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If one wants to read a slightly exotic tale of adventure set in historic era of empirebuilding, sailing ships knitting the globe via trade, and romance thrown in, with social background of cultures colliding, this is a satisfactory one.
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As one proceeds on the journey of an English girl who isn't satisfied with her lot and realises she needs to marry before she has freedom and rights compared to her teenage brother, and proceeds to marry and set off to North-West Africa having gotten her husband appointed as her father's representative, the tone generally let's one subconsciously know that the author isn't quite English, or British; later, when Dutch superciliousness is mentioned, one infers the author is probably from N.Y. neighbourhood in U.S., for true blue Brits would hardly see such a quality in anyone less than, say, a reigning Romanov and a Bourbon too, and the Brit wouldn't be put off by that but merely amused, if that.
As one proceeds on the journey of an English girl who isn't satisfied with her lot and realises she needs to marry before she has freedom and rights compared to her teenage brother, and proceeds to marry and set off to North-West Africa having gotten her husband appointed as her father's representative, the tone generally let's one subconsciously know that the author isn't quite English, or British; later, when Dutch superciliousness is mentioned, one infers the author is probably from N.Y. neighbourhood in U.S., for true blue Brits would hardly see such a quality in anyone less than, say, a reigning Romanov and a Bourbon too, and the Brit wouldn't be put off by that but merely amused, if that.
One notices that there has been subtle pointing of finger at odd profiteering English traders and ships who traded in slaves, despite it being illegal in England and North Africa both, and one chuckles at this, inferring that the author has confederate South ancestry.
One finishes the book, and author couple is introduced vaguely at the end - real names not provided - and what do you know, it's a German couple, living in Germany where they were born and brought up. They did research at their local museums for information about Arabs and Africa for writing this, but have never stepped out of Europe or on the continent of Africa, as far as information provided goes.
Reminds one of another, similar romance about a pair or a dozen young women setting forth from England to New Zealand, and life there, an expose about how they were cheated in various ways.
So, in that the books depict just how deficient English were morally, they share this German need to point at others - especially allies who fought and won the wars - and subtly suggest that they too were bad, that Germans weren't worse than others.
Does remind one of European visitors and colleagues who went photographing Harlem before it became glitzy, and deprecated Norman Rockwell work as not quite true.
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The romance, quite satisfactory, after all. But was the separation of the main couple achieved not so much for giving pain but for sake of discomfort about a heroine possessing a second family while the authors are going to spring a surprise?
Catholic pangs?
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December 05, 2020 - December 09, 2020.
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