My challenge for 2023 on classics was to read one every two months. Boy, am I behind! I am counting this novel (with pictures) as a classic because it contains two classic characters, Jane Austin and the poet Shelley.

Published in 2021, this novel by Janet Todd was a gift, a pass-along from a friend who thought that as a Literature major I would enjoy it. And I did. However, this is not for everyone because of its disjointed organization and its “inventive” nature. It presents “the dialogue of the living in vivid conversation with the illustrious dead”–specifically, Jane Austin and Shelley. The novel traces Shelley’s life through the research of his biographer, a character in the story. Fran, a major character, frequently talks to Jane Austin, who operates much like an imaginary friend, and acts as a companion in Fran’s cottage with a special garden. The trio of main characters, all older women, are rounded out by Fran’s English friend and an American author.

The trio’s quest takes them to Wales and even to Venice. As they are joined in their travels by a young, hip African American woman and Shelley’s biographer, who soon become a couple, the group recreates the trips made by Shelley in his lifetime and become well acquainted. So well acquainted that at the end, the three major characters choose a different style of communal living.

This strange, yet appealing book has been described as a “meditation on age, mortality, friendship, the tensions and attractions between generations, hope, and the excitement of change.”

It’s different; it’s sophisticated, and it’s literary. This novel is an experience a Lit major like me enjoys as a special treat.