Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

Belle Moral: A Natural History

Rate this book
Ann-Marie MacDonald’s love of the fabulous is in full force with this multi-layered reworking of her earlier play, The Arab’s Mouth.

Following her father’s death, amateur scientist Pearl MacIsaac struggles to discover the secret of her family’s past, which her father had been kept hidden with the help of the family doctor. Set in Scotland in 1899, this dark and redemptive gothic comedy is a story of family secrets that have come to life and of the birth and evolution of ideas – and truly a play of morals. Reaching out in two directions to reconcile the extremes of rationalism and romanticism, Belle Moral embraces a complex range of turn-of-the-century thought including Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution, contemporary medical beliefs and the concept of eugenics.

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

11 people are currently reading
494 people want to read

About the author

Ann-Marie MacDonald

21 books1,346 followers
Ann-Marie MacDonald is a Canadian playwright, author, actress, and broadcast host who lives in Toronto, Ontario.

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
24 (17%)
4 stars
52 (38%)
3 stars
39 (28%)
2 stars
17 (12%)
1 star
3 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
Profile Image for Miki.
839 reviews17 followers
June 14, 2025
Reread, June 2025

I haven't reread this since I read Fayne. I enjoyed how the two texts speak to one another in some ways, and it reading Belle Moral: A Natural History has made me want to read both Fayne and The Way the Crow Flies. I love Ann-Marie MacDonald's writing and so much of what she has written!

[Physical, own]

*4.5

I love Ann-Marie MacDonald's work! I highly recommend reading (or seeing) this play when/if it's in production.

[Purchased]
Profile Image for Jacinda Literature Babe.
238 reviews24 followers
January 31, 2020
Laugh outloud at the family banter, Ann-Marie Macdonald knows how to write sibling conversations!

Characters that are full of mischief leaves you wanting more.

However, underlying all this banter is something dark, not quite sinister, but not good either...
Profile Image for Dominique.
463 reviews7 followers
March 10, 2023
First off, this is a play.

I've read maybe one other play in the last 15 years, and so I was a bit taken aback when I opened the tiny novella. But this text was well worth the effort!

We follow a family bereaving their departed father, so an adult daughter (logical and responsible scientist), an adult son (a libertine; aimless, romantic and depressed), and their aunt, and the conversations leading directly up to the reading of the patriarch's will. Many conversations have to do with mental distress, and also heredity and evolution.

Other characters include a doctor, a young lawyer, and some funny side characters like the servants.

I would describe this as a gothic satire that everyone interested in the genre should try... The social commentary is on point!

Profile Image for Alan Marchant.
298 reviews14 followers
July 5, 2021
Belle Moral is a gothic melodrama set during the late 19th century on an estate outside Edinburgh. The place is inhabited by a menagerie of characters who spout all manner of pseudo-science from the period. (BTW, the estate name is a riff on the Royal Family's nearby holdings at Balmoral.)
McDonald describes her play as a "dark comedy," but the humor felt very light-hearted to me. Some reviewers can be forgiven for taking seriously the heroine's earnest philosophical monologues at the conclusion. But like the banter that dominates Acts I and II, her musings are a piece with the author's intentional emulation of Shaw and Wilde.
Profile Image for Kiersten.
144 reviews
April 5, 2025
Okay this was definitely a little weird, but I was here for it. Victorian sensibility crossed with absurdism, and theatrical touches that I felt eager to experience with my own eyes (e.g. the painting).

Plus, we love a feminist play by a Canadian gal
Profile Image for Tim.
266 reviews2 followers
July 1, 2024
I think I liked The Arab's Mouth better
Profile Image for Shani.
224 reviews
March 14, 2017
I love a good play, and I enjoy AMM. This was fun to read!
Profile Image for Shannon.
772 reviews118 followers
December 18, 2012
This one is actually a play, which I had no idea when I picked it up at the library for the fact that it was a slim little slip of a book that I could carry with me and read. And I did, all in one day. It was fabulous. I loved the forthright female protagonist and the combination of spooky and science in the subject matter. I can only imagine it would be a joy to see it performed, and I was shocked when I read in the book that I was very familiar and had even met some of the people who were involved in the plays first performance!
6 reviews
March 6, 2015
I am definitely a fan of Ann-Marie MacDonald. I have read all her fiction which I enjoy greatly, however, her plays are fabulous. Her fiction is challenging emotionally, somewhat dark and yet hopeful. She writes about family and people living difficult lives. Her plays, on the other hand, are fantasy and fun and fantastically humorous. Read the plays and if you get the opportunity to see them performed on stage go see them and enjoy.
Profile Image for Jef.
95 reviews13 followers
July 15, 2008
quirky and interesting. great play.
24 reviews
August 31, 2011
I've also had the pleasure of seeing this awesome play at Niagara-on-the-Lake. Loved it!
Profile Image for Sandrapaprocki.
7 reviews
January 21, 2013
This was the first time that I read a play. It was a pleasant surprise and easy to read.
Profile Image for Trevor.
564 reviews8 followers
July 18, 2014
Better flow and more playful than "Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet)".
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.