Customer Reviews

Flashman and the Angel of the Lord: From the Flashman Papers, 1858-59 (Flashman 09)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is not the first Flashman book to deal with a setting in America or the issues of slavery and the ante-bellum South. In fact, it's the third. Flash for Freedom and Flashman and the Redskins both touch on the subject. And if Mr. Fraser lives long enough, there are at least two others he has hinted at which will cover other aspects of the periods 1850-53 and 1861-65. However, its highly doubtful that the ingenious Mr. Fraser will live long enough (he's in his 70's) to "edit" the much awaited Civil War volume. Therefore, we Flashmaniacs must likely content ourselves with this fine, but hopefully not final, chapter. The novel brings back several old characters from Flash for Freedom, including the delightfully decadent Mrs. Mandeville. It is much much tighter in its focus than any of its predecessors, covering just a few months in 1859. However it is also more practiced in its character development and insights into the period. While this tenth Flashman novel (eleventh if you count the bland Mr. American) may only be for true afficionados, I think it's one of the best. So while Flashy developed some moral fiber in Mountain of Light, in Angel he shows some introspection. Once you read one, you'll read them all anyway, so this review is entirely unnecessary.

Flashman and the Angel of the Lord was my introduction to writer George Fraiser and "his" character, Harry Flashman. I was impressed and pleased. Impressed with Frasier's scholarship (the fictional Flashman's interactions with real historic persons and events is accurate, as his extensive endnotes demonstrate). Pleased with the irreverant, wholly unconventional and most certainly un-PC character of Harry Flashman.

In the Angel of the Lord, Flashman - a scandalous character "resurrected" from the 19th century novel Tom Brown's Schooldays and a self-described "bully, poltroon, cad, turncoat, lecher and toady" - finds himself aiding John Brown in his raid at Harper's Ferry. Conspiracies abound with several factions enlisting the "assistance" of Flashman to either foil the attempt or help pull it off. The misadventures of Harry Flashman as he navigates the intrigue and double-dealing combined with the Fraiser's rapier-like wit and irreverant style had me riveted to the story line while laughing out loud. I will certainly read the remainder of the "Flashman Chronicles" and I recommend this one highly.

For those of you who aren't familiar with his exploits, please allow me to introduce you to Sir Harry Flashman, literature's most unrepentant scoundrel. Flashman (whom some may remember as the bully from Tom Brown's Schooldays), is the hero of twelve (as of 2007) novels by the literate and witty George MacDonald Fraser. The setting for these novels is the Nineteenth Century, a time filled with countless skirmishes and disasters, with Flashman seemingly involved in most of them. Fraser, in an explanatory note, says it best:

"From the day of his expulsion from Rugby School in the late 1830s, Flashman the man fulfilled the disgraceful promise of Flashman the boy; toadying bounder and bully matured into the cowardly profligate and scoundrel, who, by chance and shameless opportunism, became one of the most renowned heroes of the Victorian age, unwilling leader of the Light Brigade, fleeing survivor of Afghanistan and Little Big Horn, tarnished paladin of Crimea and the Mutiny, and cringing chronicler of many another conflict, disaster, and intrigue in which he bore an inglorious but seldom unprofitable part."

Flashman's memoirs were purportedly discovered in an attic in Leicestershire in 1965, half a century after his death at the age of 93. Flashman and the Angel of the Lord, the tenth packet of the "Flashman Papers" to have been edited and published by Fraser, chronicles Sir Harry's second trip to America. The last time around, he was sold as a slave, worked as a plantation foreman, met a young congressman named Abraham Lincoln and smuggled an escaped slave via the Underground Railroad. This time, through misadventure, coincidence, and the consequences of his own cowardice and womanizing, he is forced into acting as John Brown's right hand man, training Brown's followers for their disastrous 1859 raid on Harper's Ferry, the kickoff to the Civil War. Flashman, incidentally, served on both sides during that conflict, the details of which I can only hope will be revealed in a forthcoming volume.

In this age of political correctness, Flashman's bawdy adventures are a breath of fresh air. These books deserve every ounce of the praise they've received over the years---the only drawback of being a Flash-fan is enduring the long intervals between installments. Each novel stands by itself, but if you read one, you'll want to read them all. Sample one and join the ranks of rabid Flashmaniacs all around the world.

This is the third Flashman book I've read, Flashman and Royal Flash being the other two. After being disappointed with Royal Flash, I was overjoyed with this book, in which Mr. Fraser has reproduced the brilliance he showed in Flashman. The dialogue is wonderful, the plot tight and unpredictable, and the action breathtaking. The only blemish was the sloppy last few pages, which seems to have been slapped on with a deadline fast approaching. That's a small flaw in this gem though. Read it!

This book, while not as good as Flashman or Flash for Freedom!, is nevertheless another bawdy and irreverent episode in the life of Harry Flashman. Stranded in America by a slave- trading acquaintance, Flashy falls succesively into the hands of his old friends Crixus the abolitionist and the devilish Mrs. Mandeville. In a somewhat unlikely turn, both pro- and anti-slavery forces want Flash Harry to do the same thing: help John Brown in his attempt at a slave uprising in Virginia. The plot is clever and well-executed, and will leave the reader engrossed all the way to the end.

Flashman is in cracking form again, this time avoiding the big campaigns, instead getting mixed up in a minor yet significant skirmish -- the attempt by abolitionist John Brown to launch a raid into the slave territory of the southern U.S.

As with the best Flashman tales, the narrative is perfectly convincing, historically meticulous, funny, bawdy and thoughtful in turn. With less action of the military kind in this instalment of the Flashman Papers, we are treated to rather more introspection, which works well, since the central theme of the book is the difficult one of slavery and exploitation. There is a slower pace, more intrigue, and less randy cavorting than in some other works in the canon, but that doesn't detract from another brilliantly written and absorbing tale.

George MacDonald Fraser is a superb action writer who never loses his sense of humor as he moves his readers through great historical events. And in FLASHMAN AND THE ANGEL OF THE LORD, Fraser takes you into the moment as Flashman takes the lead in John Brown's assault on Harper's Ferry, witnesses the drunken and angry siege of the engine house, and is on hand for the final bloody attack by the marines. This is my sixth Flashman novel. And throughout, Fraser's work as an action writer is absolutely first-rate.

Fraser also has a knack for developing his narrative so that Flashman exposes the reader to all sides of an issue--in this case, the abolitionist, pro-slavery, and government's perspective on John Brown. And, he is adept at moving Flashman in and out of the historical event so that the reader has the best possible view.

In ANGEL OF THE LORD, this skill is most apparent as Fraser moves Flashman out of Brown's raiding party, into the body of siege, and back to Brown's beleaguered band for its final futile defense. On reflection, Flashman's movements during the raid are improbable. But Fraser makes them seem plausible, and even character-driven, as he presents a complete historical tableau to his readers. With this talent, Fraser becomes a fine historical novelist as well.

In ANGEL OF THE LORD, Fraser also provides a thoughtful essay in the first appendix where he wrestles with the character and exploits of John Brown, who he elsewhere calls "the most violent and ruthless abolitionist in the country." In this appendix, Fraser acknowledges that Brown was "devious, foolish, vain, unscrupulous, and irresolute in crisis." But he concludes: "He is part of history and historic legend, and if what he tried to do was not heroic, then the word has no meaning." For me, this appendix added a lot.

At the same time, there are two negatives in ANGEL OF THE LORD. First, Fraser takes 50 pages to insert Flashman into ante-bellum America. This section works but I found it slow and creaky and very self-referential. The section might not work for readers who have missed Flash for Freedom! (Flashman).

Second, there are many references to details in other Flashman books, which this fan of the series often found obscure. This, I suppose, is a byproduct of Fraser's intentions. Certainly, Fraser intends, and is successful, in his effort to entertain. But, he also intends to explore great historical events and their personages. But, what happens when Flashy makes a reference to his own fictional interaction with a historical figure, such as Bismarck? Well, I remember Bismarck in history from Royal Flash (Flashman). But I've often lost the fictional context that makes Flash's comment witty.

Likewise, I'm befuddled when Flash refers to many of Fraser's secondary characters, probably because Fraser has created them to move Flashman in and out of events, not really to live beyond the narrative. Admittedly, there are a few memorable characters in the series, such as Captain Springs. But many of his fictional characters, even the prurient Elsbeth, are a little gray. (Of course, I haven't yet read Flashman's Lady (Flashman).) Still, these references do cloud the work.

Regardless, FLASHMAN AND THE ANGEL OF THE LORD is a worthy installment in this terrific series and a great pick-me-up for anyone caught in the doldrums.

Flashman has been a close and valued friend since my discovery of him in the mid-70's. I have since awaited each subsequent Flashman novel with much anticipation and they are devoured within hours.

This latest offering I found to be just as intriguing as others and strangely re-readable.

A valued addition to the catalogue and, as Flashman is to be seen in the trenches of World War One, one can only hope that GMF lives long enough to regale us with the tale !

Arrant coward and unrepentant womanizer Harry Flashman, in the seven books of his 'memoirs' that I've read so far, expresses sincere respect (and even that respect is edged with cynicism) for only two of the many "great" men he's encountered: Abraham Lincoln and... John Brown! Considering Flashman's unapologetic racism, that's an unexpected observation. Here's what he says in the early pages of the Angel of the Lord:

"Aye, if there's a company of saints up yonder, they'll be dressing by the right on J.B., for when the Recording Angel has racked up all his crimes and lies and thefts and follies and deceits and cold-blooded killings, he'll still be saved when better men are damned. Why? Cos if he wasn't, there'd be such an almighty roar of indiganation from the Heavenly Host it would bust the firmament; God would never live it down. That's the beauty of a martyr's crown, you see; it outshines everything, and they don't come any brighter than old J.B.'s."

Even more meaningfully than Flashman's words, which are always to be doubted, is Flashman's self-reported action. At the most critical moment of the battle at Harper's Ferry, Flashman claims to have saved Brown's life, and thus "launched him on the path to immortal glory."

And... Flashman's creator, George MacDonald Fraser, takes the unprecedented step of writing an appendix in his own authorial voice, saying of John Brown that "He is part of history and historic legend, and if what he tried to do was not heroic, then the word has no meaning." Wow! From Flash and Fraser, that's a testimonial.

After being disappointed by the historical flim-flam of Flashman and the Redskins, and somewhat bored by the disjointed and repetitive narrative of that book, I had not intended to read another of the series for the foreseeable future. The clear recrudescence of North-South animosity during the 2008 presidential campaign, however, got me thinking about John Brown again. I read an amazingly fine biography -- John Brown, Abolitionist, by David S. Reynolds -- and then found myself unable to resist reading this fictional account of Harper's Ferry, just to see what a curmudgeonly Brit would make of it. As usual, Fraser's fictional history is full of mind-torquing wing-nuts of solid fact, and also of utter nonsense. The central nonsense is the invention of a master spy-ring of secession-seeking Southerners, the Kuclos, obvious prototypes for the post-war Ku Klux Klan. They're as improbable as any James Bond fantasy, but just as much fun. Their antagonists on the abolitionist side - the tightly organized (and utterly non-existent) leadership of the Underground Railroad, and the beginnings of the Pinkertons - are delightfully droll. In fact, the villains in this fairly long novel are largely there for comic relief.

Flashman's "amorous" adventures in this novel are of a strange pattern, also. In three ludicrous encounters, Flashman displays his 'prowess' to his own immense satisfaction, only to discover that the woman involved has outsmarted and deceived him, set him up for trouble unscrupulously. The inveterate sexist hoisted on his own petard, as Shakespeare put it. The male spider witlessly copulating and being devoured.

People who read Flashman to revel in the "political incorrectness" of the sordid hero's rhetoric will find their usual items in "The Angel of the Lord" but wrapped up in even more ambiguity than in other books. I've begun to understand from Flashman what "political incorrectness" really amounts to: it's the smirking delight you take in saying out loud what you suppose others really believe but are too hypocritical to say, and the smug certainty that everyone agrees with you secretly. In short, "political incorrectness" is a chronic inability to credit another person's integrity. It's a character failure that even Flashman transcends in his admiration for John Brown, America's greatest hero.

The Civil War song resounds through the corridors of time: "John Brown's Body lies a mouldering in the grave." Brown's abortive raid in October 1859 failed and he was hanged in December, 1859 by the Commonwealth of Virginia. Brown's raid is crucial because it raised the spector of slave revolt in the South (think of earlier revolts led by Denmark Vesey and Nat Turner). North and South had irreconciliable differences and the Civil War began in Charleston Harbor in April 1861. Over
600,000 Americans would lose their lives in the bloody crucible determining whether the USA should live half slave and half free.
Enter into the sanguinary sage of John Brown (the so-called Angel of the Lord) the fictional character Sir Harry Flashman. Flashman is wooing the daughter of his old nemesis the Latin quoting Captain Spring. Spring wishes him to begone from South Africa (where Spring's estate is located) Flashman had once served on Spring's slave ship which took him to Africa and America. Flashy was disguised as a US Naval Officer named Comber in the earlier book "Flash for Freedom." Now he is sent to America where he visits famous American cities: Baltimore;
Washington DC; New York and Boston. Flashman's fond hope is to leave the Yankee republic pronto but much suffering and adventure lies ahead of our antihero before that elusive goal is reached! Colonel Flashman is recruited by Allan Pinkerton the famous detective working for the American government to infiltrate the John Brown raiding party. The KKK are also involved wanting Flashman to urge Brown to lead the raid to Harper's Ferry precipitating a civil war. (In actually the KKK was not formed until the end of the Civil War). Flashman participates in the raid escaping with his life. Along the way randy Flash has love passages with Annette Mandeville whose dead husband was the owner of the plantation where Flashman had worked in "Flash for Freedom." He also bounces on the bed with a large African-American woman named Mrs. Popperwell who hides him from the wrath of the Harper's Ferry mob.
Though fiction, this excellent Flashman novel elucidates the story of John Brown's ill fated raid on Harper's Ferry. No slaves were freed; Brown and seven of his confederates were hanged. Several of the other raiders were killed. Robert E. Lee and J.E.B. Stuart participated in the capture of Brown. "Flashman and the Angel of the Lord" is one of the finest novels in the famous Flashman series by the late George Macdonald Fraser (1925-2008). The book is at the top of the slippery slope of historical fiction. Enjoy!