Angel and Apostle by Deborah Noyes
“Angel and Apostle” continues the story of Hester Prynne from “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathanial Hawthorne. Because it is written so much later and by a different author, it is considered a companion book rather than a true sequel.
We follow the story of Hester’s daughter named Pearl. Born out of wedlock to the sinful adultress mother, she is not accepted by the Puritan community. Rumors have it that she is truly the spawn of satan as her father’s name was never made public. Hester can’t seem to rise above the depression her life has sunk into and thus Pearl is allowed to run wild without any proper training. Eventually she meets a blind boy named Simon. Simon has led a sheltered life due to his handicapped and is rather dark and gloomy sometimes. Pearl has met the first person that hasn’t shunned and bullied her and is determined to explain the beauty of the world she can see around here to her new dear friend Simon. Eventually, Simon’s family learns of Pearl and they are perfectly aware of who she is. Simon and his family are going to return to London and have nothing more to do with Pearl and her tainted aura. To Pearl’s delight, her mother wishes to leave Puritan Boston as well and soon everyone is on the same ship and heading back to London.
To understand this story, it helps to know history of “The Scarlet Letter” as well as know the mindset of the religious settlers who first came to the Americas. It was expected of the public to behave a certain way and to disobey was tragic. Hester was known as an adultress who seduced a poor man and had a baby out of wedlock. She must wear a sign to let everyone know who she is and what she did. By extension, her child is no better, but perhaps even worse. We watch the community shun Pearl and her mother and watch how both people choose to deal with their situation.
This book was much easier to read than the first by Nathanial Hawthorne. Deborah Noyes keeps with the era and writes with a style that suits it well, but is easy to understand and follow. I loved each character and felt for each of them. I read with much anticipation to see if Pearl would eventually escape the life her mother birthed her into or if she would give up and accept it as life with a mute depression as her mother did.
I think we were all required to read “The Scarlet Letter” in school and probably hated it, but I would very much recommend picking up a copy of “Angel and Apostle”. I think you will be surprised at how much you enjoy reading it. In fact, you might even like it enough to be tempted to go back and re-read “The Scarlet Letter”. Okay, maybe not, but this book was well written and a great read.
