ILLUMINATING DARWIN

A courageous Englishwoman in the 19th century pursues her love of science in George’s historical novel based on the life of writer and educator Arabella Buckley.

Arabella—who’s 24 in 1864, as the story opens—is unlike many young ladies in England, as she isn’t afraid to speak her mind or to go after her passions. Her enjoyment of and aptitude for science eventually leads her to become a literary secretary for Sir Charles Lyell, a geologist and a visionary academic of his era. Arabella lands the job because of her neat penmanship, but Lyell soon learns that her ideas and fierce intelligence are her most valuable assets. Eventually, Arabella’s wit and vigor lead her to spend time with Charles Darwin, whose evolutionary theories she would go on to promote through her own writings. The book catalogs several years of her life and explores how science and societal expectations affected every stage of her life. Although the dialogue and some of the situations are fictionalized, several characters are based on real historical figures, including Lyell (and, of course, Darwin). The novel’s main strength lies in George’s ability to immerse readers in 19th-century England with rich descriptions in natural, conversational first-person narration: “The clouds overhead spread across the sky like a thick, grey quilt, typical of London.” However, although the work is consistently engaging, its flaws lie in its intermittent and occasionally confusing perspective shifts; most of the story is told from Arabella’s point of view, but, at times, other characters have their turn, and these changes aren’t always readily apparent. This is a relatively minor quibble, though, as this blend of historical fact and imaginative fiction is otherwise thoughtful and well conceived.

An often compelling story that combines science, history, and defiance of societal norms.