Today’s Blog entry comes to you with two voices mine and that of Shelley Instone, Armadillo reviewer, who recently attended the book launch of ‘The Moonstone Legacy’ at the Nehru Centre in London’s Mayfair.
The Moonstone Legacy is the first instalment in a planned trilogy based on Wilkie Collins’ Moonstone and has been written by Diane de Gunzberg and Tony Wild.
Shelley’s full report will feature, along with a book review in the September edition of Armadillo, meanwhile here is a taster of the evening…
The evening began with light refreshments and informal chat as Diane and Tony revealed how they had known each other from childhood and had a mutual fascination with India. Tony stated that their friendship and shared interests arose from what he described as ‘a slight dislocation from both of us coming from culturally diverse backgrounds.’ On asking Diane why she had decided to write for a teenage audience she stated that, ‘it simply felt natural as young people are going through so many changes.’
Both Diane and Tony stressed how they had carefully researched their novel by travelling to India and tracing the footsteps of Wilkie Colllins’ novel. They felt it was essential to experience the colourful and diverse aspects of Indian life. Although ‘The Moonstone Legacy’ is placed in the historical context of the late 19th Century both authors felt very strongly that all characters should be equal in terms of ethnicity. This, they claimed was a conscious departure from the imperialistic narratives of writers such as Kipling and Forster.
Diane disclosed that there had been the odd argument over character and plot…
Tony added, ‘this created the mystery that the protagonist, Lizzie Abercrombie must solve.’
I had the distinct impression that if this collaborative piece of fiction could emulate just a fraction of the success of Wilkie Collins’ Moonstone, both authors would be delighted...
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