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Gillespie and I Jane Harris 9780571275168 Books

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Gillespie and I Jane Harris 9780571275168 Books

Gillespie and I by Jane Harris
ISBN: 978-0-06-210320-8
Harper Collins
Published: February 2012
Trade Paperback, 528 pages

As the book opens it is 1933 London, England and elderly Harriet Baxter begins to record the story of her friendship, 40 years earlier, with the Scottish artist Ned Gillespie.

This is historical fiction set against the backdrop of the Glasgow International Exhibition of 1888 and the art scene of the day. Thirty-six-year old Harriet Baxter arrives in Glasgow for the Exhibition. She soon meets and becomes fast friends with Ned Gillespie and his unusual family in a very intrusive way as she not only accompanies them on outings, but also does housework and laundry for them (what?) and is forever giving them gifts. Throughout the first few chapters of the book there are hints of things to come as Harriet says "if only we had known then what the future held in store" and "due to everything that happened" and "given what happened." There are a lot of references to Sybil, one of Ned's two young daughters. Her wild, uncontrollable, destructive actions led me to think that she is somehow going to figure into the mystery that is very slowly developing and that only really begins in chapter 11. I wasn't wrong. Sybil figures very largely in this tale. Suddenly her sister, Rose, is abducted, a ransom note arrives and mysteriously, Harriet is implicated and arrested. The household is turned into chaos. Sybil is put into an asylum. Life changes forever for the Gillespie family and Harriet.

Apart from 3-year-old Rose, none of the characters are very likeable. I didn't care for Harriet, despite her being quite funny and witty. I saw her as a manipulative, sad, hanger-on. Her unrequited love for married Ned she describes 40 years later as "eternal, aching sadness about Ned Gillespie"!! Her life has been about regret and unfulfilled dreams.

While there was no artist named Ned Gillespie, several other real-life Scottish artists are mentioned and the writing is done in such a way that the reader is transported to the late 1800's. The book is very atmospheric as the author describes the fog-shrouded streets of Glasgow, the narrow and smelly staircases in the old apartment buildings, the accents of the people, and the Victorian view of women.

The story alternates between events in 1888 and those of Harriet's life in 1933. In 1933 Harriet is living a quiet life in Bloomsbury tending her pet finches. However, she is preoccupied with Sarah, her companion and helper who lends a mysterious, brooding atmosphere to the story. I wondered, "Why introduce a new character at the end of the story?" Then I began to put the pieces together and I recognized her.

Themes such as family dynamics, loss, grief, deception and mystery are explored in the novel. Don't expect a fairytale ending.


Tags : Gillespie and I [Jane Harris] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. As she sits in her Bloomsbury home, with her two birds for company, elderly Harriet Baxter sets out to relate the story of her acquaintance,Jane Harris,Gillespie and I,Faber & Faber,0571275168,Fiction - Historical,General,Historical - General

Gillespie and I Jane Harris 9780571275168 Books Reviews

I've arrived late on the scene here with this review; there are already plenty of exemplary five-star reviews. In fact, it was the high quality of many of those reviews (and the reviewers) that caused me to buy this book and read it as soon as I downloaded it. The book sounded too good to pass up...a delicious and very special literary treat. I needed that. So I stole the time and I certainly don't regret it.

Many of the highly praiseworthy reviews note that the book drags for the first 90 to 200 pages. I agree. But, please, don't let that get in the way. These pages are essential; they build character and, more important, tension. Stick with it. Try to relish the detail and abandon yourself to it. It's already given away in these reviews that you're dealing with an unreliable narrator, so spend that extra time and energy trying to read between the lines, examining the facets, looking behind the incidentals. Soon those long atmospheric character-building pages will be behind you and you'll be primed (yes, primed) for the amazing psychological rollercoaster ride at the end.

The ending is spectacularly spine-chilling! No matter how well, or how closely, you've attended to the beginning of this novel, you'll find the hair at the back of your neck standing straight up as you make your way through the last third.

Harriet Baxter is a character that you'll never fail to remember; she's as unforgettable as Hitchcock's Norman Bates. Without a doubt, Jane Harris is an extraordinarily effective and accomplished author.

If you love strong character-driven literary psychological mysteries, don't pass this up. This is as delicious a literary treat as they come. "Gillespie and I" will certainly be on my list of one of the best books I've read this year.
To quote from the Washington Post review "If you are in any way squeamish or genteel, skip "Gillespie and I." I don't know that I totally agree.

"Gillespie and I" reminds me of the sensation novels of Wilkie Collins. The author captures the vocabulary and rhythms of nineteenth century writing and I really felt transported to that era. The protagonist, Harriet, is relatable and, at times, even funny. I didn't find the beginning slow as some readers did, probably because I hadn't read anything about the book and it starts out like a novel of manners, akin to the books of Jane Austen. "Gillespie and I" has more in common with "Gone Girl," though, than anything Austen wrote. The reason I would caution the more gentle person about this book is because the book is ultimately about evil. I find it hard to distance myself from the events in a book. Although I know they're not real, they feel real to me, and so I began to feel uneasy about a third of the way through, and then about halfway through, the novel got so creepy that I wanted to stop reading, but couldn't because I cared about the characters.

Now, that's not to say there was anything graphically offensive. Not at all. It is in keeping with the morals of the times. I don't believe there is any profanity and there is no sex. But there is still evil. And I was made uneasy by it, not just because of the outcomes of that evil, but because I inevitably had to ask in what ways am I like this? Of course, that's a good question to ask yourself.

So read it because it's well written and memorable, and you might learn a few hard lessons about yourself. But it's certainly not a cosy read.
This is a great read, a story of a women who becomes involved with a very interesting family. Told in flashbacks by the woman, she delves into family secrets and problems, all the while being drawn into the lives of this group of people. There are also mysterious happenings in her present day life that might be tied to her past.
The characters are well portrayed, and the suspense does build quite nicely throughout this book. Worth the price, in my opinion.
Gillespie and I by Jane Harris
ISBN 978-0-06-210320-8
Harper Collins
Published February 2012
Trade Paperback, 528 pages

As the book opens it is 1933 London, England and elderly Harriet Baxter begins to record the story of her friendship, 40 years earlier, with the Scottish artist Ned Gillespie.

This is historical fiction set against the backdrop of the Glasgow International Exhibition of 1888 and the art scene of the day. Thirty-six-year old Harriet Baxter arrives in Glasgow for the Exhibition. She soon meets and becomes fast friends with Ned Gillespie and his unusual family in a very intrusive way as she not only accompanies them on outings, but also does housework and laundry for them (what?) and is forever giving them gifts. Throughout the first few chapters of the book there are hints of things to come as Harriet says "if only we had known then what the future held in store" and "due to everything that happened" and "given what happened." There are a lot of references to Sybil, one of Ned's two young daughters. Her wild, uncontrollable, destructive actions led me to think that she is somehow going to figure into the mystery that is very slowly developing and that only really begins in chapter 11. I wasn't wrong. Sybil figures very largely in this tale. Suddenly her sister, Rose, is abducted, a ransom note arrives and mysteriously, Harriet is implicated and arrested. The household is turned into chaos. Sybil is put into an asylum. Life changes forever for the Gillespie family and Harriet.

Apart from 3-year-old Rose, none of the characters are very likeable. I didn't care for Harriet, despite her being quite funny and witty. I saw her as a manipulative, sad, hanger-on. Her unrequited love for married Ned she describes 40 years later as "eternal, aching sadness about Ned Gillespie"!! Her life has been about regret and unfulfilled dreams.

While there was no artist named Ned Gillespie, several other real-life Scottish artists are mentioned and the writing is done in such a way that the reader is transported to the late 1800's. The book is very atmospheric as the author describes the fog-shrouded streets of Glasgow, the narrow and smelly staircases in the old apartment buildings, the accents of the people, and the Victorian view of women.

The story alternates between events in 1888 and those of Harriet's life in 1933. In 1933 Harriet is living a quiet life in Bloomsbury tending her pet finches. However, she is preoccupied with Sarah, her companion and helper who lends a mysterious, brooding atmosphere to the story. I wondered, "Why introduce a new character at the end of the story?" Then I began to put the pieces together and I recognized her.

Themes such as family dynamics, loss, grief, deception and mystery are explored in the novel. Don't expect a fairytale ending.