Tipping the Velvet: A Novel (Virago V S.) (VMC Designer Collection)

by Sarah Waters

“Erotic and absorbing…Written with startling power.”—The New York Times Book Review
 
Nan King, an oyster girl, is captivated by the music hall phenomenon Kitty Butler, a male impersonator extraordinaire treading the boards in Canterbury. Through a friend at the box office, Nan manages to visit all her shows and finally meet her heroine. Soon after, she becomes Kitty's dresser and the two head for the bright lights of Leicester Square where they begin a glittering career as music-hall stars in an all-singing and dancing double act. At the same time, behind closed doors, they admit their attraction to each other and their affair begins.

• ISBN10: 1573227889
• ISBN13: 9781573227889
• Publish Date: 1 May 2000 (first published 5 February 1998)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc
• Imprint: Riverhead Books,U.S.
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 488
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9781573227889

Reviews

[nannah]

Even though I'm a lesbian, I haven't read many of the more erotic or ... raunchier lesbian or wlw books (yet), and this was definitely a journey into that side of lesbian fiction. It was sure an eye-opener and, I learned about a ton of language I was not aware of earlier, lol -- like "Tipping the Velvet", which isn't related to the theater ... at all.

Book content warnings:
abuse (sexual, relationship - mostly or all in the 2nd part)
in-book racism - including brownface (2nd part)

In summary: this book could be described as one girl's incredible gay awakening after seeing a woman dressed in trousers performing at the theatre.

It's of course, a lot more complicated than that, a book in three parts involving gender identity, "crossdressing", renting, etc. all set in 1890's London. Nan King, an oyster girl in the small town of Whitstable, sees the theater act of Kitty Butler, and her life changes forever. Kitty, dressing in trousers and men's suits, acts and sings "like a man", and Nan is entranced by her. Soon, she and Kitty become a double act in London, both singing in trousers, and begin a romantic affair offstage.

Sarah Waters's writing is incredible and addicting. Even when I wasn't always pleased or enchanted by the story itself the writing was enough to carry me forward. The first part was very entertaining, but the second and third parts weren't as thrilling - but I never really put aside the book for something else. Honestly ... if the book were written by someone else, I think I would have put it down. I'm not one who reads a book for sexy scenes to be honest, and I'm pretty sure the second part had more erotic scenes than not, so if not for the good writing I would have DNF'd the book.

Anyway, it's a pretty good read for the writing and the sheer amount of help it gave me (lmao) as a baby lesbian, but the story itself didn't give me any real satisfaction.

[celinenyx]

Cross-dressing nineteenth century ladies of the stage making out. Tipping the Velvet has everything I never knew I wanted in a novel.

[brokentune]

4.5* really, but not quite 5*

"And last of all I had a fondness – you might say, a kind of passion – for the music hall; and more particularly for music-hall songs and the singing of them. If you have visited Whitstable you will know that this was a rather inconvenient passion, for the town has neither music hall nor theatre – only a solitary lamp-post before the Duke of Cumberland Hotel, where minstrel troupes occasionally sing, and the Punch-and-Judy man, in August, sets his booth."

Delicious, sensuous, fun. These are not usually the first words that come to my mind when describing what essentially is a Bildungsroman - a coming of age story.

This one was!

Set in the late 1880s, early 1890s, nine-teen year old Nancy Astley falls in love: first with the theatre, then with a music hall star. What follows is a topsy-turvy romp of an education of girl from a rather sheltered background who embarks on life:

"I remembered Walter saying that we were at the very heart of London, and did I know what it was that made that great heart beat? Variety! I had looked around me that afternoon and seen, astonished, what I thought was all the world’s variety, brought together in one extraordinary place. I had seen rich and poor, splendid and squalid, white man and black man, all bustling side by side. I had seen them make a vast harmonious whole, and been thrilled to think that I was about to find my own particular place in it, as Kitty’s friend. How had my sense of the world been changed, since then! I had learned that London life was even stranger and more various than I had ever thought it; but I had learned too that not all its great variety was visible to the casual eye; that not all the pieces of the city sat together smoothly, or graciously, but rather rubbed and chafed and jostled one another, and overlapped; that some , out of fear, kept themselves hidden, and only exposed themselves to those upon whose sympathies they could be sure."

Despite all her errors in judgement, Nancy is such a great character that I could hardly put the book down to hear her story, wanting to make sure she would be ok and at times envying her freedom from care at the same time.

I should point out that my rating system is rather conservative and that I reserve 5* for books that truly knock me over, and that will stay with me for a long, long time to come.

The only reason that keep me from giving Tipping the Velvet my full five stars is that some of the dialogue is a little too forced, too smooth - a minor flaw that vanishes into insignificance when compared to many other novels (especially in the romance genre) because the writing is still excellent. However, knowing that The Night Watch and The Paying Guests are just that little bit more powerful (in my estimation) it does not feel right to rate Tipping the Velvet at the same level of excellence.

Review first posted on BookLikes: http://brokentune.booklikes.com/post/1036156/tipping-the-velvet

[Michael @ Knowledge Lost]

Nan King is an oyster girl in a small seaside town who dreams of a better life. Her life drastically changes when she falls in love with a Masher named Kitty Butler. When Kitty is called back to London for a new show, Nan decides to join her and work as her dresser. Their love is forbidden and they keep it a secret but it’s inevitably doomed. When the relationship ends, Nan has to face London on her own, this is when her adventure of sexual discovery truly begins.

I was told by my sister in law that I don’t review enough lesbian romances, but to be honest I think this is the only one I’ve read (and possibly not a romance). I read Tipping the Velvet a few years ago and still remember it fondly, it was unlike anything I’ve ever read before. As a literary explorer this is always something I look for. The relationship between Nan and Kitty was doomed from the start and was an interesting way for the reader and Nan to discover her sexuality. Though this was not the best first love, it got her to discover who she was as a lesbian. There is a sense of self-discovery throughout this book, she doesn’t always make good choices, in fact most of them were bad but this is part of the journey.

I really liked Nan as a character and seeing Kitty through her eyes, I also liked Kitty. But the heart break was almost like a heart break for me too. I don’t often get so emotionally invested in a book so it was interesting that I was so invested with this one. While this book was very predictable it was still a great read and I was surprised just how much I enjoyed it.

This is Sarah Waters’ debut novel and I would highly recommend it; its historical fiction like you have never read it before. The first part of the book was so obvious but there may be some surprises in the second half to keep you reading. There are some explicit sex scenes in this book but if you are not put off by them, this is well worth your time.

This review originally appeared on my blog; http://literary-exploration.com/2013/01/10/book-review-tipping-the-velvet/