Tracy Chevalier is one of those authors that people ask me if I’ve read, who pop up on recommendation lists, who generally seem very popular despite seeming a bit literary, who sounds like someone I should like, and therefore, contrarily, I’ve never read. I picked this up in the library and fully expected to put it down by page 20 and send it back unread.

Of course I didn’t do that, I loved it.

Set in Lyme Regis in the early nineteenth century this is the story of the friendship between Mary Anning, a young fossil hunter from the working classes, and Elizabeth Philpot, a slightly older fossil hunter from the upper classes. I knew that Mary Anning was a real historical figure as I knew of her from visits to Lyme, I was surprised to find that Miss Elizabeth was also drawn from life - the fossil museum in Lyme Regis is the Philpot Museum apparently, I didn’t remember that.

It’s a great story about the relationships between the classes at the time of Austen. Mary and Elizabeth really shouldn’t be friends; neither of them should take gentlemen fossil hunters out onto the beach with them. There is also much revealed about the relationship of Elizabeth as a slightly down at heel spinster to the higher echelons of society. And also about women in scientific circles at the time: Mary Anning is now considered to be one of the most influential British women in the history of science but few of her contemporaries saw that.

I liked the book for the subject matter but it was a far smoother read than I was expecting and I’ll have to try another of Chevalier’s books and see if I enjoy it as much.