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Cargando... A Mirror for Monkeyspor John Spurling
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Comedy is the imitation of life and the mirror of society... Beneath the rotting floorboards of a ruined house, an 18th-century memoir is discovered. It reveals the life story of William Congreve, acclaimed English playwright and poet of the Restoration period. The lost manuscript is penned by his faithful servant, Jeremy, who explores memories of his former master and sketches the political background of that crucial period in British history: the beginning of the Glorious Revolution and the fierce rivalry of a parliament divided. Upon his death a monument in Stowe is erected to honour Mr. Congreve. Atop a slender pyramid sits a monkey peering into a mirror, a court wit seeing reflected the ironies of polite society folding in on itself as Whigs and Tories feud with scant ground for compromise. Through the prisms of memory and art, award-winning author John Spurling reimagines this tumultuous period and brings to life historical figures Dryden, Vanbrugh, Swift, Pope and Lady Mary Wortley Montagu as never before. AUTHOR: John Spurling is an award-winning author and a prolific playwright, whose plays have been performed on television, radio and stage, including at the National Theatre. He is a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and the husband of Hilary Spurling. No se han encontrado descripciones de biblioteca. |
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Google Books — Cargando... GénerosSistema Decimal Melvil (DDC)823.914Literature English English fiction Modern Period 1901-1999 1945-1999ValoraciónPromedio:
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The device of using a fictionalised biography works well here as it enables some licence with the facts and enough space for embellishment of events. However this is also a thoroughly entertaining romp through Restoration Britain populated by individuals known to history but with a slant on actuality that really works. I felt that the motif of using the follies in the grounds of Stowe to link events in the narrative was excellent. Spurling has a light hand with his writing which means that it seems insubstantial, as a reader I shot through this book in a couple fo hours, yet is actually very learned. ( )