The Thirteenth Tale

This book was recommended by my sister-in-law who normally reads more non-fiction than fiction. That in itself intrigued me. Diane Setterfield's novel about Margaret Lea, a biographer who works in her father's bookstore. Margaret is requested by the prolific author Vida Winter to write her biography. Truth be told, Margaret hasn't read any of Miss Winter's books. So as a good biographer, she starts and also does some researching of Vida herself. She finds out that Vida does many interviews every year by journalists hoping to be the one to get the scoop of the real Vida Winter. Margaret is the lucky one because Vida decides that she has no more stories to tell so she may as well tell the truth. The subsequent story of Vida's life interwoven with Margaret's own sucks the reader in from the first page. There are many great lines: "What good is the truth, at midnight, in the dark, when the wind is roaring like a bear in the chimney? What you need is the plump comforts of a story." Also, "All children mythologize their birth. It is a universal trait. You want to know someone? Heart, mind and soul? Ask him to tell you about when he was born. What you get won't be the truth; it will be a story. And nothing is more telling than a story." And many, many more. At over 400 pages long, this is a big book but a very quick read because 'nothing is more telling than a story'. There are multiple references to the classic novel "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Bronte which I know this reviewer will want to read. Thumbs up for a "new" classic....Enjoy!