Author:Polly Samson
This is a novel that takes a long lingering nostalgic look at an idyllic sun soaked past. Set on the Greek island of Hydra in 1960, it combines the fictional lives of the narrator and her friends and family with real life figures such as the Australian novelists Charmian Clift and George Johnston, the writer Axel Jensen and perhaps more famously Leonard Cohen and his soon to be girlfriend Marianne Ihlen. It reminded me a little of the Martin Amis novel The Pregnant Widow, which takes a similar conceit and sets it in the same era, but in Italy rather than Greece. Amis’s novel though is a black comedy, taking a rather more cutting, satirical view on things than is present in Samson’s writing. She prefers to look back with a hazy rose-tinted fondness at a period when, as they say, even the bad times were good. I suppose it’s a novel about Utopian dreams, and how, inevitably, they unravel as innocence is lost and the bohemian circle of poets, writers, musicians and artists dwelling in this seeming paradise gradually self destructs. This is all observed from the point of view of a newcomer to the island, an aspiring teenage writer from England, grieving the recent loss of her mother. The author does a super job of transporting the reader back to that luminous long summer under the hot Greek sun, and perfectly captures the freewheeling intellectual spirit and lifestyle of the resident artistic community. This is the first novel by Polly Samson that I’ve read, but I shall certainly be seeking out her other writings – if this fascinating, immersive tale is anything to go by I won’t be disappointed.
Length of Read:Medium
Might appeal to people who enjoyed…
High quality, evocative writing.
One thing you’ve learned
I was reminded somewhat of Samson’s lyrics for the Pink Floyd song High Hopes, which convey similar imagery of yearning and longing for a lost past.
Video of the launch – Polly Samson in conversation, readings and very special performances by David Gilmour of the Leonard Cohen classics ‘Bird On A Wire’ and ‘So Long Marianne’.
Part 2
You’ve got me curious.
That book launch Is in a class of its own! The dog and the small child add a great deal.
Part 3
In which DG is proof reading a book of Syd lyrics – and gives us a burst of A hard Day’s Night – and The Sound of Music!
https://bit.ly/VonTrapped5
I’ve been watching these. David and Polly seem like a lovely couple (what a world away from Roger Waters he is!), their daughter has a really nice voice that harmonises beautifully with her father’s, and it was touching in this episode to hear Gilmour’s sadness at reminiscing about Syd. Unfortunately I find Polly’s son, Charlie, comes across as such an insufferable prick.
That was a lovely duet.
Duh! It is only now that I have realised that Polly Samson is Mrs Gilmour.
All the Pinkheads here doubtless knew that. I can understand she wants to be appreciated n her own merits. And what a very extraordinary life she has had! Not to mention her unconventional parents.
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/nov/07/polly-samson-interview-carole-cadwalladr
Roger Waters posted a very excellent version of Mother recently. Signing off with the comment “Dave, I miss you darling”. Some fans naturally thought it was directed at David Gilmour, but in a tweet today Waters makes it clear that he’s referring to guitarist David Kiliminster (who appears in the video.) He then goes on to whinge and moan about Gilmour taking over everything Floyd and he even has a dig at Polly Sampson and these videos that she and David have been posting during lockdown.
A new Gilmour song ‘Yes, I Have Ghosts’ will appear on the upcoming (25 June) audiobook a week ahead of its general release. The audiobook also features original Gilmour material throughout.