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Books: The Little Marie-José
http://www.the-cbb.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=6446
Author:  abbeybufo [ Mon Aug 17, 2009 3:24 pm ]
Post subject:  Books: The Little Marie-José
The Little Marie-José was published in 1932 by Burns, Oates and Washbourne, a long-established RC firm who had already (1930) published EBD’s School by the River. 1932 also saw the publication by Chambers of The Chalet Girls in Camp (CS 8 ) and Janie of La Rochelle (LR 6). Not since 1928 had three titles appeared under EBD’s name, so she’d obviously been working hard in the preceding year or so — according to Helen McClelland in Behind the Chalet School, perhaps to help her get over a doomed relationship.

Did you enjoy this book?
Are the main characters well developed?
Do you think it is a realistic portrayal of a) life in the ‘Ancien Regime’ in France, and b) early settlements in North America?
How much do you think EBD’s recent (1930) conversion to Roman Catholicism informs the storyline and characterisation of this book? (We’re planning a theme discussion thread on EBD’s conversion in and of itself in a couple of weeks’ time, so you may prefer to keep more general points on that subject until then; but there is naturally a great deal of relevance to this title, so don’t be put off chipping in here with anything pertinent.)
Considering the book is only 170 pages long, 21 chapters seems quite a lot to pack in (this compares with over 300 pages for most CS books by this time, which also contain about 20 chapters). Any thoughts on the structure of the book by comparison with titles in EBD’s other series?

I haven’t been able to find a transcript (if anyone has one, I’d be really grateful if they could PM me), but a friend who owns this title (& who wishes to remain anonymous) has sent me a very full and detailed synopsis which will shortly also be added to those on the NCC site. If the link doesn't work, please PM me and I'll send you the synopsis as a Word file :D

Next week’s discussion is on The Little Missus (and again, neither a transcript nor a synopsis seems to be available, so if anyone has access to one, please let me or JB know).
Author:  Róisín [ Wed Aug 19, 2009 10:35 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Books: The Little Marie-José
I haven't read this, and I suspect I'm not alone :lol: That is an incredibly detailed synopsis however - well done on procuring it! I haven't read any of EBD's historicals, despite owning her Elizabeth the Gallant, but I think that they may not have been her strong point. Using 'thee' and 'thou' in the text would put me off.

What I found really interesting about your synopsis was that the same year saw Camp and Janie Of, and that they came from a busy year following her getting over a man. Interesting because Camp is where we find out Jack's intentions for Joey and Janie Of because (I think?) this is the one where she has the huge wedding with the big romantic Victorian dress.

The storyline to Marie-José looks very Exile-ish! Right down to the help from unexpected sources and the dressing the young girls as boys/peasants for the flight, to the sea-sickness they suffer. Chapter 9 looks interesting (must find synonym...) because they crash into the English colonies and EBD criticises them from a French perspective - quite different from the usual CS 'English is Best Ever' approach!

The religious reading, and the influence of her conversion (which the summariser noted was littered throughout the book) must hang on the Puritan/Jesuit comparison in the middle of the book. She makes it very clear to the reader which group have the moral high ground and which are more correct in their actions and beliefs.
Author:  ChubbyMonkey [ Wed Aug 19, 2009 10:42 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Books: The Little Marie-José
I also haven't read it, but the synopsis does give a good flavour of it! Thankyou for the link :D

The part that struck me was the arrest and imprisonment of them. EBD isn't usually graphic (unless you're dangling off a mountain side :roll:) so it sounded rather out of character for her - though obviously I can't comment definetely without having read it!

It does sound like an interesting read, and if I could get a copy I definetely would! Interesting note that EBD had some troubles, as it is at about that point in the series even characters you wouldn't have expected to just get married seem to start doing so. Is there any more detail to it than that? (Ok, not strictly related to the book now...)

Conclusion to this pointless ramble? It sounds like a good book, if different to the ever-happy CS universe.
Author:  JB [ Wed Aug 19, 2009 10:58 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Books: The Little Marie-José
Like Roisin, I haven’t read the historicals, although I do own Elizabeth the Gallant and will no doubt buy the others when GGB publish them.

It’s fascinating to see this placed in the context of EBD’s own life. Janie of La Rochelle does have a particularly detailed wedding (when is we don’t even see Jo’s) and there are plenty of other weddings/engagements in the book, as well as a rosy view of newly married life.

But to go back to the book we’re actually discussing …. this sounds like an awful lot of incident for a book of 170 pages. When we discussed Elizabeth the Gallant recently, there was a suggestion it had been intended as an adult book, from the details of the synopsis, I wonder if this was too.

I was intrigued by the description of the brutal and violent Puritans. It’s unlike EBD to discriminate (not sure that’s the right word) between religions – her usual attitude is that a particular religion is “just one of the paths to God”.

I think I might have to go and read a bit of Behind the Chalet School on the way to bed.
Author:  Nightwing [ Wed Aug 19, 2009 11:07 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Books: The Little Marie-José
JB wrote:
I was intrigued by the description of the brutal and violent Puritans. It’s unlike EBD to discriminate (not sure that’s the right word) between religions – her usual attitude is that a particular religion is “just one of the paths to God”.


I do get the impression she didn't think much of the Puritans - wasn't there a comedy scene in one of the CS's Christmas plays with a Puritan family not celebrating Christmas? It was definitely making fun of Puritans rather than suggesting their views were different but OK.
Author:  Róisín [ Wed Aug 19, 2009 11:30 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Books: The Little Marie-José
JB wrote:
It’s fascinating to see this placed in the context of EBD’s own life. Janie of La Rochelle does have a particularly detailed wedding (when is we don’t even see Jo’s) and there are plenty of other weddings/engagements in the book, as well as a rosy view of newly married life.


And now I think that if Joey hadn't happened to have been sixteen (?) at that exact point in the series, then we *would* have had her wedding scene. The La Rochelle series is much looser than the CS - EBD could be really flexible about the time that passed between books, whereas at this stage of the CS series, she was already pretty tied into the book-per-term. By the time Joey *could* get married, it was a few years later, and perhaps her romantic high had passed :( Oh well, at least we got Janie's. I wonder did EBD consider Janie 'a poorman's Joey'?

About the Little MJ being an adult book - EBD's other religious books were intended for Sunday School prizes, weren't they? How would MJ fit into that aim, being so Catholic?
Author:  Alison H [ Thu Aug 20, 2009 12:40 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Books: The Little Marie-José
I haven't read this one either, but it certainly sounds interesting! I've read a lot of true life examples of Puritan extremism in New England and the mid-Atlantic states - usually directed towards less observant Protestants than Catholics, although maybe that was because few Catholics settled there - but certainly nothing involving burning priests at the stake and the various other things mentioned in the synopsis :shock:. What on earth did EBD write all that for :? ? There are a lot of stories about supposed religious extremism and attacks on other religious groups caused by it in e.g. the Elsie books, but I'm very, very surprised at EBD writing something like that.

I like Janie and Julian's wedding and am sorry that we don't get to see Joey and Jack's: I'd quite like to read the detailed wedding scene in this book :D .
Author:  JB [ Thu Aug 20, 2009 10:19 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Books: The Little Marie-José
Roisin wrote:

Quote:
About the Little MJ being an adult book - EBD's other religious books were intended for Sunday School prizes, weren't they? How would MJ fit into that aim, being so Catholic?


The Sunday School prize books were written for a different publisher (Oliphants) in the 1950s, rather than the Catholic firm who published this and the School by the River.

I did read some of Behind the Chalet School in bed last night and Helen McClelland says of the Little MJ:

Quote:
"It was of sufficient size and also sufficiently well researched and serious in approach to merit consideration as an historical novel, if a slight one, not just as a children's story in costume setting. And yet Elinor herself described the Little Marie Jose only as an 'historical tale'."
Author:  JayB [ Thu Aug 20, 2009 11:44 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Books: The Little Marie-José
Alison H wrote:
I've read a lot of true life examples of Puritan extremism in New England and the mid-Atlantic states ... but I'm very, very surprised at EBD writing something like that.


I agree on both counts - it's historically accurate, but very unlike EBD's usual approach. About the time this book was published, we have Jo ticking off Eustacia for objecting to the idea of going to a Catholic service. It's also odd when contrasted with EBD's later 'the Germans aren't evil, only the Nazis'.

It's especially surprising considering that the majority of the readers of EBD's other books would be Protestant. Supreme professional that she was, I'd have thought she'd be more aware of her readers, and avoid presenting things in such black and white terms. (Although a synopsis can only highlight the major points; maybe the whole book reads differently.)

However, as a professional, she probably pursued any opportunity to get into print, and maybe this was the kind of thing these publishers wanted (although School By the River isn't like that). Did she publish any further titles with this company?
Author:  JB [ Thu Aug 20, 2009 12:29 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Books: The Little Marie-José
JayB wrote:

Quote:
Did she publish any further titles with this company?


A quick check in Behind the Chalet School says not.
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