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Titus Alone (Gormenghast Trilogy)
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Editorial
Synopsis
In this final part of the trilogy, we follow Titus, now almost twenty, as he escapes from the Castle, flees its oppressive Ritual, and becomes lost in a sandstorm. Helped by the owner of a travelling zoo, Muzzlehatch, and his ex-lover Juno, Titus ends up stranded in a big, bustling city. No one there having heard of Gormenghast, the general consensus is that the boy is deranged, and with no papers, he's soon arrested for vagrancy. But there are a few people who believe in his story, or at least who are intrigued by it, and they try to help him. And now Titus, the deserter, the traitor, longs for his home, and looks for it all the time to prove, if only to himself, that Gormenghast is truly real.
Editorial
From the Publisher
The third of the bestselling Gormenghast trilogy.
Editorial
About the Author
Mervyne Peake:
Mervyn Peake was born in 1911 in Kuling, Central Southern China, where his father was a medical missionary. His education began in China and then continued at Eltham College in South East London, followed by the Croydon School of Art and the Royal Academy Schools. Subsequently he became an artist, married the painter Maeve Gilmore in 1937 and had three children. During the Second World War he established a reputation as a gifted book illustrator for Ride a Cock Horse (1940), The Hunting of the Snark (1941), and The Rime of The Ancient Mariner (1943). Other books include Alice's Adventure's in Wonderland and Grimm's Household Tales (both 1946) and Treasure Island (1949). Titus Groan was published in 1946, followed in 1950 by Gormenghast. Among his other works are Shapes and Sounds (1941), Rhymes Without Reason (1944), Letters from a Lost Uncle (1948) and Mr Pye (1953). He also wrote a number of plays including The Wit to Woo (1957), which was met by critical failure. Titus Alone was published in 1959. Mervyn Peake died in 1968.
A fantastic book
Review date: 2005-09-10 Rating: 10 out of 10
I strongly disagree with the other reviews here that it is the weaker book. It has to be taken in context with what was happening with Peake at this time (he was very ill) and many things which were part of his life come into play in the book such as his experiences on entering Belsen. For me it is my favorite book out of the trilogy because it is more personal.
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Reviews
Persevere!
Review date: 2004-12-21 Rating: 8 out of 10
Although I will admit that Titus Alone is the weakest of the Titus trilogy, I cannot describe it as a disappointment, as have previous reviewers. Although while writing the book, Peake's powers were somewhat diminished by the onset of the Parkinson's disease that would tragically cut short his life, it is, nonetheless, still full of those characteristics that empower the earlier books: his humour and sarcastic wit, his portrayal of people as caricatures, yet with an intense realism and humanity, and his beautiful prose. His depiction of the mechanised world beyond Gormenghast Castle, ruled by a scientific-military elite who oppress the downtrodden masses, is as relevant now as when it was published in October 1959. It is probably this discontinuity between the world of Gormenghast and the world beyond that many people find dissatisfying, but which does still reward the reader who is prepared to follow Titus' path. Titus' almost-return to Gormenghast, his belief in which has led the people of the World to think him insane, is heart-achingly poignant, npt just for Titus but, by extension, for Peake himself.
What happened?
Review date: 2003-03-11 Rating: 4 out of 10
Titus Groan, and Gormenghast are possibly two of the best written books I've ever read. Titus Alone is quite a different story. Firstly the tone has changed, Peake's descriptive and often surreal writing style seems to have let him down this time. most of the text seems inane and extremely confusing and I must admit more than once I found my mind wondering from the page in front of me. A very dissapointing end to the trilogy, it would probably be best to miss it out all together.
Most disappointing book of the trilogy
Review date: 2000-05-24 Rating: 4 out of 10
Having read and enjoyed the two previous parts of the Gormenghast trilogy, I was looking forward to the concluding part. However it didn't meet my expectations, and I found it tedious and a chore to read, although I am glad that I persevered, as the ending is probably the best and most exciting part of the book. Gormenghast itself hardly features in the book, and I was left wondering what became of the characters that I had read about in the first two books.
Product Details/Specifications
Authors:
Mervyn Peake
Recording label: Vintage
Manufacturer: Vintage
EAN: 9780749394875
Binding: Paperback
Dewey decimal number: 823.912
ISBN: 0749394870
Number of pages: 272
Publication date: 1998-01-31
Language: English (Original Language)
Language: English (Unknown)