{"product_id":"9781526663030","title":"Electric Spark: The Enigma of Muriel Spark","description":"\u003cp\u003eAuthor: Wilson, Frances\u003cbr\u003eISBN: 9781526663030\u003cbr\u003ePublisher: Bloomsbury\u003cbr\u003eYear first published: 30 Sep 2025\u003cbr\u003ePages: 432 \u003cbr\u003eFormat: Hardback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA BOOK OF THE YEAR FOR- \u003ci\u003eTHE TIMES\u003c\/i\u003e\/\u003ci\u003eSUNDAY TIMES\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eGUARDIAN\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eTELEGRAPH\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eTLS\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eFINANCIAL TIMES\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eECONOMIST\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eNEW STATESMAN\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eLONDON STANDARD\u003c\/i\u003e AND \u003ci\u003eWASHINGTON POST\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e'Absolutely mesmerising. I was possessed by this book in the same way that I suspect its author was possessed by Spark. It still hasn't put me down' \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSpectator\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Unputdownable' \u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eFinancial Times\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Joyously, brilliantly intelligent. In Wilson, Spark has met her true match' \u003cb\u003eAnne Enright\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eFrom one of our leading biographers and critics comes an exhilarating, landmark new look at Muriel Spark.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003eThe word most commonly used to describe Muriel Spark is 'puzzling'. Spark was a puzzle, and so too are her books. She dealt in word games, tricks, and ciphers; her life was composed of weird accidents, strange coincidences and spooky events. Evelyn Waugh thought she was a saint, Bernard Levin said she was a witch, and she described herself as 'Muriel the Marvel with her X-ray eyes'. Following the clues, riddles, and instructions Spark planted for posterity in her biographies, fiction, autobiography and archives, Frances Wilson aims to crack her code.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eElectric Spark\u003c\/i\u003e explores not the celebrated Dame Muriel but the apprentice mage discovering her powers. We return to her early years when everything was piled on- divorce, madness, murder, espionage, poverty, skulduggery, blackmail, love affairs, revenge, and a major religious conversion. If this sounds like a novel by Muriel Spark it is because the experiences of the 1940s and 1950s became, alchemically reduced, the material of her art.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Ships in 10 to 15 days","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46655859753118,"sku":"UBD-9781526663030","price":49.78,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0400\/9043\/5742\/files\/9781526663030.jpg?v=1774835696","url":"https:\/\/classicbargains.com.au\/products\/9781526663030","provider":"Classic Bargains Australia","version":"1.0","type":"link"}