I discovered this book on a sales table at the local bookstore and bought it for the author and the mention of Emily Brontë on the back cover. While I had high expectations for it (Urquhart is one of Canada's finest authors), I was pleasently surprised: the novel not only explores the human experience with beautifully strung prose, but swallowed me up completely to the point of forgetting my surroundings (an unforunate experience while riding a city bus). This is the story of a ballonist and her dominating, broken lover; it is the story of a Brontë scholar and an art historian entering into a love affair; it is a story about ghosts, both literal and metaphorical; a story about stories and the way they grow; about love, lust, and the distance between the two.While I was completely awed by Urquhart's exploration of love and her ability to create relationships every bit as intense as Heathcliff and Catherine's, I was disappointed by her rather flat portrayal of Emily, Branwell, and their sisters (who feature as characters in this story). That said, I would certainly recommend the novel to any fan of Wuthering Heights and/or the Brontës. I would not, however, suggest that anyone unfamiliar with Emily Brontë's work read it without first reading Wuthering Heights.
While I enjoyed the lovely writing, the rest of the book, particularly the plot just didn't connect to me. I couldn't get into the book, never being able to fully warm up to the story and its characters.The writing was beautiful and poetic. It was what kept me reading, and at times what had me lost n the book. Unfortunately, the rest of the book didn't work out well for me. It wasn't bad story, it was a unique ghost story, but I never connected to it. Ann's story didn't work at all for me, and I only saw the slightest connections to the Emily and Ariannia/Polly story. The characters themselves were also something I couldn't warm up to. This was another case where I felt very distant from the characters, they weren't ones I could say I enjoyed reading about and I found they lacked something to push the story forward, or to keep me reading. The book was interesting at times, but other times I was lost, I failed to see how everything connected how the two stories were relevant to each other.There were certainly pieces within the story here and there that I enjoyed a lot, but for the most part, I couldn't get into it. Lovely writing, but otherwise, this one didn't work for me. Also found on my book review blog Jules' Book Reviews - Changing Heaven
What do You think about Changing Heaven (1996)?
I found this book more interesting as I got into it. At first it was somewhat confusing with three main characters - the ghost of Emily Bronte, a female balloonist from early in the 20th century, and a modern-day Bronte scholar. The fourth main character is surprising - the wind. It is unceasing and intrudes into all of the plot events. I thought that was a unique feature of this book, and very appropriate for the Emily Bronte - Yorkshire connection. The stories of the three women became clearer as the novel progressed and their connections (aside from the obvious ones) became clearer. Urquhart's writing is beautiful with more similarity to poetry than prose. For this reason, the book presents as quite "literate", not for all readers. If you appreciate very good writing and want to think about what you are reading, this novel will appeal to you.
—Lorraine
