#32// mary, oh mary+wasps

hello you

Dear Reader,
Greetings!
It's been a while. I don’t know how to start with the why. (What do people say after an unexpected hiatus? I am bad at this). So here I come with two big books (and some cake, if I could actually visit you all) at your doorstep. Or inbox as we call it these days. The first one’s for the Jane Austen fans.
 

Read

The Other Bennet Sister is a gem, one of the best novels I’ve read recently. It is the kind that spreads warmth, and leaves you feeling cozy and happy, about the kindred spirit, Mary Bennet. Mary, oh MaryI I read this chunky novel over a year (or perhaps more). Not because it wasn't great but because it was SO GOOD, the kind you want to savour every bit of. I would gladly read it again. (PS: Thank heavens it is not another poorly done retelling).
 
Let me start at the end. After I finished the book, I had to re-read Pride and Prejudice to refresh my mind. (PS: You don’t have to, before or after the novel. But you just might, like me). I remember Mary as the sister of no consequence and my re-read confirms that it is true. Jane and Elizabeth were the sisters with the love, heartache and problems to solve; not to forget the deep, sisterly bond. Kitty and Lydia were the flirtatious, silly, younger sisters. But what about Mary? Would P&P been affected at all, if Mary did not exist? Her attributes could’ve been easily distributed among the other characters. And she holds little role in the plot, sub plot or even in the minds of the other characters. Re-reading P&P reminded me that ‘Elizabeth was the least dear daughter to Mrs Bennet.’ I was surprised. Really? At the end of the day, it feels like Mary was the forgotten one in the family, right? She doesn’t have a confidant; the parents seldom talk to her. She reads, and plays the piano badly. Her opinions are not what is expected of a heroine. Mary is boring. “(The Bennet family) found Mary, as usual, deep in the study if thorough-bass and human nature; and had some extracts to admire, and some new observations of threadbare morality to listen to”— That’s Mary for you, sandwiched between lines that say the dinner conversations were not animated when Jane and Elizabeth were at Mr. Bingley’s, followed by Kitty and Lydia sharing exciting news from the regiment. Poor Mary.

In the 1995 BBC adaptation of the classic, (my favourite), our poor side-lined heroine suffers the same fate. There’s a scene where Elizabeth says goodnight to all her family members except Mary. So rude, Elizabeth/Director! Why did Austen even create Mary? What is her purpose? Thankfully Hadlow does a brilliant job at telling Mary’s story in The Other Bennet Sister. She is at par with Austen’s skills as she weaves together the events that happen in P&P through Mary’s eyes, for about a quarter of the novel. Or was it half? You forget these things when you read a book over a year. And after that, Mary becomes the sole heroine of her story. The inherited Longbourn estate is now presided by Charlotte Collins. Mrs Bennet is vexed by Mary’s unmarried status, and also being forced to leave Longbourn, and she is often blunt about it. Mary takes turns staying with her sisters but she often feels out of place, just like she always felt at the Bennet household. It is very interesting to see the same P&P characters through a different lens. My feelings towards some of them changed as I visited the story through Mary’s eyes.
 
Hadlow’s Mary is complex. She lacks confidence at times. She longs for the relationship she once had with her sisters. She wishes her father would discuss books with her. She is sad her mother thinks she isn’t handsome enough. Mrs. Bennet and her poor nerves seem harsher and less comical in Mary’s story. Mary can never meet her mother’s expectation. Hadlow's Mary is bestowed the joy of reading books to her heart's content. She spends time chewing up philosophy and big books. She tries to find what kind of a reader she is.
 
Mary’s character arc is a delight. Under the care of the loving Mrs. Gardiner and her loving family (oh! Who would not want an aunt like Mrs. Gardiner), she blossoms into an independent young woman. She, who once dismissed poetry, tries to read it when persuaded by friends. She looks into herself, and accepts her shortcomings while appreciating her best qualities. I loved how Mary, the unmarried sister with no home of her own (her eternal sorrow) tries to stand up in a world that did not think she was important enough. I enjoyed Mary’s interactions with Mr. Collins, her special relationship with Mrs. Hill, and the tension between her and Elizabeth. My heart sang for joy when Mary surrounded herself with new friends who appreciated her for what she is. Every scene was wonderfully depicted — whether it be Mary trying to dress up, or buying new spectacles, or being anxious and confused in love, or worrying about not having a place of her own.
 
I think everybody would love this novel. It is a satisfying chunky read that you would want to nibble away for a long time. You might hate it if you expect Mary to be a 21st century feminist heroine though. What is with that? Some readers crave that kind of stuff. But I love reading a heroine set in her own times, tethered with a smaller view of the big, wide world, making her way through it, and finding herself in the process.
 
The Other Bennet Sister is an endearing read. You might admire Elizabeth or laugh at Lydia’s poor decisions in matrimony in P&P. But you will want to be friends with dear old Mary. Because she is Mary, the old soul to whom we should’ve paid more attention. She is a darling! 100% recommend.

The other chunky read I’ve got is Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M Danforth, best described as a heavily atmospheric, gloriously queer book. It is set in two timelines. In 1902 in Brookhants School for Girls in Rhode Island, two girls Flo and Clara are in love, and obsessed with a bestselling queer memoir and its author. They are found dead—stung by angry, yellowjackets—with a copy of the book. Wasp murders. Nice and creepy! More gruesome deaths follow and the boarding school shuts down. Now, in present day, a writer has written a best seller on the queer, feminist history of this haunted school. And like many bestsellers, it is to be adapted into a horror film starring celebrity IT girl and a struggling B-list actress. So new heroines playing the role of the 1900s heroines arrive at the haunted school grounds. Mix that up with kisses, love, affairs, auditions, creepy houses, casting politics, paparazzi, and more yellow jackets.
 
Chunky novels are better when they are juicy. Plain Bad Heroines is just that! It is juicy, gothic at times, bathed in atmospheric writing. It is so messy that you want to lick your fingers. It is funny, the dialogue is great and turns on your movie-in-my-head button with the scenes. The writing is great too, so definitely watch out for what Danforth comes up with next. 99% of the characters are queer; I can't remember if there were any straight characters except in really minor roles. BUT. Now comes the big problem with this novel. There’s nothing more. There is hardly a good plot progression. After 300 pages (glorious, enjoyable, immersive), you would still be asking “Why haven’t I moved from this spot?” Now, don’t get me wrong. The scenes are well written. There’s gossip and laughter and glamour and creepy vibes and horror tones. You almost think there are yellow jackets in the very room where you are sitting and turning pages of this badass book. You will turn around or quickly check if the window is open. The book engulfs you completely. But when you are reading 600-something pages, you will surely snap out of the hypnosis at some point and ask “Okay, where is this going? Why isn’t this going anywhere?” and the sad truth is we are going in atmospheric circles forever.
 
I rest my case. This one is a mixed bag. Did I love it? Yes. Was I disappointed at the end? Yes. Did I still love it? Yes. I would’ve loved it more if I could salt-and-pepper some plot onto it though.
 

Watch

I have been rationing my screen time and turns out I have lost interest in TV too. I re-watched My Dangerous Wife some months ago because I badly needed the kind of kick that affair-ridden manipulative psycho characters can provide. Oh did I mention twisted minds and twisty plot lines? Well, well, well. This K-drama follows a restaurant owner (Choi Won-young) and his loving wife (Kim Jung-eun). The perfect marital picture, until you see that the husband is having an affair with his employee and the lovers are plotting to poison the wife. The wife meanwhile is waiting to celebrate their wedding anniversary. That is until she is kidnapped and a ransom of five million is needed ASAP. But poor husband is already knee deep in debt. The show moves quickly from the demure wife in distress to a Gone Girl  (that isn’t even a spoiler). There’s a suspicious police officer who never takes his wife’s calls, his writer wife, another perfect couple who stay next door and have secrets of their own, an obsessed fan, a detective who is out to sniff out the fishy bits. It is fun. Poisoned wine, murdered men, a web novel that mysteriously seems to predict some twists (!!), designer shoes, kimchi exchanges and sacks of coffee. Very twisted and twisty (I repeat). It made me exclaim loudly and clap hands. It is good.
 

Listen to the audiobook of The Other Bennet Sister as you read the book.
Classics, new books, translations, movies and more.
Sign up for TWO months of FREE Scribd using my Invite Link. 

If you’ve made it this far, thank you. It is lovely (I cannot even describe how lovely) to sit at a desk and type something. The newsletters were on hold for a few months. I fell ill. In a very bad way. (Not Covid). I lost some weight. So the weeks gone by had hospital beds, needing help with everything, restrictions etc. I cut down on my screen time. I occasionally popped my head on social media. And you might’ve seen scheduled posts too. (Some of them going very wrong). In these many weeks, I missed this newsletter the most. It brought such a warm glow to my heart when I saw messages from dear subscribers, friends and well wishers. Thank you. It is such a good feeling to know that people miss you. I replied to almost everyone saying ‘soon’ but yes, it took a while to get this newsletter thing going. I have stared at a blank doc for many days. I just didn’t know how to start or what to write. It feels good that today there are thoughts coming to my head and my fingers are eager to dance away tap-tap-tap. In other news, I dislike the new video-oriented Instagram. I realized what I already knew—that Twitter is a cacophonous mess and people forget what they aggressively shout about, the very next day. I am diverting; stop. I am alright now. But I have some dregs of not-so-good thoughts and trauma deep down because, well, life’s like that.
 
It feels great to say hello again. I have little doubt that in spite of all the enlightenment I received from being in-real-life and less on-screen, I will be drinking up the blue lit screens on overtime now. Heads up—This might become a monthly newsletter instead of two a month. But I will try my best to not take long breaks. This letter is already too long, for you, and for me. More soon.

What are the best things you’ve read or watched this year? I have a lot of catching up to do. I hope you are well.
 
Much love,
Resh x


(This newsletter may contain affiliate links which might earn me a very small commission at no extra cost to you)


If you liked this newsletter, the best way to show support would be to forward the subscribe link to a friend or share via your favourite  social media. You could also buy a book.