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Conceit

Mary Novik

Hardcover | Pages: 402 pages

Rating: 3.38 | 294 Users | 63 Reviews

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Title	:	Conceit
Author	:	Mary Novik
Book Format	:	Hardcover
Book Edition	:	Special Edition
Pages	:	Pages: 402 pages
Published	:	August 28th 2007 by Doubleday Canada
Categories	:	Historical. Historical Fiction. Fiction. Literature. 17th Century. Canadian Literature. Cultural. Canada. European Literature. British Literature

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It is the Great Fire of 1666. The imposing edifice of St. Paul's Cathedral, a landmark of London since the twelfth century, is being reduced to rubble by the flames that engulf the City.

In the holocaust, Pegge and a small group of men struggle to save the effigy of her father, John Donne, famous love poet and the great Dean of St. Paul's. Making their way through the heat and confusion of the streets, they arrive at Paul's wharf. Pegge's husband, William Bowles, anxiously scans the wretched scene, suddenly realizing why Pegge has asked him to meet her at this desperate spot.

The story behind this dramatic rescue begins forty years before the fire. Pegge Donne is still a rebellious girl, already too clever for a world that values learning only in men, when her father begins arranging marriages for his five daughters, including Pegge. Pegge, however, is desperate to taste the all-consuming desire that led to her parents' clandestine marriage, notorious throughout England for shattering social convention and for inspiring some of the most erotic and profound poetry ever written. She sets out to win the love of Izaak Walton, a man infatuated with her older sister.

Stung by Walton's rejection and jealous of her physically mature sisters, the boyish Pegge becomes convinced that it is her own father who knows the secret of love. She collects his poems, hoping to piece together her parents' history, searching for some connection to the mother she barely knew.

Intertwined with Pegge's compelling voice are those of Ann More and John Donne, telling us of the courtship that inspired some of the world's greatest poetry of love and physical longing. Donne's seduction leads Ann to abandon social convention, risk her father's certain wrath, and elope with Donne. It is the undoing of his career and the two are left to struggle in a marriage that leads to her death in her twelfth childbirth at age thirty-three.

In Donne's final days, Pegge tries, in ways that push the boundaries of daughterly behaviour, to discover the key to unlock her own sexuality. After his death, Pegge still struggles to free herself from an obsession that threatens to drive her beyond the bounds of reason. Even after she marries, she cannot suppress her independence or her desire to experience extraordinary love.

Conceit brings to life the teeming, bawdy streets of London, the intrigue-ridden court, and the lushness of the seventeenth-century English countryside. It is a story of many kinds of love — erotic, familial, unrequited, and obsessive — and the unpredictable workings of the human heart. With characters plucked from the pages of history, Mary Novik's debut novel is an elegant, fully-imagined story of lives you will find hard to leave behind.

List Books In Favor Of Conceit

Original Title:	Conceit
ISBN:	038566205X (ISBN13: 9780385662055)
Edition Language:	English
Characters:	John Donne, Ann More, Pegge Donne, Izaak Walton, Samuel Pepys
Setting:	London, England(United Kingdom)
Literary Awards:	Scotiabank Giller Prize Nominee (2007), Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize (2008)

Rating Containing Books Conceit

Ratings: 3.38 From 294 Users | 63 Reviews

Piece Containing Books Conceit

I know Mary from the UBC Booming Ground program. Conceit was long-listed for the Giller Prize. Congrats Mary!

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Im loving this so far...what is it about the 16th and 17th century thats got me so hooked lately? This is the third book in a row for me!

I picked this book up at my local library and was very pleasantly surprised by the story, the characters and the skill of the writing! I had to keep reading and was a bit disappointed when I hit the end. Fascinating characters, an intriguing bit of history with a perfect title.

Portrait of John Donne through the eyes of his daughter, Pegge Donne. Interesting view of life in seventeenth-century London.

This is a captivating read. The author's historical research coupled with her amazing imagination made this reading experience a most special one.

Loved this book. The main characters are so eccentric and passionate. The historical context is really informative and so well written. I loved how the author develops the intricacies of the relationship between John and his daughter Pegge, and how their relationship impacts on her relationship with her husband and life long love. The prose is wonderful - I had a hard time putting it down. Happy to read yet another smart, well writen book by a Canadian author.