As ever, there were lots of shows to choose from today, but I had other Festival fish to fry, so I only went to one event.
I chose to listen to Sara Sheridan being interviewed by Ashley Douglas (herself an author who appeared earlier in the Festival in her own right) about her latest novel, The Jewel Keepers. I admit I was curious, as I hadn’t read any of Sheridan’s previous books, though I had, of course, heard of her. I admit I had no idea what this book was about, though I assumed she’d be interested in history and feminism, as she was being interviewed by Douglas.
Historical Fiction and the Honours of Scotland: Inside ‘The Jewel Keepers’
So I learned a lot about not just this book, but others she has written, as well as about her interests and passions in life. Not bad for forty-five minutes of discussion, followed by about fifteen questions.
This was in part due to the warm relationship between Sheridan and Douglas, who are already well-known to one another, partly to do with Sheridan’s openness and in no small part to the thorough preparation and neat questioning by Douglas. She kept things flowing, asked apposite—and once or twice quite amusing—questions, often just guiding Sheridan into giving just a little bit more away. Clever stuff and very satisfying for the audience.
So what did I learn? Well, The Jewel Keepers is a historical novel about women hiding and then trying to find Scotland’s Crown Jewels, otherwise known as the Honours of Scotland, through several generations. Sheridan likes to stay as close to historical fact as is possible, but her novel is definitely that—fiction.
She writes strong female characters, always trying to include the ‘real’ lives of the servants, outside of their duties in ‘the big house’. She says our ‘foremothers’ are as important as our ‘forefathers’, and of course she is right. But there are plenty of male characters in her novel too—good and bad alike.
She also likes to take her reader through the changes that have happened in the historical periods she is writing about, so it seems that there are lots of lessons to be learned whilst the story romps along at pace and keeps the reader entertained too.
Foremothers, Antiques, and Penguin Plots: Getting to Know Sara Sheridan
And what of Sheridan’s previous books? All sorts it would seem, including, of course, other historical novels, but also re-imagining Scotland by replacing its male statues with female ones in Where Are the Women?, children’s books and many others.
And of Sheridan herself? She’s witty, self-deprecating, swears too much (by her own admission), though not today, passionate about history, women and mentoring others.
“She says our ‘foremothers’ are as important as our ‘forefathers’, and of course she is right. But there are plenty of male characters in her novel too—good and bad alike.”
She sometimes drinks too much and suggests writing books with unlikely plots—have you heard the one about the penguin with asthma? Well, you never know—one day…
And her Dad was an antiques dealer who never forgot a piece that had passed through his hands, its provenance, value or previous owners. So yes, she has some pretty good credentials when it comes to knowing her jewels.
This author event did exactly what a good one should do. It will have entranced those who already knew Sara’s work, and it generously invited those of us who didn’t to come on board and join the party. I’m off to start with The Fair Botanists and will undoubtedly continue from there.
Featured Image: Sara-Sheridan Author Pic c. pics@druidic.org – Edinburgh International Book Festival – provided by Festival PR.
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