The Rag and Bone Shop

by Jeff Rackham

An intriguing debut historical novel presents a fictionaled account of the secret thirteen-year love affair between author Charles Dickens and actress Ellen Ternan, as told in the alternating voices of Dickens's sister-in-law Georgina Hogarth, mystery writer Wilkie Collins, and Ternan herself. A first novel. Reprint.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[Rick · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is not a bad book, although I don’t understand what the people who gave it 4 and 5 stars saw in it. It just didn’t hold my interest. I would read 1 or 2 pages, put it down, and then try again the next day. Sometimes the writing dragged, but mostly the characters, although they should have been interesting, just never drew me in. It’s a shame, because I saw the author give a reading from the book and talk about it shortly after it came out. He seemed like an interesting person, and he seemed excited about his topic. But at least for me, none of that excitement found its way into his writing. Oh well, when you read a lot, you know the pleasure a truly excellent book can bring and are acutely aware when lesser books don’t live up to that standard, just like when you eat a lot of great meals, the merely mediocre become more obvious and more disappointing.

[Danm · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't understand how this has a 3.29 rating. It's literally absurd, but that's just my opinion. I haven't read the other reviews yet (purposely), but I can only imagine that most other readers didn't fully understand the underlying message, which I unfortunately can't reveal because it would be a spoiler. There were some grammatical errors, but so what. Either way, this is 5 Stars for me. Not Favorites shelf, but 5 Stars. A very clever story! But look beneath the surface.

[Lyndi McDonald · Rating 3 out of 5]

Historical fiction fascinates me in that it raises the questions of what did actually happen and what was in the author's imagination. Charles Dickens, The Great Man in Victorian England, faces the moral dilemma of his disintegrating and increasingly confrontational home situation and his reticence at taking a mistress for companionship. The lives of Catherine, his estranged wife, and his devoted servants as well as the energy and restlessness of this wealthy and most prolific author and the many locations where he spends his time in the later part of the 19th century ( London, the Kentish countryside, Paris, the French countryside, Tuscany and a reading tour in the eastern US) are developed through the eyes of three voices: Georgina Hogarth, his sister-in-law, Ellen Ternan the young actress, and Wilkie Collins a mystery writer and close friend.

[Alex Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I kind of choked trying to get this down. wasn’t terrible, but I can’t give more than 3 stars. men should never write from a woman’s perspective bc that was fkn crazy

[Liz · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have a lot of thoughts on this book and I don’t know how to write it down. To start off all I knew that this was about Charles Dickens life and mostly about a mistress. It was told by 3 different peoples perspective all whom were very close to Charles. First we had Wilkie, Charles bff. Man that guy was a pig and I know for the time period the way men thought of women was horrible and no where as equals but just the stuff coming out of his mouth I was like eww like 70% of the time. Then there was Georgiana who was Charles sister in law. Man oh man was she delusional. She really thought she was married to the man who clearly only used her as governess, mother his kid, and maintain his household when his wife wasnt capable. And she still loved him when he blatantly didn’t. And lastly we have Ellen, a ridiculously young actress Charles met that was clearly younger than some of his kid. But Charles became too obsessed with her and the amount of times I had to read “virginal” and “innocent” to describe her was crazy. I was immensely grossed out that his obsession with her was because of how young and girlish and innocent she was. And later the struggles of her being a mistress to the man. I was like “you knew what you were getting yourself into girl”. It took me for a rollercoaster all the back and forth and different sides to different stories. Aside from all that I did enjoy Rackhams writing alot. It was easy fast pace reading. Definitely will check more of his stuff out

[Lois · Rating 4 out of 5]

While only loosely based on facts, and big on reimagining the true events, some very private, this is an entertaining (and sometimes naughty) book about the last years of Charles Dickens' life, after he'd split up his family and was linked with the young actress Ellen Ternan.
Its told in alternating chapters by Ternan herself, Dickens' sister-in-law Georgina, and his friend and fellow author Wilkie Collins.
Ternan's chapters have her seeming an innocent mostly, caught up in the bigger than life world of Dickens and constantly asking herself if she loves him. Georgina's part amused me, because she, in this version, was convinced that Dickens loved her and was only using Ternan as a ploy, to confuse his public, when the truth is closer to them being close, but he thinking of her mainly as the glue that holds his family together after he leaves his wife (her sister), and keeps his household running. And Wilkie Collins comes off as the little devil on Dickens' shoulder, constantly plotting things and urging Dickens to do things he wouldn't do, while doing them, and more, himself.
A pleasant read, tho I wouldn't recommend it for anyone who doesn't know much about the life of Dickens and is looking for a factual account.

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 - wilkie collins is lowkey the issue of everything that happened

[Monica Lauer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting perspective into tge life of Dickens

[Frank · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book about the secret life of Charles Dickens to be quite entertaining. It is based on the premise that Dickens had a young mistress named Ellen Ternan who was kept quite secret from British society and was only known to a few close associates of Dickens. The book is told from 3 separate points-of-view: that of Wilkie Collins, the mystery novelist and friend of Dickens; Ellen Ternan, herself; and Georgina Hogarth, the sister of Dickens estranged wife. The Collins narrative was to me the most enjoyable. It portrays Collins as a rakish figure who encourages Dickens to go to prostitutes and enjoy a mistress. Collins is also a user of opiates including laudanum and uses this to enhance his mind in developing his novels like The Moonstone. At one point Collins concocts a scheme to shield Dickens from the arrival in England of his illegitimate son by Ternan. The scheme involved having Collins' mistress wed a dreadful deformed shopkeeper who is given the illusion that he is a baron. Of course this leads to catastrophe and affects everyone involved. I didn't find the book to be offensive or sexually explicit as stated in some reviews at Amazon.com. Although, I'm not sure how much of this novel was factual, I would still give this one a high recommendation for anyone interested in Dickens' life.

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok...sexism alert! This was one of those books where you start reading it and are captivated by how well the writer captures the emotions and inner thoughts of being a woman. You are convinced that you and the woman who wrote this books would be best buds, have so much fun hanging out together...until you realize (disappointedly) that it was written by a man! The language is beautiful. The phrasing is lovely. The dialogue is too. Chapters flip back and forth in the voices of three characters: Ellen, mistress of Charles Dickens; Wilkie Collins, friend of Dickens; and Georgina, sister of Dicken's wife and nanny of the Dicken's children. It is based on the true story of Charles Dicken's and his mistress Ellen Ternan which was kept very much undercover during the victorian era in which Dicken's lived. GREAT read~ loved it!

[Betty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charles Dickens, a very public man, perhaps one of the first "super stars", had a very private secret. Her name was Ellen Ternan and she was his mistress for some 13 years, right up to his death. At the height of his romance with Ellen, Charles wrote "A Tale of Two Cities", one of the greatest love stories all time.

Charles considered himself to be Mr. England, representing the Kingdom to the world. He was a puritan at heart and struggled with his desire to be loved and wanted. He became almost tortured by his indiscretion as time went on, loving not only Ellen, but it would appear, his sister-in-law as well. A great read for anyone, but especially for Dickens' fans.

[Kate Lawrence · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's fun to try to figure out what's really happening when we hear the same events described by different people close to a public figure, in this case Charles Dickens. Chapters in this novel are imagined as written alternately by Dickens' friend Wilkie Collins (a popular author in his own right), Dickens' sister-in-law, and his mistress. We never hear directly from Dickens himself. Rackham's writing is wonderful--I'm surprised this novel didn't get more attention when first published--and the characters are very believable. A solid recommendation for historical fiction fans.

[Mike · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rackham has an exquisitie yet simple writing style. His multiple third person account of Dickens' life is quite intriguing. There comes a time in the book where Dickens' death happens all too quickly, seeming like Rackham had to end the book, or else. But overall, a really good read, especially for those well versed in Dickens' life. Fabulous final pages.

[Melissa]

An interesting concept: a novel about Charles Dicken's secret sexual life written by an obvious literary expert from 3 points of view including Wilkie Collins, Dickens's mistress Ellen Ternan, and his devoted sister-in-law. While the portrayals of women are generally sympathetic, I was put off by the obvious pleasure in the descriptions of their degradation.

[Mary Beth Doyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a look inside Charles Dicken's life as told by a few people important to his life. Dicken's is shown as a vulnerable, real man. We are able to understand the motivations of two woman (a young actress who is "kept" by Dickens, and Dicken's sister-in-law who is his children's governess). The Victorian era is not glamorized.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dickens affair with Ellen Tiernan is highlighted here and also is subsequent shabby treatment of his wife. Enthralling read of a book that is fiction but reads like fact.

[Melissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am not going to finish this book. I just don't like it, and there are too many other tempting things in my TBR pile.