Lace can be a thing of beauty, threads intertwined in
intricate and often delicate patterns. Yet the history of lace has an ironic
dark side, no less intricate, but tainted with corruption, smuggling and the
harsh labor conditions of those who made it. Ruins of Lace takes place during the reign of Louis XIII of France
in the 1630s. Lace was outlawed by the king and smuggling of it, across the
border from Flanders, became a dangerous, lucrative business. Anthony weaves
information regarding the making of lace and its illicit path to France with
the interwoven lives of her characters. Each chapter is told from the viewpoint
of the character. The characters even include a dog which was one of thousands used
to smuggle lace. The chapters narrated by a hapless border guard are engaging
and wryly told. There are characters with whom one feels compassion and others who
create disgust. In the end, one realizes that while the non-living thing, lace,
is considered to be of great worth, each of the people, living beings, is
struggling to find his or her worth, in their own eyes and in the eyes of
others. Each has a past, sometimes interconnected, that influences their
present stories. While the book comes to an exciting conclusion, the reader is
left with a little uncertainty. Perhaps the author is leaving her options open
for a sequel. All in all, it was a light, entertaining book that also educates
the reader about lace and its dual nature.
P.J. O'Rourke advises "Always read something that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it."
Let Galesburg Public Library staff and friends guide you in finding those books.
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