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The Swan’s Nest by Laura McNeal

This is the love story of Elizabeth Barrett and Robert Browning. I was amazed that Elizabeth had the courage to go against the wishes of her father who often said that she was the purest woman he knew. How could any woman live up to that standard!

On. p. 258 of the hardback edition, Elizabeth is thinking about her past relationship with her father,
“She remembers the reeds around the swan’s nest at Hope End, her father reaching out to part them to show her the good news, all the little gray babies, and the way it felt when what they saw instead was a dead cygnet. She couldn’t speak or look away. A neighbor, maybe, or a man who worked on the farm, had come upon them at that instant and declared his opinion that the cob �� the father swan- had crushed that one because it couldn’t keep up. That’s what cobs did, the man said, so the others could swim fast out of danger. It was natural. ‘It was a rat��. Her father had said. ‘Or a crow.�� ��

Mr. Barrett is the father swan who gladly crushes any child who will not follow his will. How did he treat his children and why does he act this way, according to Lenore Goss? I also think it’s interesting to contrast the two families and how they react to the marriage.

What do you think of the fact that Robert declares his love for Elizabeth even before he met her?

Another theme that I find interesting is the part that Jamaica plays and what it shows about people like the Barretts..

Here is a link to an interview with Laura McNeal:


I hope that you enjoyed this book as much as I did.

How many of you have read the works of EBB and RB? I have read the common EBB works but nothing by RB.

I liked this book too, Jane. I remember Elizabeth's poem that started "How do I love thee." This book made me want to read the whole book Sonnets from the Portuguese

When I was in high school I remember reading Robert Browning's narrative poem, "My Last Duchess." It made a big impression on me.

The duke in the poem is showing a portrait of his late wife to someone who is there to negotiate a new marriage for him. He is unbelievably cold. His main complaint about his late wife was that she was not entirely centered on him - other people and things made her happy.

"... She had
A heart—how shall I say?�� too soon made glad,
Too easily impressed; she liked whate’er
She looked on, and her looks went everywhere.
Sir, ’twas all one"

I am almost finished with the book and am enjoying it a lot. I really know little of their poetry other than Browning’s My Last Duchess but the story of “them�� as a couple somehow has become embedded in my brain and I really wanted to read this book and then, perhaps, read more about each of them. I’ll be back on completion of the novel.

I used to teach some of Robert Browning's poems so I am more familiar with his poems than with Elizabeth Barrett's.

I read the novel in November last year, and I loved it. I thought it was a beautiful love story of two kindred spirits. And it was beautifully told in lyrical language and with a compelling narrative. McNeal's characters were authentic and drawn with sensitivity. It was one of my most enjoyable reads of 2024.

Ann, the Duke sounds like Elizabeth's father who demands to be the center of attention.

Tamara, I agree about the language. I also nominated this book for my in-person group which will be meeting on Tuesday, 3/18. Last month, one of the ladies complained that it reminded her of that British author, "You know the one". We suggested Jane Austen, and she said "Yes!" I guess she doesn't like Jane Austen. The discussion should be interesting.

My branch of AAUW has a scholarship fundraiser luncheon every year and invites an author to speak. This year the author is Laura McNeal. I look forward to meeting her in person.

Jane wrote: "My branch of AAUW has a scholarship fundraiser luncheon every year and invites an author to speak. This year the author is Laura McNeal. I look forward to meeting her in person...."

How wonderful, Jane! I used to be a member of the AAUW years ago and attended their meetings. But I discontinued it after I retired.

I'm sure hearing Laura McNeal will be a real treat. She is a great writer and she did a wonderful job researching the material for her novel. Enjoy!

Jane, you brought up Elizabeth's father. Much of the story revolves around the family relationships in the Barrett home, particularly that between Elizabeth and her father. He was rich and dictatorial. He refused her permission to leave his home, even for health reasons.

Why did he act this way? He convinced himself that he alone could protect Elizabeth from the dangers posed by her fragile health. He was heartbroken by the death of two of his sons, one from yellow fever in Jamaica and one from drowning; he didn't want to lose another child.

Those are mitigating explanations. Personally, I think the main factor behind his very controlling behavior was that he was rich and used to calling all the shots. He was gratified by her success as a poet. He didn't want any competitors for her love or even attention. He valued her "purity, " although I am not sure what all was behind that.

Not a nice man.

I agree, he does remind me of the duke in Browning's poem "My Last Duchess. "

Elizabeth has been protected her whole life, and she is under the thumb of her father. What qualities did she have that made her able to leave the family nest? The first paragraph on the book states:
"She was stuck when she wrote it. Stuck in her third-floor room, which was stuck in the narrow, crowded house, which was stuck on Wimpole Street, which was stuck in the fog". How did she become unstuck?

Ann D wrote: "Jane, you brought up Elizabeth's father. Much of the story revolves around the family relationships in the Barrett home, particularly that between Elizabeth and her father. He was rich and dictator..."

That is a good point about losing the sons. I think he was also losing his riches since the sugar plantation wasn't bringing in as much as it had been.

He wanted to control everything, and he even called Henrietta a whore when a young man was interested in her.

Good point about the father losing his riches. I assume that love motivated her to become "unstuck," but there must have been more to it than that.

How did your in-person discussion of this book go?

Also, do you think the author wants to do a sequel? I got that impression from the interview you posted.

I did feel that this book ended rather abruptly before the couple even got to Italy.

I haven't read this book, but the discussion somehow reminds me of a quote from Emily Dickinson I've had suspended on a kitchen wall for years: "That love is all there is, is all we know of love."

Mr Barrett's attitude wasn't only toward Elizabeth, but toward all his daughters. It may have been more extreme toward Elizabeth perhaps because they had been so close when she was younger. He seemed to feel that all of his children, sons and daughters alike, existed only to do his bidding and that other people in their society were largely inferior. This was certainly an exaggeration of the controlling 19th c. father.

I found Elizabeth's attempts to protect her sister sad when her sister then felt short changed when she was left out of the wedding and the trip to Italy. Elizabeth's attempt to protect her sister ultimately didn't make any differnce in her father's reaction toward her sisters.

Ann D wrote: "Good point about the father losing his riches. I assume that love motivated her to become "unstuck," but there must have been more to it than that.

How did your in-person discussion of this book g..."

One of the ladies had gone to see McNeal at the library last fall, and she asked McNeal about the abrupt ending. McNeal said that the original version of the book took the couple all of the way to Italy, but her editor told her that the book was too long. So, she had to cut the book off!

Sue, one of the ladies in my in-person group thought that Arabella was the saddest person in the book. She had devoted her whole life to Elizabeth, and now she was left with nothing. She couldn't even marry and leave the house because of her father. Henrietta did defy the father by marrying and having four children (not in the book).

Yesterday, one of the ladies said that George was worse than the father. Does anyone agree and why?

Yes, Arabella! (I've returned the book and couldn't think of her name.) I felt so bad for her. She would have been better off if Elizabeth had taken her to Europe. I think I should read more about the family.

As for George, he didn't seem to have any redeeming features here. At times in the novel he seemed to be thinking about opposite positions to his father's way of thinking but invariably chose his father's rigid path. For both men there appears to be no emotional life allowed--except righteousness and anger and, actually cruelty. Sam sounds like he might have been different had he lived but who can tell.

Sue wrote: "Yes, Arabella! (I've returned the book and couldn't think of her name.) I felt so bad for her. She would have been better off if Elizabeth had taken her to Europe. I think I should read more about ..."

George is the person who told the father about Robert, and he destroyed the letter from Sam to Henrietta. He also wanted to stop Lenore to stop Elizabeth and Robert and have them brought home.

I don't know about Sam either. Would he have followed in the footsteps of the other British men in Jamaica? We he have just used Mary Anne and called her his housekeeper?

This is another book that makes me happy that I was born when I was. Particularly women who long for the "good old days" forget how little power women had then. I longed for Elizabeth to simply tell them how she felt and leave, particularly since she had enough money from the legacy and her writing to support herself. But, I am old enough to remember, even in my lifetime, some of the constraints that I don't see as much now. They became so ingrained in a person's mentality.

It's interesting that the author implies that Sam felt guilt but we don't know for sure that the guilt is about Mary Anne. I honestly think that, if he had lived, he would have continued on the same path as the other British men. If he had married Mary Anne, he too would have had to buck his father. And, every family member, male and female, seemed controlled by that man. I didn't actually judge George as harshly as I might have because he seemed to be under the same spell. And, the father seem to be in control of most of their money.

Partway through, I started reading about the actual history of Browning and Barrett and was relieved to find that McNeal used all that was available. I love historical fiction when it sticks to the known facts. I hate having things stuck in my mind that history shows are not true.

I still need to read the interview you posted, Jane. Will be back after I do that. And, thank you for nominating this! I hadn't known about it before and probably would have missed it.

Jane,
Thanks so much for that information about the abrupt ending!

That's an interesting question about Sam. I suspect that he would have continued the tradition of black "housekeepers" prevalent in Jamaica. Mary Anne had no protections when he died.

However, check out Appendix 1, p. 301 in the hardback version. In real life, Elizabeth's brother Charles John (Stormie) also lived in Jamaica and had a 40 year loving relationship with a colored woman. They had 2 daughters, whom he fully acknowledged.

Barb, I agree wholeheartedly with your statement about historical fiction. You wrote: " I love historical fiction when it sticks to the known facts. I hate having things stuck in my mind that history shows are not true."

Ann D wrote: "Jane,
Thanks so much for that information about the abrupt ending!"

Ann, that's true about Stormie, but he stayed in Jamaica where a wife of a different race would be accepted. It wouldn't have worked out if he had brought his family to England.

Barb, I think Elizabeth's loyalty to her family was another reason that she didn't immediately leave. She seemed devoted to all of her family members. I agree that we wouldn't want to be alive back then. It reminds me of the young girls who get nostalgic about the Old South and those hoop dresses. No, thanks! I can't imagine having to wear a corset and all of those layers of clothing in the summer. No wonder everyone fainted!

So thankful someone recommended this book. I’m only a third of the way into it ( just after Robert’s first attempt to propose) but am enjoying so much the lyrical language and the story. McNeal’s exquisite prose rises to the level of the poetry of the Brownings. I look forward to finishing the book.

My branch of AAUW held a scholarship fundraiser luncheon featuring Laura McNeal. Since I invited her, I hosted her at my table. She spoke to our group about the research she did before she wrote this book. She and her husband drove across France and into Italy as they attempted to follow the path that Elizabeth and Robert took. She asked her husband if they could do the path on foot, but he said "No!". She also visited Jamaica and the Barrett house (she mentions this at the end of the book). The book is part of a trilogy. The book we read is the second book. The first book is about Elizabeth's trip to the coast of England, during which time her two brothers died. Her friends who read the book found it to be too sad, so it hasn't bee published yet. She said that the third book would be about the Brownings' time in Italy.

So glad to hear that there will be at least one, maybe two more books. Such a gift for readers to look forward to. I would love to have been there for the event. Great choice for a speaker.

Thanks for the followup, Jane
I'm so glad to hear there will be a followup book!