Life And Death Of Harriett Frean [Paperback]

May Sinclair (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 31, 2008

LIFE AND DEATH OF HARRIETT FREAN - CONAL ORIORDAN I . FAY AND FINANCE CHERRY VEHEYNE THE KINGFISHER PHYLLIS BOTTOME PUSSYCAPTus, sycat, where have you been Ive been to London, to see the Queen. b Pussycat, Pussycat, what did you there 1 I caught a little mouse under the chair. Her mother said it three times. And each time the Baby Harriett laughed. The sound of her laugh was so funny that she laughed again at that she kept on laughing, with shriller and shriller squeals. I wonder why she thinks its funny, her mother said. Her father considered it. I dont know. The cat perhaps. The cat and the Queen. But no that isnt funny. Life and Death of Harriett Frean She sees something in it we dont see, bless her, said her mother. t Each kissed her in turn, and the Baby Harriett stopped laughing suddenly. Mamma, did Pussycat see the Queen No, said Mamma. Just when the Queen was passing the little mouse came out of its hole and ran under the chair. Thats what Pussycat saw. Every evening before bedtime she said the same rhyme, and L---Harriett asked-he - same qu estion. - --3 When - Nu - rse had gone she would lie still in her cot, waiting. The door would open, the big pointed shadow would move over the ceiling, the lattice shadow of the fireguard would fade and go away, Life and Death of Harriett Preal2 and Mamma would come in carrying the lighted candle. Her face shone white between her long, hanging curls. She would stoop over the cot and lift Harriett up, and her face would be hidden in curls. That wa C I h , F kiss-merto2leepXZZ 1 And when she had gone Harriett lay still again, waiting. Presently Papa would come in. lar - aiidwdZ k5in - the firelight. He stooped and, she leapt up into his c Yu arms. That was e kissrme-awake-kiis- t was thelr secret.- Then they played. P --apa - was the Pussycat and she was th - e little mouse in--her hole under the bedc . l ot - h es. - L. rr They played till Papa said, No-more and tucked the blankets tight in. Now youre kissing like Mamma- Hours afterwards they would come again 3 Life and Death of Ha riettp rean together and stoop over the cot and she wouldnt see them - they would kiss her with soft, light kisses, and she wouldnt know. She thought To-night 1 11 stay awake and see them. But she never did. Only once she dreamed that she heard footsteps and saw the lighted candle, going out of J the room going, going away. The blue egg stood on the marble top of the cabinet where you could see it from everywhere it was supported by a gold waistband, by gold hoops and gold legs, and it wore a gold ball with a frill round it like a crown. You would never have guessed what was inside it. You touched a spring in its waistband and it flew open, and then it was a workbox. 4 Li e and Death of Harriett Prean Gold scissors and thimble and stiletto sitting up in holes cut in white velvet. The blue egg was the first thing she thought of when she came into the room. There was nothing like that in Connie HancockqPapas house. It belonged to 1 Mamma. Harriett thought g If only she could have a birthday and wake up and find 9 that the blue egg belonged to her--I --ldaF-th wax doll. sat on the drawingroom sofa, dressed ready for the birthday. The darling had real persons eyes made of glass, and real eyelashes and hair. Little finger and toe-nails were marked in the wax, and she smelt of the lavender her clothes were laid in...

Editorial Reviews

Review

“A little masterpiece.” —New Statesman --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From the Inside Flap

?In a few short pages,? writes Francine Prose in her Introduction, ?May Sinclair succeeds in rendering the oppressive weight and strength of the chains of family love.? Young Harriett Frean is taught that ?behaving beautifully? is paramount, and she becomes a self-sacrificing woman whose choices prove devastating to herself and to those who love her most. An early pioneer of
stream-of-consciousness writing, Sinclair employs the technique brilliantly in this finely crafted psychological novel. Evoking the style and depth of her contemporaries Virginia Woolf and D. H. Lawrence, Sinclair?s haunting narrative also reflects her keen interest in the theories of Jung and Freud. The text of this Modern Library 20th Century Rediscovery was set from the first American edition of 1922. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 196 pages
• Publisher: Read Books (January 31, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1408616483
• ISBN-13: 978-1408616482
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

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