Friday, May 6, 2011

M. M. Kaye's Autobiographical Trilogy

I am thrilled to have stumbled upon this autobiographical trilogy of M. M. Kaye, The Sun in the Morning, Golden Afternoon, and Enchanted Evening. Anyone who has read Lauren Willig's The Betrayal of the Blood Lily knows that this book was her homage to Mollie Kaye's books and her enchantment with India, and being a fan of Willig's novels, I began collecting M. M. Kaye's works (which, unfortunately, are not easy to find -- I buy used copies.) Trade Wnd just blew me away and became a favorite last year, and I'm looking forward to reading Kaye's other epic novels. What an exciting and privileged life Mollie Kaye must have lived to have needed THREE volumes to write about her adventures in England, India and China! I know it will take me a while to work my way through these volumes (jam packed with fabulous photos of exotic settings, social gatherings, and fashions through the years), so I plan on savoring them. Here's a preview of each of her memoirs:




Volume I - The Sun in the Morning
In this wonderfully evocative autobiography M. M. Kaye, bestselling author of The Far Pavillions, Shadow of the Moon, and Trade Wind, recounts her first eighteen years in India and England. Rich in period detail and peopled with extraordinary and unforgettable characters, The Sun in the Morning is a brilliant and vivid memoir of life under the Raj.




Volume II - Golden Afternoon

Returning from an English boarding-school to India in 1927, Mollie Kaye plunges into the glories -- and embarrassments -- of the Delhi Season. But more than the social life of the Raj, she rediscovers her love for the country -- the magic paradise of Kashmir, the sun-scorched plains of Rajputana, the teeming life of the markets and the complexities of high-caste life. Spiced with humour, incident and her trenchant views of the world, both then and now, Golden Afternoon is suffused above all with the enchantment that is India.





Volume III - Enchanted Evening

M. M. Kaye is forced to leave her cherished home in India when her father takes a new post in China. Though at first disoriented by the unfamiliar customs and confusing protocol of her new surroundings, it is in China that she discovers the pleasures that come from independence. Coming into her own as a painter, Kaye first meets with artistic success in China and then moves to cramped quarters in London's South Kensington neighborhood where she begins to flourish as a writer. With vivid descriptions that comes with age, Mollie Kaye looks back on the years spent as a young woman in a world as yet unmarked by World War II's devastation.

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To explore more of M. M. Kaye's works, click here. She's an author not to be missed!

8 comments:

Fuzzy Slippers said...

Oooh these sound very intriguing! Thanks for the suggestions. :)

Anonymous said...

Wow, I'm sort of sorry that I haven't heard of these until now. I love the concept(s) behind them. Thanks for sharing!

Joanne said...

Fuzzy Slippers (love that name and your craft blog, btw!) -- The story of her life reads like an amazing novel. Such a creative person!

Iwriteinbooks - Have you read anything by M. M Kaye? Her books (fiction and nonfiction) are wonderful. Let me know what you think.

Thanks for stopping by!

Melissa @ Confessions of an Avid Reader said...

Your post reminds me I that I must stop putting off reading Kaye's works. I have The Far Pavilions, The Shadow of the Moon and Trade Winds on my shelf so I really have no excuse for not having read them yet!

Anjuli said...

M.M. Kaye is one of my all time favorite authors!!! I've read almost every single one of her books- I say 'almost' because I think I've read ALL of them- but not sure if there might be one out there which I've missed. :)

Raadhika said...

hullo! im so so delighted to find like-minded ladies online and especially someone who loves Mollie Kaye as i have read and admired her books for years and years. I have been desperately seeking her 3 autobiographies, and will now search again! thank you so much, love the blog!

capricorn said...

You are so right. M M Kaye's books are really hard to come by but they are not to be missed. My favorite is shadow of the moon . I just love that book .

aa Ia said...

M M Kaye's "The Far Pavilions" is in my favorite top 5 ever, and I'm a book junkie who has read thousands in the past 40 years, of all genres. Every character is deeply molded and intense, the descriptive detail surrounds you, her story is wild adventure, and India is breathtaking. It's like all of the greatest adventure stories rolled into one. My copy is 995 pages, and I've read it at least 8 times. Worth the time! I lent it to a friend who doesn't have time to read, she finally started it on her vacation a month later and finished it in 13 days, calling me every night raving breathlessly about it. Literary crack, the kind that when you finish the book, you clutch it tight to your chest and sigh deeply, already missing it.

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Instruments Of Darkness
When Maidens Mourn
Where Shadows Dance
What Remains of Heaven
Where Serpents Sleep
Why Mermaids Sing
When Gods Die
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Before Ever After
The Sugar Queen
Garden Spells
After the Night


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