A bestseller is always blue, or else it attacks somebody

Cornwall, UK ©Robert Bye (source : Unsplash)
 

 

‘She does write books. She’s a famous authoress. Didn’t you know?’
‘Who told you?’
‘Everybody knows. My sister Myra read one of her books. The Lost Plaid it was called. She was all excited last night when I told them at home we’ve got Mrs. Le-chene stopping here.’
‘The Lost Plaid? That’s a funny name.’
‘They do have funny names.’
‘Is it Scotch, then?’
‘I wouldn’t know. It was Myra read it. But it’s a best-seller. She said it was a bit … you know … blue. But a fascinating story.’
‘Blue?’ said Miss Ellis. ‘I’m not surprised. A bestseller is always like that, or else it attacks somebody.’
(p. 119*)

‘[...] This whole country is being bitched by anger and spite and intolerance and aggressiveness … a new kind of Puritanism….’
‘Don’t you make a rather indiscriminate use of that word?’ broke in Mr. Siddal. ‘Surely we got rid of the Puritans in 1660?’
‘Oh, I don’t mean men in funny hats with names like I—am—but—a—potshard—Hawkins,’ said Anna, with increasing earnestness. ‘I mean Holy Bullies. I mean people who can’t live and let live, but have this lust to be pushing the rest of us around, and pretend it’s for our good. They think their Holy Cause gives them a heavenly warrant to jump on other people’s stomachs. And they seem to run the world now. All the politicians have taken to talking as if they were God’s Head Prefects. Look how they quote the Bible at us! Look how they insult anyone who disagrees with them! They might be parsons, insucelting people from the pulpit, where nobody can answer back. These Holy Bullies don’t want people to agree and settle differences. They want to insult and enrage people and force them.
(pp. 214-215*)

*according to my reader

 

Margaret Kennedy - The Feast (Faber and Faber, 2011) [1949]