26/10/2017 - Permalink

University Centre Shrewsbury Reading Group to discuss forgotten novel by Lucas Malet

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From left to right UCS students Amy Lloyd, Gaynor Jenkins, Sophie Rogers, Megan Knight & Andie Macdonald.

From left to right: UCS students Amy Lloyd, Gaynor Jenkins, Sophie Rogers, Megan Knight and Andie Macdonald.

A free event is taking place at University Centre Shrewsbury (UCS) to discuss the Victorian classic novel, “The History of Sir Richard Calmady” by Lucas Malet.

The book, written in 1901, was outsold only by Rudyard Kipling’s “Kim”, and caused much controversy, prompting one commentator to remark that “certain passages of it are quite as bad and immoral as anything that Zola has written.”

But who is Lucas Malet? Popular novelist, female aesthete, Victorian radical and proto-Modernist, Lucas Malet was one of the most successful writers of her day, yet few of her remarkable novels remain in print.

Dr Jane Ford, a Visiting Lecturer in English Literature at the UCS, will be hosting a reading group meeting to discuss this forgotten classic at Guildhall in Shrewsbury on Saturday, November 25, 2017 from 10am.

Dr Ford said:

“It’s hard to believe that a writer of Malet’s calibre – someone who earned frequent comparison to male contemporaries like Henry James and Thomas Hardy – is now so little read. I’m really excited about this opportunity to talk about her work.”

The event is free to attend, but booking is essential. To reserve places email communications@ucshrewsbury.ac.uk or call 01743 297185.

Copies of the book are available to borrow in advance of the session and can be collected from the reception at Guildhall, Frankwell Quay (SY3 8HQ) which is open from 9am to 5pm Monday to Thursday and from 9am to 4pm on Friday.

The talk is part of a series of events at UCS covering a range of subjects. Many of the events are free, and they are open to everyone. For further details on UCS events go to www.ucshrewsbury.ac.uk/public-events.