Falling Angels

by Tracy Chevalier

In Falling Angels, Tracy Chevalier has combined a moving elegy to the lost innocence of the 21st century's grandmothers and great-grandmothers with a reminder of the strength and modernity of their aspirations and achievements. Maude and Livy are aged six in 1901, when Queen Victoria has just died and the whole country is in mourning. In 1910 they are almost young women who have experienced their own personal losses and belong to a generation who are no longer prepared to wear black for months to mark the death of Edward VII. Their families, the Colemans and the Waterhouses ("no relation to the painter"), meet in a graveyard beside their family graves. One has a large marble angel erected above it, the other an urn (an allusion more to the morbidity of a Victorian columbarium than the eternity of Keats' pre-Victorian "unravish'd bride of quietness"). Their choices of a monument to death seem to reflect their differing attitudes to life, but Chevalier makes clear that these two families are forever linked in their fates and aspirations.

The story moves swiftly, switching to multiple narratives: young but quickly maturing Maude and Livy; the adult Colemans and Waterhouses; their servants; and Simon the gravedigger boy. Chevalier has chosen carefully who speaks when, and who, more importantly, keeps silent. Livy's little sister Ivy May is one of the most beguiling figures of the work, but is given only two sentences of her own (and those two bring a lump to the throat). Mrs Coleman's experiences with the campaign for women's suffrage are marginalised through silence; Maude and Livy tell instead of their reaction to the women's antics. And while Falling Angels may be a story of women, despite, or perhaps because of their exclusion from contemporary politics, Simon's observations are the most honest and revealing.

Chevalier herself writes after the story's end that "the Acknowledgements is the only section of a novel that reveals an author's "normal" voice. Every character uses their "normal" voice in this novel, and Chevalier's own voice excels in ensuring that each one is unique (for example, everything is "delicious" for Livy), so that, like Mr Coleman mourning his daughter growing up, you will "miss her when she goes". --Olivia Dickinson

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, British Literature, Book Club, Adult Fiction, Audiobook

416 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Born:
19 October 1962 in Washington, DC. Youngest of 3 children. Father was a photographer for The Washington Post.

Childhood:
Nerdy. Spent a lot of time lying on my bed reading. Favorite authors back then: Laura Ingalls Wilder, Madeleine L’Engle, Zilpha Keatley Snyder, Joan Aiken, Susan Cooper, Lloyd Alexander. Book I would have taken to a desert island: Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery.

Education:
BA in English, Oberlin College, Ohio, 1984. No one was surprised that I went there; I was made for such a progressive, liberal place.

MA in creative writing, University of East Anglia, Norwich, England, 1994. There’s a lot of debate about whether or not you can be taught to write. Why doesn’t anyone ask that of professional singers, painters, dancers? That year forced me to write all the time and take it seriously.

Geography:
Moved to London after graduating from Oberlin in 1984. I had studied for a semester in London and thought it was a great place, so came over for fun, expecting to go back to the US after 6 months to get serious. I’m still in London, and still not entirely serious. Even have dual citizenship – though I keep the American accent intact.

Family:
1 English husband + 1 English son.

Career:
Before writing, was a reference book editor, working on encyclopedias about writers. (Yup, still nerdy.) Learned how to research and how to make sentences better. Eventually I wanted to fix my own sentences rather than others’, so I quit and did the MA.

Writing:
Talked a lot about becoming a writer as a kid, but actual pen to paper contact was minimal. Started writing short stories in my 20s, then began first novel, The Virgin Blue, during the MA year. With Girl With a Pearl Earring (written in 1998), I became a full-time writer.

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read all of Chevalier's novels and have always thought of this one as my favourite. A reread didn't change that, so I've bumped my rating up. I loved the neat structure that bookends the action between the death of Queen Victoria and the death of Edward VII, and the focus on funerary customs (with Highgate Cemetery as a major setting) and women's rights is right up my street. The switching between first-person POVs makes it such easy and engaging reading. She hits the absolute sweet spot between women's and literary fiction. Any and all melodrama is excused! The title is literal re: grave furniture, but also refers to shooting stars and erring humans.

A favourite passage:

(Kitty) "I have spent my life waiting for something to happen. And I have come to understand that nothing will. Or it already has, and I blinked during that moment and it's gone. I don't know which is worse - to have missed it or to know there is nothing to miss."

[K.D. Absolutely · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gaslit England during the turn of the century. The story starts during the funeral of Queen Victoria (1837-1901) and ends during the funeral of King Edward VII (1901-1910). On their visit to the cemetery to pay respect to their beloved queen, two families meet: the Colemans and the Waterhouses and their relationships are started by the friendship between their two 5-y/o daughters, Maude Coleman and Lavinia Waterhouse. They meet when they are 5 years old and the story ends when they are in the brink of adulthood at the age of 15.

One noteworthy aspect of this novel: narrated in first person by each of the major characters without losing the story’s focus and the delivery of its message: that women are not the weaker sex.

The plot is thin and the prose is easy yet mesmerizing in its beauty. The frequent reference to cemeteries and death seems to be a reminder to its readers that we are all mortals and all of us will die sooner or later. So, it is but proper that we do what is right and contribute in our own ways to leave this world a better place just like what Kitty Coleman and her support to suffragettes’ dream of having women vote during elections. It also teaches us that we are all human being and we commit mistakes like Jenny Whitby’s pregnancy and Kitty’s affair with Richard and the abortion of their baby. It also shows us that time changes no matter what we do like how the Waterhouses try to hold on to their conventional beliefs compared to the openness of the Colemans to change.

The title comes from the angel in the grave of the Waterhouses that falls and breaks into parts in one of the scene. In another, it is Lavinia’s belief, being a more imaginative child, that the falling stars are actually falling angels that are falling because they are going to earth to deliver some messages. The more practical-minded Maude insists that they are meteorites and not angels. These are 5 year old girls in England in 1901 and this is an example of how Chevalier provides the contrast between the two girls.

Okay, those really are not new. The novel is cute though. Smooth reading and Chevalier’s attention to details and making use of those details to make her story worth-reading is something that I appreciated. There are still nice novels that do not need to have huge political impact, endorse some earth-shaking philosophy or use big words for me to enjoy. Sometimes, surprises come in small package and this novel for me definitely falls in that category. Not a 1001. Not a 501. No awards from Pulitzer, Booker, etc. No one of my friends here in Goodreads recommended this but definitely a joy, although there are two deaths towards the end, to read.

[Cheryl Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book grabbed me from the very first page. Set at the turn of the century, the story takes place amidst the women's suffrage movement. Gender issues are also noted, whereas the man was the head of the household and "handled" the wife.
Each character speaks individually, allowing the reader to listen and decide for themselves where to put the importance of each character. The voice of the youngest children is included, as is the maid, cook, grave digger to the "gubner."
Issues of class are also raised in this story from the servants and grave diggers to those of the most forward thinking family.

[Lorna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Falling Angels by Tracy Chevalier was a book set in Victorian England after the death of Queen Victoria in January 1901. In keeping with the tradition of public mourning, two families visiting neighboring graves become acquainted as each in horror sees that while one gravesite has an urn, the other has an ostentatious angel reaching out. The Coleman family and the Waterhouse family each have a five-year-old daughter and Maude and Lavinia become instant friends as they steel away to explore the cemetery and meeting Simon, the gravedigger's son.

This book transpires over a ten-year period during the height of Victorian England complete with gaslights and hansom cabs. The setting was exquisite as one could vividly imagine the scenes invoked. These two families become more entwined over the next ten years when the book ends with the death of King Edward.

There are many points of view as we go through the lives of these families during the ten years between these historic reigns. At times I was riveted to the narrative and at other times, it seemed tedious. All in all there is a heartbreaking story in these pages. I have read other books by this author and I will continue to follow her work.

[Craig Monson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chevalier’s second novel shifts from 17th-century Delft to London between the deaths of Queen Victoria and Edward VII. A lot of the action takes place in a cemetery, much like Highgate, populated by some 30 angel monuments, one of which eventually topples. The title presumably also refers to some of the female characters, who are in the process of abandoning the Victorian pedestals that have kept them somewhat set in stone. The narrative unfolds in a stream of brief, first-person accounts, less like letters (in which writers might choose their words less with “truth” than with ulterior motives in mind) and more like diary entries (supposedly unguarded and spoken “from the heart”—though characters can, and do, lie to themselves). Chevalier observes appropriate class distinctions in putting words in lower class mouths (e.g., those of cooks, housemaids, the youthful gravedigger, or “naughty boy,” who becomes chums across class lines with two young girls, habitués of the cemetery, who serve as chief protagonists); from a very early age the precocious Maude and Lavinia, on the other hand, sound little different than their parents.

Maude’s mother, the restive Kitty, contrasts notably with Lavinia’s mother, Gertrude (much mired in Victorian proprieties), not to mention with Kitty’s mother-in-law (a thoroughly unlikable version of Maggie Smith from Downton Abbey, without the wit). Fallen Angels and its cast perhaps resemble Upstairs, Downstairs of blessed memory more than that most recent BBC stately home juggernaut.

One experiences a lot about the Edwardian way of death as all these women (and their less visible husbands and paramours) confront Britain’s post-Victorian social growing pains. These include women’s suffrage, to which Kitty becomes thoroughly committed. Chevalier also suggests the sorts of unfortunate consequences that can result when various characters remain so unswervingly faithful to Principle that they forget or ignore "lesser" concerns. Humanity, it seems, is sometime left in this story to those who have little time for and can ill afford such principles.

[Mike Mason · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well I thought it would be difficult to make another book as good as the The Girl with the Pearl Earring which was superb. Don’t get me wrong this was still a great book. Simple story focusses on two families and their daughters in the period from the day of Queen Victoria’s death to that of the King who succeeded her. Incorporating the Suffragette movement.

Short paragraphs alternate with POV’s of the main characters. Most of the action taking place within and about the local cemetery. The Author captures the feeling of the times well. As with the Pearl this is a sad book. I will look out more books by this author. They are modern day classics.

This book finished on day 1 of current ( yes another) Madeira holiday👍

[Katya]

Pensei que estar com outra mulher traria Kitty de volta, que o ciúme a faria abrir-me de novo a porta do seu quarto. Contudo, duas semanas depois não me deixava lá entrar mais vezes do que antes.
Não gosto de pensar que sou um homem desesperado, mas não percebo porque é a minha mulher tão difícil. Dei-lhe uma vida boa, mas continua infeliz, embora não possa, ou não queira, dizer porquê.
É o suficiente para levar um homem a trocar de mulher, ainda que seja por uma noite.

É do domínio de um bom escritor transformar a história em estória sem ferir a sensibilidade estética do leitor, e eu, pelo menos, não me senti nada ofendida com esta interpretação (simbólica) de Chevalier daquele que é o fim da era vitoriana e o início de um novo século repleto de possibilidades (ou não) para todas aquelas mulheres que aspiravam a ter um lugar numa sociedade desenhada em função do homem e dominada pelo homem.

Entremeado de eventos verídicos ou, no mínimo, plausíveis, Quando os Anjos Caem é um romance muito bem conseguido sobre, é certo, a amizade de várias crianças, sobre as dores do crescimento e da perda, sobre o momento em que a realidade atinge cada um de nós e nos arranca dos nossos alicerces, mas cujo núcleo duro reside na força com que transmite uma mensagem que, desde que pela primeira vez foi passada, ainda não perdeu o seu valor: a defesa da igualdade de género.

- Uma menina precisa de aprender estas coisas. Como vai a costura dela?
-Não muito bem - respondeu francamente a mãe. - Herdou de mim a falta de jeito. Mas lê muito bem. Está a ler Sensibilidade e Bom Senso, não estás, Maude?
Acenei afirmativamente.
- E também Alice do Outro Lado do Espelho. O pai e eu recriámos o jogo de xadrez a partir dele.
- A ler! - A avó empertigou-se- Isso não leva a rapariga a lado nenhum. Só lhe mete ideias na cabeça. Sobretudo lixo, como o daqueles livros da Alice.
A mãe endireitou-se. Ela está sempre a ler.
-Que mal há em que as mulheres tenham ideias, mãe?
-Nada as satisfaz. Como a ti.(...)Queres sempre mais alguma coisa, embora nem tu saibas o quê.

Não será por isso de estranhar que, embora as relações entre as famílias Waterhouse (tradicionalista) e Coleman (mais progressista, ou talvez nem tanto assim) sejam um dos focos da narrativa, e a relação entre as filhas de ambas as famílias sirva de fio condutor da história, seja, na realidade, a transição de Kitty Coleman, de mulher de família a arreigada sufragista o evento que suscita maior interesse e perspetivas de análise em todo o livro.

Ligando a morte da rainha Vitória com o surgimento de um novo século, Chevalier faz despertar na sua anti-heroína desejos de uma vida de maior liberdade intelectual, física e espiritual. Para Kitty, a morte da rainha representa a morte de uma era em que a mulher está subordinada ao papel de mãe e esposa e essa rutura, sentida profundamente, irá ditar o seu comportamento futuro.

Não me atrevo a dizer a ninguém, senão sou acusada de traição, mas fiquei tremendamente animada quando soube que rainha tinha morrido. (...)A viragem do século foi uma simples alteração de números, mas agora vamos ter uma verdadeira mudança de chefia e não posso deixar de pensar que Eduardo é mais representativo de todos nós do que a sua mãe.

Kitty, como se verá, está disposta a pagar o seu preço pelo legado que terá a possibilidade de deixar, mas também pela missão, pelo sentimento de completude e propósito que a iniciativa lhe traz, uma mudança de comportamento que é tudo menos inofensiva, com ou sem morte da rainha.

Esse retrato do que era a mulher que sai de uma era de repressão está muito bem desenhado pela autora que recorre a figuras e eventos míticos da luta pela igualdade de género e pelo direito ao sufrágio, sobretudo porque não se fica por aí e vai mais longe procurando traçar as motivações pessoais, os desafios familiares, as pressões sociais e de classe e o embaraço institucional que cerceia a vida destas mulheres e de um movimento que era tudo menos pacífico para o sistema político, social e familiar estabelecido.

- Aprendeste a lição? - perguntou o pai.
A mãe franziu a testa.
- Que queres dizer com «lição»>?
- Basta. Quando saires podemos voltar à vida normal.
- Depende muito daquilo a que chamas normals.
O pai não respondeu.
- Estás a sugerir que desista da luta?
- Com certeza que não vais continuar.
- Pelo contrário, Richard, acho que a prisão foi a minha realização. É estranho, mas a tristeza transformou-me numa vara de ferro, «o que não me derrota torna-me mais forte»... Uma frase de Nietzsche, sabes?
- Leste demasiado. - disse o pai.
A mãe sorriu.
- Não pensavas assim quando me conheceste. Aliás, quando sair, vou ter muito mais que fazer e ler.
- Discutiremos isso quando voltares para casa. (...) Aqui não podes pensar convenientemente
-Não há nada a discutir. Já tomei a minha decisão. Não tens de te intrometer.
- Claro que tenho... Sou o teu marido!

A luta pelo direito ao sufrágio está assim vinculada à liberdade de pensamento, à liberdade sexual, à liberdade ideológica e de ação, e dela não se liberta nem pode libertar pois é neste emaranhado que se alicerça a missão destas mulheres que, como a fictícia Kitty, ofereceram a sua vida como penhor de tempos mais justos.

- Sinto-me importante - respondeu a mãe - porque talvez pela primeira vez na minha vida tenho uma tarefa, Richard. Estou a trabalhar! Posso não ser optimista como a
Caroline e Mrs. Pankhurst quanto a ver o sufrágio votado ainda durante a minha vida. Mas o nosso trabalho a isso conduzirá. A Maude beneficiará dos resultados, mesmo que eu não os veja.

[Susan Roy · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I picked the book I was intrigued by the time period and the vehicle of using several characters and their point of view to narrate the story. I read “Girl with the Pearl Earring” which I liked very much and thought the author did a marvelous job researching the period and bringing the time period and the characters were well developed. Based on my past experience with this author I thought I’d give it a try. Unfortunately I was deeply disappointed with this book.

Various characters in the story told short descriptions of events in the story – the descriptions by each character were too short to capture and develop the character and they told so little in each of their sections…I was begging for more detail and information. These brief narrations by the speaker causes the character to be undeveloped, flat, uninteresting and as a reader I was not able to get very involved with the character. I did not find that each character had their own distinctive voice such that without looking at the title of who was speaking I could immediately tell who was speaking. (In fact when the young girls were five they were speaking and thinking about things much too adult and sophisticated for their age so their voices felt believable.)
For most of the beginning of the book the comings and goings and discussions focused around a cemetery –boring. I was more than half way through the book before I saw a glimmer of a plot. At first I thought the plot would center on turn of the century women and unhappy marriage, affairs, unwanted pregnancy, finding a soul mate but that never really developed. As the plot switches away onto something else (women’s rights in turn of the century London, women suffragettes) I thought, at last here is the real plot but that was never really developed either. So much more could have been done to describe the women’s suffragette movement, the hardships, the imprisonment of the women and the frustration embarrassment and misunderstanding on the part of the men and society.
I imagine the author did extensive research on the era but that never came out in the story. The rich details, descriptions, of the times and the deep feelings, frustrations, fears and concerns of the characters were not brought out. I found the ending came abruptly but I guess after wondering all over the place the author had to finally just stop.

Overall this book was a big disappointment but I kept reading to the end to see why this book was published …I thought surely it must have something meaningful to contribute.

[BrokenTune · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had the audiobook only (I have really no idea why I picked this one up), so can’t provide any of the many, many quotes that made me laugh.

The tone of the book was wonderful. Very irreverent in some parts and very intentionally unintentionally funny – i.e. very uptight Victorian attitudes were written so stiffly that they made me giggle. For large parts, this book read like a satire.

And this is where my problem with the book lay: the very light tone narration (each character gets a turn to tell the story from their point of view in alternating chapters) didn’t quite fit the story.

We first meet all of the protagonists when two Victorian London families meet in a graveyard, having bought adjacent family plots, and fall out over the hideousness of the adornments they each bought for the graves: a huge urn on one and a grotesque angel on the other.

We then follow the families as their daughters strike up a close friendship and see how their lives unravel, as the angels fall, as one mother suffers from depression, there is an unwanted pregnancy, etc., the engagement in politics as one member joins the suffragettes, a murder that gets absolutely not talked about, and so on.

There are a plethora of serious issues that Chevalier takes up in her book, but they all seem to get glanced over.

For example, the cause of the suffragettes is criticised by the household staff as being of no use to them because they would not get the vote under what the suffragettes were proposing (votes for “some” women, but not all at this stage) and the way that the suffragettes are portrayed is outrageously self-indulgent and actually leads to catastrophe. Yet, I as a reader found it hard not to take issue with the portrayal because even that criticism was left largely unexplained. I had a hard time following the author’s choices in this one.

I was missing some complexity and depth in this book which left me feeling that this was more of an exercise in creative writing (of historical fiction) than an actual story that had a point.

Still, I laughed quite a bit at some of the characters.

Review first posted on my blog:
https://brokentuneblog.com/2021/07/05...

[SARAH · Rating 3 out of 5]

به ساعت نگاه کردم درست سه و سی پنج دقیقه بود،و تمام .شاید تمام کردن و خوندن این کتاب کمتر از پنج ساعت وقتم رو گرفت اما... امان از خودم که هر چی میکشم از خودم است!سعی کردم ستاره بدم که نشد:( این کتاب کتابی است سطحی.... هم چیز بر سطحی حرکت میکند، شخصیت پردازی ها و حتی گر ها، گره گشایی ها همه و همه...مثل یک تک چوب بر موج و سطح اقیانوس داستان... ما از علت رفتارهای شخصیت ها سر در نمی اوریم.. اوه زود وارد نقد شدم .داستان حول دو خانواده اشرافی انگلستا ن می چرخد درست اوایل قرن بیستم و اواخر قرن نوزدهم در بزنگاه تجدد خواهی و مبارزه برای حق رای زنان!!!ما با روایت های ذهنی تک تک اعضا بخصوص دو کودک وارد زندگی این دو خانواده میشویم. در واقع پیشبرد داستان و نحوه روایت حوادث از زبان شخصیت هاست چیزی که در میانه کتاب ،ص 200 ازارم داد همین بود!بیشتر روایت ها از ذهن شخصیت های زن داستان بیان میشود ما هیچ از مردان و نگاهشان نسبت به حوادث نداریم ،جز ان که دو مرد خانواده به کریکت علاقه دارند و در این داستان هیچ چیزی از اتفاقات در خانه شان نمی دانند هیچ چیز ، تنها در میابیم یکی از مردها کریکت میکند و مرد دیگری که علاوه بر کریکت به رصد ستار ها هم میپردازد همین!!! میشود گفت داستانی زنانه بوده است اما با این احوال ما نمی توانیم حتی با شخصیت کیتی همذات پنداری کنیم چرا او نسبت به همسرش که چیز زیادی هم از او نمی دانیم بی توجه است ؟
چرانسبت به فرزندش چنین بی محبت است ؟ و هزاران چرای دیگر .شخیصت مود واقعا جای کار داشت و شخصیت لیوی و خانواده اش بجز خواهر بدبختش همه و همه از تیپ سازی فراتر نرفتند. شخصیت جکسون ؛سیمون و باقی ادم ها ؛خدمتکاران هم همین همگی پرداختی سطحی داشتند.راستش داستان ضربانگ تند و غم انگیزی دارد؛ طوری که شمای خواننده ،دست از پرس جو بابت علل رفتار شخصیت ها برمیدارید...... مطمئن هستم عد ه ای عاشق داستان هستند ولی نه من! این یک داستان ساده وسرراست وبه شدت غم انگیز است در لحظاتی حتی خفقان اور:( اما درست مثل زندگی مان بعد از هر لحظه مصیبت بار افتاب می تابد و استخوا نهای یخ زده مان را گرم میکند وچه گرمای مطبوعی !!!!!

[Heidi (can’t retire soon enough) · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the creative narration to the taste of the end of Victorian England, this was a great story that was easy to read, yet still gave you things to think about when the book was done... I may need to go back and read Chevalier's first book now. My favorite read this month!

(Reviewed 2/12/09)

[Stacy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Victorians were obsessed with death and sex. This book opens with the death of Queen Victoria, and ends with the death of King Edward, placing it squarely in Edwardian times, but the Victorian obsessions of death and sex are the two themes of this novel, pushing and pulling each other forward to modern times or back towards the Victorian age.

The book follows two rival families sharing adjacent cemetery plots and who eventually become next door neighbors. The two little girls become friends, the fathers play cricket and go to pubs together, but the mothers are constantly comparing themselves to the other in every way.

Through the point of view of all of the different family members, servants, and the gravedigger's son, the nature of the families' friendship and rivalry is uncovered. This style of shifting 1st person narration was very effective for this book. With headings indicate who was writing, it was never confusing, and the plot unfolded itself slowly and beautifully as motivations for past actions others observed became clear.

Death surrounded these families. The girls were just old enough to understand death when Queen Victoria died. They live next door to the cemetery and visit their family plots. They learn how to mourn. They live in the shadow of death every day.

Sex was ever present as well: the wife that turned her husband away; the husband that went to wife swapping parties; sexual escapades with men who work at the graveyard, and the consequences of those actions. Sexual roles were explored as well, as men are told to handle their woman as one handles a horse, and an accidental encounter with a leading suffragette leads one of the wives deep into that movement.

Eventually, the families become too entangled with each other and with the Suffragette movement so that even the smallest things that these rivals and friends do will have unintended and drastic consequences.

This was an excellent novel.

[Alayne Emmett · Rating 5 out of 5]

I hadn’t read any of Tracey Chevalier books before although I had heard of The Girl With The Pearl Earring. This book was at first a little off putting with the extremely short chapters and the fact that each chapter was dealing with a different character. Having said that I was blown away by this story and although it was a little dark in places the way it was written brought the 1900’s to life. It’s not an exciting narrative but, it’s historical and very well written and such a lovely story. I shall be reading her other books in time.

[Sotiris Karaiskos · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second book of Tracy Chevalier I read in a short time and what I can say is that it offered me another special reading experience. I can't explain it exactly based on logic but this quiet way writing and these simple but special stories that are written with attention to detail create an effect that is particularly enjoyable to me. Of course in the case of this book I confess that in the beginning I struggled a bit, this strange structure with the very small chapters and the continuously alternating POV so I believed that the final impression would be rather mediocre. As, however, got used in this structure and could follow better story that was unfolding in front Ι started to like the book more and more and until I got to the end I was really enchanted.

To get things right from the start, the author takes us to the day of the death of Queen Victoria, in 1901 in a typical British cemetery of the era. There, under the gaze of a stone Angel, two young girls become friends and then we follow their common path within the next 10 years, a course that largely revolves around this cemetery. This decade marks a transitional era, of course, is the end of the Victorian era, the beginning of a new century that was supposed to bring massive changes in all sectors. In these years the two girlfriends live through sorrows and joys, growing up and maturing, watching puzzled the social changes of the era and all aspects of life of adults who show the same puzzlement, that in some reaches the point of great turmoil. The writer giving us the perspective of many people creates a fairly comprehensive picture of how people were facing this new era. Others faced it with disbelief, others with indifference, others were trying to become part of this wave of change.

in short we have a touching story of friendship, a record of the life of the people of the era, of their hopes and their concerns against a backdrop of social changes and the Victorian obsession with death and mourning etiquette. The last is that it gives a romantic tone throughout the book, and as it is the subject of extensive study by the author makes it stand out, at least in my own eyes. A book that moved me, made me reflect, somewhere brought tears to my eyes and in the end left me with a bitter smile by realising that it is not a story about death but about life that always finds a way to continue, with the ceremonial rites of death and mourning to play an important role. A really wonderful book.

Δεύτερο βιβλίο της Tracy Chevalier που διαβάζω σε σύντομο χρονικό διάστημα και αυτό και αυτό που μπορώ να πω είναι ότι μου πρόσφερε άλλη μία ιδιαίτερη αναγνωστική εμπειρία. Δεν μπορώ να το εξηγήσω ακριβώς με βάση τη λογική αλλά αυτός ο ήσυχος τρόπος γραφής και αυτές οι απλές αλλά ξεχωριστές ιστορίες που είναι γραμμένες με προσοχή στη λεπτομέρεια δημιουργούν ένα αποτέλεσμα που μου είναι ιδιαίτερα απολαυστικό. Βέβαια στην περίπτωση αυτού του βιβλίου ομολογώ πως στην αρχή λίγο δυσκολεύτηκα, αυτή η περίεργη δομή του με τα πολύ μικρά κεφάλαια και της συνεχώς εναλλασσόμενης οπτικής γωνίας με μπέρδευε αρκετά και έτσι πίστεψα ότι η τελική εντύπωση θα είναι μάλλον μέτρια. Καθώς, όμως, συνήθιζα σε αυτή την δομή και μπορούσα να παρακολουθήσω καλύτερα την ιστορία που εκτυλισσόταν μπροστά μου το βιβλίο άρχισε να μου αρέσει όλο και περισσότερο και μέχρι να φτάσω στο τέλος είχα πραγματικά μαγευτεί.

Να τα πάρω όμως τα πράγματα από την αρχή συγγραφέας μας μεταφέρει στην ημέρα του θανάτου της βασίλισσας Βικτορίας, στο 1901 σε ένα τυπικό βρετανικό νεκροταφείο της εποχής. Εκεί, κάτω από το βλέμμα ενός πέτρινου αγγέλου, δύο μικρά κορίτσια γίνονται φίλες και στη συνέχεια παρακολουθούμε την κοινή πορεία τους μέσα στα επόμενα 10 χρόνια, μία πορεία που σε μεγάλο βαθμό περιστρέφεται γύρω από αυτό το νεκροταφείο. Αυτή η δεκαετία φυσικά σηματοδοτεί μία μεταβατική εποχή, είναι το τέλος της περίφημης βικτωριανής εποχής, η αρχή ενός νέου αιώνα που επρόκειτο να φέρει τεράστιες αλλαγές σε όλους τους τομείς. Σε αυτά τα χρόνια οι δύο φίλες γνωρίζουν λύπες και χαρές, μεγαλώνουν και ωριμάζουν παρακολουθώντας αμήχανα τις κοινωνικές αλλαγές της εποχής και όλες τις πτυχές της ζωής των ενηλίκων, οι οποίοι δείχνουν την ίδια αμηχανία, που σε ορισμένους φτάνει στο σημείο της μεγάλης αναταραχής. Η συγγραφέας δίνοντας μας την οπτική γωνία πολλών ανθρώπων δημιουργεί μία αρκετά ολοκληρωμένη εικόνα του τρόπου που αντιμετώπιζαν αυτή τη νέα εποχή. Άλλοι την αντιμετώπιζαν με δυσπιστία, άλλοι με αδιαφορία, άλλοι προσπαθούσαν να γίνουν μέρος αυτού του σαρωτικού κύματος αλλαγής.

Με λίγα λόγια έχουμε μία συγκινητική ιστορία φιλίας, μία καταγραφή της ζωής των ανθρώπων της εποχής, των ελπίδων τους και των προβληματισμών τους με φόντο τις κοινωνικές αλλαγές και την βικτωριανή εμμονή με το θάνατο και την εθιμοτυπία του πένθους. Το τελευταίο είναι που δίνει και έναν ρομαντικό τόνο σε όλο το βιβλίο και καθώς είναι αντικείμενο εκτεταμένης μελέτης από τη συγγραφέα το κάνει να ξεχωρίζει, τουλάχιστον στα δικά μου τα μάτια. Ένα βιβλίο που με συγκίνησε, με έκανε να προβληματιστώ, κάπου μου έφερε δάκρυα στα μάτια και στο τέλος με άφησε με ένα πικρό χαμόγελο με τη συνειδητοποίηση ότι δεν είναι μία ιστορία για τον θάνατο αλλά για τη ζωή που πάντα βρίσκει τρόπο να συνεχίζεται, με τα τελετουργικά έθιμα του θανάτου και του πένθους να παίζουν έναν σημαντικό ρόλο. Ένα πραγματικά υπέροχο βιβλίο.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once again Tracy Chevalier weaves a tale of everyday life in a different time- takes us gently through the customs and mores that define a particular point in hostory. She also allows her characters to unfold, not from one single point of view or from an omnipotent observer, but each from their own perspective. Through her words, they each grow and evolve- even the most shallow of characters shows surprising depth. The descriptive quality, simple prose, multiple perspectives, all help the story unfold.

This period of English history is not one I know that much about, but I found the customs fascinating. (My knowledge of the suffragette movement in England was for a long time limited to the mother in Mary Poppins). I really feel that I learned a great deal about the customs of the time.

I am perhaps an odd duck, because I really like reading the acknowlegdements and afterwards in books. Chevalier made me smile when she wrote in hers:

"The acknowledgements is the only section of a novel that reveals the author's "normal" voice. As a result I wlways read them looking for clues that will shed light on writers and their working methods and lives, as well as their connections with the real world. I suspect some of them are written in code. Alas, however, there are no hidden meanings in this one-just an everyday voice that wants to express gratitude for help in several forms."

[Nasim Dehghan · Rating 2 out of 5]

در "سقوط فرشتگان" "تریسی شوالیه" با کنار هم قرار دادن دو خانواده "واتر هاوس" و "کولمن" به تقابل سنت و مدرنیته پراخته است. یکی شیفته و معتقد به ارزش های سنتی عصر ویکتوریایی و دیگری مجذوب تغییرات سریع جهانی که به سمت نو شدن می رود.
ماجرا توسط راویان متعدد بیان می شود. تقریبا همه ی شخصیت های درگیر ماجرا، با نگاه خود قسمتی از ماجرا را بازگو می کنند.
رمانی که به سادگی و روان پیش می رود و شما بی دغدغه به دنبالش می روید بدون وجود نکته خاصی.. فقط پیش می رود تا تمام شود همین.
من این کتاب را با ترجمه نینا فراهانی که نشر چشمه به چاپ رسانده، خواندم.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this historical fiction family drama that begins in 1901 and the death of Queen Victoria that sets the scene and the tone of the book.
Multiple point of views keep this moving at a brisk pace as we sample the lives of each different character; both male and female, rich and poor.

[صَــــنَــــمْــــ · Rating 4 out of 5]

تو اپدیت قبلیم سپهر گفت که لااقل یه دو خط درمورد کتاب بنویس منم الان دارم تلاشمو میکنم.

داستان در مورد دو تا خونواده‌ست که دختراشون تو قبرستون باهم دوست میشن و دوستی و همسایگی اونها باهم، باعث ارتباط بین بزرگتر‌ها میشه.

نویسنده سعی داره اختلاف طبقاتی و فرهنگی و در نتیجه تفاوت تفکرات و لایف استایل خونواده‌ها رو به تصویر بکشه.

در خلال داستان هم به شروع جنبش‌های فمینیسم پرداخته شده.

فکر میکنم از اون دسته کتاباست که داستانش با اینکه خیلی چیز خاص و بولدی نداره، تو ذهن آدم می‌مونه (اینو چند ماه بعد قطعیشو میتونم بگم).
روند و ریتم داستان به هیچ عنوان کسل کننده نیست و خوندنش رو پیشنهاد می‌کنم. هرچند انتظار پایان پشم ریزون داشتم (همیشه
دارم).

[Pam Jenoff · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love everything Chevalier has written but this unique story set in Edwardian London has been a particular, long-time favorite. The story focuses on the friendship of two young girls from different backgrounds and includes several perspectives, including that of a gravedigger's son and an ardent suffragette. A well-researched piece of historical fiction and a gripping story.

[Leo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this the first time in 2017 and I only gave it two stars, don't know my reason behind that but this time I've enjoyed it more, it's an interesting look at life in early 1900s. I thought it was interesting to see different behavior and what they thought was right and wrong. Not my favorite Tracy Chevalier but it was a good book nevertheless

[Tocotin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book to be initially better than the infuriating "Girl with a Pearl Earring", maybe because it tried to present the story from different points of view, but then I got angry because the promise was totally unfulfilled. The characters were unbelievable and flat, as if written with some sort of manual in hand.

There were two girls who became friends despite the differences between their families and personalities, but nothing came out of it, because simply labeling one girl as "shallow & pretty" and the other as "intelligent and plain" couldn't make for developing their characters. Actually I liked the stupid and pretty Lavinia better, she was at least some fun. Maude I can't say anything about for the life of me, and she was the stupider one, what with her being so oblivious about Jenny the servant or Simon or her mum. She only cared about herself. The mothers, the grandmother, the fathers were even worse, one-dimensional tools good only for thinking textbook thoughts about "the spirit of the day", politics, suffrage and such - no character development, no independent thought, just timid agreement to be obvious puppets of the author.

The story was so predictable it was sad. Of course something bad was going to happen during the suffrage rally. Of course the poor boy would fall in love with rich ladies, and think about them lots of gentle stuff. Of course the independent woman would neglect her daughter. Of course all the internal monologues would consist entirely of hypocritical exclamations, declarations and declamations, what with all these persons being, y'know, Victorians and stuff.

So why 2 stars? Because it was a fast read and I like POV changes. But grrr.

[Mary Pellecchia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This takes place in Edwardian London, beginning the day after Victoria's death in 1901 and ending with the death of Edward VII in 1910. It concerns how the turn of the 20th Century affects two neighboring families, one of which hearkens back to the Victorian Era and one of which looks ahead to a new time. It especially concerns the incredibly stifling lives of women at the time. The mother in the forward family becomes a suffragette, pushing them forward perhaps a bit faster than they would wish to go. The climactic moment is a fictional account of a real event of the time, a huge demonstration demanding votes for women. It has tragic results for both families--the young girls of each family are especially affected. The novel is told in Spoon River Anthology style, with different characters taking the narrative voice of succeeding chapters, as if the reader were glimpsing into their personal journals. The differing reactions of one character to events deepen your understanding of the character who spoke before, and you piece out the story by taking in all the characters. There was an Upstairs, Downstairs quality as well because she gives a voice to everyone from the dictatorial grandmother to the poor upstairs maid to the barefoot boy who digs graves. It was a bit of a depressing book, but oddly uplifting when you finished seeing the whole picture. I enjoyed the author's "Girl with the Pearl Earring," and I enjoyed this one as well even though it was so different.

Just as a side note: it is incredible to me when I think of it that my own grandmothers were not allowed to vote until well after they became mothers. God bless those suffragettes.

[ZaRi]

تاحالا جنازه ندیده ام . گفتن این حرف از یک گورکن بعید به نظر می رسد . تمام روز را با جنازه های اطرافم سر میکنم ولی همه شان توی تابوت اند . درشان محکم میخ شده اند و روی شان هم خاک ریخته شده . بعضی وقت ها می ایستم روی یک تابوت ، داخل قبر . بین من و جنازه فقط چند سانتی متر فاصله است . اما نمی بینمش . اگر زمان بیشتری را بیرون از قبرستان صرف می کردم جنازه های بیشتری می دیدم . مسخره است ، مادر و خواهرهایم صدتاشان را دیده اند . همه زن ها و بچه هایی که موقع دنیا آمدن مرده اند و یا همسایه هایی که از گرسنگی یا سر ما تلف شده اند .

[Hossein Sharifi · Rating 3 out of 5]

سقوط فرشتگان داستان زندگی دو خانواده است در مجاورت یک قبرستان.
در واقع این قبرستان است که زندگی این دو خانواده را به یکدیگر پیوند می دهد. قبرستانی که مردگانش از مردمان دنیای واقعی زنده تر می نمایند.
در ابتدای داستان متوجه می شویم که ملکه ی انگلستان، ویکتوریا، از دنیا رفته و همگان در حال عزاداری برای ملکه هستند. در واقع مرگ ملکه، پایان دوره ی ویکتوریا را نشان میدهد. با پایان این دوره زمینه ی رهایی از ارزش های سرکوبگر ویکتوریایی فراهم شده و مردم با سبک زندگی لیبرال ادواردیایی کمی آشنا می شوند که این پیشرفت های اجتماعی متعددی را با خود به همراه می آورد. برای مثال، یکی از این جنبش ها، مبارزه برای حق رای زنان بود، که نه تنها شخصیت های این داستان، مثل کیتی و گرترود را از هم دیگر جدا کرده بود، بلکه زنان و مردان جامعه را به دو دسته ی متفاوت تقسیم کرده بود. کیتی، بیشتر به دنبال ارزش های تازه و تغییر است در حالی که گرترود طرفدار سنت و ارزشهای سرکوبگر ویکتوریایی است. این تقابل بین دو دیدگاه، بیانگر تقابل مدرنیته و سنت گرایی است.
از آنجایی که خانواده ی کیتی، کلمن ها، از طبقه ی بالای متوسط جامعه هستن و خانواده ی گرترود، واترهاس ها، از طبقه ی متوسط جامعه، می توان اینگونه نتیجه گرفت که این پیروی از ارزش های ویکتوریایی بیشتر در دهک های رو به پایین اجتماع رواج داشته است. مرگ کیتی و آیوی می، نشان می دهد که این تغییر و رفتن به سوی مدرنیته، بر روی هر دو طبقه ی اجتماعی تبعات جبران ناپذیری را باقی گذاشته است.
سقوط فرشتگان، حکایت دلهره آور دو خانواده است که به یکدیگر پیوسته اند. داستان دوستی های کودکانه، بیداری جنسی و ضعف انسانی، که در چارچوب نظام جامعه ی زمان خویش قرار گرفته اند. این داستان حماسه ی تغییر یک ملت است که حقوق خود و ارزش ها و اعتقادات ثابت جامعه ی خود را زیر سوال می برند.
قبرستان واقعی، نظام و ارزشهای مرده ایست که انسان ها خود واقعیشان را پشت آنها پنهان نموده اند.
داستان را به ترجمه ی نینا فراهانی خواندم. نمی دانم ایراد از ترجمه بود و یا ضعف نگارش خود کتاب و شخصیت پردازی ها. داستان اگرچه از زبان راویان متعددی بیان می شد، ولی خواننده نمی تواند متوجه تغییر لحن شخصیت ها شود وانگار همگی زبان مشترکی دارند. در بین همین شخصیت ها، تمرکز بیشتر روی شخصیت های زن داستان قرار دارد، و خواننده تقریبا اطلاعات چندانی از شخصیت های مرد داستان بدست نمی آورد. البته من این را ایرادی برای این داستان نمی دانم، چرا که با مرگ ملکه ویکتوریا، جامعه از مردسالاری کمی فاصله گرفت و مردمان کم کم متوجه حضور زنان و نقش آنان در جامعه شدند.

[Amin · Rating 4 out of 5]

هیچ چیز ناراحت‌کننده‌تر از آن نیست که کسی متوجه نباشد داری تنبیهش می‌کنی

انتخاب این کتاب برای خوندن در ابتدا تقریبا هیچ توجیهی نداشت. نه نمره‌ی گودریدزش خوب بود، نه قبلا از نویسنده کتابی خونده بودم، نه کسی از دوستانم خونده بودش که به من پیشنهاد بده. شاید علت اینکه این کتاب رو از قفسه‌ی کتابخونه برداشتم و امانت گرفتم، خیلی مضحک بیاد، اما واقعیت داره: رنگ عطف و پشت جلد کتاب و برگ‌های بالکی‌اش

مطمئنا چنین دلیلی نمی‌تونه برای انتخاب یک کتاب دلیل منطقی‌ای باشه، اما خوشبختانه «سقوط فرشتگان» کتاب خوبی از آب در اومد. هنوز نمیدونم دقیقا از چی این کتاب خوشم اومده، اما مطمئنم که خوشم اومده چون دو شب با وجود خستگی خیلی زیاد منو تا 3 شب بیدار نگه داشت. داستان کتاب داستان عجیب یا خاصی نیست، معمولیِ معمولی است، اما برای من خوندن سطرهایش دلنشین بود. البته همه‌ی این موارد یک طرف، ترجمه‌ی خوب و روان هم یک طرف دیگه. واقعا ترجمه‌ی خوب چقدر می‌تونه روی علاقه‌مند شدن آدم به یک کتاب اثر داشته باشه

اگه کسی از من بپرسه که «سقوط فرشتگان» رو بهش توصیه می‌کنم یا نه، نمی‌دونم چه جوابی بدم. چون واقعا نمی‌دونم چی در این کتاب بود که منو دنبال خودش کشوند. با این حال اگر هرازگاهی اهل گرفتن تصمیم‌های یک هویی و بی‌منطق توی زندگیتون هستید، شاید انتخاب خوندن این کتاب چندان پشیمونتون نکنه

پ.ن: البته بعد از امانت گرفتن کتاب با دیدن نمره‌ی گودریدزش تقریبا قید خوندنش رو زده بودم که نقل قول ابتدای این ریویو رو دیدم و اونقدر برام دلنشین بود که با خودم گفتم حتما باید این کتاب رو بخونم!

پ.ن 2: آخر این کتاب تنها چیزی که تمام فکر و ذکرم رو به خودش مشغول کرده بود این بود: خاک خیلی سرده. خیلی...

اینکه همه‌ی وسایلی که لازم دارید در یک مغازه پیدا شود، تسلی‌بخش است

[Riadiani Marcelita · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love how this book exposes so many different aspects of the Victorian lifestyle; from people with high society statuses, to servants and even a gravedigger's son. The fact that the story is told through the eyes of thirteen very different characters makes it even more interesting to read, since I never seemed to get bored with the whole concept of the story.

Through this book I can delve into the past and examine the London lifestyle in the Victorian era that I didn't have much clue about before. I didn't know how difficult life was to women during those years. They didn't have what modern women now take for granted: the freedom of choice, of speech, and of having equality.

This novel is romantic, heart wrenching, tragic, entertaining, and just simply beautifully written. I finished it in less than a week. I cried when Kitty Coleman and Ivy May passed away. I simply couldn't put it down. Praise for Tracy Chevalier. I am a fan.

[Essareh · Rating 2 out of 5]

۲.۴

اولین‌بار که سقوط فرشتگان رو خوندم، کلاس هشتم بودم. خیلی بهم چسبید. این‌بار هم با همون تصور رفتم سراغش و خب... هعی.

شیوهٔ صحبت‌کردن شخصیت‌ها ارتباطی با جایگاهشون نداره. مثلاً یه بچهٔ ۶_۷ساله از واژهٔ «مالیخولیا» استفاده می‌کنه. مدل صحبت کردن یه بچهٔ قبرکن که هیچ‌وقت مدرسه نرفته، فرق زیادی با یه بزرگسال پولدار و باسواد نداره.

مشکل اصلیم با کتاب این بود که همهٔ شخصیت‌ها احمقن. کلمهٔ دیگه‌ای برای توصیفش ندارم. هیچ‌کس تصمیم عاقلانه‌ای نمی‌گیره. هیچ شخصیتی توی این یه‌دهه، ذره‌ای بالغ نمی‌شه. نمی‌گم همهٔ داستانا باید از یه روند پیروی کنن؛ مسئله اینه که زندگی واقعی این شکلی نیست.
فقط آخرش یکی دوتا تغییر ناگهانی که حتی معلوم نبود از کجا شروع شده، رخ داد. :))
بعد هم با چندتا مرگ به شدت بیهوده (دارم سعی می‌کنم اسپویل نکنم.) جنبش حق رأی زنان رو به سخره گرفت. البته نمی‌دونم واقعاً چنین قصدی داشت یا نه؛ ولی اتفاقات جوری بود که این‌طور به‌نظر رسید.

درسته بدشو گفتم، ولی اون‌قدرا هم اعصابمو خرد نکرد. :)
همون امتیازی که اول گفتم به‌نظرم خوبه.

[Dinjolina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hmpf.
Hmpf,hmpf.
This book was a bad try at writing dark.
Well all the books from this author are that,but still!
I had a real problem whit the destiny of the main character and her mother.
At least she was the main character to me.
All the others were so horrible you wanted to beat them whit a stick!
So,the mother dies.And the girl does not get the boy she wants because of her winy bratty friend that indirectly messed up her and her mothers life.
Go figure.
I just have enough of injustice to look at in real life.Why read about shallow evil people that tend to make life miserable for the marginally good ones?

I gave it the second star because it was not badly written when it comes to form.Just when we consider the plot.

[Ellie · Rating 3 out of 5]

سقوط فرشتگان از آن کتاب هاییست که نمی توانم تصمیم بگیرم دوستش دارم یا نه.
داستان با مرگ ملکه ویکتوریا در سال 1901 شروع می شود و به مدت نه سال (سال های سلطنت ادوارد هفتم) سرنوشت دو خانواده را دنبال می کند.
نثر کتاب نثر مخصوص و دوست داشتنی تریسی شوالیه است. نثری روان با همان توصیف ها و جزئیات دقیق که در «دختری با گوشواره مروارید» هم استفاده شده و این بار مخاطب را به ابتدای قرن بیستم و آغاز تغییرات در انگلستان ویکتوریایی می برد. تریسی شوالیه در این کتاب از چندین راوی اول شخص استفاده کرده بود و تقریبا به همه شخصیت های داستانش فرصت داده بود تا بخشی از داستان را از زاویه دید خود روایت کنند. اما بخش اصلی کتاب از زبان زنان کتاب روایت می شود و با توجه به سیر اتفاقات می توان گفت «سقوط فرشتگان» کتابی درباره زنان در اغاز قرن بیستم است.
«سقوط فرشتگان» بر خلاف «دختری با گوشواره مروارید» (که از سرشار رنگ های درخشان و حس خوب هنر و نقاشی بود)، بوی مرگ میداد. کتاب با یک مرگ شروع (ملکه ویکتوریا) و با یک مرگ پایان یافت (پادشاه ادوارد هفتم). در طول داستان هم مرگ بر بخش های مختلف داستان سایه انداخته بود. (قبرستان، گورکن ها، فرشته ها و ظرف های خاکستر، تشریفات خاکسپاری و عزاداری و...)
مشکل اصلی در مورد این داستان این بود که من تا صد صفحه اول داستان سردرگم بود که داستان چه مسیری را در پیش گرفته و هدف نویسنده و شخصیت ها چیست و قرار است به کجا برسند. و اضافه شدن این مسئله به جزئی گری نویسنده باعث شد حس کنم در لندن قرن بیستم گم شده ام. مشکل بعدی رفتار غیر قابل درک بعضی از شخصیت ها به خصوص کیتی کولمن بود. که حتی روایت بخشی از داستان از زبان خودش توجیهی بر رفتار های عجیب و غریبش نبود.
انتظاری که از تریسی شوالیه داشتم در این کتاب براورده نشد و با توجه به همه مسائل امتیاز من به این کتاب بین سه و چهار است.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

For my full review, visit me at https://mrsbrownsbooks.wordpress.com/...

This is a historical drama which was not as fulfilling as I had hoped. In my opinion, not a lot happens, except for a lot of loitering around a cemetery. I was excited about the time period and thought this would prove quite interesting, but I don’t think the story ever gets going.