BOOK REVIEW // T H E B AROSSA MAG | 41
BOOK REVIEW
REVIEW BY TODD KUCHEL
A New England Affair
WRITTEN BY STEVEN CARROLL
During a night of amateur
theatre in 1913, Emily Bale,
a twenty two year old with
theatrical
aspirations
and
25 year old Tom Eliot, a
philosophy
student
with
poetic ambitions are brought
together in a promise of love
and happiness.
Fast forward to 1965, Emily is
left haunted by the memory
of her unrequited love and
known to all as the old lady
who once had a thing with
someone famous.
Following
the
devastating
news of Tom’s death, Emily
heads out in her Ford
Roadster, reflecting on their
time together.
From the fateful day she
witnessed the Tom Eliot
she knew become T. S. Eliot
after discovering a book
that transformed his poetic
ambition into a secret destiny,
to the thousand plus letters he
wrote to her spanning from
from 1930 to 1958.
This novel by award winning
Australian novelist, Steven
Carroll is based on true events
between the famous poet, T. S.
Eliot and his muse, Emily Bale.
T. S. Eliot was one of the
most influential poets of
the 20th century. His works
include ‘Old Possum’s Book of
Practical Cats,’ a book of short
stories about cats which Cats
the musical was based upon.
What’s
most
fascinating
about this story are the letters
T. S. Eliot wrote to Emily,
considering the real Emily
Bale entrusted them to the
Princeton University Library,
only to be revealed to the
public in 2020.
It is obvious reading his work
just how inspired Steven
Carroll is about T. S. Eliot’s
work. Like poetry in itself,
his words fall off the pages
beautifully in this moving tale
of unrequited love.
This is the third of Steven
Carroll’s novels based on T. S.
Eliot. It is a must read for any
lover of poetry or romantic at
heart.
A New England Affair is
available now from Raven’s
Parlour book store, Tanunda.
C R E AT I N G
L I F E LO N G
R E L AT I O N S H I P S
We a r e a c a r i n g C h r i s t i a n
c o m m u n i t y o f fe r i n g b i r t h
t h ro u g h p r i m a r y s c h o o l c a r e
and education in the hear t
o f t h e S o u t h e r n B a ro s s a .
Some places are still
av a i l a b l e fo r 2 019 .
A l l e n qu i r i e s a r e we l c o m e .
C o n t a c t u s to d ay to
o r g a n i s e a P r i n c i p a l ’ s to u r.
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LY N D O C H
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