were reading one of the novels, etc. These notes are all to be considered as copyright by me with no implied permission for any other use. For one thing, they represent many hours of reading on my part, and I might wish to use them in an article to be offered for academic publication or for sale to a publisher, etc. They are not to be used as if they were free resources for students writing academic papers.

I have not scrutinized the notes to make sure they mention nothing that someone might consider to be infringing on Chrons restrictions about controversial topics; I wrote these notes primarily for my own use as I read the novels, to help me read alertly and keep details in mind, and I'm sharing them with people here who have expressed, or might come to have, an interest in the mostly very hard-to-get books of a little-known but fascinating woman author. There is almost nothing in print about Paul, especially if you rule out special interest 'zines such as Wormwoodiana that have published a few articles about her. So far as I know, at the present time this thread posted at Chrons is probably the world's major open source for details on her novels and is the only open-access clearinghouse for information about her and her legacy. Phyllis Paul had a strong antipathy to Roman Catholicism, which comes out in several of the books. One can't write about her books without mentioning this topic related to religion.

Thanks.

 

[Bick]

I see on Amazon that Twice Lost will be reissued in paperback and Kindle formats this October. Perhaps other books by the author will come out in the months to come.

(I note that Amazon is selling a used copy of the hardback for $300.)

Yes, Twice Lost in now in print - it sounds like an interesting plot, so I've ordered a copy from Blackwell's.

 

[Extollager]

That may be her best novel, Bick, so you've got a good one upon which to base a single-novel assessment. I'll have to reread A Little Treachery one of these days, which I thought was also one of her best, though I have been impressed by most of them rather a lot.

 

[saulfan]

My copy of 'Twice Lost' arrived today. Hoping to get started with it tomorrow and I'm really looking forward to it.

 

[saulfan]

I finished 'Twice Lost' earlier this evening. I found it to be a slightly uneven work.

At times, the control of the material and the dazzling and exquisite prose is as spectacular as anything I have read in a long time, in other places, Phyliss Paul's intent was clear but the writing didn't quite match the very high levels found elsewhere.

Her characters' foibles and motivations are conveyed through a mastery and application of language, .

Although I haven't read it for many a year, I was instinctively reminded of Isabel Archer in 'Portrait Of A Lady' when reading the passages related to Christine in the middle section of the book - I need to go back to POAL at some stage.

The book left me wanting more of Paul - it is so frustrating that so little is available.

Even with its flaws, I found it a worthwhile read and something I will try to re-read reasonably soon, as I am convinced there are nuances of language and relationships which I may well have missed on this occasion.

Strongly recommended to anyone who may be on the fence - I doubt you will be disappointed.

 

[Yozh]

Glad to find this thread, Paul sounds like someone I want to read, and I see our downtown library has “Twice Lost” and “A Little Treachery”

 

[Extollager]

Glad to find this thread, Paul sounds like someone I want to read, and I see our downtown library has “Twice Lost” and “A Little Treachery”

Lucky you!

 

[saulfan]

Glad to find this thread, Paul sounds like someone I want to read, and I see our downtown library has “Twice Lost” and “A Little Treachery”

I'm confident you won't be disappointed.

 

[Bick]

I enjoyed Twice Lost. It's rather a deep book; layered and finely wrought. Paul leaves things rather open to interpretation, but by the end leaves the reader satisfied with the outcome. I see on the cover of my volume a review quote suggesting it's not an easy read. I'd disagree, as it was beautifully written and moved things along pretty well.

 

[saulfan]

I'd disagree, as it was beautifully written and moved things along pretty well.

I wholeheartedly agree with this - there were passages of dazzling prose.

I just feel so frustrated that it is so difficult to obtain her work.

I hope that Twice Lost has been succesful enough to make it worthwhile for other works to be sought out and published.