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White Narcissus
The Ontario farmland described with arresting clarity in White Narcissus is, despite its beauty and abundance, “a place of choked vistas” where bitterness and rivalry have taken root. Against this backdrop Raymond Knister portrays the triumph of longing over despair, as his hero, Richard Milne, struggles to redeem his childhood sweetheart from the spiritual imprisonment of her parents’ home.
First published in 1929, White Narcissus was a groundbreaking work in the development of the Canadian realist novel, fusing Knister’s imagistic sensibility with the deeply felt experience of a real time and place.
Knister died tragically at the age of thirty-three, before his contribution was recognized in his own country and before the full potential of his remarkable talent could be realized.
First published in 1929, White Narcissus was a groundbreaking work in the development of the Canadian realist novel, fusing Knister’s imagistic sensibility with the deeply felt experience of a real time and place.
Knister died tragically at the age of thirty-three, before his contribution was recognized in his own country and before the full potential of his remarkable talent could be realized.
- GenresCanada
153 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published March 1, 1990
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
August 8, 2023
As I read the final paragraphs of this novel, I breathed a sigh of relief and put it out of my mind — or so I thought. Well, I’ve been wrong before, and so apparently I have been again. Although out of sight, this story seems to have wormed its way deeper into my unconscious mind and here I am, more than a week later, thinking that it really does deserve more attention from me.
It was a very heavy burden, this small book. The mere six hours of listening time seemed like sixty — and yet I was never tempted to abandon it. Perhaps I was captivated by the strangely atmospheric description early in the story of Mrs. Lethen’s love for her family of narcissus plants. Maybe I was lured by their sickening fragrance or simply curious about the symbolism.
The story lumbered on, and so did I. The writing was very awkward — unrealistic dialogue, pretentious vocabulary, and lengthy poetic passages were not well-matched. I felt mired in the muck of the immaturity and dysfunction of the Lethen family and indeed of the young man, Richard Milne, who was making yet another attempt to extricate his love, Ada Lethen, from the tangle of her parents’ repressed emotions. The story went on and on. It was repetitive. It was monotonous. Dare I say it was boring? And yet . . . is this not an accurate description of the life of a person whose life has been paralyzed by psychological wounds?
Reflecting now, it seems to me that one word describes the appeal of this novel - hope. I continued to labour over this story because I wanted to believe that Richard Milne’s determination and loyalty and love would ultimately prevail. But there is another hope here - the hope that this first novel is the work of a young, sensitive and talented writer who in his maturity would produce some masterpieces. The bare bones are there. The people are real. Their emotions are palpable. The place is alive in the way that only farmland can be. This author had potential. Sadly, he did not live long enough to produce those masterpieces. In his short lifetime, he completed only four novels. I intend to seek out the other three.
It was a very heavy burden, this small book. The mere six hours of listening time seemed like sixty — and yet I was never tempted to abandon it. Perhaps I was captivated by the strangely atmospheric description early in the story of Mrs. Lethen’s love for her family of narcissus plants. Maybe I was lured by their sickening fragrance or simply curious about the symbolism.
The story lumbered on, and so did I. The writing was very awkward — unrealistic dialogue, pretentious vocabulary, and lengthy poetic passages were not well-matched. I felt mired in the muck of the immaturity and dysfunction of the Lethen family and indeed of the young man, Richard Milne, who was making yet another attempt to extricate his love, Ada Lethen, from the tangle of her parents’ repressed emotions. The story went on and on. It was repetitive. It was monotonous. Dare I say it was boring? And yet . . . is this not an accurate description of the life of a person whose life has been paralyzed by psychological wounds?
Reflecting now, it seems to me that one word describes the appeal of this novel - hope. I continued to labour over this story because I wanted to believe that Richard Milne’s determination and loyalty and love would ultimately prevail. But there is another hope here - the hope that this first novel is the work of a young, sensitive and talented writer who in his maturity would produce some masterpieces. The bare bones are there. The people are real. Their emotions are palpable. The place is alive in the way that only farmland can be. This author had potential. Sadly, he did not live long enough to produce those masterpieces. In his short lifetime, he completed only four novels. I intend to seek out the other three.
November 11, 2017
The style doesn't suit the story, is the bottom line here....but as well, it's a poor story and a laboured style. It read like a young man's writing, which would maybe have developed and matured. I did like the rampageous children, though.
June 13, 2020
Strong, atmospheric descriptions of farm country support an aching narrative about how the past holds us in place. However, the flowery dialogue never connects, nor does the flippant ending. Probably would have worked better as a short story.
August 26, 2022
So wonderful and so poetic.
July 22, 2013
It really sucks that I had to read this for my class. I want to beg my teacher to pick out good novels for the next class that takes his course.
Alright, this book is bad. The language in it is quite lovely; however, that is basically where it ends. I found myself reading parts again and again just to truly understand them. This is not because he writes with big words or anything, but it just doesn't make sense! Every sentence is trying so hard to be poetry! That's not how a novel should be written. It should have depth within common lines, not pretty words that mean nothing.
The book is set in an Ontario farmland. I'm not one to judge, but I hardly believe some regular guy is about to say: "this decorative and rapscallion world did hold you" - no. The rest of the speeches from the characters are cannot even be believed because they are ridiculously wordy.
Other than that, I found the symbolism to myth interesting, but nothing too major. I will not read it again and will be happy to receive 50cents to get rid of it at a used bookstore.
Alright, this book is bad. The language in it is quite lovely; however, that is basically where it ends. I found myself reading parts again and again just to truly understand them. This is not because he writes with big words or anything, but it just doesn't make sense! Every sentence is trying so hard to be poetry! That's not how a novel should be written. It should have depth within common lines, not pretty words that mean nothing.
The book is set in an Ontario farmland. I'm not one to judge, but I hardly believe some regular guy is about to say: "this decorative and rapscallion world did hold you" - no. The rest of the speeches from the characters are cannot even be believed because they are ridiculously wordy.
Other than that, I found the symbolism to myth interesting, but nothing too major. I will not read it again and will be happy to receive 50cents to get rid of it at a used bookstore.
June 8, 2013
It was all right, not spectacular. The author was so focused on what was going on in Richard's head that I felt like all the other characters were just paper, including Ada Lethen. Some symbolism was quite obvious: the narcissus being the flower Persephone was plucking when she got abducted by Hades (I'm thinking that's why the name Ada), and Lethen being associated with the Underworld river Lethe, which imparts a kind of numbness to its crossers. Richard, a pilgrim-Crusader perhaps?
November 25, 2019
This is a short book (around 150 pages) but not a quick read. The author is talented; however, his prose is dense, and i found myself having to reread many a paragraph to ascertain the meaning of what was being thrown at me. It may well be that Mr Knister is simply too smart for me. Who knows? Anyway, I liked the thing, despite the fact that it made me feel stupid at times.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews