The Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise

A bittersweet, whimsical delight, Stuart's novel fascinates, repels, and charms with every page. Beefeater Balthazar Jones lives in the famed Tower of London, with his Greek wife and 180-year old pet tortoise, amid shockingly despicable and often-hilarious indignities. Further complexities ensue when the Royal Family decides to move the Royal Menagerie to the Tower--under Balthazar's care. These exotic animals, gifts to the Queen, are the source of chaotic escapes and escapades, while the caretakers' ribald and sweet romance blooms. Jonathan Cowley strikes the perfect narrative pose as he complacently describes the characters' foibles. Cowley shares the improbable events with British equanimity and a delicate caustic tone. This magical novel is unforgettable--especially the wildly imaginative treasures that emerge in the London Underground Lost Property Office, where Jones's wife works. A.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine

May 17, 2010
A Beefeater, his wife, and their nearly 180-year-old tortoise live in the Tower of London, and if Stuart's deadly charming sophomore novel (after The Matchmaker of Perigord) is any indication, the fortress is as full of intrigue as ever. Balthazar and Hebe Jones lost their son, Milo, to illness three years ago, and while Beefeater Balthazar grieves silently and obsessively collects rainwater in perfume bottles, Hebe wants to talk about their loss openly. Hebe works in the thematically convenient London Underground Lost Property Office, and the abandoned items that reside there (an ash-filled urn, a gigolo's diary, Dustin Hoffman's Oscar) are almost as peculiar as the unruly animals (lovebirds not in love, a smelly zorilla, monkeys with a peculiar nervous tic) in the Tower's new menagerie, given to the queen and overseen by Balthazar. Passion, desperation, and romantic shenanigans abound among the other Tower-dwellers: the Reverend, an erotic fiction writer, has eyes for a bartender, and the Ravenmaster is cheating on his wife with the cook. Though the cuteness sometimes comes across a little thick, the love story is adorable.