My Friends The Macleans

My Friends #14

by Jane Duncan

"'Janet, what do you mean? What has been going on between you and that bloody boy?'" When Janet Alexander learns that young Roddy Maclean intends to defy his parents and become a writer, not an engineer, she readily helps him run away from St Jago. Her impulsive action infuriates Rob and Marion Maclean, and harsh words end a long friendship. Interwoven with Janet's discovery of deeper currents under the placid surface of the Paradise estate, are unrest among the plantation workers, the convalescence of Twice Alexander, and the advent of Madame Dulac's grandson Edward, who falls more than a little in love with Janet. Not until Roddy unexpectedly returns to the island does Janet come to know the truth about her friends the Macleans . . .

Genres: Fiction

432 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1967

About the author

Jane Duncan was the pseudonym of Scottish writer Elizabeth Jane Cameron, best-known for her My Friends series of semi-autobiographical novels. She also wrote four novels under the name of her principal heroine Janet Sandison, and some children's books. She was born in Renton, West Dunbartonshire and brought up in the Scottish Lowlands where her father was a police officer, but much of her childhood was spent in the Highlands on the Black Isle in Easter Ross, on her grandparents' croft "The Colony", the "Reachfar" of her novels. She graduated in English from the University of Glasgow and did various secretarial jobs before serving as a Flight Officer (Intelligence), WAAF during World War II. Afterward, she lived in Jamaica for ten years, returning to Jemimaville, near "The Colony", in 1958 as a widow. In 1959 Duncan became something of a publishing sensation when Macmillan Publishers announced that it would be publishing seven of her manuscripts. The "Reachfar" (My Friends) series is narrated by Janet Sandison and follows her life (which in outline parallels that of the author) from the World War I period through to the 1960s, depicting the people she encounters and showing how her crofting upbringing influences her in whatever society and geographical location she finds herself.

Reviews

[Fiona Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

After rather a long break (due to building work affecting access to my Jane Duncan books!) I can return to where I left off. Janet Sandison's Dad has just died (in My Friend my Father) but, before we catch up with the aftermath of that, we are taken back in time to an incident (recounted in My Friend Cousin Emmie and duplicated here) that leads us into the relationship between Janet Sandison and the Macleans - Rob being the estate manager at Paradise, and his wife, Marion who ensures the smooth running of Paradise from the perspective of the colonials. It covers from 1952-1956 and it recounts Janet Sandison's acceptance and guilt of the cruel history of white people in the enslaving of Africans and her understanding that the colonial times must end, and St Jago needs to be freed from white power and privilege. But it is also about the way we see people - and whether we can ever really know another person. In this book, Janet destroys all the manuscripts she has written hitherto and starts afresh with the tale of Jean Robertson. This is where autobiography and novel writing crash into each other. Jane Duncan does write four books in the Jean Robertson series, possibly starting them at the time she was writing My Friends the Macleans in the late 60s... but in the 1950s, she was actually writing the Janet Sandison books!

[Janet Ankiel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Duncan creates interesting characters highlighted by her fine mastery of language. The Macleans serve as a catalyst for Janet's growth and maturation. Rob, the blowhard, Marion, the devoted mother and spouse force Janet to deeply assess her life on this sugar island. Ahead of the time for concerns about race relations, Duncan prepares the field for the Civil Rights movement of the 60'. She sees her own presence on the island as an intrusion to the natives. Clearly she is out of step with the Imperialism of Great Britain.

Janet's relation with husband Twice, survived his
prolonged illness all but ensuring that he must stay in the tropics. The reader learns that Twice has been married before with the dissolution of that marriage somewhat cloudy! Despite great distances, Janet stays connected to her family at Reachfar in the Scottish Highlands. Her identity and very substance found fertile support from this remote community, so far different than the more class conscious whites of Paradise. Not a happy book but quite though provoking!

[Ika Willis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the fourteenth volume of a 19-book series which I think of as a single, serial, work. I've written longer reviews of Book 13, My Friend My Father (here: no spoilers for the series), and Book 19, My Friends George and Tom (a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... masses and masses of spoilers), as well as some brief reflections about Book 18, My Friends The Misses Kindness (a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... again, massive spoilers for the series) and Book 16, My Friend the Swallow (a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show..., spoiler-free).

[Cassandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think Duncan found it difficult to follow up the last book, so this one is not as strong, but thematically it follows upon Janet's continued maturing -- she has lost Reachfar, she has lost her father, and now her belief in various eternal verities is shaken as she encounters a family which has no respect for artists, and eventually discovers that the Maclean household is what we would now call quite emotionally abusive, both between the partners and towards the children. In retrospect I am a little uncertain I believe that Janet would have been so shocked, given Jean and all the other narcissistic women she has encountered (Marion Maclean is another), but I find it easy to explain away which means Duncan is doing something right, even if not as well as she might.

My explanation: Janet was not damaged by Jean because of Reachfar, and so it has never occured to her how destructive it is to have such a parent -- but then what to make of Rose & Dee? Or Jamie Bedamned? I did get a little the sense that Janet was finally beginning to understand how fundamentally her family protected her, not in the usual sense but by giving her a very strong sense of place and self so that the people of the lie could not make headway with her, but then, I am not sure if Duncan would really see it so, so it might be a bit much to expect Janet to eventually understand and name it. Regardless, she goes on in the next book to explore family and the next generation, so thematically it all works together, whatever Duncan knew or thought she knew about her work.

Finally, the earthquake at the end seemed very poor, although of course in the real world such things just happen out of nowhere with no explanation. But it felt something like she wanted to get Janet to Scotland and she could not have her leaving Twice, so -- an earthquake. I wish it had not killed the Macleans, though, because it got Janet and Roddy both off the hook in a way that was too pat.

[Joy · Rating 4 out of 5]

MY FRIENDS THE MACLEANS picks up at exactly the end of MY FRIEND COUSIN EMMIE. Roddy Maclean has fled the West Indies, having confessed to Janet that he has written a bestselling book -- and hasn't been able to tell his family because his parents would hate it so much. After being very much frightened by Roddy's father in a killing rage, Janet rereads the book and gets an unnervingly different view of Roddy's mother, too. The final revelation is literally earthshaking. A psychologically dramatic study of what can go on underneath people's surfaces.

[Sarah Idle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oh gosh this was one of those books that I "thought" I should read. Judging by the blurb on the back, it sounded like a saucy, twisting family and friends feud. It was not. It was infinitely dull, nothing happened at all really, and the central protagonist harps on about Scotland relentlessly. Which made me want to shout "IF YOU LOVE IT SO MUCH, GO BACK THERE SO THIS BLOODY BOOK WILL BE OVER". So yeah. Not a fan. Writing wasn't horrendous, storyline was.

[Deb · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one was mostly a mashup of the end of Emmie, The Mrs Millers and Cairnton. It moved the story along a bit but not too much - just explained why Roddie becomes worthy of joining the Reachfar Family.

[Alexis Lloyd · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love these books although they were written a long time ago! Jane Duncan a Scot, who lived in the Caribbean,for many years, wrote her books in the linen cupboard because her husband didn't approve. These are funny gentle books that lift your spirit. Duncan also writes as Janet Sandison.

[Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel was darker than usual. Janet Sandison reflects on the past and realizes that she did not appreciate how good her life was then. She was always looking forward to the future.