The Collector - John Fowles

Having read and loved another John Fowles novel, "The French Lieutenant's Woman", I saw this in a second hand bookshop and thought I would give it a try. I was aware that the author had written a book called "The Collector" but know nothing more than that so I was surprised when, halfway through the book, I mentioned to a fellow book enthusiast that I was reading it and was captivated. "Oh, The Collector" he said. "A tremendous book". He went on to talk about it at great length and with much passion. It seems that this is a "growing-up text" on a par with such works as "Catcher in the Rye". Does it ...  Read the complete review

The Collector has got to be one of the finest psychological studies I have read to date. Based around the relationship between Frederick Clegg and his prisoner, Miranda Grey, a middle-class college art student with whom Clegg has become obsessed. Far better than any detective or crime thriller, Fowles revels in highlighting the fine line between the captive and the jailer. Having kidnapped Miranda as she walks home from school, Clegg then proceeds to worship and idolise her, placing her on a pedestal and lavishing her with gifts and whatever material objects she desires. The only desire he refuses is that of freedom. Like the butterflies he collects and studies, ...  Read the complete review

This is an extremely difficult book to describe and still do it justice. Although on the surface is seems quite a simple storyline, and is very easy to get into, it is quite complicated. A lot of thought has gone into the characters, their feelings and their personalities and how they alter quite dramatically as the story unfolds. The front cover of the book depicts a collection of butterflies and the book is called the collector, so judging a book by it`s cover I would never have bought this for myself. This was actually bought as a gift for me about nine years ago. The term collector has a much more sinister meaning in this novel and I`m not too sure ...  Read the complete review