Sea of Glass

by Dennis Parry, Simon Stern (Introduction)

Old Mrs. Ellison doesn’t have much longer to live, and her scheming son Cedric is counting the days until he inherits her fortune. But his plans are upset by the arrival of his niece Varvara, a beautiful and wild young woman from a remote Chinese region known as the ‘Sea of Glass’, a strange land where wars are fought with crossbows and ‘highly damaging curses’ and where death may come at any moment in the form of a venomous barking spider. With the aid of a love-struck law student and a bibulous butler, Varvara aims to thwart the wiles of her evil uncle—but events take an unexpected and fatal turn in this unusual story, which is by turns hilarious and macabre.

An exquisite blend of comedy, murder mystery, and surreal fantasy, Dennis Parry’s masterpiece Sea of Glass (1955) was published to near-universal acclaim and has counted Edward Gorey among its admirers, but sank into an undeserved obscurity following Parry’s untimely death a month after publication. This edition features a new introduction by Simon Stern. Parry’s novel of possession from beyond the grave, The Survivor (1940), is also available from Valancourt.

CONTEMPORARY REVIEWS

‘Amazingly original and brilliant’ – Illustrated London News

‘An uncommonly good writer, with the classic novelist’s virtues and other gifts besides. A bald recital of the plot of this admirable book can only be misleading: you must read [it] for yourself . . . Such is Mr. Parry’s talent, compounded of tenderness and irony, that this novel though consistently deliciously amusing, never degenerates into whimsy.' – John Davenport, Observer

‘There are few novelists more resourceful and original than Dennis Parry . . . This novel is prodigal of exciting and entertaining incident, and I should like to read it again.’ – Daniel George, The Bookman

‘How well Mr. Parry writes!’ – New Statesman

‘Mr. Parry writes with wit, ingenuity, and even a gift for surrealistic fantasy.’ – The Times

‘The story is preposterous, often wonderfully funny, and the implacable exiled gun-runner gives it a weird perspective which is a nice diversion for the imagination.’ – Manchester Guardian

‘He is out to amuse . . . and very successful he is at it . . . He has the wit to temper satire with affection, and to perceive the nobility that so often lies at the heart of the ridiculous . . . A work of considerable originality . . . fresh, entertaining, and intelligent.’ – The Listener

‘Witty and civilized . . . a thoroughly entertaining book.’ – Sphere

Genres: Fiction

237 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1955

About the author

Dennis Arthur Parry was born in 1912 and was educated at Rugby School. He read Classics at King’s College, Cambridge and obtained a first class degree. He then read Law and qualified as a Chancery Barrister. In 1937, he married Kathleen Arona Forbes, with whom he had two children, Susan and Jonathan. He was rejected for service in the Second World War because of poor eyesight and instead joined the civil service, eventually rising to the post of Permanent Under-Secretary to the Minister for Coal Production. After the war, his marriage collapsed, and following a divorce, Parry married his second wife, Audrey Dockerill, with whom he had one son, Mark.

Parry published his first novel, Attic Meteor (1936) at age 24, and would go on to publish nine others. None of these books achieved large sales, though they generally earned good reviews. An obituary in the Times characterized Parry’s works as “entertaining on the surface, and written in an easy, forceful prose . . . continuously witty rather than comic, and penetrating rather than profound. . . . All his books are enjoyable, and almost all successful within the limits which Parry set himself.” His final book, Sea of Glass (1955), was probably his most successful, earning widespread critical acclaim and running into a second edition. Unfortunately, the book’s modest success was overshadowed by Parry’s death shortly after its publication; he was severely injured in a car accident in June 1955 and died two days later at age 42.

Reviews

[Washington Post · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dennis Parry’s “Sea of Glass” was one of Edward Gorey’s favorite “neglected books.” While that artist’s eclectic taste encompassed both Murasaki Shikibu’s glorious “Tale of Genji” and the mysteries of Agatha Christie, he regularly gravitated toward works rich with something of his own macabre whimsy. “Sea of Glass” fits that categorization, faintly calling to mind Saki’s ironic short stories, Ivy Compton-Burnett’s campy tragi-comedies and the early satirical fiction of Evelyn Waugh.

Read more on "Sea of Glass" at The Washington Post: http://bit.ly/1QfEBhh

[Martha · Rating 5 out of 5]

A timeless, humorous tale narrated by a feckless Cambridge law student who is besotted with his elderly hostess' unusual granddaughter. Very British.

[Jean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Characters vivid and memorable and writing is witty and amusing. Apt turns of phrase. Unsatisfying ending, but inevitable. Completely original.

[David Macpherson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing is good and the comedy of class and privilege is interestingly told. I dont know if I am the rivet audience for this one

[Sabrina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very odd - took a while to get into the book and then it was just a run of the mill story with oddness.

[manojkus+p1uk1]

nice