Sign in with Facebook
Robin's Reviews > The Price of Salt
The Price of Salt
by
by
Reading Highsmith is like a drink of ice cold water - cleansing, refreshing, and invigorating. I noticed the same thing when I read The Talented Mr. Ripley. Her prose is so spare, so clear. It keeps me focused and skipping along the page. I love it.
Published in 1952, this story was originally written under the pseudonym "Claire Morgan" because of the controversial content - the love story between two women, Therese Belivet and the older, beautiful and mysterious Carol Aird. It's not terribly surprising that this book inspired Nabokov's Lolita.* Both books are steeped in intoxicating, overwhelming desire, with characters who act on this desire despite societal taboos.
By today's standards, the lesbian love story isn't all that shocking. Taken within the 1950's context though, the story is surprisingly frank and timeless. It's about two people navigating their relationship, with all the complications that come with it (not the least being Carol's daughter and very messy divorce). It's full of tension and atmosphere (did I mention the wonderful writing?). It's super stylish - ladies drinking old-fashioneds and highballs - and, the ending is not predictable.
Some parts felt a little long, which is why this isn't a 5, but it's pretty darn close.
PS There's a great scene I must mention that involves Therese struggling to fly a kite with her boyfriend who she is not attracted to, that English majors would love to dissect as a failing phallus - this was fascinating and entertaining.
*a hypothesis that Terry Castle advanced speculatively in a 2003 New Republic article on Highsmith, not a fact.
Published in 1952, this story was originally written under the pseudonym "Claire Morgan" because of the controversial content - the love story between two women, Therese Belivet and the older, beautiful and mysterious Carol Aird. It's not terribly surprising that this book inspired Nabokov's Lolita.* Both books are steeped in intoxicating, overwhelming desire, with characters who act on this desire despite societal taboos.
By today's standards, the lesbian love story isn't all that shocking. Taken within the 1950's context though, the story is surprisingly frank and timeless. It's about two people navigating their relationship, with all the complications that come with it (not the least being Carol's daughter and very messy divorce). It's full of tension and atmosphere (did I mention the wonderful writing?). It's super stylish - ladies drinking old-fashioneds and highballs - and, the ending is not predictable.
Some parts felt a little long, which is why this isn't a 5, but it's pretty darn close.
PS There's a great scene I must mention that involves Therese struggling to fly a kite with her boyfriend who she is not attracted to, that English majors would love to dissect as a failing phallus - this was fascinating and entertaining.
*a hypothesis that Terry Castle advanced speculatively in a 2003 New Republic article on Highsmith, not a fact.
Sign into Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ to see if any of your friends have read
The Price of Salt.
Sign In »
Reading Progress
Comments Showing 1-14 of 14 (14 new)
date
newest »
newest »
message 1:
by
Perry
(new)
Jul 15, 2016 10:22PM
Failing phallus? Robin baby, isn't that what non-international women of mystery call an oxymoron?
reply
|
flag
O.M.G. !!! Can't. Look. Away.
Okay. . . so apparently I have this on my TBR AND Carol. I suspect that this is redundant??It's tricky; when I search for this novel by its title, this doesn't come up. That's why I wasn't able to see your review of it until you sent the link. It's frustrating!
Oh and that gif that Perry shared is both mesmerizing and revolting!
Julie wrote: "Okay. . . so apparently I have this on my TBR AND Carol. I suspect that this is redundant??It's tricky; when I search for this novel by its title, this doesn't come up. That's why I wasn't able to see your review of it until you sent the link. It's frustrating!"
Yes, this and Carol is redundant - they're one and the same. But apparently not according to Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ, if my review is impossible to find! Darn! That is frustrating.
I actually wonder why they continue to list Claire Morgan as the writer since everyone under the sun knows Patricia Highsmith wrote it. The two titles are also annoying and add to the confusion.
Julie wrote: "Oh and that gif that Perry shared is both mesmerizing and revolting!"You said it!
Great review Robin, this was a 5 star read for me, especially the last part - loved it!
Mark wrote: "Great review Robin, this was a 5 star read for me, especially the last part - loved it!"Mark, I'm thrilled to hear this, of course. Loved your review. I wonder which one of hers you'll read next?
Robin wrote: "Mark wrote: "Great review Robin, this was a 5 star read for me, especially the last part - loved it!"Mark, I'm thrilled to hear this, of course. Loved your review. I wonder which one of hers you'..."
Mmmmmm - which one do you suggest Robin?
Mark, there are so many, and I've read only 6 so far, but they've all been well worth my time. How about Strangers on a Train? Or The Blunderer?
"Reading Highsmith is like a drink of ice cold water - cleansing, refreshing, and invigorating." Love this sentence, Robin!
Ebba Simone wrote: ""Reading Highsmith is like a drink of ice cold water - cleansing, refreshing, and invigorating." Love this sentence, Robin!"
Thanks, Ebba! Have you read this one of Highsmith's, yet?
It's about two people navigating their relationship, with all the complications that come with it You perfectly got it Robin - or at least you saw their relationship from the same angle that I did (although I admit I didn't pay attention to that failing phallus, I'll have to revisit the text :))
I didn't know this was an inspiration to Lolita. The road trip is there of course, as is the forbidden passion, but Nabokov took it so far, both stylistically and narratively.
As always, I really enjoyed your take on this, friend!
Hi Violeta, I wrote this review ages ago, and I can't remember how I learned about the connection to Lolita... so I did a little research this morning, and apparently it's more of a hypothesis that Terry Castle advanced speculatively in a 2003 New Republic article on Highsmith, not a fact. So while Highsmith's book may have been an influence, as far as I know, Nabokov never stated explicitly that it was the inspiration. I'm going to edit my review accordingly... thank you for mentioning it and thus inspiring ME to look into it further.
