The Children's Book - A.S. Byatt

The Children’s Book – A. S. Byatt
Transitions – Past, Present - Connections
The plot has flashes of stories within the main story and Byatt effectively transitions from one time to another; from past to present seamlessly. This ability in her craft of writing the novel reflects an unique skill to move the plot and layer the storytelling. Analyzing her novel shows that the layering and the transitions between stories and flashbacks are not only useful but add an energy and a tenure which works well.
A book is written for each child in the main story and the mother/author has the ability to tell a tale and successfully capture the energy and pulse of each story. Byatt writes with details and significant language to describe at length the story. Rather than discourage the reader, the transitions and the details elaborate the telling.
“Toby had been lecturing in Winchelsea and Lydd, in the winter and spring, speaking about the Saxon fairy-faith, and the Paracelsiona elementals. He had become a great friend fo Patty Dace, Frank Mallett and Arthur Dobbin. The inner group of the Theosophists had held discussions of Edward Carpenter’s Love’s Coming of Age in Miss Dace’s parlour.” P.201.
This quote relates to a time of youth and connections which relate to the plot later in time.
A story within a story and how it fits with the main plot moves the plot and infers more than the straight-line of events. “In the studio Philip told Fludd he had been to see the sea. He said he hoped to go again. Fludd said, why not, and that Philip should go to Dungeness, Dungeness would interest him. Phillip made his way to Dungeness, on foot, one hot day when the broom was shining gold and the seakale was covered with spherical seeds, turning form pale green to bone.” P. 151
The Text includes vibrant descriptions and a flow of past, present storylines.
How does Byatt write long fiction and transition from one time to another, from one story to another? Her successful novel, The Children’s Book parallels her prior work, Possession. In Possesion, Byatt transitions from past to present through letters and the discovery of a story intertwined with historical facts and letters that elaborate on a personal intimate history of lovers.
Both works seem to wrap up more than one story effectively and naturally.
Works cited.
Byatt, A.S. The Children’s Book; Knopf, New York, 2009.
Byatt, A.S. Possession, Vintage/Random House, New York, 1990.