How Long to Read Idioglossia

How Long Does it Take to Read Idioglossia?

It takes the average reader 6 hours and 40 minutes to read Idioglossia by Eleanor Bailey

Assuming a reading speed of 250 words per minute. Learn more

Description

Idioglossia: n. the secret language between two people, the babble of babies, the murmur of lunatics. Eleanor Bailey - hailed in the UK as a female John Irving - proves herself an accomplished and witty storyteller in her debut novel, Idioglossia. Exploring the lives of four generations of women, Bailey depicts mothers and daughters in a book that adroitly combines a sharp satiric edge with epic, even comic reach. Bailey's wit and uncanny characterizations show how these variously disturbed women come to understand each other through their individual experiences of depression. At the head of the lineage is Great Edie, a scary, cantankerous old woman and an inspired seer, who runs a gloomy boarding house in London. Her daughter, Grace, suffers the most extremely from the family illness. A schizophrenic, she spends most of her adult life locked away in a mental institution, recalling a dead sister whom she believes she killed, and babbling what seems like nonsense to her patient but condescending nurses. Grace's only daughter, Maggie, left to grow up on a cruise ship in the care of her drunken ventriloquist father, is a bright, idiosyncratic Alice-in-Wonderland type. Lost, wide-eyed and cast adrift amid a group of eclectic performers from the ship's nightly cabaret, Maggie retreats into her own games and inventions until a mysterious entertainer comes on board. Twice her age, he has the wit to play her games and, because of his attentions, Maggie finds herself falling in love. He stays involved as long as she can provide him with access to her imaginative childlike world, but when that ends, he disappears, leaving her pregnant and alone. Thirty years later, he returnsto her, by then an old man. Frozen solid with despair, Maggie passes the years at the mercy of Great Edie's cruel tongue. Her only vision of heaven is the thought of being left alone in a quiet room. At times she envies Grace her strange freedom, her complete surrender to the psychological weakness that runs through their family like a fault. Sarah, Maggie's daughter doesn't much like or understand her mother. On the run from a childhood peopled by loveless adults, Sarah uses deadening temp jobs and increasingly depressing one-night stands to distance herself from the world and get revenge on her mother. She tries to find solace with her anti-social computer-geek friend Alex, whose sophisticated games seem to be a means of escape for them both. But even after she moves in with him, she finds herself edging closer to her own breaking point, eventually seeing no alternative to just letting go. At last it's up to Maggie to rescue her daughter from spiralling into the family madness. Idioglossia is a rich and powerful book, full of insights about mothers, daughters, and the temptation to break from the harsh reality of the world. Its publication marks the arrival of a writer of great imagination and heart.

How long is Idioglossia?

Idioglossia by Eleanor Bailey is 388 pages long, and a total of 100,104 words.

This makes it 131% the length of the average book. It also has 122% more words than the average book.

How Long Does it Take to Read Idioglossia Aloud?

The average oral reading speed is 183 words per minute. This means it takes 9 hours and 7 minutes to read Idioglossia aloud.

What Reading Level is Idioglossia?

Idioglossia is suitable for students ages 12 and up.

Note that there may be other factors that effect this rating besides length that are not factored in on this page. This may include things like complex language or sensitive topics not suitable for students of certain ages.

When deciding what to show young students always use your best judgement and consult a professional.

Where Can I Buy Idioglossia?

Idioglossia by Eleanor Bailey is sold by several retailers and bookshops. However, Read Time works with Amazon to provide an easier way to purchase books.

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