For years I have wanted to read John Crowley's novel Little, Big based on Harold Bloom having written that it is "the most enchanting twentieth century book I know." Finally I bought it a couple weeks ago at St. Mark's Books, and the most enchanting thing just happened, children. The main character moves to Manhattan and:
"He had a room in a building that had once been the rectory of the very old church that stood revered and vandalized behind it. From his window he could see the churchyard where men with Dutch names turned comfortably in their beds...."
The main character, Smoky Barnable, lives in our very home, mon dieu! It was God called me here, children of the Staircase!!
From Amazon:
"John Crowley's masterful Little, Big is the epic story of Smoky Barnable, an anonymous young man who travels by foot from the City to a place called Edgewood—not found on any map—to marry Daily Alice Drinkawater, as was prophesied. It is the story of four generations of a singular family, living in a house that is many houses on the magical border of an otherworld. It is a story of fantastic love and heartrending loss; of impossible things and unshakable destinies; and of the great Tale that envelops us all. It is a wonder."
Link: Amazon.com: Little, Big (P.S.): Books: John Crowley.
Above, St, Mark's Rectory and cemetery garden statue of Dutch Governor of Manhattan Peter Stuyvesant.
crowley has an online presence:
here
You know me from:
here
Posted by: Roy Belmont | Friday, May 04, 2007 at 05:53 PM
A wonderful coincidence indeed! It makes me wonder if Smoky's city room was one the author also lived in, or only visited. I'll send him a link to your blog; perhaps he'll say.
I'm the publisher of a museum-quality 25th anniversary edition of Little, Big that is currently in production and due out in September. I recently received an exclusive 11,000-word essay from Harold Bloom that will be published as the book's Afterword. You can read about the edition here:
http://www.littlebig25.com/
I hope the rest of Little, Big proves to be as magical for you as its opening pages.
Best Wishes,
Ron Drummond
http://ron-drummond.livejournal.com/
Posted by: Ron Drummond | Friday, May 11, 2007 at 01:56 PM
I sent Mr. Crowley the URL for your weblog and he sent this comment:
"I didn't live there, only looked into the precincts. Never entered the place (I don't even know if they rented rooms, actually). The picture is of what I remember ca. 1969 though the trees have grown. Congratulations to the mistress of the Staircase on her nice digs." -- John Crowley, 4/11/07
Posted by: Ron Drummond | Friday, May 11, 2007 at 04:53 PM