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First in the Old Filth trilogy. A New York Times Notable Book. Sir Edward Feathers has had a brilliant career, from his early days as a lawyer in Southeast Asia, where he earned the nickname Old Filth (FILTH being an acronym for Failed In London Try Hong Kong) to his final working days as a respected judge at the English bar. Yet through it all he has carried with him the wounds of a difficult and emotionally hollow childhood. Now an eighty-year-old widower living in comfortable seclusion in show more Dorset, Feathers is finally free from the regimen of work and the sentimental scaffolding that has sustained him throughout his life. He slips back into the past with ever mounting frequency and intensity, and on the tide of these vivid, lyrical musings, Feathers approaches a reckoning with his own history. Not all the old filth, it seems, can be cleaned away. Borrowing from biography and history, Jane Gardam has written a literary masterpiece reminiscent of Rudyard Kipling's "Baa Baa, Black Sheep" that retraces much of the twentieth century's torrid and momentous history. show lessTags
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teelgee Parallels in the exploration of a man's life, regrets, memories.
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Sir Edward Feathers is retired, renowned (in legal circles), redoubtable, and almost entirely alone. Even his companion in life, his wife Betty, doesn’t know everything about him. And yet, it is said even of lawyers, that they once were children. Sir Edward’s childhood was both singular and sadly typical. A Raj orphan, he is spirited away from his Malaysia village as a small child to be taken Home for safe keeping, or in this case to Wales, where he suffers unspecified horrors that scar him for life. Of course in a life like his, what is one scar more or less? For shocks and betrayals and tragedy abound in his life. As do moments of wonder and light. And when all is said and done, it only remains to note how little has been said of show more what has been done.
Jane Gardam brings Sir Edward to life. Known as ‘Old Filth’ (Failed In London Try Hong Kong), he is a delightfully complex and almost inscrutable character. His life is so rich in event and masque that Gardam seems barely able to keep a grip on the reins of his story as it races round its curves. But that too is an effect that only a novelist like Gardam could achieve. And this is surely an achievement. With gentle touches and fitful forays into the past, Gardam humanizes Sir Edward. And while some of what happened to the young Eddie might come across as melodrama, the fact that Sir Edward contains and suppresses it all, doesn’t speak of it even to Betty, his wife, makes it seem merely the norm.
The writing is fresh and rich with detail and even emotion, for such an apparently emotionless man. The other characters are suitably enigmatic, at least to Sir Edward who little understands himself. Indeed most of the people we encounter here are damaged in one way or another, and most often by events in their childhood. And yet it all adds up to something satisfying, and terribly British.
A most fascinating and surprising read. Recommended. show less
Jane Gardam brings Sir Edward to life. Known as ‘Old Filth’ (Failed In London Try Hong Kong), he is a delightfully complex and almost inscrutable character. His life is so rich in event and masque that Gardam seems barely able to keep a grip on the reins of his story as it races round its curves. But that too is an effect that only a novelist like Gardam could achieve. And this is surely an achievement. With gentle touches and fitful forays into the past, Gardam humanizes Sir Edward. And while some of what happened to the young Eddie might come across as melodrama, the fact that Sir Edward contains and suppresses it all, doesn’t speak of it even to Betty, his wife, makes it seem merely the norm.
The writing is fresh and rich with detail and even emotion, for such an apparently emotionless man. The other characters are suitably enigmatic, at least to Sir Edward who little understands himself. Indeed most of the people we encounter here are damaged in one way or another, and most often by events in their childhood. And yet it all adds up to something satisfying, and terribly British.
A most fascinating and surprising read. Recommended. show less
Brilliant!
A reread after fifteen years and better than I remembered. Beautifully written with impressionistic chapters alternating between Feathers early years (nineteen twenties to forties) and his life after his wife dies. There is wonderfully warm humour with gentle historical and literary references interwoven into the strong narrative. The ostensible subject matter of Raj orphan becoming a retired barrister sounds dull, but the book is about memory.
He sat at his desk and attempted a Memoir, but found it impossible. Opinions, Judgements had made him famous, but how to write without opinion or judgement? Statement of facts - easy. But how to decide which were the facts? He shrank from the tremendous, essential burden of seeing show more himself through other people’s eyes. Only God could do it. It seemed blasphemous to try. Such a multitude of impressions, such a magnitude of emotion. Where was the truth to be found?
Old Filth is the book that gave me a new favourite author, so that I read fourteen more books by Gardam in the following three years.
I started reading Last Friends, the third interconnected novel about William Feathers, Billie Fevvers or as he is known at the Bar, Old Filth, and was enjoying the writing so much that I decided to go back and reread this first book. And it is a delight to reacquaint myself with Old Filth and Gardam. show less
A reread after fifteen years and better than I remembered. Beautifully written with impressionistic chapters alternating between Feathers early years (nineteen twenties to forties) and his life after his wife dies. There is wonderfully warm humour with gentle historical and literary references interwoven into the strong narrative. The ostensible subject matter of Raj orphan becoming a retired barrister sounds dull, but the book is about memory.
He sat at his desk and attempted a Memoir, but found it impossible. Opinions, Judgements had made him famous, but how to write without opinion or judgement? Statement of facts - easy. But how to decide which were the facts? He shrank from the tremendous, essential burden of seeing show more himself through other people’s eyes. Only God could do it. It seemed blasphemous to try. Such a multitude of impressions, such a magnitude of emotion. Where was the truth to be found?
Old Filth is the book that gave me a new favourite author, so that I read fourteen more books by Gardam in the following three years.
I started reading Last Friends, the third interconnected novel about William Feathers, Billie Fevvers or as he is known at the Bar, Old Filth, and was enjoying the writing so much that I decided to go back and reread this first book. And it is a delight to reacquaint myself with Old Filth and Gardam. show less
What is it about old men that gets me? There’s something about a formerly great man trying to hold onto some semblance of dignity as he ages that really breaks my heart. Old Filth is the quintessential man in this respect — a former judge who thinks about his life and the decisions he’s made (and the circumstances in life) that have brought him to where is at 80. Gardam traces Filth’s life without giving into too much to hearkening or nostalgia. It’s quite matter-of-fact, but that doesn’t lessen Filth’s story; in fact, it makes it even more poignant and rather sad. And just when you think the story is going to sort of taper off into nothingness, Gardam brings in a plot element that I thought really helped bring home show more Filth’s character and the overall plot.
Despite his flaws, the reader grows to love Old Filth, as he navigates a world he’s not entirely comfortable in. The supporting cast of characters are weird, which makes them wonderfully realistic. We only get slight portraits of each of them, and you get the impression that Filth wasn’t one to dig into someone’s life, so Gardam won’t either. The writing is light and spare and beautiful, but the real gem here is Filth himself.
Read my full review here: http://letseatgrandpa.com/2012/06/23/book-review-35-old-filth-by-jane-gardam-aud... show less
Despite his flaws, the reader grows to love Old Filth, as he navigates a world he’s not entirely comfortable in. The supporting cast of characters are weird, which makes them wonderfully realistic. We only get slight portraits of each of them, and you get the impression that Filth wasn’t one to dig into someone’s life, so Gardam won’t either. The writing is light and spare and beautiful, but the real gem here is Filth himself.
Read my full review here: http://letseatgrandpa.com/2012/06/23/book-review-35-old-filth-by-jane-gardam-aud... show less
This well-constructed novel (first book in a trilogy) unpacks the life of a Raj Orphan, Teddy Feathers, a.k.a. Old Filth (Failed in London Try Hong Kong). Feathers life spreads across the 20th century (and into the 21st), paralleling the fall of Empire. The narrative slowly reveals, drip-by-drip, the suppressed events of his childhood, reaching a satisfying conclusion. As always, Jane Gardam's writing is a joy to read. I'm looking forward to moving onto Book II (The Man in the Wooden Hat) which apparently tackles the story from Feather's wife Betty's pov.
Subtle and engaging, as one would expect from Jane Gardam. A very old man indeed, Sir Edward Feathers tries to cope with life as a widower, while making connections with the remnants of a strange and difficult past. We find out more about his life as a Raj orphan, a schoolboy, an unwilling evacuee and a soldier in a series of disorienting and intentionally incomplete flashbacks that act almost as a searchlight, occasionally illuminating, but often obscuring. Much to think about and an intriguing and enjoyable read.
In the opening scene of the novel we are introduced to an empty chair at a luncheon in the Inner Temple of Barristers. It is the chair once filled by Eddie Feathers, better known as"Old Filth". As a boy he was separated from his parents by death and distance. As a man he was known by his success as a barrister in Hong Kong, thus the nickname "Old Filth" (FILTH being an acronym for "Failed in London, Try Hong Kong."). But what of this man who had recently left his peers and his life so materially rewarded by his success? Jane Gardam's novel, Old Filth, tells his story through the memories of a man at the end of his life, a man whose desire has faded as his body has withered. Some moments in the story enchanted this reader such as when show more Eddie goes off to grammar school a stutterer and is cured by the headmaster, "Sir", who provides a model for Eddie's future education. He also meets the first of the friends that would mean much to his life and his success. While his early friend Ingoldby (what an unusual name, perhaps in memory of the author & poet of the same?) would not survive the war, the Ingoldby family would provide Eddie with the family he did not have as a youth, its characters playing a prominent role in the story. Later friends, notably Albert Loss ( Albert Ross of the Coleridge poem) also are important in ways that are not evident upon their first appearance.
It is the way that Jane Gardam intertwined the memories of Eddie Feathers into a coherent whole that impressed me. Her ability to demonstrate his life and memories of it through the structure of the story, along with her fine writing style, made this a very good read and an excellent novel. It is not a perfect novel and I wondered at the seeming lack of passion of Eddie Feathers in spite of his youthful desire. He seemed to be a man who built his life out of reactions to events, with enough luck and desire along the way to make quite an impact on his friends and his peers. Near the end of the novel he reproves himself, "Life ends. You're tired of it anyway. No memory. No desire. Yet you don't want it to be over. Not quite yet."(p 258-9)
This is a sign of his fading life, but there is a stronger omen in the penultimate scene of the novel as he returns to Hong Kong, perhaps for the last time, when,
"The black night shuddered all around the plane. When he next woke there was a pencilled line of gold drawn round each oval blind.
Dawn already.
"We are in tomorrow," said the girl. "It's the sunrise. A happy New Year."(p 286)
We do not see him waking again, but look back fondly on the story of his life with admiration for the goodness of his memories and desires. This alone made the book a pleasure to read. show less
It is the way that Jane Gardam intertwined the memories of Eddie Feathers into a coherent whole that impressed me. Her ability to demonstrate his life and memories of it through the structure of the story, along with her fine writing style, made this a very good read and an excellent novel. It is not a perfect novel and I wondered at the seeming lack of passion of Eddie Feathers in spite of his youthful desire. He seemed to be a man who built his life out of reactions to events, with enough luck and desire along the way to make quite an impact on his friends and his peers. Near the end of the novel he reproves himself, "Life ends. You're tired of it anyway. No memory. No desire. Yet you don't want it to be over. Not quite yet."(p 258-9)
This is a sign of his fading life, but there is a stronger omen in the penultimate scene of the novel as he returns to Hong Kong, perhaps for the last time, when,
"The black night shuddered all around the plane. When he next woke there was a pencilled line of gold drawn round each oval blind.
Dawn already.
"We are in tomorrow," said the girl. "It's the sunrise. A happy New Year."(p 286)
We do not see him waking again, but look back fondly on the story of his life with admiration for the goodness of his memories and desires. This alone made the book a pleasure to read. show less
Historical fiction gives us a window into understanding how the world came to be the way it is. Gardam encapsulates the collapse of the British Empire in this story of Edward, born in Malay to a bureaucrat still suffering from WWI injuries. Raised for four years by servants since his mother died of childbed fever, he is then sent off to an abusive foster home in Wales along with two cousins.
The tale is told by Edward, now in his '80's, as he tries to find meaning in his life after his wife's death. We are only given glimpses of his childhood; he slams the window shut on the painful memories as often as they poke through. Yet his strong sense of moral rightness and duty keeps him prying at his memories. It seems his youth was spent show more blindered, so focused on excelling in his studies that he is unaware of most facts of life. The absence of loving parents has kept him from really loving anyone. His sole memory of freedom is mixed with the shame of being evacuated from England at age 17 rather than being allowed to fight for his country. We hear other people commenting "you would do well as a lawyer", but we never hear him express any desire for any career. He is intelligent and courteous, therefore he is respected by all who know him.
This tale includes many thoughtful phrases which are a pleasure to read. Edward, "Old Filth", remained in my mind in between my reading opportunities. Louise Erdrich referenced study by a pair of social psychologists and the New School who found that reading complex literature increased a person's empathy. This book will work on you; it's a pity Old Filth never read literature.[https://www.newschool.edu/pressroom/pressreleases/2013/CastanoKidd.htm] show less
The tale is told by Edward, now in his '80's, as he tries to find meaning in his life after his wife's death. We are only given glimpses of his childhood; he slams the window shut on the painful memories as often as they poke through. Yet his strong sense of moral rightness and duty keeps him prying at his memories. It seems his youth was spent show more blindered, so focused on excelling in his studies that he is unaware of most facts of life. The absence of loving parents has kept him from really loving anyone. His sole memory of freedom is mixed with the shame of being evacuated from England at age 17 rather than being allowed to fight for his country. We hear other people commenting "you would do well as a lawyer", but we never hear him express any desire for any career. He is intelligent and courteous, therefore he is respected by all who know him.
This tale includes many thoughtful phrases which are a pleasure to read. Edward, "Old Filth", remained in my mind in between my reading opportunities. Louise Erdrich referenced study by a pair of social psychologists and the New School who found that reading complex literature increased a person's empathy. This book will work on you; it's a pity Old Filth never read literature.[https://www.newschool.edu/pressroom/pressreleases/2013/CastanoKidd.htm] show less
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Wat een ongelofelijk gaaf boek heeft de Britse Jane Gardam (geboren 1928) geschreven met De onberispelijke man – wat knap om zoveel personages, tijdvakken, werelddelen, historische feiten en nog zo veel meer (schijnbaar) moeiteloos te verweven tot een zeer pakkend en aangrijpend verhaal! Het verhaal is spannend, ontroerend, verrassend, meeslepend en zo kan ik nog wel even doorgaan…lees show more verder > show less
added by Jordaan
Are you interested in venerable lawyers, the relic of empire? You will be. Do you want to know about the Far Eastern Bar? A reader of Old Filth, despite its unpromising title, will become passionately curious about such matters. This novel is surely Gardam's masterpiece. On the human level, it is one of the most moving fictions I have read for years. I shall always remember the scene in which, show more putting up at the garish hotel that has replaced The Old Judges' Lodging, this most ramrod-backed and disciplined of elderly men sees his wife's obituary whilst doing his stately breakfasting. He "wept silently behind his hands, sitting in this unknown place" show less
added by charl08
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Author Information
38+ Works 8,898 Members
Jane Gardam was born in North Yorkshire, England in 1928. She is the author of many children's novels that include "A Long Way from Verona" (1971). She has also written novels and collections of stories for adults that include "God on the Rocks" (1978), "Bilgewater and the Pangs of Love and Other Stories" (1983) and "The Summer After the Funeral." show more Her book "Groundlings" was taken from "Showing the Flag and Other Stories" (1989). Gardam's novels and stories have received many literary prizes. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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dtv (14567)
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- Canonical title
- Old Filth
- Original title
- Old Filth
- Original publication date
- 2004
- People/Characters
- Sir Edward Feathers, 'Eddy', QC; Sir Terence Veneering; Betty Macintosh; Isobel Ingoldby; Patrick Ingoldby; Albert Ross (show all 10); Harry Veneering; Garbutt; Queen Mary; Fiscal-Smith
- Important places
- England, UK; Hong Kong, China; London, England, UK
- Important events
- British Raj
- Epigraph
- Lawyers, I suppose, were children once
(Inscription upon the statue of a child in the Inner Temple Garden in London) - Dedication
- To Raj Orphans
and their parents - First words
- The Benchers' luncheon-room of the Inner Temple.
- Quotations
- Yes. You'll be a lawyer. Magnificent memory. Sense of logic, no imagination and no brains.
Without memory and desire life is pointless?
All my life… from my early childhood, I have been left, or dumped, or separated by death, from everyone I loved or who cared for me. I want to know why. - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Oh yes. Travelling alone. Quite alone.
- Blurbers
- Mortimer, John
- Original language*
- English
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
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