Now here is a very great surprise. Speaking to Professor Eric Robinson two years before his death I asked which of Clare's voluminous prose output he would like to see published. Without hesitation he replied, "The Novel".
It is certainly true that very few folk realise that John Clare wrote in the novel form, part of which he gave the title, “Memoirs of Uncle Barnaby”. This is the first time that any attempt has been made to bring all the fragments of the novel together. In an effort to create some continuity, we have occasionally split up a continuous passage in Clare's manuscripts into a small number of parts and re-ordered them. We confess that the result is speculative.
One thing that may surprise readers of Clare is how much there is that contribute to these preliminary sketches for a novel and the number of links that can be made between the fragments. The larger part of the material is concerned with a farmer and his daughters in a village, most likely the village of Helpston. Other themes woven into the narrative are pretension and social competition, the relationships between professional men, such as clergy and teachers, and a hilarious series of letters between Mrs. Hubbelgubble and Mrs. Lettys.
The passage about the African beggar - Clare met such a beggar on his second visit to London - is very important indeed. He puts it in the mouth of the local vicar, without doubt to express his own thoughts. It says rather a lot about Clare. Remember that slavery was not abolished until 1833, but even then it was partial, to say the least.
The novel takes us deep into Clare’s world, and makes excellent and amusing reading; and dear Professor Eric wrote the Introduction too!
Memoirs of Uncle Barnaby - Clare's lost novel (155 pages) - is now avalable from me at £12.50 + £1.50 postage and packing (UK). Not sure how much the postage would be to other parts of the world, but I'm sure I can let you know.
Kindle edition (PDF) is £4.50
Just send me a message to arborfield@pm.me
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