Fair Exchange

by Michèle Roberts

In the early 1800s, Louise, a French peasant woman, fearing she is about to die, calls for her priest. She has a secret to confess. Though the priest is impatient, she wants to tell her tale from the beginning. The story opens in Stoke Newington, London, in the 1780s, with Jemima Boote, arriving at Miss Mary Wollstonecraft's school. Jemima follows her beloved teacher to Paris wanting to be part of the erupting revolution and then - six months pregnant - retreats to the tiny village of Louise's youth. Her arrival coincides with that of another young mother-to-be, Annette, who has been sent by her parents to the country to hide her disgraceful pregnancy and to get over her infatuation with William, a young English poet. In an abandoned convent they take up their waiting: waiting for their babies, waiting for their men.
While drawing hints and facts from the lives and secret affairs of two of the most famous and passionate figures of the late 18th century - Mary Wollstonecraft and William Wordworth - the intriguing mystery surrounding these two women, is Michèle Roberts own fascinating creation.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, France, 20th Century, Book Club

256 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Michèle Brigitte Roberts is the author of fifteen novels, including Ignorance which was nominated for the Women's Prize for Fiction and Daughters of the House which won the W.H. Smith Literary Award and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. Her memoir Paper Houses was BBC Radio 4's Book of the Week in June 2007. She has also published poetry and short stories, most recently collected in Mud: Stories of Sex and Love. Half-English and half-French, Roberts lives in London and in the Mayenne, France. She is Emeritus Professor of Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia.

Reviews

[MAHITH · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't like not a bit. It was such a mess. I'm not a big fan of historical fiction.

[Margitte · Rating 3 out of 5]

Published in 1999 the story from the early 1800's is presented in a modern metaphor and an interesting read especially the way of life and survival for the era both in France and England, during the French Revolution. There might be more books focusing on the plight of women in that period of time but since this was a modern presentation one would have expected to read more detail, more depth to the story. The story of remarkable women Louise(the introducer to the remarkable story of two famous historical figures, Mary Wollstonecraft and William Wordsworth), Jemima, Annette and the two illegitimate baby girls. The light, modern writing style did not really convince me of the women's suffering. It is as though the story was adapted to be made more acceptable to modern women readers who do not like to be saddled with the gory details of a revolution on the one hand and social upheaval caused by women who took their destiny in their own hands and lived to tell the story.

However, the novel was well constructed. I got the impression that the narrative had to be confined to a mere 246 pages and had to fit in, which limited the detail that could have lifted it from a more light-read novel to a more serious work of wonder. Not a bad read though. Michèle Roberts, being both French and English, handled the sensitive topic very well and at least reached a type of reader who could learn more about history than they would have done otherwise. I think I liked it. But it needed more 'oomph' I would say.

[Noel · Rating 2 out of 5]

“As a woman lies dying she calls in a priest to confess her sins. Instead of a brief confession she tells him a story that starts with her birth and wanders into the lives of two other women. These women have lovers in the late 18th century and give birth to baby girls. The are so fantastically ahead of their times, one talks about not caring about whether she ever married arguing that marriage was an outdated institution. Another character dreamed of relocating to a commune in Kentucky. In 1790???

Much of the story seemed a bit out of the history pages of late 19th century, not 18th. Possible, perhaps, but not probable, and if it indeed was possible , this should have been explained somehow within the text.

At times the book put me to sleep, at other times, I wanted to know what was going to happen. In the end, I finished it to be rid of it and was very disappointed with the lack of insight or historical background brought to the narrative . ”

[Nicholas Perez · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best novel that Michèle Roberts has written.

Many of Roberts' novels often showcase how certain ideologies and ways of thinking can separate women. Although there is a conflict of opinion over the French Revolution and what it will bring, Jemima and Annette still remain friends and enjoy each others' company. There is no female friendship doomed to be separated. And when Annette dies Jemima is actually sad over her death whereas in Roberts' other novels the female characters don't care or are glad they're dead. Louise and Daisy are interesting characters as well, given their social status in the time period. They both do bad things but are not entirely bad people. Additionally, this is probably Roberts' most benevolent treatment of religion.

The book is sad at times, but is overall very joyful

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

Frankreich im frühen 19. Jahrhundert. Die Bäuerin Louise glaubt, dass ihr nur noch wenig Zeit bleibt und ruft nach einem Priester. Auf ihrer Seele liegt ein Geheimnis, das sie beichten muss.

Es ist eine bizarre Situation. Louise scheint nicht wirklich krank zu sein, trotzdem ist sie fest davon überzeugt, dass sie sterben wird. Sie hat ihre Angelegenheiten geordnet und will ihr Gewissen erleichtern. Aber der Priester scheint nicht wirklich bei der Sache zu sein. Er will der sterbenden Frau nur wenig Zeit einräumen, weil er gleich weiter muss. Als sie beginnt, eine weitschweifende Geschichte zu erzählen, wird er ungeduldig und drängt sie, gleich zur Sache zu kommen. Offensichtlich sind ihm die Sorgen einer einfachen Frau weniger wichtig als die der wohlhabenderen Bevölkerung.

Aber ich kann den Priester auch verstehen, denn Louise beginnt wirklich ganz am Anfang. Sie erzählt die Geschichte der kleinen Jemima Boote, die in die Schule von Mary Wollstonecraft kommt. Ich finde es immer ein wenig schwierig, wenn eine reale Person in eine fiktive Geschichte eingebaut wird. Mehr als einmal habe ich erlebt, dass es nicht gutgegangen ist. Bei Fair Exchange hätte ich mir darüber keine Sorgen zu machen brauchen. Marys Geschichte war genau wie Jemimas Geschichte schön aufgebaut und wirkte auf mich echt.

Als sich der Schauplatz nach Frankreich mitten in der Revolution verlagert, verändert sich die Geschichte und das Tempo nahm zu. Ich weiß nicht, ob das daran lag, das Louise glaubte, nicht mehr genug Zeit zu haben oder ob die Autorin selbst beschlossen hat, die Handlung ein wenig schneller ablaufen zu lassen weil das Buch sonst zu umfangreich geworden wäre. Nicht, dass ich straffe Handlungen nicht schätze. Hier hatte ich manchmal das Gefühl, als ob es Lücken in der Handlung gab. Keine großen, aber ab und zu hat etwas gefehlt.

Die Erzählung würde wieder ausführlicher, als Annette auftaucht. Sie und Mary teilen das gleiche Schicksal: sie sind unverheiratete Frauen die zu einer Zeit schwanger werden, als das noch ein Skandal war. Hier erschien mir Mary als diejenige, deren Leben in Ordnung kommen könnte. Sie war eine starke Frau, die notfalls auch ohne Mann überleben kann. Bei Annette hatte ich dagegen den Eindruck, als ob sie sich ohne viel nachzudenken in diese Situation begeben hatte und erst jetzt merkte, auf was sie sich eigentlich eingelassen hatte.

Beide Frauen hatten Partner, die ihnen ihre Unterstützung zusagten. Ich dagegen hatte den Eindruck gewonnen, dass sie sich ihrer Verantwortung nicht stellen wollten. Ihre Versprechungen klangen wie Ausreden und ihr Verhalten zeigte meiner Meinung nach ihre Absicht deutlich. Aber sowohl Annette als auch Mary fanden immer wieder Entschuldigungen und Erklärungen für ihre Partner. Dass das nicht gutgehen konnte, war mir als Außenstehende klar und eigentlich hätten es es auch Mary und Annette sehen müssen, wenn sie es hätten sehen wollen. Dieses Hin-und Her hat den Teil der Geschichte zäh zu lesen für mich gemacht.

Der letzte Teil der Geschichte hat für mich bestätigt, was ich in den Seiten davor vermutet hatte. Aber dann hat es die Autorin noch geschafft, mich zu überraschen. Rückblicken habe ich danach ein paar Dinge anders gesehen.

Es gibt viele interessante Ansätze in der Geschichte, die allerdings nicht alle zu meiner Zufriedenheit ausgeführt wurden. An manchen Stellen hat mir Ausführlichkeit gefehlt, andere hatten dagegen unnötige Längen. Bei den Charakteren hätte ich mir mehr Tiefe gewünscht. Aus der Idee hätte man meiner Meinung nach mehr machen können.

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did enjoy this book overall, but I felt it did weave in and out of the characters a little too much, It was a good slowish pace for reading and learning about all the characters'lives during the time period so it gave quite an insight into that. I certainly didnt expect the twist in the story at the end as to what Louise's confession was, which the reader doesnt learn about till the end.Even though the book starts with the confession, it is a mystery as to what that is till the end

[Felicity · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really didn't enjoy this book. The coincidences and connections were unconvincing, and the fact two historical characters, and their fictionalised versions, appeared in the novel completely undermined any sense of authenticity. Why the historical setting at all? Given how sketchily it was drawn, it might have been better without it. And when I realised what the title referred to, I was even more offended since it touched on personal matters for me. Off to the charity shop immediately

[Sian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Story woven around 3 young women during the French Revolution, with historical characters such as a Mary Wollstonecraft in the plot. I expected to enjoy this book a lot more than I did. The story telling was uneven and when we eventually find out the meaning of the title all seems very far fetched.

[Mary McDonnell · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fantasy around the love affair between William Wordsworth and a young French girl during the Revolution. He abandoned her and their child and returned to England and respectability. Contains vivid descriptions of town and country life and a twist in the end. Very enjoyable.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok. Didn’t love it, but I certainly didn’t think of ditching it part way through, as I have been recently with other books.

[Una (EX) precaria tra i libri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review at https://precaria-tra-i-libri.blogspot...

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like Michele Roberts' writing style. Didn't read the back cover straight away so missed the twist for a while!

[Mariele · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have never heard of this writer before, but if this book represents her body of work at all, then it looks like I haven’t missed much. I’m not sure if I should say it was “thankfully short” or “surprisingly short”. At about 250 pages, it had by far too many characters in it without ever developing a true main character.

It begins with Louise, the French maid, and her secret. There are also the two unmarried young mothers (Jemima, Annette), later on there is one surviving daughter (Caroline / Maria); moreover, in England, there are more female characters: Fanny (friend, sister) Mary Woolstonecraft (teacher), and Lucy (another maid). However, the narrative doesn’t stay with any of these women long enough to develop any real focus.

The parallelism of the coincidences is hair-raising: unbeknown to each other, there are two young “widows” who happen to live in the same neighbourhood, whose lovers happen to be pals, who both give birth to baby girls on the same day; soon after, their men both show up on the same day to pay a visit to their lovers and offspring, before they both decide to disappear again.

While the male characters are largely absent and insignificant, the women’s lives and hardships are only hinted at, even though each woman’s story held lots of potential. The narrative just flits from one key event to another without much connectivity. Neither historical character mentioned in the blurb (Mary Wollstonecraft, William Wordsworth) plays any significant role.

While Mary Wollstonecraft is an actual minor character (but also Jemima is a reflection of the historical character – to what end, really?), William Wordsword appears only in paraphrase, apparently reflected through the character William Saygood – again, to what end was the character altered?

Meanwhile, the French Revolution serves as a backdrop, but is used only as a period reference which happens someplace else outside the margins of the story frame.

So all in all, the story remains shallow and rudimentary. Only in the end, when the final plot twist is revealed, the point of the story is brought forth - the eponymous fair exchange was an insentient ploy, a social experiement.
Really? And I thought this book wanted to make some feminist point, which eluded me.

A very disappointing read.

[Sandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story by English/French author Michèle Roberts starts with a woman dying, she has a secret to confess. We must wait until almost the end of the book to find out the truth. In a village near Paris, Louise is dying, it is the early 1800s, after the French Revolution and during the subsequent English/French war. ‘Fair Exchange’ is the story of that secret, of Louise’s part in it and how she impacts on the lives of two other women, one English one French.
In an Author’s Note, Roberts explains the inspiration for the story: William Wordsworth’s love affair, at the beginning of the French Revolution, with Annette Vallon. This is not a true account, it is historical fiction about the romances of two couples – English poet William Saygood and Annette Villon [note the mis-spelling], and Jemima Boote [sketchily based on Mary Wollstonecraft] and Frenchman Paul Gilbert. Roberts’ telling of the story combines the detail of poverty at that time - the grinding daily life of Louise and her mother Amalie in the village of Saintange-sur-Seine near Paris – with sumptuous description. Louise is picking plums: ‘The plums were so ripe that they fell into her hands. They smelled fragrant in the warm sunlight, as though she were biting them off the tree and tasting their sweet juice. Flies rose up in clouds as she pushed into the web of branches and she beat them away from her face in clouds. They had got there first, settling, in blue glints of jewelled wings, on minute cracks in the fruit that oozed gold.’
This is a period of history about which I am ignorant. First Annette, and then Jemima, arrive in Saintange-sur-Seine, single women, and pregnant. Louise is drawn into their lives, caring for them, supporting them, observing them. Fascinating stuff.
Read more of my book reviews at http://www.sandradanby.com/book-revie...

[Mely]

Not sure what I think yet; I was more impressed earlier in the novel than later, but I'm not myself sure why my opinion changed. There is a great bit about Annette's relationship with Saygood and what really happened and what was sayable to her parents that I want to quote when I do a real review. I liked the focus on women -- all the POVs are women's -- but especially on servants; usually everything is from the perspective of the person with the least power -- and sometimes the least investment -- in the current scene. People slip out of POV as they gain power within the narrative, slip into POV as they lose power. I love this as a choice, writing the unwritten, the concerns of the middle and upper class obstacles to maneuver around while trying to save up a dowry.

I wish some of the characters were farther from their historical inspirations. Annette Villon is much too close to Annette Vallon in sound to be anything but distracting, and I don't even know if the personalities have anything in common. It is hard to remember that Paul Gilbert isn't Gilbert Imlay for most of the book, both because of the name and the behavior. He is ultimately an even greater cad than Imlay, though, which is hard to manage.

The emotional implications of the reveal near the end are horribly scanted. Trying to work out if/how this is a commentary on Possession.

[Sophia · Rating 3 out of 5]

What I enjoyed most about this was the depictions of everyday life in the late 18th/early 19th century, particularly for women in the lower classes. Making jam, cobbling together clothes and dowries, building soups out of nothing, the best place to pee...The whole layer of Mary Wollstonecraft and the Lake Poets, which was the reason I originally held onto this book, was not much more than a backdrop, but that's ok. As I'd expect from Roberts, this is a women's tale. The men are annoying, feeble, rude, arrogant - and largely absent. This is about mothers, daughters, finding your voice, losing it, and just going on, going on, going on, because you have to. I recently read 'the Awakening' by Kate Chopin - it reminds me of that in some ways, but not as powerful. I'm afraid I'll probably have forgotten this in a few months.

[Kirsty · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have read and very much enjoyed Roberts' Daughters of the House and Playing Sardines, so when I spotted this on the shelves of an Oxfam Bookshop, I had no doubts about it coming home with me. I had interest in its story from the first, and it proved the perfect tome to take on a train trip to Edinburgh.

Everything about Fair Exchange was so well-realised at first, and the story, with its inclusion of Mary Wollstonecraft as a character, was very interesting. Then, a few little niggles began to creep in. The scenery was nicely evoked, but it did not feel as realistic as it is in a lot of her work, not as prevalent. I was willing to set aside a couple of character discrepancies and the sometimes jolting structure of the piece, but that final, awful twist ruined the book somewhat for me.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has a marvellous twist at the end which I really didn't see coming. Roberts writing style is precise and I enjoy books which feature actual historical characters. This was the first Michele Roberts book I've read and will certainly try more.

[craige · Rating 3 out of 5]

On the lighter side, but not too vapid.

[Tracey Wilde · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book. Surprising twist towards the end. I enjoyed it.

[Kirsti Dean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very Eastenders!

[Janine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Much easier to read than I thought it would be and an interesting topic.

[Wendy · Rating 3 out of 5]

See my review at http://talesfromfoxglovecottage.blogs...

[Sandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fine, but didn't rock my world.