Silent People: Hearing the Call of the Dodder by Yvonne Jerrold   . .a novel that celebrates the abiding power of imagination... Introductory talk by Dr Terri Apter, psychologist and Fellow of Newnham College, Cambridge, at the launch of Silent People in Clare College, 5th April 2006 Like any richly imagined story,  Silent People has wide ranging allusions, and following them imaginatively is one of the special pleasures offered by this book.  Yvonne Jerrold’s novel reminds us that many of us live our ordinary lives, with a range of private thoughts and public acts, while we debate moral and practical matters with private mental guests, people  we’ve known who have stamped their personalities on our psyche, or people we have imagined, perhaps from stories we’ve heard as children, perhaps from novels we read and absorb as having a special meaning to us.  There are also presences in our lives that remain dormant for years, and then suddenly, a series of unconnected experiences prod them into life. There is also the intriguing question we may ask ourselves as to whether we figure in other people’s repetoire of silent people, conversing with them in ways we ourselves may be unaware. There are also the voices that we may hear as we move from one environment to another: the English Romantics held that in nature we could access a deeper, more wholesome vision of humanity and life’s meaning, and The Silent People taps into that tradition, too.   And, as in the romantic tradition, it is not people who are wise and knowing from the start who are the moral hero/heroines, but the characters who are susceptible to questions, who don’t let puzzles drop out of sight.  These puzzles hearken back to the more innocent framework of childhood, because the emphasis is on sensitivities to voices and presences that most of us learn, as we mature, to marginalise or ignore. While Yvonne Jerrold identifies many layers of ordinary life, she also presents a clear-eyed, even a cold-eyed look at the world we know we share with other people – the coffee machines and the corridors and the clutter.   And when we communicate with other people, Jerrold shows how we often test the limits of what can be said and revealed about our inner worlds, and what should be withheld, lest we be thought mad.  Silent People is sometimes funny: it shows the quirky side of the counselling profession, the intriguing look into other’s lives, very deeply, but momentarily and seldom being able to follow things up.  We rarely have the opportunity to come to the end of the story when we hear other people’s stories.  Silent People is sometimes disturbing, but the main thrust is invigorating because the reader comes away with the clear reminder that, if our attention is open and receptive, then we’ll be constantly be introduced to new perspectives and new influences.  So, I’m delighted to participate in this event that celebrates the launch of a novel that itself celebrates the abiding power of imagination. Return to Reviews page... Return to Silent People... Return to Writing... Return to Home page... To write a Review on Amazon.co.uk...    click here....