Title: Blue Asylum by Kathy HepinstallPublished: 2012
Number of Pages: 288 pages
Plot Summary: It is the middle of 1864 when Iris Dunleavy is wrongfully convicted of madness and sent to an esteemed asylum on a Florida island. Iris tries to convince the stubborn Dr. Henry Cowell of her innocence, but he refuses to believe her “loving” husband is the real criminal. The only ones who understand she is sane are the doctor’s son, Wendell, and the handsome, but deeply troubled Confederate soldier, Ambrose Weller. Since she knows she does not belong at the asylum, Iris is determined to escape, but she must enlist some assistance. The story becomes more complex as the reader is able to see the asylum not just through Iris’ eyes, but from Ambrose, Wendell, and Dr. Cowell’s perspectives. Blue Asylum looks into the inner workings of an asylum during the Civil War and how that significant event in history had great effects on so many people’s lives.
Historical Fiction Elements:
Setting: Saricks writes that the authors of Historical Fiction will add details of “landscape, milieu, and locale to the story and thereby increase the feeling of verisimilitude” (p. 172). Hepinstall adds many landscape details such as those about the asylum’s beach, the surrounding jungle, the various rooms of the asylum, and the doctor’s house. In addition, she includes various details in flashbacks about Iris’ role as a plantation owner’s wife and Ambrose’s life as a Confederate soldier.
Tone: Since this novel takes place in the middle of the Civil War and is focused on an asylum, the tone is dark and grim. Saricks mentions that tones vary across different Historical Fiction works (p. 172). This one is definitely on the melancholy side, even though there is a slightly hopeful tone in the last few pages.
Style: Blue Asylum seems to fit what Saricks says makes up Literary Historical Fiction. It has “lyrical language, crystalline prose, and deft construction” (Saricks, p. 174). As Hepinstall details each scene, she writes in a soft, flowing manner. Even when she discusses distressing events, there are long, complex sentences that make the suspense end with a melancholy tone.
Pacing: Although Blue Asylum is not a long book like Saricks says most Historical Fiction works are, it is still slow-paced. The first half of the book is more focused on showing how the asylum functions along with brief mentions of Iris and Ambrose’s pasts. Yet, the circumstances that caused them to come to the asylum do not start to be fully revealed until almost halfway through the book.
3 Read-Alikes:
Woman 99 by Greer Macallister
The Yankee Widow by Linda Lael Miller
My Name is Mary Sutter by Robin Oliveira
Personal Thoughts:
While I enjoy reading about the time period of the Civil War, this book was a little too dark for me at times, especially with what is going on in the world right now. When I am feeling a bit down I prefer more uplifting and positive books. Although, the ending was a little better and slightly lighter than I was expecting, which helped some. I would still make sure that readers know this is definitely a melancholy book.
I also might need to note that this book had many mentions of sex and masturbation, even if it was replaced by different names: lovemaking and private-fondling. While I can handle a small bit of that, it started to get too much for me at times and might be a problem for other readers.
Overall, I did think the story was interesting. I just do not think this was the best time for me to read it.
Your annotation is very thorough, Rachel! Your personal thoughts at the end were insightful and appreciated. How did you hear about this book?
ReplyDeleteI found this book just by searching on Novelist. I kind of did a readers' advisory session on myself. I wanted a book that was short and had complex characters. When I read Novelist's summary, I thought it would be an interesting read.
DeleteWould you have liked this book at a different time? It sounds interesting and claustrophobic with the asylum and jungle.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you mentioned the descriptions of sex. I've thought for a long time it would be nice if books gave disclaimers about that sort of thing (along with violence and strong language), so we'd be warned in advance. The Talking Books through the NLS give such disclaimers so these passages don't suddenly come upon you while listening.
Well, I did kind of like this book. I probably would have struggled to read it in any circumstance, but it was just especially difficult during the current times.
DeleteI also agree that there should be more warnings about descriptions of sex, violence, and strong language. That is why I like to make sure to note them in my annotations.
I'm also glad you mentioned the sex in your personal thoughts. Until I read those comments I was seriously thinking about adding this to my TR list, now I'm not so sure. But, I really liked your annotation.
DeleteI think all novels, no matter what the genre, should have advisory labels on them, just like movies and TV shows do. This way we know what we're getting into before we start the book and are not surprised.
As our peers have already said, I greatly appreciated your personal insights on the book. I like historical fiction and this sounded like a great read but I think I will stay clear of it. Great job on this annotation!
ReplyDeleteLike all your classmates have said I really appreciated your personal notes! I think it's an interesting idea to have disclaimers or ratings for books. I've seen a few that had trigger warnings at the start which I appreciated. Full points!
ReplyDelete