A Struggle for Fame

by Charlotte Riddell, Emma Dale (Introduction)

After the death of her mother and the loss of her family's fortune, it falls to young Glen Westley to do what she can for herself and her ailing father. Determined to make her own way in the world, she moves from the West of Ireland to London and works tirelessly to succeed as a novelist, despite the limitations her sex and nationality represent.Having struggled so long for fame, it is at last thrust upon her – but fame always comes at a price.A Struggle for Fame is a brilliant novel of astute and surprisingly familiar observations, still relevant over a century after it was first published. Gender, class, affluence and ability are all laid bare under the author's exacting eye.This is the first edition of Riddell's classic three-volume novel to be published in a single unabridged edition.

Genres: Classics, Victorian, 19th Century, Fiction, Ireland, British Literature

342 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1883

About the author

See J.H. Riddell

Charlotte Riddell aka Mrs J.H. Riddell was a one of the most popular and influential writers of the Victorian period. The author of 56 books, novels and short stories, she was also part owner and editor of the St. James's Magazine, one of the most prestigious literary magazines of the 1860s.

Reviews

[Katie Lumsden · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic Victorian novel - readable, compelling and fascinating, with a wonderful insight into the Victorian publishing industry.

[Juliana · Rating 5 out of 5]

My review: https://theblankgarden.com/2020/04/14...

[Kelsey · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn't even make it 100 pages. I dislike all the characters, and the plot is moving very slowly. I especially don't like Mr. Kelly's storyline and Mat Donagh. I thought we would be following Glen Westley, but she's hardly been in it, considering that she's supposedly the main character. I thought this book would focus on Glen becoming an author. Instead, we follow these two male characters who don't...really do anything except talk or go to other peoples' houses and talk, and Mr. Kelly is broke and doesn't know what to do with his life. Pass.

[Wendy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed it; found it interesting particularly from the Irish perspective; but nothing outstanding.

[Kay Robart · Rating 4 out of 5]

See my review here:

https://whatmeread.wordpress.com/2020...

[Juliano · Rating 4 out of 5]

“She has come to set the Thames on fire.” Charlotte Riddell’s 1883 novel A Struggle for Fame, republished in 2014 with an introduction by Emma Dale, was the first in the Rediscovered Voices series from Tramp Press, and the most perfect tone-setter for the series. Riddell’s novel is witty and acerbic and political, an early/pre-feminist reimagining of Riddell’s own life and struggle for artistic recognition. With a cast of mostly disagreeable characters surrounding the resolute heroine Glenarva Westley, and a synoptic eye that sprawls across London and occasionally returns to Ireland, the humour is always balanced with meaning, levity with sincerity, plot with moral. The novel’s third + final volume was endlessly compelling, the last few chapters particularly emotive and triumphant. The odds in nineteenth century England were stacked against women, against the Irish, against the poor, against any deemed “outsiders” – themes still sadly resonant nearly 150 years later – but Riddell believes in change and progress, however slow; that excellence must always be acknowledged.

[Ashley Stangl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the look into the Victorian publishing industry (though to hear her talk you wouldn't think an editor does anything but read and buy mansuscripts to publish as-is). The exploration of how the Irish were treated in English society was fascinating. There were some nice descriptive passages, some good characters and some amusing moments. It ended nicely. But the writing style was so indirect and roundabout that I had to mentally diagram half the sentences to figure out what she was saying, and I couldn't get immersed into the lives of the characters. Plus there were long stretches of unpleasant people doing unpleasant things that weren't relieved by any decency or kindness, which at times made it a slog to get through. The kind of book where I liked it better when I wasn't reading than when I was reading. Glad to have finished it but it was a struggle (pun not intended) at times.