To Capture What We Cannot Keep--But Worth the Try

To Capture What We Cannot Keep by Beatrice Colin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Played out against the background of the building of the Eiffel Tower this is the story of a Scottish woman, widowed, impoverished and fallen out of society, who rather than accept the proposal of a man she cannot love accepts a job as chaperone for a well to do man's young nephew and young niece. He sends them off from Glasgow to Paris where he hopes that the young Alice will find an appropriate man to marry and young Jamie will find direction by observing the engineering feat that is the great lacy tower designed by the noted engineer Eiffel.
Things do not work out smoothly for Beatrice as she tries to keep the two youngsters corralled and reputable. Jamie is more interested in the delights of all sorts of gay Paree and Alice is entranced by the bohemian freedom of the place as she yet attempts to climb in society and maintain the necessary propriety. Cait becomes attracted to the engineer in charge of the construction, Emile, as he is attracted to her. Yet, they are not of the same class and since reputation is all in Parisian society he is unable to pursue the widow, his inferior, as she is unable to allow herself, as a widow to succumb to her attraction.
As the lives of these characters revolve around each other and the conventions of the times, the Tower rises bit by bit to its ultimate glorious completion. There are those who are fascinated and attracted by the erector set creation but there are those, too, who find it hideous to behold. As a matter of fact, on my visit 20 years ago, my hosts referred to it as the Awful Tower.
Colin clearly illustrates the double standard of the day in her characterization of the men and their sexual escapades as well as the resulting impact on the women with whom they are involved. She smoothly incorporates the innovations taking place in the arts as the Tower grows and the reaction of society to these as well.
The most moving section of the book for me, who is terrified of heights, was the description of Cait's climbing the stairs of the completed Tower, especially the last 1000+ steps to the highest platform. Colin, too, must fear heights to have so totally and accurately captured the terror and frozen panic experienced when one realizes just how high one is in the ascent. She's not too bad at capturing the almost exact feelings as Cait realizes how high she has risen in her feelings for Emile and just how dangerous that would be for her.
Not going to ruin the ending but it is worth the read. For such a short book, much has been explored.
This is a review of the copy I received from Book Browse in exchange for my participation in a book discussion on their website.

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