NORTH WOODS

This is another extraordinary piece of writing from Daniel Mason. The Den has previously reviewed his earlier work, ‘The Winter Soldier’ (see Den library), and once again the attention to detail and palpable landscape is brought to life in his latest novel ‘North Woods’. This sweeping, inventive story revolves around the occupants of a house set in the atmospheric woods of New England over four centuries.

The reader is given short glimpses into the lives of various inhabitants (not all human!) of a yellow house in the woods of western Massachusetts, beginning with two young Puritan lovers on the run who discover the woods, and decide build a cabin on the throw of a stone. In the 1700s the cabin is unearthed by a widow and soldier, Charles Osgood following his obsessive search for a particular apple tree. He expands the house and starts to harvest apples until he is drawn back to war at which point his twin daughters take over the orchard. The spinster twins, Mary and Alice were a Den favourite, as beneath their righteous exterior is a fierce independence and loving rivalry resulting in a surprising finale.

Many of the stories have a darkness to them, whilst others are humorous – we particularly enjoyed the no nonsense clairvoyant Anastasia Rossi who when hired to lay ghosts to rest, takes great pleasure in seducing the obnoxious master of the house. Unsurprisingly, considering Mason’s background as a Professor of Psychiatry, there is the story of Robert, a young man who suffers from schizophrenia and flits between the woods and an asylum. When living in the woods he meticulously studies and individually records every element of the woods from the trees to the stones, the films of which are discovered many years later by his sister.

The house is always seen as an escapism from the city, but ultimately becomes a reclusive hideaway for most of its occupants. Mason interlinks the stories with poems, ballads, historical lectures and images. Gradually over the centuries connections and discoveries are made which join the different stories together. Every story is intwined with the surrounding nature and the past which often appears to those in the present. And sometimes the house is empty for a long period of time, but nature is continuous and Mason continually reminds us of the longevity of the natural world and the house compared to the transient disposition of human life.

Mason wrote this book whilst on a writing fellowship which he spent in New England. Consequently, he was able to write it in chronological order through the seasons, walking in the woods every day to inspire his writing. He also changes his style of writing to reflect the period he is writing in and in the early parts of the book, it does take a while to adjust to the old-fashioned language and imagery, especially when it takes the form of a letter or a ballad. The fate of the inhabitants are all linked with the trees, wildlife and extreme weather which is recognisably changing over the centuries and so relevant today. The story of the mating beetles whose pairing in a wooden log spreads Dutch Elm’s disease, beautifully captures the randomness and fragility that new occupants can have on an existing area.

Due to the complex nature of the writing and constant switching of narratives covering such a large time span it will certainly make for lively discussion points for your book club.