A Taste of Sunshine

Finished A Room With A View yesterday.

A lovely little novel...and very, very English.

To me, the overriding themes of this novel were repression (religious and sexual), true love, and independence - and Forster weaves them all together with sparkling dialogue and real feeling.

(SPOILER) I felt, reading this novel, that Lucy was always going to end up being with George, but it was wonderful to read of her personal journey towards true love and her discovery of who she really was. It took courage to stand up to the strict moral rectitude of the times - Lucy does this without really knowing that she is.

The title of the novel reappears throughout, giving the reader an insight into Lucy's character and the people around her. She wants a view, a different view, and is not prepared to settle for a limited one.

I had to smile at the beginning of the novel, when Lucy and her cousin are first settled in Florence. The setting of the little pension they inhabit is classic English tourist on holiday. Forster was ahead of his time on this one. You'l have to read the novel to see what I mean.

Up next...Brighton Rock by Graham Greene.