In this disturbing and provocative novel, an abortion 17 years earlier haunts Christopher Moore and his former love, Angela. The phantom "child" is very much alive in her mother's fantasies. As Christopher and Angela meet again and attempt to rekindle their earlier passion, they must confront their omnipresent demons.
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Library Journal
This London novel, replete with distressing topics and disturbed characters, begins with the dumping of a bag of aborted fetuses on a heath and ends with the sale of a newborn baby to a childless couple. Christopher Moore happens upon the ghastly bag and takes a female fetus home for proper burial. For 17 years, he has mourned the daughter aborted by his ex-girlfriend, Angela, a woman whose memory he nonetheless still cherishes. The guilt of seeing Christopher so heartbroken by this loss led Angela to break off their relationship and eventually marry another man. When Christopher later seeks her out, their passion rekindles as Angela acknowledges the lovelessness of her marriage. Their lives intersect with Crackle and Tamara, a truly impoverished young couple who deal in drugs and Satan worship and whose stupidities contribute to the sickening neglect of their baby daughter. Townsend (The Queen and I, LJ 1/94) has a gift for stark, depressing narrative while depicting lower-class ignorance and championing the rights of children. This is a gripping story from start to finish. Recommended for large fiction collections.ASheila M. Riley, Smithsonian Inst. Libs., Washington, D.C.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Review
...Townsend turns her gifts for satire and candid observation to somber purpose, resulting in a dark, troubling, and very rewarding meditation on unwanted children, unwilling parents, and the ravages of love withheld. -- The Boston Globe, Scott Alarik
...[a] daring, unsettling, darkly compassionate novel. -- Entertainment Weekly, Megan Harlan
Even at its bleakest, Ghost Children displays her talent for getting inside her characters' minds.... -- The New York Times Book Review, Allen Lincoln
...[a] daring, unsettling, darkly compassionate novel. -- Entertainment Weekly, Megan Harlan
Even at its bleakest, Ghost Children displays her talent for getting inside her characters' minds.... -- The New York Times Book Review, Allen Lincoln
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Makes one experience joy and despair simultaneously.,
By Akoleson@aol.com (Bloomington, Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Ghost Children (Hardcover)
Sue Townsend takes on a morbid subject with style. Christopher is a sad character, but has a new beginning with Angela. To read of a reunited couple after so many years was a joy, even if they were brought together under morbid circumstances. Sue made me hate Crackle and feel deeply sorry for Tamara. I just wanted to take Storme in my arms and protect her from her parents. I am so glad I found this book in Amsterdam. I am not sure where the relationship to the Adrian Mole series comes from...could not be more different characters. Regardless, another delightful read from Sue Townsend!
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
There's more to Townsend that Adrian Mole,
By NedNedNed "Ned3" (Scotland UK Europe) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Ghost Children (Paperback)
In Ghost Children, Sue Townsend creates believable characters that are recognisable and multi-faceted. The humour for which she's known is absent from this book - the fine prose style is present (although I do find some of her comma splices a distraction!) The book never demands of its readers that they should decode complex syntaxes: it is easy to read but no less powerful in its characterisation because of this.
The story is down-beat; set in the reality of everyday life. It sets out to explore the frailties of human existence: love, longing and loneliness. The four main characters are all damaged in some way, and although their actions seem reprehensible, they are created in a way that we can at least understand their motivations, even if we can't condone them. This book is more like "Rebuilding Coventry" rather than Adrian Mole. Like RC, the book explores relationships and discovery. Like Adrian Mole, the book speaks of life's disappointments and vulnerabilities. But the truth is that this book is like none of her other novels - but it is well worth reading.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
THE BEST BOOK I HAVE EVER READ,
By Jon-Jon Piasecki (Ireland) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Ghost Children (Hardcover)
I acquired the above book from my local bookshop, thinking that as it had been writen by Sue Townsend, it would be an extremly humourous tale. It is not a comedy - very much an entralling drama. It is a shocking book, at times one has to stop, put the book down and run over the events in your mind in order to grasp the overall picture. The characters are so real - i think that this is what makes this book so great. This book identifies abortion as what it truely is - and double-edged sword.
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