Submitted by Elaine Burns
Octogenarian Jane Gardam was originally known for her children’s books. However when it was suggested that she enter an essay contest she created a scene so intriguing to her that she wanted to develop the characters more fully.
Thus was born Old Filth. Edward Feather, aka Fevvers, Teddy, Filth, and Old Filth, is a Raj orphan. These are children born to English families doing the work of the Empire in foreign lands. At around age four, and due to fear that they would contract some indigenous diseases, they were shipped back to England and fostered somewhere there.
They would then go to prep school and university, and at some time in their adult life would be re-united with their parents, whom by that time they did not know. As you can imagine this is a situation rife with the possibilities of tragedy.
This is exactly what happened to Filth. Let’s clear something up: ‘Filth’ does not comment on either his moral or bodily condition. It is an acronym for “Failed in London Try Hong Kong”, and was a title given those lawyers in the Inner Temple of London who did just that. Edward was a mediocre barrister in London but exceeded wildly in Hong Kong, attaining judgeship.
Old Filth tells the story of Edward’s life from his birth and maternal death in Malay (subsequently called Malaysia) to his retirement and death in Dorset, England. It tells of his wife Betty, his friends Pat and Sir, and a very strange dwarf Chinese man called Coleridge: his name is Albert Loss but he can’t pronounce Ls so pronounces it Albert Ross, hence Albatross, hence Coleridge for the author of The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner. It also tells of his ongoing lifelong loathing of Terry Veneering, also a lawyer in Honk Kong.
As you have probably surmised Old Filth is comedic. However, often you are not sure if you should find it funny.
The Man in the Wooden Hat tells this same story from Betty’s point of view. It proves the old adage that you cannot judge a marriage if you are not in it and even then it sometimes is confusing. Betty, while a very quiet non-person in the first novel, is wonderfully full and centre stage in this one. She too is a Raj orphan from India so while their backgrounds are similar they each carry that experience on their own terms.
Many questions unanswered in Old Filth are explained. Many things not even thought of are explained. There is more about Old Filth here too.
Jane Gardam says that all her novels are about the end of Empire, from the sun not setting on the British Empire to there being no Empire on which the sun could set.
Verdict:
Most liked Old Filth better, although they appreciated Betty for the person she was after the second book. All were in agreement that these books were good reads and the kind you would like to keep for a second or even third go at a later date.
Next book: Mom & Me & Mom by Maya Angelou. December’s book has been changed to The Orenda by Joseph Boyden.
Update from FOML: The Net Shed is now closed for the season. With many thanks to our volunteers and this community we were able to raise over $12,000 this season. See you next year!
