.png)
"The Weight of Angels" | Reviewed by William Winkler
In 1895 Irish author and playwright Oscar Wilde sued the father of his London lover for publicly condemning his homosexual behavior. In the course of the investigations into the charges, evidence developed that implicated Wilde in a number of sexual encounters that were, under British law at the time, illegal.
Wilde was convicted and served two years at hard labor in a British prison. Upon his release he immediately self-deported to Paris, where he died, penniless, in 1900, at 46 years of age.
Irish author John Boyne’s most recent novel, “The Weight of Angels,” is based on the presumption that Wilde’s trial never took place and that Wilde lived until the day after the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in his 98th year.
In the fictional 52 years added to Wilde’s life, Boyne leads his protagonist through multiple scenarios, all grounded in historical events.
Wilde is depicted as being present at the coronation of all five British monarchs acceding to the throne in his fictional lifetime. Each is painted with a broad historical brush, allowing the reader to consider the human side of each, views not typically afforded those outside Buckingham Palace.
Wilde was married to Constance Lloyd in 1884, a marriage that lasted until her death in 1892. The union produced two sons, the elder of whom died in WWI. In his fictional later years Wilde is portrayed as having deep regret for his neglect of Constance as he sought the company of other men, and for the rest of his fictional life he grieved the loss of his son.
Wilde was widely known for his bon mots, witty rejoinders which seemed to occur to him spontaneously. Boyne carries this attribute of Wilde throughout the novel.
Multiple other historical figures appear, each fully fleshed out by the author. Winston Churchill in particular became close to the fictional Wilde, and was able, with Wilde’s support, to lead Parliament in repeal of the laws targeting homosexual behavior.
Boyne confers awards upon his protagonist, most notably the Nobel Prize for literature in 1932 as well as a Hollywood Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay in 1944.
Those who are familiar with Oscar Wilde’s life and writing will be fascinated by Boyne’s fictional creation of the last half-century of his life. Readers with less familiarity can expect to close the last page of the novel (which will bring tears to one’s eyes) feeling that they had known Oscar Wilde deeply and personally.
