The Monsters of St. Helena [Hardcover]

Brooks Hansen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2002

A notorious episode in Napoleon's career, brilliantly illuminated in fiction

Brooks Hansen's new novel is the story of Napoleon Bonaparte's last exile, in 1815, on the island of St. Helena in the Atlantic, "the place on earth farthest from any other place." The island is populated by English expatriates and the descendants of Portuguese settlers and their slaves--and by the spirit of the island's first native, the sixteenth-century nobleman Fernando Lopez, who haunts them all, and the novel, in strange and captivating ways.

Bonaparte's arrival--with a retinue of fifteen hundred people--throws the island population into turmoil and particularly alarms the slaves, who see "Bony" as a white demon. After settling in a tea-house in a patch of briars and fruit trees, where he will write his memoirs and await his inevitable end, Napoleon is befriended by a teenage girl, Betsy Balcombe--the only person who is able to penetrate the imperial facade and get to know the proud, wounded man within.

Naturally gorgeous, splendidly isolated, with its own history, manners, graveyard secrets, and even a vivid folk religion, the island of St. Helena becomes a character in its own right. The Monsters of St. Helena is a novel as unique and delightful as the territory it depicts, and a great achievement for this gifted writer.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

"Able was I ere I saw Elba" tends to be all most people recall about Napoleon Bonaparte's fate in exile. In this intriguing but disappointing novel, Hansen (The Chess Garden; Perlman's Ordeal) fleshes out a later stage of the failed conqueror's banishment. After a stint on Elba and his epic defeat at Waterloo, Napoleon is sent in 1815 to the tiny south Atlantic island of St. Helena, which is destined to be his final resting place. His arrival inspires trepidation among the natives, who view him as a white demon, but a teenage girl from a prominent family quickly becomes infatuated with the leader, who is known locally as Bony. The initial chapters are promising as Hansen brings his curious island setting to life and sets the stage for an unlikely May/December affair, but the failure of the lovers ever to come together is a major disappointment. Hansen pens some effective flirtation scenes, but wastes numerous chapters on a murky subplot involving Fernando Lopez, a 16th-century nobleman who was banished to St. Helena for becoming a Muslim and returns to haunt the island. The portrait of Napoleon is flawed, too. Though Hansen strives to chronicle the quirks and idiosyncrasies of the defeated conqueror, he barely scratches the surface of Napoleon's character, painting a picture of a decidedly mellow and rather listless man. The strength of the book is Hansen's lovely prose and his striking descriptions of the island and its inhabitants, which outshine the depictions of most of his human creations. Hansen's inexplicable failure to follow through on a promising conceit makes this novel a very ordinary work from a talented writer.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Let the history books document Napoleon Bonaparte's battle strategies, historic campaigns, and war crimes; Hansen (Perlman's Ordeal) is content to show the emperor as chicken-dinner lover and cheater at cards. This thoroughly winning novel speculates on the general's second exile on the remote Atlantic island of St. Helena, where he spent his remaining years dictating his memoirs. Because his island residence is incomplete, the emperor-turned-prisoner stays with the Balcombe family, whose 14-year-old daughter Betsy befriends him. At the heart of the story is a charming account of the fatherly rapport he shares with the precocious youngster: he concocts an island ghost to frighten her, he steals her ball gown, she berates and beats on him, and so on. As a contrast, the island's haunted history is revealed through its slaves, who all know the story of St. Helena's first exile, fallen nobleman Fernando Lopez, and his connection to the island. Witty and original throughout, this breezy yet skillfully written novel manages to create a sense of childlike wonder without being childish. Would that all historical novels wore their costumes so well! Highly recommended.
Marc Kloszewski, Indiana Free Lib., PA
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux; 1st edition (October 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374270198
• ISBN-13: 978-0374270193
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,928,479 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Betsy and Bony, March 28, 2003

By 

Suzanna M. Rumon "zzzzany" (San Rafael, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Monsters of St. Helena (Hardcover)

After reading his first book, The Chess Garden, I've kept my eyes open for books by Brooks Hansen. I loved Perlmans Ordeal, but I think Monsters of St. Helena is his best book yet.

This story has a magic that pulls you right in to this strange island world of Napoleon in his first weeks on St. Helena. His relationship with a young teen, Betsy, and his relationship to the island itself, make for a rich read.

The island ghosts and natives, slaves, settlers and interlopers - all play a role in this book to give it a deep, textured look into what were the last happy days for this historic figure. The beauty of the words is matched by the complexity of the characters. -- Simple things - Like:"all the leaves, the stalks, and blades are heavy with dew, waiting for the sun to come and warm them dry and open them. The same as every day, yet there is something different, something raw and tender, like the throat of a child who has been weeping and can't remember why." You can't miss the art of this writer --

I can't write as well as Mr. Hansen, few folks can, but if I could, I would write about how much I loved this book and how strongly I recommend it!

I'm looking forward to his next book -- and many more to come.