Natalia Sanmartin Fenollera

Accepting the post of private librarian in the village of San Ireneo de Arnois, Prudencia Prim finds her outlook on life and love challenged in every way, especially when she falls for her employer, a book-loving intellectual.

A Novel

The Awakening of Miss Prim

Alexandra Mellas

The Awakening of Miss Prim was the first galley in my attempts to read a wider range. It turned out to be a good choice, despite not being the easiest read. Awakening of Miss Prim is a delightful story of a young woman growing into herself and learning to understand and appreciate the opinions around her.

Miss Prim is not an immediately likeable character. She is stubborn, condescending and unsympathetic; Miss Prim shows a proud and rather haughty front when she disagrees with the actions and opinions of her employer - the mysterious Man in the Wingchair. Prudencia Prim regularly lets opposing opinions hurt her feelings instead of allowing the conversation to become a friendly debate. The Man in the Wingchair deliberately baits her, hoping to encourage more liberal thinking from Miss Prim who believes herself to be correct in all her assumptions due to the extent of her education.

The Awakening of Miss Prim is not an easy read. It requires an extensive understanding of literature, language and philosophy to feel comfortable settling down and understanding the story. Unfortunately, I was left feeling confused, unsatisfied and a little insulted by the presumptuous of the author. I doubt it was Fenollera's intention to leave the reader feeling unworthy, but the constant referencing of classic and complex philosophical materials was a little overwhelming. The sheer amount of material detracted from the plot - a shame considering the beautiful background characters Fenollera introduced us to.

The community of San Ireneo de Arnois is full of unconventional people who have escaped city life to live peacefully and eccentrically amongst others who share their lust for a quiet life. The people of the community are unusual - the feminist association believe in strong woman with careers of their own, but believe there can be no stronger position in life than a working woman with a husband to support her independence. A big city journalist is baking pastries, the school teacher is chosen for her simple intelligence and young children can quote the classics from memory. Fenollera creates a lovely image of a quaint but forward thinking society more interested in supporting each other than themselves.

Miss Prim's Awakening comes about when she is forced to look at herself and her relationships through the eyes of others. Can she change herself to find love? Can she expect another to give up their beliefs to be with her? Miss Prim must learn the consequences of stubborn and unrelenting opinions and the community of San Ireneo are the right people to teach her to unwind and learn more about the world around her.

I found The Awakening of Miss Prim to be an enjoyable reading experience with likeable characters and a thrilling, if slow, adventure.

The Awakening of Miss Prim A Novel

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