Virago Modern Classic Book Club: The Magic Toyshop by Angela Carter

Book of the Month: The Magic Toyshop by Angela Carter

Our Book of the month this July is Angela Carter’s brilliant The Magic Toyshop.

One night Melanie walks through the garden in her mother’s wedding dress. The next morning her world is shattered. Forced to leave the home of her childhood, she is sent to live with relatives she has never met: gentle Aunt Margaret, mute since her wedding day; and her brothers, Francie and Finn. Brooding over all is Uncle Philip, who loves only the toys he makes in his workshop: clockwork roses and puppets that are life-size – and uncannily life-like.

In this, her second novel, (awarded the 1967 John Llewellyn Rhys Prize) Angela Carter’s brilliant imagination and starting intensity of style explore and extend the nature and boundaries of love.

This crazy world whirled around her, men and women dwarfed by toys and puppets, where even the birds are mechanical and the few human figures went masked . . . She was in the night once again, and the doll was herself.

Have you already read The Magic Toyshop? We love to hear from you. Let us know your favourite quotes, characters and any questions you might have, using #VMCBookClub on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Click here to discover what we’ve read so far this year.