I am a firm believer that good stories aren’t defined by their popularity on the best sellers’ list. There are so many underrated novels and authors out there simply because most readers aren’t adventurous enough to wander deeper inside the labyrinths of their favourite bookshops. The most special gems, they say, are usually hidden on the hearts of caves. Okay, that cheesy metaphor failed a little. But I mean it.“Effects of Light”, the debut novel of Miranda Beverly-Whittemore, is case in point. She’s not wildly popular as an author, but her work speaks much about her precocious and promising talent. Taking on intriguing themes such as photography, nudity, child pornography, art and life, the novel cleverly reveals in fragments the haunted lives of its two narrators: Myla and Prudence Wolfe, sisters.The story in three words: Controversial, Compelling, Charming. I think I just found myself a sparkly gem, luminescent of a very suspenseful and stunning story that shines and enlightens (pun intended).I remember it so well: A sunny morning, Valentines’ Day of 2009. I skipped my classes because I’m feeling lazier than usual and eventually found myself loitering down the alleys of my favourite bookstore for hours. That afternoon, I bought this book and took it with me on a memorial park (yes, I’m this odd, introspective kid who grieves on the day of hearts quite literally.) where I quietly read it for the rest of the day.Getting deeply lost in the story was no problem. The characters were beautifully and artistically layered. Just like taking a look at a stack of photographs, the readers will no doubt fall in love with the very visual depiction of the character’s thoughts and emotions. I especially loved the narrative of Prudence or ‘Pru’, the younger one of the Wolfe sisters. Her insights were so child-like yet so well beyond her years; she tugged at my heartstrings so easily that by the time I finished the book, I wish I met her.Aside from the originality of the plot, I am also impressed with the creative way with which the past and the present collided in a series of interchanging chapters between Myla and Pru. It’s adorable and heartbreaking how they tackle their perceptions of each other while growing up and I loved how they both transport the readers to the heart of everything that happened, until the truth becomes crystal clear.I won’t forget to laud this book’s in-depth analysis of art and how it affects the make-shifts of life and humanity. There are memorable tidbits and anecdotes about real artists and painters which still resonate in my mind from time to time. Everything fits in so perfectly in tune with the perks and burdens of growing up in a family of scholars and artists. Ultimately, it’s unforgettable how the dark side of art has changed the lives of the sisters and eventually brought it into a climactic and unlikely end.I’m no photography expert but I know this much—that most of the best photographs in the world do not simply make us look out at the world and its beauty; more than anything else, they make us look inside ourselves to find what it truly means to be and feel, beautiful with our own skin.
I wasn't sure how I'd feel about this book after reading the jacket...but I found it at a local library book sale (actually, it was a pre-publishing copy)...figured I'd give it a shot. I thought the content was going to be disturbing, or too graphic...but it wasn't. For being 25 when she wrote it, Miranda Beverly-Whittemore has a great grasp on language and communicating what she wants to say. It took a bit to get past the back-and-forth storytelling (one character alive in the present, and one character dead in the past), but once I got a handle on that, it definitely held my interest. One of the more intelligent books I've read recently.
What do You think about The Effects Of Light (2006)?
I didn't really start enjoying this book until halfway through I feel like Pru's voice was stifled amidst Myla's incessant whining over things (as far as the story telling goes any way) And felt like there was a lot of repetition in the story of trying to get the reader to swallow BIG ideas.But I did enjoy the story at large and how the photographs of the girls got me thinking further about my own ongoing thoughts about Social media and the seemingly innocent and genuinely innocent photos we put
—Serena Caron
As artfully composed as the photographs at the heart of this compelling story, The Effects of Light tells the tale of two sisters whose self-possession and beauty make them the favorite subject of photographer Ruth Handel—and the center of a heated public debate over the boundaries between art and pornography. Raised by their brilliant widower father to "follow their bliss," Myla and Pru pose for both the pure joy of the creative process and for the tangible evidence of existence it provides, like the cherished photo of their dead mother. Though the girls remain pure yet precocious, the controversy over the nude photographs and the collision between innocence and self-righteous judgment have disastrous consequences. Thirteen years later, living under an assumed identity and no longer in contact with family or old friends, Myla receives an anonymous communication that sends her back home to sort through the tangled strands that bound the knot of friends and family and confront her past.
—Max Gordon
Throughout their childhood till their early teens, two sisters Myla and Pru pose for a critically acclaimed series of photographs as figurative models. A female family friend is the photographer. The girls are beautiful, intellectually gifted, and motherless. They fiercely bond through their sense of loss, as well as through the art they help produce. However, this art was challenged over whether it was nothing more than child pornography. The novel has two narrators, Myla, as an adult who has created a secret identity to escape the fame associated with her youth, and Pru, who is now deceased, as the little girl growing up in front of the lens. A lingering thought provoking read.
—Martie Nees Record
