Fiction Friday (131)

 

There are a handful of figures that have shaped my creative pursuits in my lifetime, one of them being Henry Darger. I still remember my first encounter with his artwork, from an ArtForum article in the late '90s and my interest has never waned. I recently have been listening to an album inspired by his words are art, which made me curious to search for books and I came across this 2019 novel which incorporates him as a character. It more than lived up to my expectations.

Curious Toys by Elizabeth Hand

(Mulholland Books, 2019)

Pin is a fourteen year girl living in the dangerous city of Chicago in 1915. The city is a particularly dangerous for girls during that summer. After the murder of Pin's younger sister, her mother insists that Pin disguise herself as a boy for safety while they are living at the Riverview Amusement Park, a bustling Coney Island equivalent. Pin relishes the freedom that comes with being a boy, though lives in constant fear of being discovered. Her fears are exasperated when one day she witnesses a young girl enter the "Hell's Gate" ride with a man, and only the man emerges when the boat comes out. 

She's not the only one to witness this crime. A odd man named Henry Darger (based on the Outsider Artist) also saw the girl enter and not come out. Together, the two characters form an unlikely pair looking to capture the killer and avenge the deaths of his many victims. 

This was a spellbinding novel that really delved into many aspects of psychological disorders. There is care taken in presenting these characters in an understanding and thoughtful way. The "disturbed" are given a humanity, no matter how terrible they may be...and that's the joy of the book for me. And Pin is one of those wonderfully brave characters that you'll never forget.