Book Review: Howards End by EM Forster

Summary: "Only Connect," Forster's key aphorism, informs this novel about an English country house, Howards End, and its influence on the lives of the wealthy and materialistic Wilcoxes; the cultured, idealistic Schlegel sisters; and the poor bank clerk Leonard Bast. Bringing together people from different classes and nations by way of sympathetic insight and understanding, Howards End eloquently addresses the question "Who shall inherit England?"

You may be saying to yourself: sounds more like a commentary than a novel. Well, I have to say, it reads more like one too. It was one of the most difficult books to get through... I considered scrapping the read many times.

I think the problem lies in that it's told (sometimes subtly, sometimes not), not from any character's POV but from the author's. And boy, did he have a message to get across.

Now, I'm not saying his message isn't important, but why not do what Mary Wollstonecraft did in her novel: A Vindication of the Rights of Woman. She had a message but it was clear in the novel that it's purpose was to use the story as a case in point. I knew that up front when I started the book. (BTW, it's a good book. Also, it's short.)

I have to be fair... there were bits in the book I liked:

Margaret could not bear being bored. She grew inattentive, played with the photograph frame, dropped it, smashed Dolly's glass, apologized, was pardoned, cut her finger thereon, was pitied, and finally said she must be going -

I believe we shall come to care about people less and less, Helen. The more people one knows, the easier it becomes to replace them. It's one of the curses of London. I quite expect to end my life caring most for a place.

Now that is my honest take from this book. Perhaps you pick up this classic and grow to love it. Perhaps before I die, I may read it again with more knowledge. Perhaps I may someday write my own commentary novel. All I know is... I need another cup of coffee.