The Collector is a novel about a repressed and self conscious clerk named Frederick Clegg. Frederick collects butterflies for their beauty, but he soon redirects his hobby to admiring the beauty of Miranda Grey, a beautiful upperclass art student he begins stalking. At first, Frederick does not even know his victim's name. He simply calls her "X". The first time he learns her name and hears her voice, he considers it a milestone in their relationship.
When Frederick wins quite a bit of money in the British football pools, he uses the money to buy a secluded cottage. Frederick seems unimpressed with the seventeenth-century cottage at first, but when he learns that the cottage contains a cellar, his imagination runs way with him. He purchases the cottage with the intention of making the cellar Miranda's new home.
The Collector is a very strange but fascinating story of abduction. The first half of the book is the story of how the kidnapping transpired according to Frederick Clegg. The second half of the book is the story from the victim's point of view.
This kidnapping of Miranda Grey is very unique because with the exception of not being able to leave the Clegg's cottage, Miranda is calling all the shots. Frederick Clegg geniunely believes himself in love with the pretty blonde and believes if he plays his cards right, she just might love him in return.
When Miranda says jump, Frederick jumps. The prisoner has her abductor running from shop to shop trying to find expensive foods, books, and art, his prisoner demands. Miranda realizes Frederick will give her anything her heart desires, except her freedom.
I found Miranda's half of the book especially fascinating, not because it contained her version of the kidnapping, but because of what it revealed about her life before her abduction. Her friendship with an artist she calls GP, forever changed her view of life. While in seclusion, Miranda begins to reevaluate her relationship with GP and her feelings for him and how he changed her.
The Collector is not the type of novel you only read once. I found myself re-reading certain pages even before I finished the book. Miranda's version of the events are not just the account of a young girl held against her will, it is a profound view of life and the desire to live life to the fullest. This novel will move you, disturb you, and haunt you all at once. It is one of the best novels I have ever read.
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Book came on time and in good condition. I had to read this book for ...
Book came on time and in good condition. I had to read this book for an English class but I really enjoyed the story and the writing of John Fowles
