Other editions of book The Gate of Angels

It is 1912, and at Cambridge University the modern age is knocking at the gate. In lecture halls and laboratories, the model of a universe governed by the Mind of God is at last giving way to something wholly rational, a universe governed by the Laws of Physics. To Fred Fairly, a junior fellow at the College of St. Angelicus, this comes as a great comfort. Science, he is certain, will soon explain everything. Mystery will be routed by reason, and the demands of the soul will be seen for what they are: a distraction and an illusion. Into Fred's orderly life comes Daisy, with a bang, literally. One moment the two are perfect strangers, fellow cyclists on a dark country road; the next, they are casualties of a freakish accident, occupants of the same warm bed. Fred has never been so close to a woman before, and none so pretty, so plainspoken, and yet so, mysterious. Is she a manifestation of chaos, or is she a sign of another kind of order? As the smitten Fred pursues these questions, Penelope Fitzgerald suggests that scientists can still be mistaken and that the soul must still be answered, even in this age of the atom.

Shortlisted for the Booker Prize: A novel of two “wonderful characters” who meet by accident in Edwardian England, and fall inconveniently in love (The Washington Post). In 1912, rational scientist Fred Fairly, one of Cambridge’s best and brightest, crashes his bike and wakes up in bed with a stranger—fellow casualty Daisy Saunders, a charming, pretty, and almost pathologically generous working-class nurse. So begins a series of complications—not only of the heart but also of the head—as Fred and Daisy take up each other’s education and turn each other’s philosophies upside down. From the recipient of a National Book Critics Circle Award, among other honors, this story of an unlikely and possibly doomed romance is a “deft comedy of manners . . . Fitzgerald’s elegant prose shines with intelligence and subtle wit . . . Her flair for well-drawn eccentric characters will appeal to fans of Muriel Spark and Barbara Pym” (Library Journal). “A singular accomplishment.” —Boston Globe “Powerfully bewitching.” —Los Angeles Times

Paperback. Pub Date :2004-12-06 Pages: 176 Language: English Publisher: HarperCollins UK Beautiful reissue of this wonderful Fitzgerald backlist title. shortlisted for the 1991 Booker Prize.In 1912 Fred Fairly is a Junior Fellow at the college of St Angelicus in Cambridge. where for centuries no female. not even a pussy cat. has been allowed to set foot (though the starlings couldnt altogether be regulated). Fred lectures in physics and the questionable nature of matter and worries about the universal problem known in Cambridge at the time as' the absurdity of the Mind-Body Relationship '. To Fred this is tormenting rather than absurd.The young woman beside him when he wakes up one evening in the Wrayburns' spare bedroom might help resolve it. but how can he tell if she is quite what she seems Fred is a scientist.To him the truth should be everything. and indeed he thinks it...

Short-listed for the Booker Prize. “A singular accomplishment.” — Boston Globe “Powerfully bewitching.” — Los Angeles Times In 1912, rational Fred Fairly, one of Cambridge’s best and brightest, crashes his bike and wakes up in bed with a stranger — fellow casualty Daisy Saunders, a charming, pretty, generous working-class nurse. So begins a series of complications — not only of the heart but also of the head — as Fred and Daisy take up each other’s education and turn each other’s philosophies upside down. This new edition features an introduction by Philip Hensher, author of Scenes from Early Life, along with new cover art.

It is 1912, and at Cambridge University the modern age is knocking at the gate. In lecture halls and laboratories, the model of a universe governed by the mind of God is at last giving way to something wholly rational, a universe governed by the laws of physics. To junior fellow Fred Fairly, this comes as a great comfort. Science, he is certain, will soon explain everything. Mystery will be routed by reason, and the demands of the soul will be seen for what they are, a distraction and an illusion.Into Fred's orderly life comes Daisy, with a bang—literally. One moment the two are perfect strangers; the next, they are casualties of a freakish accident, occupants of the same warm bed. Fred has never been so close to a woman before, one so pretty, so plainspoken, and yet so mysterious. Is she a manifestation of chaos, or a sign of another kind of order?

Short-listed for the Booker Prize. “A singular accomplishment.” — Boston Globe “Powerfully bewitching.” — Los Angeles Times In 1912, rational Fred Fairly, one of Cambridge’s best and brightest, crashes his bike and wakes up in bed with a stranger — fellow casualty Daisy Saunders, a charming, pretty, generous working-class nurse. So begins a series of complications — not only of the heart but also of the head — as Fred and Daisy take up each other’s education and turn each other’s philosophies upside down. This new edition features an introduction by Philip Hensher, author of Scenes from Early Life, along with new cover art.

In 1912, rational Fred Fairly, one of Cambridge's best and brightest, crashes his bike and wakes up in bed with a stranger - fellow casualty Daisy Saunders, a charming, pretty, generous working-class nurse. So begins a series of complications - not only of the heart but also of the head - as Fred and Daisy take up each other's education and turn each other's philosophies upside down.