How can you not love a book that opens with the line, “I
write this sitting in the kitchen sink.”?
I have just completed I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith.
This is a gorgeous novel written in the 1940s. I absolutely adored the
eccentric cast of characters and their bohemian life in a crumbling English
castle.
Of particular interest to me was central character and
narrator, Cassandra, who fancies herself as a writer. The novel is written in
the form of her journal where not only does she recount the happenings of her
life and the goings on within her family, but where she also intends to capture
all their characters and “put in conversations” in order to improve her writing
style, which she feels has been “stiff and self-conscious” up to date.
She is not always satisfied with her “captures” and vows to
work harder at her craft.
“I am aware this is not a fair portrait of him. I must
capture him again later.”
“How can one capture the pool of light in the courtyard, the
golden windows, the strange long-ago look ...?”
“Capture father! Why, I don’t know anything about anyone!”
What glorious fodder for a writer – and what excellent
advice. I love the notion of “capturing”. Isn’t this exactly what we try to do
as writers? To capture characters, moments, feelings and places and somehow translate
them into words on the page. To capture them precisely or evocatively or
eloquently. Or originally? Uniquely?
It is also interesting to note that Smith was so anxious
about her novel that once she completed the manuscript, she worked on her
revisions for a further two years, where she wrote and rewrote every line. It
shows! The characters are so superbly drawn and deliciously quirky, the relationships
between the characters complex, authentic and true, and the voice of the
narrator doesn’t miss a beat.
For writers and aspiring writers this book is a must-read.
There are so many lessons hidden within each page. I don’t know how I have
managed to get through life without reading it before now.
