The Prevalence of Witches

by Menen Aubrey

Libro usado en buenas condiciones, por su antiguedad podria contener señales normales de uso

Genres: Fiction, Satire

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1947

Reviews

[Nicholas George · Rating 4 out of 5]

I came across this novel from 1949 by accident and I'm glad I did. It's a very biting, often very funny, satire of Western civilization vs. the more "primitive" society of India, as told through the colorful British characters inhabiting the completely fictitious Indian province of Limbo. The observations of the frequently indefensible superiority of the West over the East is astonishingly relevant to what one sees in today's world. I was often laughing aloud and highlighting favorite passages. A pleasant surprise!

[Ashley Lambert-Maberly · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm about 40 pages in and not loving "A Prevalence of Witches" which I'd thought I would like: I'm predisposed to like magical-inclined fantasy fiction from the early 20th century, its being in such short supply, and generally a bit gentler than current fantasy.

However, I'm not convinced that this is, in fact, a fantasy. So far it's an undistinguished protagonist/narrator type being shown around an imaginary land in India, so that they can mock the "primitive" inhabitants, who, foolishly, believe there are witches. I know nothing about our (viewpoint character), not their background, or what they're like, or even their name (which was fine in "Rebecca" but doesn't work here).

The plot consists of someone else pointing out "this is this, that is that, here's something that happened," which can be fascinating (e.g. Dante's "inferno", much of Jack Vance), but is not so in this case.

So I'm moving on, and did not finish. I'd have been fine with the lack of magic if the novel itself had been interesting: but I would redirect anyone interested in this book for its own sake, to turn to the vastly superior Mr. Fortune's Maggot by Sylvia Townsend Warner.

[Note: 5 star = loved it | 4 star = liked it lots | 3 star = it was fine | 2 star = disappointing | 1 star = hated it]

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aubrey, where have you been all my life? You are witty, intelligent and you write like a dream. You're a cross between Aldous Huxley and P.G. Wodehouse - what more could a girl want? Loved this delightful romp where witches and tigers meet - and handily overcome - representatives of the British civil service and the American missionary force. Such fun - on to the next!

[Frederick]

I bought this book twenty years ago and it was about twenty-five years old at the time. I read a little of it and have always meant to return to it. Aubrey Menen seems to me to have been very perceptive, daring and gently humorous.
I wish he were better known in the United States.