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Mr Clive and Mr Page
MR.CLIVE & MR. PAGE es una novela publicada en 1997 y que a finales de diciembre Muchnik Editores ha tenido el acierto de publicar, pues, sencillamente, se trata de una extraordinaria novela, de poco más de doscientas páginas, que se devoran ya que Neil Bartlett consigue que el lector entre de lleno en la historia que nos cuenta y, por un resorte casi mágico (ésa es una de las grandes magias de la escritura) nos "engancha" al libro sin que seamos capaces de dejarlo.
MR.CLIVE & MR. PAGE es una novela total, en la que son muchos los temas que aparecen, y el erotismo también está presente, pero se trata de un erotismo intrigante e inquietante que sirve para reflejar de una manera perfecta una forma de vivir. MR.CLIVE & MR. PAGE nos va a transportar del glamour del Londres de los felices años veinte a la importante represión de los cincuenta; de los salones de Mayfair a los siempre intrigantes baños turcos y de la existencia corriente de Mr. Page al mundo misterioso del elegante Mr. Clive. En 1886 el arquitecto Richardson construye una casa en el South Side de Chicago. Al cabo de cien años- concretamente en 1985- el Daily Mirror publica la noticia de la muerte del actor Rock Hudson. Este es el pretexto para que Neil Bartlett construya esta gran novela pues, a partir de estas dos noticias que no guardan, aparentemente, ningún punto en común, Mr Page, protagonista también de la historia, aprovechará una Nochebuena para revelar los secretos que unen estos dos acontecimientos.
Esta es la segunda novela de Neil Bartlett, director artístico del londinense Lyric Theater de Hammersmith, si bien la primera (Ready to Catch Him Schould He Fall) no se ha publicado en España; es también autor de una biografía de Oscar Wilde, algunas piezas teatrales y traducciones de obras de Racine, Molière o Genet entre otros.
El crítico y escritor homosexual inglés Edmund White, una de las voces más importantes de la literatura gay actual y creador del canon literario, ha escrito respecto a esta novela: "De un erotismo inquietante. Consigue reflejar la opresión de los homosexuales en el pasado sin que los personajes pierdan un ápice de su individualidad"
MR.CLIVE & MR. PAGE es una novela total, en la que son muchos los temas que aparecen, y el erotismo también está presente, pero se trata de un erotismo intrigante e inquietante que sirve para reflejar de una manera perfecta una forma de vivir. MR.CLIVE & MR. PAGE nos va a transportar del glamour del Londres de los felices años veinte a la importante represión de los cincuenta; de los salones de Mayfair a los siempre intrigantes baños turcos y de la existencia corriente de Mr. Page al mundo misterioso del elegante Mr. Clive. En 1886 el arquitecto Richardson construye una casa en el South Side de Chicago. Al cabo de cien años- concretamente en 1985- el Daily Mirror publica la noticia de la muerte del actor Rock Hudson. Este es el pretexto para que Neil Bartlett construya esta gran novela pues, a partir de estas dos noticias que no guardan, aparentemente, ningún punto en común, Mr Page, protagonista también de la historia, aprovechará una Nochebuena para revelar los secretos que unen estos dos acontecimientos.
Esta es la segunda novela de Neil Bartlett, director artístico del londinense Lyric Theater de Hammersmith, si bien la primera (Ready to Catch Him Schould He Fall) no se ha publicado en España; es también autor de una biografía de Oscar Wilde, algunas piezas teatrales y traducciones de obras de Racine, Molière o Genet entre otros.
El crítico y escritor homosexual inglés Edmund White, una de las voces más importantes de la literatura gay actual y creador del canon literario, ha escrito respecto a esta novela: "De un erotismo inquietante. Consigue reflejar la opresión de los homosexuales en el pasado sin que los personajes pierdan un ápice de su individualidad"
239 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1996
5 people are currently reading
215 people want to read
About the author
Neil Bartlett
72 books77 followersBorn in 1958, Neil Bartlett has spent twenty-five years at the cutting edge of British gay culture. His ground-breaking study of Oscar Wilde, Who Was That Man? paved the way for a queer re-imagining of history ; his first novel, Ready To Catch Him Should He Fall, was voted Capital Gay Book of The Year; his second, Mr Clive and Mr Page, was nominated for the Whitbread Prize. Both have since been translated into five European languages. Listing him as one of the country's fifty most significant gay cultural figures, the Independent said "Brilliant,beautiful, mischievous; few men can match Bartlett for the breadth of his exploration of gay sensibility".
He also works as a director, and in 2000 was awarded an OBE for services to the theatre. He founded his first theatre company in 1982 and is now an "independent theatre-maker and freelance director", continuing to write novels and work as an activist for gay rights.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
He also works as a director, and in 2000 was awarded an OBE for services to the theatre. He founded his first theatre company in 1982 and is now an "independent theatre-maker and freelance director", continuing to write novels and work as an activist for gay rights.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
June 11, 2010
I’ve just closed the book and am completely blown away.
It’s probably not for everyone, because it’s written in first person; is interspersed with (relevant) articles and news clippings; is written in a realistic diary-style; has a very campy-fussy-gay-man-tone and rambles quite extensively. But for my money it’s one of the best books I’ve read.
For a start it emphasises the very real fear that gay men were feeling in late 50′s England. Compare and contrast this with Isherwood’s bohemian gay life of A Single Man and you will appreciate the difference of Californian sun to the cold austere post-war severity and class-conciousness.
You’d think that – as the Labouchère amendment had been in place for 70 years – that the gay community (such as it was) would be a little more confident but for those who didn’t already know that was not the case, this book shines a light on the constant fear of discovery.
Mr Page is a wonderful character; from his first words “I’ve got the gas on, Lovely,” you immediately picture him: fussy, beautifully turned out, and alone. The entire diary is written with a core of the fear of detection running all the way through it, and he explains, just by the way he describes his life, why he’s so repressed because of the case of that household guard, those two navy boys, that man in the university – a catalogue of less fortunate men who have been “found out.” He even says that he can’t name names because if they found any of those names in this – they’d know. It’s a terrible thing to be so very afraid, afraid to love.
In a very real way, it reminds me of Rebecca; there’s a gothic feel to Mr Clive and his huge empty expensive house, and Mr Page even mentions the book at one point, which probably helps the comparison. Mr Page meets Mr Clive (a Gatsby type figure, apparent wealth and eccentric behaviour) outside the Turkish bath where Mr Pages goes every week. Although it’s very veiled (as Mr Page doesn’t want anyone getting hold of his memoir and naming names) it’s clear that the bathhouse is a meeting place, as such places have been in history.
Mr Page wonders why Mr Clive picks him up the way he does, first thinking that it is because they look so alike, but then realises it’s probably for other reasons. It’s not a friendship, never a friendship, but it’s compelling both to Mr Page and to the reader – and whether or not Mr Page’s reasoning at the end of the book- the reasons why Mr Clive did the things he did – are accurate, then that’s up to the reader.
The core of the book is one image: of one day in history 14 March – when Mr Page saw a blond man, naked, bathed in sunshine. This image is both a dream and a reality and what starts out as one certain image – what we think we know is happening – gradually unravels as Mr Page get more maudlin (fuelled by Christmas brandy) and we finally, tragically, understand what the image of the naked, blond man is really all about. You get a real feel that it’s the true meaning of the image that Mr Page has been trying to hide, but in the end, he had to get out.
I wish I could say more, but it’s difficult to do so without spoiling, despite the length of the book, it’s a very simple premise, fabulously written and I was jealous of every line. The ending had me sobbing, but not in a bad way, believe me.
This is definitely a keeper, a re-reader, an inspiration, and one of my essential reads.
I don’t often link to other sources, but I think that this essay on the book is well worth reading (after you’ve read the book, of course)
It’s probably not for everyone, because it’s written in first person; is interspersed with (relevant) articles and news clippings; is written in a realistic diary-style; has a very campy-fussy-gay-man-tone and rambles quite extensively. But for my money it’s one of the best books I’ve read.
For a start it emphasises the very real fear that gay men were feeling in late 50′s England. Compare and contrast this with Isherwood’s bohemian gay life of A Single Man and you will appreciate the difference of Californian sun to the cold austere post-war severity and class-conciousness.
You’d think that – as the Labouchère amendment had been in place for 70 years – that the gay community (such as it was) would be a little more confident but for those who didn’t already know that was not the case, this book shines a light on the constant fear of discovery.
Mr Page is a wonderful character; from his first words “I’ve got the gas on, Lovely,” you immediately picture him: fussy, beautifully turned out, and alone. The entire diary is written with a core of the fear of detection running all the way through it, and he explains, just by the way he describes his life, why he’s so repressed because of the case of that household guard, those two navy boys, that man in the university – a catalogue of less fortunate men who have been “found out.” He even says that he can’t name names because if they found any of those names in this – they’d know. It’s a terrible thing to be so very afraid, afraid to love.
In a very real way, it reminds me of Rebecca; there’s a gothic feel to Mr Clive and his huge empty expensive house, and Mr Page even mentions the book at one point, which probably helps the comparison. Mr Page meets Mr Clive (a Gatsby type figure, apparent wealth and eccentric behaviour) outside the Turkish bath where Mr Pages goes every week. Although it’s very veiled (as Mr Page doesn’t want anyone getting hold of his memoir and naming names) it’s clear that the bathhouse is a meeting place, as such places have been in history.
Mr Page wonders why Mr Clive picks him up the way he does, first thinking that it is because they look so alike, but then realises it’s probably for other reasons. It’s not a friendship, never a friendship, but it’s compelling both to Mr Page and to the reader – and whether or not Mr Page’s reasoning at the end of the book- the reasons why Mr Clive did the things he did – are accurate, then that’s up to the reader.
The core of the book is one image: of one day in history 14 March – when Mr Page saw a blond man, naked, bathed in sunshine. This image is both a dream and a reality and what starts out as one certain image – what we think we know is happening – gradually unravels as Mr Page get more maudlin (fuelled by Christmas brandy) and we finally, tragically, understand what the image of the naked, blond man is really all about. You get a real feel that it’s the true meaning of the image that Mr Page has been trying to hide, but in the end, he had to get out.
I wish I could say more, but it’s difficult to do so without spoiling, despite the length of the book, it’s a very simple premise, fabulously written and I was jealous of every line. The ending had me sobbing, but not in a bad way, believe me.
This is definitely a keeper, a re-reader, an inspiration, and one of my essential reads.
I don’t often link to other sources, but I think that this essay on the book is well worth reading (after you’ve read the book, of course)
May 4, 2018
The strengths of this book are also in some ways its weaknesses. mr Page casts over his memories to try and sift the c(l)ues in order to work out the fate of his doppleganger mr Clive. It makes for a non-linear narrative, as each retelling of the key events shifts slightly from those previous. But that can also be a tad repetitive for the reader too. There is also an element of Dorian Grey, mr Clive being the man who acts on his sexual desires flouting society's proscriptions, whereas narrator mr Page can only look on admiringly and this coincidence of looks & proclivities doesn't quite work for me. But it's written with Bartlett's usual mastery so definitely a 4 stars rather than a 3.
October 13, 2007
I've read this book four times now, once a year, since the first time I read it - my list of books that get annual readings is very short, which says something about the impact it has on me.
The themes are what make this novel so beautiful and so puzzling: homosexuality, history, repression, love, the nature of Englishness, aging, concepts of beauty, desire and possession, loss and nostalgia.
Starting in a London when being caught in an 'unnatural act' could lead to a long prison sentence, and ending in the almost present day, the novel is both a history of the repression and exposure of homosexuality in England, and a story about one man's personal repression of his nature, his knowledge, even his personal history, to try for safety, but in the end being forced by his nature, knowledge and personal history to expose his inner life.
Beauty is key to the interweaving of these strands - the beauty of modernity (whether in 1890 or 1980), the masculine beauty of Rock Hudson (who plays a pivotal role in both stories) and the beauty of an inner life, no matter how truncated, compared to the grinding ugliness of daily existence. Above all, it's the beauty of the written word on the page that makes this story work.
The themes are what make this novel so beautiful and so puzzling: homosexuality, history, repression, love, the nature of Englishness, aging, concepts of beauty, desire and possession, loss and nostalgia.
Starting in a London when being caught in an 'unnatural act' could lead to a long prison sentence, and ending in the almost present day, the novel is both a history of the repression and exposure of homosexuality in England, and a story about one man's personal repression of his nature, his knowledge, even his personal history, to try for safety, but in the end being forced by his nature, knowledge and personal history to expose his inner life.
Beauty is key to the interweaving of these strands - the beauty of modernity (whether in 1890 or 1980), the masculine beauty of Rock Hudson (who plays a pivotal role in both stories) and the beauty of an inner life, no matter how truncated, compared to the grinding ugliness of daily existence. Above all, it's the beauty of the written word on the page that makes this story work.
September 18, 2013
2.5 stars perhaps?
Again, after reading the fantastic Skin Lane, I wanted to read everything by Neil Bartlett. This often proves a bad idea.
A little more coherent than Ready to Catch Him Should He Fall but the plots no better, and a little more coherent does not mean coherent.
The same story of the same day is told five times by the same man as a soliloquy and you're supposed to figure out which one is true and how Rock Hudson fits in. I found at the end I didn't really care. There were brief glimpses of gay life whenever the book was supposed to be set (1920? 1950? It changes) but these were not the main points.
Too abstract, too flighty, too confusing.
Again, after reading the fantastic Skin Lane, I wanted to read everything by Neil Bartlett. This often proves a bad idea.
A little more coherent than Ready to Catch Him Should He Fall but the plots no better, and a little more coherent does not mean coherent.
The same story of the same day is told five times by the same man as a soliloquy and you're supposed to figure out which one is true and how Rock Hudson fits in. I found at the end I didn't really care. There were brief glimpses of gay life whenever the book was supposed to be set (1920? 1950? It changes) but these were not the main points.
Too abstract, too flighty, too confusing.
August 11, 2015
Imaginative and quirky tale/allegory of Mr Page and his shadow/ alter ego Mr Clive. Predominantly set in London c.1918 - c.1956 it is the story of the necessarily closeted homosexual and his life and times. His private life was spent treading egg shells in order to escape the Law which branded him a criminal. For Mr Clive also read USA and for Mr Page, GB.
Cameo appearance of Rock Hudson and sensational media headlines.
Interesting but rather fragmented.
Cameo appearance of Rock Hudson and sensational media headlines.
Interesting but rather fragmented.
December 15, 2020
read this book in a feverish rage, texting drew in all caps intermittently
November 26, 2024
I read this book a long, long time ago and at the time I had reservations, serious ones, the whole novel is just redolent of metaphor and the house at the centre of the tale is both the most potent and most problematic metaphor - I think it significant that when it first came out it was titled 'The House in Brook Street'.
Indeed my reservations about the novel are largely about the centrality of the house in the narrative because there just were not houses like it, or regarded in that way, in the UK then or at any time. City houses were not invested with the importance we see in this novel. Houses in places like Hampstead or West Kensington were, but that is a different story.
There were things I liked in the novel, particularly the Turkish Baths clearly modelled on the real one, now vanished, in Jermyn Street. It is not bad, parts are very good, but overall it didn't convince or draw me in. But it is too long since I read the novel to say anything more with confidence. It is just another book I will need to reread. In the meantime my possibly ungenerous rating is three stars.
Indeed my reservations about the novel are largely about the centrality of the house in the narrative because there just were not houses like it, or regarded in that way, in the UK then or at any time. City houses were not invested with the importance we see in this novel. Houses in places like Hampstead or West Kensington were, but that is a different story.
There were things I liked in the novel, particularly the Turkish Baths clearly modelled on the real one, now vanished, in Jermyn Street. It is not bad, parts are very good, but overall it didn't convince or draw me in. But it is too long since I read the novel to say anything more with confidence. It is just another book I will need to reread. In the meantime my possibly ungenerous rating is three stars.
June 11, 2021
I keep finding myself awed by Neil Bartlett's mastery over the ever-evolving narrative found in his work. "Mr Clive and Mr Page" is mysterious, tender, gripping and oddly playful; though, of course, despair is the emotion that haunts every page. It's dissected by the narrator and split unevenly between the two protagonists. Moreover, the emotion is heightened by the style Bartlett uses to carry out the procedure. It mimics the indistinctness of memory, as well as the fretful way in which we yearn to gather the scraps of a dream shortly after waking up. But as more and more time passes, logic begins to waver, and the more guarded the person recounting the dream seems. What an artistic achievement!
November 14, 2017
The worst book ever!
September 15, 2010
This was strange meandering novel, switching back forth through time period and point of view from chapter to chapter, paragraph to paragraph. It was never linear, and would hint at people and events before the fact, only to explain them pages, even chapters later. It was not easy reading by any means, but it was rewarding. The way it all unravelled and came together so perfectly, so beautifully in the end made it all worth while.
ETA Sept 2010: Just finished re-reading. It was possibly even better the second time because 1)I was prepared for the dense prose and slowish pace, and the way things got referred to before they happen. Also 2) since I knew the twist, I could see all the hints. And yet, I forget the biggest part of the twist, so I was still blown away by that. What an amazing crafted novel.
ETA Sept 2010: Just finished re-reading. It was possibly even better the second time because 1)I was prepared for the dense prose and slowish pace, and the way things got referred to before they happen. Also 2) since I knew the twist, I could see all the hints. And yet, I forget the biggest part of the twist, so I was still blown away by that. What an amazing crafted novel.
February 6, 2008
I love Neil Bartlett. I love everything he does. There is something so passionate, so desperate, so intense about all of his books. This is the third novel that I read, and like Ready to Catch Him Should He Fall, it is not easy to figure out. It presents male homosexuality (I am reticent to call it gay, but it definitely sets the stage for it) in 1920's London. However, there is always something epic about what Bartlett does, and he stretches the story into the 1950's and then into the 1980's, connecting the same conditions of secrecy, fear, and longing in all the generations.
In thinking about it now, it strikes me that all of Bartlett's narrators have the same voice. Yes, all the works are obsessed with the same subjects, but is there a different way to tell them?
In thinking about it now, it strikes me that all of Bartlett's narrators have the same voice. Yes, all the works are obsessed with the same subjects, but is there a different way to tell them?
June 14, 2021
This will be a wonderful true modern classic for me ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
March 4, 2009
The sense of time and place are what makes this a memorable book. The book starts out in mid 50's London, Christmas Eve, when a man sits down to write out the story of his involvement with an upper-crust but under funded aristocrat thirty years earlier. Their lives touch and move apart, neither ever coming to terms with each other or themselves. A third being moves them in ways they can never admit.
September 11, 2012
I really wanted to like this book - the blurb sounded fascinating and the writing itself was brilliant. Sadly, two-thirds of the way through I still had no idea who any of the characters were or what was going on, and found it so confusing I couldn't finish it.
February 17, 2013
clever and gave a real sense of time, both 50's and the 20's. The repeated overlapping of the story, told in the first person worked well although I would have enjoyed to hear from another point of view for some parts.
January 20, 2015
Such an inspired and provoking novel!Beautiful and refined in form but wordly, sex-smelling and sweaty in substance. A portrait of homosexuality-repression in the 1st half of the 20th century.
March 28, 2017
Written as part journal, part stream of consciousness, the story makes the reader understand clearly what is going on in the protagonist's mind...though which parts are true recollections and which parts are fantasy are never clear. Just when you think you have things all figured out, there is another page to set you on another line of thought. Part period piece, part psychological thriller, the book is a great read.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews