Рецензия на книгу
Leaven of Malice
Robertson Davies
Аноним13 июля 2014 г.This is the second book of The Salterton Trilogy. And it has a rather simple plot like a previous one. In this case it rooted in the false notice of engagement. In our times and especially in the large cities such thing can matter nothing but we shouldn't forget that this book was written in 50s and the place of action is a small Canadian city called Salterton. There such news can be a cause of hell of a noise. I was looking for why this book had the Stephen Leacock Award for Humour until I read almost to the middle. The beginning has no humor almost at all. But the second half of the book is different. There are a lot of funny situations and characters. How the reader can help smile while he read about Professor Vambrace with his Irish heritage and attempts to became a detective? Cobbler is even much fount of jokes and all kinds of unexpected acts. I'll remember his two-sheet cold :) He somehow reminds me of Parlabane of "The Rebel Angels". May be it is because of they both have no morals. Nonetheless Cobbler won much more sympathy than Parlabane. Saying about sympathy I can tell that I have one more fav book character. It is Solomon (Solly) Bridgetower. Reading the previous book I thought that he is a nothing more than soppy boy. But I was wrong. This book is about judgement. And not only according to public opinion, gossip and libel. It's about the relationships between parents and children. Where is the border between the duty and the dependence? Solly and Pearl (Vambrace's daughter) didn't live their own lives, they just submited to their imperious parents. That drawn them together. It appeared that they are kindred spirits. And they both found strength to make their own decisions. The first is to engage like in that foolish newspaper notice :)
P.S. This book isn't as full of references to all kinds of art as any other book of Davies. But he cann't be completely silent about art. And there is a small episode with music. How pleasant was to read the compliments to my lovely Valse Triste of Jean Sibelius!
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