The Observations – In Brief

Only fifteen years of age and Bessy already has a past as colourful and inappropriate as the yellow satin gown she wears to walk the GreatRoad from Glasgow to Edinburgh in search of work. To escape unwantedbut pressing male attention, Bessy takes the turning for Castle Haiversand is soon employed by its mistress Arabella. Puzzlingly she is asked to keep a record of her days working as a maid. Her curiosity piqued,Bessy is determined to get to the bottom of this mysterious request. She finds her answer in the Observations, Arabella’s record of experi-ments she has conducted in an attempt to find the perfect servant.Appalled at her own character assessment, Bessy becomes bent onrevenge and sets in motion a chain of events that she will bitterly regret.

Narrated in Bessy’s sly, earthy, and often very funny, voice, TheObservations is a wonderful homage to the Victorian novel: part-ghoststory, part-mystery, and ultimately heartening tale of redemption.

Critical Reaction

‘I wept at the end of this brilliant first novel because I was so moved at the way Jane Harris sustains the vivacity, eloquence and pathos of hertale. Comparisons might well be made with Michel Faber and other writerswho have turned to the Victorian cat’s cradle of social and sexual tensionsfor context. But Harris’s exploration of this territory is unique, not least inthe ebullience of the language that issues from Bessy Buckley’s errantIrish tongue. Bessy is an extraordinary character . . . her observations bringextraordinary verve and veracity to the novel.’ Sunday Herald

‘Bessy Buckley can hold her head up with Moll Flanders and Becky Sharp as a living, breathing mortal . . . what takes one away is [her] earthyvoice, clear as a bell, ringing out her tale of love, loss and redemption.’ The Times

‘It’s a rare feeling to be swept up by a book in the childhood way, butwhen it happens it’s extraordinary: deeply familiar and strangely upsettling.I was staying in a large house in the middle of a French field when I firstdiscovered Rebecca . . . Jane Harris’s first novel, The Observations . . .has all the necessary ingredients for a Rebecca-like absorption.’ London Review of Books

Faber Book Club Guides: The Observations

The Observationsby Jane Harris

Background

Jane Harris began writing ‘as a bit of an accident’ when she was livingin Portugal, working as an English teacher. Unwell, and with nothing toentertain her she decided to amuse herself by writing a short storyabout her transvestite ex-boyfriend just to pass the time but soonfound that she enjoyed it. One story became two then several, all ofwhich were published in magazines and anthologies, but no matter howsuccessful she became at getting her work published Harris realisedthat if she were to make a living as a writer she would need to publishmore than just short stories.

She decided to write a series of ‘thematically linked short stories andpass them off as a novel’, including one about the origin of tartan andone narrated by the Loch Ness Monster. One story in particular, abouta nineteenth-century farmer-poet who wrote down songs sung to himby a girl called Bessy, seized Harris’s imagination: ‘I loved Bessy’s voiceand sort of fell in love with her.’ She decided to abandon the other stories and write a novel narrated by Bessy but, lacking an idea for aplot, found herself unable to finish it. She became involved in writingfor film and put the novel away in a box in the attic. Coming across thebox some years later, she re-read her work and ‘couldn’t believe that I had abandoned this character’. Fortunately for her readers she tookup Bessy’s story once again and completed The Observations.

Appropriately enough for a writer who lists Dickens, Austen, WilkieCollins and Charlotte Brontë among her literary influences, TheObservations is firmly anchored in the nineteenth century with many characteristics of the classic Victorian novel: mystery, the hint of a ghost story, a rich cast of characters and a strong element ofredemption. Despite its complexities Bessy’s story seems to unfoldeffortlessly while keeping its readers guessing. Harris attributes herstorytelling abilities to family inheritance saying that her mother’s sideof the family were ‘brilliant at relating anecdotes and dropping in wittyone-liners to make people laugh’, something in which Bessy certainlyexcels.

When asked what most excited her about writing Harris has said‘Creating characters and having fun with them. I also love playing with voice.’ In creating the wonderfully vivid character of Bessy with hermemorably earthy voice Jane Harris must, indeed, have had a greatdeal of fun.

Faber Book Club Guides: The Observations

For Discussion

• How would you describe Bessy’s relationship with Arabella based on the novel’s introductory paragraph? How does that relationship change over the course of the novel?

• ‘I think I may even have spoke out loud to myself, “Do not read on, my dear, do not read on.”’ (page 82). Bessy fails to heed her own advice. What does she learn about both herself and her mis-tress from Arabella’s Observations? What do you make of Arabella’s assessment of her character?How would you describe Bessy?

• How would you describe Arabella’s character? Why does she decide to study her servants so closely? What has driven her to the point of madness? How convincing is Harris’s portrait of insanity?

• What do you make of Nora’s appearance to Bessy at the end of Book 3?

• ‘I felt pig-sick leaving master James in the lurch but I knew it would be for the best.’ (page 339).How would you describe Bessy’s attitude towards James when he first appears? How does it change over the course of the novel? How has he contributed to Arabella’s state? Why does Bessydecide to leave Castle Haivers?

• Mystery is an important element of The Observations as Bessy tries to solve the puzzle of Nora’sdisappearance while telling her own story. How does Harris build suspense into her narrative? How satisfactory did you find the novel’s denouement?

• Bessy’s narrative looks back several years to her time at Castle Haivers. It is largely written in herown voice but includes extracts from Arabella’s Observations, her own journal and Nora’s, and flash-backs to her past before she became Arabella’s maid. How successful did you find this structure? To what extent do you think Harris’s experience of writing for film has influenced her writing of thenovel?

• The Observations can hardly be described as a comic novel yet it is, at times, very funny. Howwould you describe the book’s humour? Were there particular examples that amused you and if so,what were they?

• The Observations is one of several novels published over the past few years written in the style of a nineteenth-century novel. How does Harris set about capturing the atmosphere of a Victoriannovel? How successful do you think she is?

• The main protagonists of the novel, and many of the other characters, are women. What does thenovel have to say about the role of women in the nineteenth century?

Faber Book Club Guides: The Observations

Resourceswww.authortrek.com/jane_harris_interview.htmlInterview at Authortrek.com

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2090-2112147,00.htmlInterview with the Sunday Times

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,,1733998,00.htmlInterview with the Guardian

http://living.scotsman.com/books.cfm?id=430932006Interview with the Scotsman

http://www.sundayherald.com/54775‘Through the Keyhole’ with the Sunday Herald

Suggested Further ReadingAlias Grace by Margaret AtwoodThe Woman in Black by Susan HillThe Crimson Petal and the White by Michel FaberThe Quincunx by Charles PalliserKept by D. J. TaylorFingersmith by Sarah Waters

Faber Book Club Guides: The Observations

About the Author

Jane Harris was born in Belfast and brought up in Glasgow. Shehas taught creative writing toundergraduates at theUniversity of East Anglia whereshe studied for both her MAand PhD.

Her short stories have appearedin a wide variety of anthologiesand magazines. She has alsowritten several award-winningshort films and in the late1990s was twice shortlisted forthe BBC’s Dennis Potter Award. From 1992 to 1994 she waswriter-in-residence at HMPrison Durham and in 2000received a Writer’s Award fromthe Arts Council of England.She lives in London with her husband Tom.

The Observations is her first novel.

Other Reading Guides . . .

In the Fold Rachel CuskThe Poisonwood Bible Barbara KingsolverThe Remains of the Day Kazuo IshiguroMrs Fytton’s Country Life Mavis CheekHeadlong Michael FraynAmongst Women John McGahernSnow Orhan PamukReal Stephanie MerrittThe Observations Jane Harris

and more to follow . . .

Available to download from www.faber.co.uk