It's a damned shame that Don Robertson has been nearly forgotten. His books are all long out of print and it's only thanks to Stephen King that he is remembered today.
King has acknowledged his debt to Robertson numerous times. He did so most in his introduction to The Ideal, Genuine Man, which King published with his own publishing line, Philtrum Press.
The Forest of Arden is a mosaic of a novel. It deals with one Sarah Rosalind Exley, an elderly widow. In her 80's, Sarah's mind is flooded with memories. Some beautiful, some mundane and some ghastly. While she often can't remember what day it is, or the name of the President, she has vivid remembrances of her late husband, their children and the events of their lives.
But she is coming unglued. Increasingly unpredictable and perhaps dangerous, Sarah's sister and brother-in-law wish her to leave their home. Her children are grown and have little desire to have her invade their lives. Yet Sarah clings to her life and joy in the face of inescapable ruination.
The title refers to a Shakespearian play, As You Like It. In that classic fiction, the lead character is named Rosalind and she lives a painless and happy life in The Forest of Arden. Sarah Rosalind Exley considers her life and the world her own private Forest of Arden and she has always avoided unpleasantness and pain. Yet no human can completely do such a thing and her life is as riddled with unhappiness as ours is.
The majority of The Forest of Arden is comprised of free-form thoughts in Sarah Rosalind Exley's mind. The character is developed with astonishing detail and some readers will probably get frustrated by the almost nauseating attention to minuteness and repetitive images. Yet they crept up and disoriented me as I read it and I became entranced under the spell of Don Robertson's words and the character of Sarah Rosalind Exley.
Robertson seems to tell us that even the most normal of lives is remarkable under attentive scrutiny. The Exleys are as typical an American family as can be imagined, but the cumulative portrait of their lives is astonishing. As most of our own would be.
The Forest of Arden is an intense novel, one that I found difficult to read. There is no rosy end to Sarah Rosalind Exley's story. Just as there is no happy end for any of us. Yet she never gives up on happiness...even when life gives up on her.
Some novels are so emotionally draining that they take a toll on the reader. The Forest of Arden is such a books. So is Robertson's Praise the Human Season. This writer is unflinchingly honest. Sometimes too much so for one, such as me, that is used to reading safe, un-challenging horror fiction.
Don Robertson
King has acknowledged his debt to Robertson numerous times. He did so most in his introduction to The Ideal, Genuine Man, which King published with his own publishing line, Philtrum Press.
The Forest of Arden is a mosaic of a novel. It deals with one Sarah Rosalind Exley, an elderly widow. In her 80's, Sarah's mind is flooded with memories. Some beautiful, some mundane and some ghastly. While she often can't remember what day it is, or the name of the President, she has vivid remembrances of her late husband, their children and the events of their lives.
But she is coming unglued. Increasingly unpredictable and perhaps dangerous, Sarah's sister and brother-in-law wish her to leave their home. Her children are grown and have little desire to have her invade their lives. Yet Sarah clings to her life and joy in the face of inescapable ruination.
The title refers to a Shakespearian play, As You Like It. In that classic fiction, the lead character is named Rosalind and she lives a painless and happy life in The Forest of Arden. Sarah Rosalind Exley considers her life and the world her own private Forest of Arden and she has always avoided unpleasantness and pain. Yet no human can completely do such a thing and her life is as riddled with unhappiness as ours is.
The majority of The Forest of Arden is comprised of free-form thoughts in Sarah Rosalind Exley's mind. The character is developed with astonishing detail and some readers will probably get frustrated by the almost nauseating attention to minuteness and repetitive images. Yet they crept up and disoriented me as I read it and I became entranced under the spell of Don Robertson's words and the character of Sarah Rosalind Exley.
Robertson seems to tell us that even the most normal of lives is remarkable under attentive scrutiny. The Exleys are as typical an American family as can be imagined, but the cumulative portrait of their lives is astonishing. As most of our own would be.
The Forest of Arden is an intense novel, one that I found difficult to read. There is no rosy end to Sarah Rosalind Exley's story. Just as there is no happy end for any of us. Yet she never gives up on happiness...even when life gives up on her.
Some novels are so emotionally draining that they take a toll on the reader. The Forest of Arden is such a books. So is Robertson's Praise the Human Season. This writer is unflinchingly honest. Sometimes too much so for one, such as me, that is used to reading safe, un-challenging horror fiction.
Don Robertson
The author does not allow comments to this entry
No comments