Book Review: The House of Doors (a novel based on real events, Somerset Maugham's The Letter)

The House of Doors, by Tan Twan Eng* (Bloomsbury, 2023, 320 pp, $20) International bestseller, longlisted for the Booker Prize. Reviewed by Skye Anderson.

Unforgettable

The Letter, by that extremely prolific author**, playwright***, editor**** and short story writer*****, Somerset Maugham is unforgettable. But this is not The Letter.

Intriguing

This is The House of Doors, by Tan Twan Eng. Set in Penang, Malaysia (Malaya, at the time of most of this book), the story by author Tan Twan Eng relates a 2-week visit in 1921 by an author, Willie, to old friends Robert and Lesley in 'the colonies.' But is it truth or fiction as it takes us from 1910 to 1921 (and back) and on to contemporary times?

When you realize that Willie is actually William Somerset Maugham, you will want to read more about him. You will find he wrote The Letter, Of Human Bondage, The Casuarina Tree, The Razor's Edge, A Marriage of Convenience, . . . .

The Backstory

With more-than-cameo appearances by Dr. Sun Yat Sen and his deportation from Malaya (and abduction in London), and with mentions of Oscar Wilde (The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Importance of Being Earnest), The House of Doors takes us on the historical tale of the story of The Letter. Author Somerset Maugham (Willie) plays a minor role in the book but at least the title becomes clear, though I would have named the book something else.

Chapters are told from the viewpoint of Willie and of Lesley and alternate between 1910, when the murder/rape/whatever takes place, and 1921 when Lesley tells Willie about it. Williie has a habit of writing fiction based on real life and is, fortunately, extremely prolific - fortunate since he lost his lifesavings in an investment deal early in the book.

Which version - the original in 1920 or the related retelling of 1921 (both as appear in The House of Doors or even the version in The Letter) do you like best? As for me, I prefer The Letter.

*Booker Prize shortlist author. Best Book of the Year - NPR, The New Yorker, Slate, The Financial Times. Notable Book (The Washington Post). Editors' Choice (New York Times).

**16 books and 20 novels

***25 plays plus 11 unpublished plays

****19 books

*****189 articles and 16 collections