'Ellie lives in a campervan with her dog, Jack, selling her handmade dolls at craft fairs. There is one doll that she can't bear to finish until she comes to terms with the truth of what has happened.
The Eliza Doll is an uncompromising family drama about upheaval, off-grid living and living on the dole in 1980s England.
Set in East Yorkshire and Iceland from the eighties to the present.’
The blurb barely skims the surface of this deceptive novel. It Is one of those unique pieces of work where you read the crafted story and it's only when you stop and reflect that you realise how much depth is contained within its compact pages.
It's a layered story, set in different times and different places with Ellie the constant throughout. And it's very much her story. Her sliding door moment where one thing sets a whole lifetime chain of events in motion. Lives are never straightforward. Real lives aren't. Sometimes in stories they are contrived to be because that's what we want -sometimes. But at other times we need to have affirmed how fragmented and contrary life is. It throws stuff at us that we don't know if we're going to be able to cope with. Reading a book where someone does cope even if it takes them a long time to do so is comforting. I don't want to give away too much of what happens in this novel, the blurb doesn't so why should I? There are parts that are emotionally draining and extremely moving.
Tracey Scott-Townsend's characters are accessible, immediate. They are depicted in such a way that you can recognise, maybe yourself, people you know even, fleetingly in the characterisations. Ellie stands out. And we see her grow from teen to mature woman, mother, wife, sister, daughter. And the women readers among us can identify with some of those roles. Jonah, the dominant male character, in the story is portrayed as a man of contradictions. And I felt he was a composite of people I've known at some point in my life. But the characters all come across as very real. They're not afraid to show their flaws.
I thought the structure of the book in some way mirrored the structure of Ellie's mind. How she sometimes flitted from past to present as if she was thinking about all the things that had happened and that brought her to the pivotal point in the novel. I found myself referring back from time to time to check on the various timescales to make sure that I'd missed nothing crucial.
It's geographically rich and the contrast in the various locations add to the richness of the narrative. But it's a deeply, thoughtful book. The narrative is unhurried, particularly in the earlier sequences. There are themes explored that give the book an edgy feel but it's all done so seamlessly. There is no attempt on the part of the author to offer any kind of shock tactic. Such issues seem to develop organically within the narrative as a whole.
I hadn't read any of Tracey Scott-Townsend's books before. But having read The Eliza Doll I certainly want to. Here's a little information about the author.
Tracey-Scott-Townsend is the author of six novels — the most recent The Vagabond Mother (January 2020) and Sea Babies (May 2019) — all published by Wild Pressed Books and Inspired Quill Publishing. Reviews often describe her novels as poetic or painterly.
She is also a poet and a visual artist. She has a Fine Art MA and a BA (Hons) Visual Studies. She has exhibited paintings throughout the UK (as Tracey Scott). She has a long career as a workshop facilitator with community groups and in schools.
Tracey is co-director of an up-and-coming small independent publisher, Wild Pressed Books, which has a growing roster of authors and poets.
Mother of four grown-up children, Tracey spends as much time as possible travelling the UK and Europe in a camper van with her husband and two dogs, writing and editing while on the road.
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My thanks to Kelly at LoveBooksTours for an opportunity to be a part of this tour and for a copy of this wonderful book. There’s always more than one way to respond to a book. Do check out what other bloggers have to say.
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