Staying with Relations

by Rose Macaulay

Catherine Grey, a young novelist, accepts an invitation to visit her aunt at a plantation in Guatemala and is surprised to see how well her relatives have adjusted to life in the jungle

Genres: British Literature

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1930

About the author

Emilie Rose Macaulay, whom Elizabeth Bowen called "one of the few writers of whom it may be said, she adorns our century," was born at Rugby, where her father was an assistant master. Descended on both sides from a long line of clerical ancestors, she felt Anglicanism was in her blood. Much of her childhood was spent in Varazze, near Genoa, and memories of Italy fill the early novels. The family returned to England in 1894 and settled in Oxford. She read history at Somerville, and on coming down lived with her family first in Wales, then near Cambridge, where her father had been appointed a lecturer in English. There she began a writing career which was to span fifty years with the publication of her first novel, Abbots Verney, in 1906. When her sixth novel, The Lee Shore (1912), won a literary prize, a gift from her uncle allowed her to rent a tiny flat in London, and she plunged happily into London literary life.

From BookRags: http://www.bookrags.com/biography/ros...

Reviews

[Martin Koerner · Rating 4 out of 5]

The queen of the wry, comical, satirical set piece. This book has plenty of them and then some fairly boring bits in between but, overall, is a lovely, laugh-out-loud knockabout novel with a philosophical centre.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the writing, especially the jungle descriptions, and the idea that characterization in real life doesn't work the same way as in novels. Also some interesting ideas about racism, classism, and colonialism. The story got a lot less engaging about halfway through, though.

[Pascale · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rather shapeless and aimless, but entertaining nonetheless. The novel starts with Catherine accepting an invitation from her aunt Belle to visit her, her second husband Judge Cradock and their assorted children. From her first marriage Belle has a silly, beautiful and much spoiled daughter called Isie, recently married to architect Adrian Rickaby, a WWI veteran. Judge Cradock has 4 children of his own, Claudia, Benet, Julia and little Meg. Bizarrely, all these people live in a rococo palace in the middle of Guatemala. The narrative starts moving when Isie, distraught at Adrian's obvious interest in Claudia, disappears in the jungle. Unwittingly, Isie places herself in the hands of a con artist, Mr. Phipps, who has long been lusting after a treasure hidden on the Cradock property. Phipps tries to use Isie as a pawn to get the treasure as ransom, but he is foiled by Mr. Piper, the sharp-eyed overseer of the Cradock estate. Isie, not getting the dividends she expected from her truancy, resorts to claiming she is pregnant to prevent Adrian from bolting with Claudia. Catherine, Benet and Julia are ordered to accompany the crumpling couple on a trip to California. Onboard the ship, they come across Phipps, whom they try to hunt down to the U.S. border in order to get him arrested for theft, since on top of abducting Isie he had made off with a number of valuable objects belonging to the Cradocks. Phipps outfoxes them, but along the way Julia falls in love with a Californian realtor. The tale ends with the rest of the party disbanding to resume their lives. Each incident is depicted with gusto and I particularly liked the description of the jungle and the deserts of Baja California. However, all told, the book doesn't amount to much.

[Jim Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel starts in the vein of a Noel Coward play or an Evelyn Waugh novel. A not very successful British novelist visits her odd-ball American cousins living in a villa in the jungles of Guatemala, thinking at a glance that she knows each of their types. I nearly gave it up after 70 pages of descriptions of wallpaper, witty banter, and, basically, no plot. Then the book suddenly shifts gears and becomes something else. The plot takes off--there is a kidnapping, buried treasure, and a chase to get revenge on an American thief who has been posing as a friendly neighbor. Everything starts to come alive from the lush descriptions of the Central American jungle and the deserts of Baja Mexico to the surprising actions of characters that once seemed mere stereotypes. The book could be read simply as an amusing adventure story involving a cast of eccentric Anglo-Americans, but I think Macaulay also wants us to read it as a comment on writing. Her novelist character Catherine is trying to understand what these relations are up to (perhaps so that she can create a novel based on them?). Once the plot kicks in, things constantly shift and Catherine can never seem to get a handle on what is going on. She says at one point, “perhaps people are uncapturable and slip away like water.” In other words, the writer can never really know a character. Catherine is surprised again and again by her cousins, the scenery, the natives, the local whiskey priest, and the neighbor. Nothing is really what is seems at first glance. The book eventually creates not only a good story, but also becomes an exploration in the unknowability of places, characters and human motivations.

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

English novelist Catherine Grey has been spending some time in America, when she receives an invitation from her Aunt Belle to come and stay with her and her family. Catherine is interested in character, and character types – she tries to categorise everyone she meets. A visit to her relations should prove entertaining.

“How did the human eye so arrange for itself the lines and colours of the human creature (surely a comparatively ugly animal?) that they wavered and re-formed into this shape we have conceived to be beauty? Strange illusion!”

Aunt Belle is living on an old Spanish plantation in the rain forest of Guatemala. Now married to her second husband an English judge, Sir Richmond (known as Dickie), Belle has a houseful staying already and she thinks Catherine will enjoy the company that she will meet in Guatemala. Catherine has a long, exhausting journey to reach her aunt’s eccentric old home which she finds is an odd mixture of architectural styles. Here, staying with Catherine’s aunt and step uncle are her aunt’s four step-children; Claudia, Benet and Julia all fairly grown up and Meg – the child, and Belle’s own daughter Isie Rickaby and her husband Adrian who has been designing the recent additions made to the house. Isie is spoilt, very beautiful – and she knows it – rather silly and given to stomping off. The final member of the household is taciturn Devonshire man Mr Piper – some kind of estate manager.

Full review: https://heavenali.wordpress.com/2018/...

[R · Rating 2 out of 5]

At the onset, let me say I do think Rose Macaulay is underrated: her books can be witty, moving, and well thought out. "Stay with Relations," alas, does not include any of those descriptives. She's writing out of her depth: although she wanted to venture south of the Mexican border on a trip to the States, she wasn't able to get to Guatemala, but she still insisted on writing this novel which is part social critique, part mystery, but mostly "meh." It's riddled with errors that could only be found with a writer who has not visited a place she has not visited. There are so many other good books by Macaulay, and I gave this a rated based on the fact that if one has already committed to rediscovering an important but neglected figure in 20th century writing, one should read this. But that might be the only reason. If I had started here, I probably would not have read another of her novels (nor would I have finished reading this novel.) Hey, we all have our bad days.

[reed · Rating 2 out of 5]

didn't get very far