Book Review: The Wings of the Dove

The Wings of the Dove by Henry James

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


So this one falls on the upside of three for me, close to four but not quite there. Call it 3 1/2 to 3 3/4. I'm giving it a four, but ...

In the introduction, it says that James referred to his late style as sub-aqueous--that seems pretty apt to me, though I think it more like swimming through jello--you gain a hold only to realize you're sinking fast. I'm a fast reader, which is a detriment when it comes to James because EVERY WORD MATTERS, which is frankly exhausting. However, the characterizations in this book are fantastic. Kate Croy and Merton Densher are two of the best characters I've read: their fatal flaws--what makes them themselves--force them into actions that have terrible consequences for them emotionally. Milly Theale, however, was a cipher to me. People kept saying how "stupendous" she was, and it wasn't just one person, so I had to imagine it must be true, but I never saw it. She hardly says a word throughout. Milly was at her most stupendous at the end, when her actions can be interpreted in several different lights. I always find moral ambiguity fascinating, and there's a ton of it here if you can get past the circular, drowning writing style.

Though I enjoyed the introduction (and when did it become the style, btw, for introductions to tell one the ENTIRE story? I always save them to read for last because clearly they don't want to wait for me to discover what happens on my own--the very reason I read a story), the footnotes and asterisks in this edition are sometimes laughable. Try this one, for example: Following the sentence "But this imagination--the fancy of a possible link with the remarkable young thing from New York--had mustered courage: had perched, on the instant, at the clearest lookout it could find, and might be said to have remained there till, only a few months later it* had caught, in surprise and joy, the unmistakeable flash of a signal." The asterisk footnote says: "The 'it' refers to Mrs. Stinghams' imagination."

No. Really. This is not the only footnote like this. I found them mostly amusing but unnecessary and sometimes actively annoying.

The characters--James's strength always--completely captivate. But ... there are often too many notes.



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