Wild swan: +1542
Having recently started reading The Lighthouse Keeper, I’m eager to hear what other members think of Baker’s compelling novel. I like the shifts in narrative mode – they keep the narrative fresh, while the inclusion of historical documents (are these of the author’s invention or drawn from real sources, I wonder?) grants the work the air of a detective story.
Whether you’re currently reading The Lighthouse Keeper or have recently finished the work, I’d love to hear your views about it :)
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Having recently started reading The Lighthouse Keeper, I’m eager to hear what other members think of Baker’s compelling novel. I like the shifts in narrative mode – they keep the narrative fresh, while the inclusion of historical documents (are these of the author’s invention or drawn from real sources, I wonder?) grants the work the air of a detective story.
Whether you’re currently reading The Lighthouse Keeper or have recently finished the work, I’d love to hear your views about it :)
Hi Elizabeth.
In answer to your question, the historical documents are genuine – although there is some controversy over the entries in the lighthouse log book (don’t know if you’ve got that far yet). Some researchers (e.g. Mike Dash) have suggested that they are an embellishment added by subsequent writers. But they are so strange and so unlikely in a real log book that I just had to include them!
Glad you’re enjoying my book.
Best, Alan
Thanks for answering my question about the documents. You’ve done an excellent job of interweaving fact and fiction. If you’ve time, I’d be very interested to hear about the kind of research you undertook for The Lighthouse Keeper (did you visit the islands, for example?).
Yes, research, interesting question. As far as my description of the environment, I kind of just imagined what it would be like. Sounds a bit lame, doesn’t it? I sat in my chair and thought myself onto the island, visualising what it would be like in good and bad weather. I also spent a long time examining various photographs of Eilean Mor and the lighthouse, as well as the shore station at Breasclete. Mike Dash has an excellent website devoted to the Flannan Isles mystery, which contains virtually all of the primary documentation on the incident (including numerous newspaper reports, and the results of the official investigation of the incident by the Northern Lighthouse Board, which runs the lighthouse). That’s where I found the telegram which opens the novel, and the report in the Oban Times.
As far as inspiration for the novel, I owe a debt of gratitude to Algernon Blackwood’s story ‘The Willows’, which describes the intersection of another dimension – terrifying in its strangeness – with our own. I often wonder what it would be like to make contact with a truly alien intelligence, something so ‘other’ that we could not begin to comprehend it or its actions. This, in essence, is what happens to the protagonists in The Lighthouse Keeper, who encounter the harsh indifference not only of the environment around them, but also of the wider universe extending infinitely beyond their physical – and mental – horizons.
I’m about halfway through The Lighthouse Keeper and am finding it completely gripping thus far (I feel like Rebecca, curled up with the work in my hands, lol)…
I think what I like so much about it (at least, as far as I’ve gotten) is that Baker truly pays attention to describing the surroundings, so that one feels like they’re right in the middle of it…I also like the fact that so much attention is paid to creating the atmosphere within the work – this allows the reader the chance to imagine what might happen, and to visualize themselves in such a situation (at least if you’re like me who, as aforementioned, has been completely sucked into the story so far)…
I haven’t been to the islands, but I have been on parts of the coastal Highlands, and it certainly had a wild, other-worldliness feel to it…
Cannot wait to finish!
By the by, Liz, I know I’ve probably recommended it before, but if you like the weaving of historical fact/old documents, etc. into fiction, you should definitely check out The Historian – it’s a good read, and Kostova does a fair job of weaving fact and fiction in her story…
(yes, that’s right, I’ve ordered you to add another book to your immediate must-read pile) :)
Am enjoying the work so far in all its scope – thanks for mentioning your inspiration, as I will definitely want to check out ‘The Willows’ as well – books like this are right up my alley! :)
It sounds as if I’ve plenty left to enjoy with The Lighthouse Keeper, which is great to hear. It’s a compelling mystery encompassing human tragedy. I can’t imagine how deeply the disappearances must have affected the family and friends of the keepers.
Thanks, Heidi! I’m glad you think The Historian is a worthwhile read, as I found a copy of it in a local charity shop and am very much looking forward to starting it (once I’ve conquered Alias Grace and Possession!).
Heidi, thank you very much for your kind words about The Lighthouse Keeper. I’m glad you found the writing style authentic (and chilling!), and I thought the review in its entirety was most perceptive and considered. I do so appreciate an honest critique, and you have provided precisely that.
I also hope you enjoy ‘The Willows’. One of its most memorable features is the sheer beauty and elegance of Blackwood’s writing, particularly his descriptions of the Danube and its environs.
In response to your final comment about what might be next, I’m actually working on a novel which, like The Lighthouse Keeper, is based upon a genuine unsolved mystery: the so-called Dyatlov Pass incident. You might like to Google it – I have a feeling you won’t be disappointed if you like a chilling read. Trust me, this one’s a real creep-out!
Just finished reading The Lighthouse Keeper. My heart’s racing and I feel almost as if my mind’s been turned upside down and inside out.
It’s a fascinating, chilling mystery – I’d like to do some research about the case.
Dude, ck out the Dyatlov Pass incident (seriously enter that term into google or wikipedia) – apparantly this is what Baker’s next book is about, and this is (I think) an even more creepy and incredible story…and it’s real too!
I wish they had done an X-Files ep on this back in the day – it’s crazy! (I got chills reading about it)
What a frightening, tragic incident. Following the links from Wikipedia, I noticed that ideas about what might have happened on the mountainside range from speculation about the sudden onset of an avalanche to the influence of aliens.
From reading The Lighthouse Keeper, it seems to me that Baker has a talent for depicting and unravelling patterns of behaviour exhibited when individuals are placed under enormous strain. For that reason, it will be very interesting to read his treatment of the mystery surrounding the Dyatlov Pass.
Hello Elizabeth and Heidi. I’m sorry about turning your mind upside down and inside out, Elizabeth. Actually, I’m not; I’m really glad, since that means I’ve done my job properly! I’m also very glad that you and Heidi are intrigued by the Dyatlov Pass incident. I’m about 100 pages into the story at the moment, and it’s going well. I’ve added another great Russian mystery to the plot: the so-called ‘cauldrons’ and ‘unknown installations’ which have been seen in Siberia’s Valley of Death. No one knows who built them, or what they are – but apparently they’re out there in the depths of the Taiga. What a strange and wonderful world we live in!
The Lighthouse Keeper offers an arresting interpretation of an emotive, tragic mystery. As I read the novel, I was frequently struck by the way in which events on the island – and people’s struggles to comprehend them – might lend themselves to film or television adaptation. Is that something you’ve considered?
Hi Elizabeth
Just posted a reply, but it I can’t see it, so I’ll post it here as well. Spyglass Entertainment in Hollywood have asked my agent to send them the manuscript. They’re quite big players (having just produced the new Star Trek film), so it would certainly be great if they showed an interest in the story! But these things rarely develop beyond the initial interest stage (not being negative, just realistic). On the other hand, if they optioned it and turned it into a blockbuster, that would certainly increase its chances of being picked up by a publisher!
That’s excellent news! I very much hope that Spyglass will be keen to pursue the Lighthouse project. With its combination of suspense and spectacle, your interpretation of events on the island would certainly provide a feast for the eye (and the intellect) on the big screen. I will keep my fingers crossed for you.
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