Hilda Doolittle
1992
Around 240 pages
Asphodel is an obscure work by Hilda Doolittle, written in the 1920s. Apparently, H.D. had written "Destroy" on this manuscript, but of course we are going to read it anyway, because it's on the List. Doolittle can join Kafka in the esteemed ranks of authors' whose dying wishes we ignored.
This is the story of the unfortunately unmagical Hermione, a young American who begins to explore her sexuality against the backdrop of pre World War I London and Paris. We get thinly disguised versions of the literary powerhouses of the era, most notably Ezra Pound, who Doolittle was engaged to in real life. Ick.
There's no denying that Doolittle led an unusual life, and this is a highly autobiographical work, so there's some intrigue there. And we love our lesbian poets here. It was odd going back to the 20s now that I'm strictly in 90s mode. And Ezra Pound is about as 20s as you can get.
Overall, a quick read, but I'm not surprised that this isn't the most talked about discovered manuscript. I feel like we just read somebody's diary without permission, which is a little gross. But so is getting engaged to Ezra Pound, so maybe we're even?
RATING: ***--
Interesting Facts:
Doolittle was treated by Sigmund Freud in the 1930s.
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