The Book

By Jools Constant

A modern Gothic fairy-tale.

It’s the story of a young woman forgotten and virtually alone. She lives in a big empty library with her Grandmother. She finds the last book in the library which is the history of the library and the history of her family within the library. The last thirty pages in the book are blank the last page is simply marked 'The End.' Each day a new page writes itself as an account of the previous day’s events. Charlotte realises that this suggests her world is about to change. Is her Grandmother going to die? Is the library going to burn down?

Her quest to find the answers helps her find her strength, her place and her voice.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jools Constant
• Release date: Jul 27, 2012
• ISBN: 9781476423951

Jools Constant

Jools Constant - professional stand up comedian, story teller and general entertainer type. I have the attention span of an angry gnat and so the completion my first book is a major milestone for me. I have been writing and telling stories since I was a very small lad. Primarily these stories were made up in order to get me out of the trouble my short attention span, curious nature and inability to respect boundaries got me into! Since leaving school 28 years ago I have had 2 wives, 3 children, 2 grandchildren, 12 houses, 40 different jobs (including vicar and gigolo,) several hundred different cars, a gaggle of parties, gallons of Guinness and only one nervous breakdown. All of which gives me a massive bank of stories with which to amuse or befuddle the casual passer-by.

Book preview

The Book

Jools Constant

Copyright 2012 by Julian Constant

Smashwords Edition

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

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Prologue

Around a 40 minute walk in a southerly direction from central London stands the Library of St George. Six large windows wide by three stories high, with a grand Art Deco edifice of crisp red brickwork and sharp architectural abutments, it is positioned in such a way that from certain positions on the high street, one might think a great ocean liner was steaming straight towards you. And yet despite its evident majesty, this chalice of knowledge lies forgotten and certainly ignored by the casual passer-by. What a pity that is, for within its walls and reaching to you from every empty shelf are the echoes of a very mysterious story. A story of how one woman’s need to fulfil an unspoken promise brought her to an end not found in any of the pages, in any of the works, of the Library of St George.

Charlotte knelt on the floor within the library’s main reading room, excited and nervous as she opened the cover of an unfamiliar book. A new book was always thrilling, especially when it’s one from an unknown author, and doubly so when its title was simply: ‘The Book.’

To Charlotte, a seasoned literary traveller, an adventure was far more exciting the less that is known about the destination. All her life Charlotte had lived and worked within the library which was owned by her Grandmother, and all her life she had completely absorbed herself in the myriad of books Fact, fiction, adventure fantasy, science and history were the building blocks of her identity. Her physical world was insular and quiet, but the books gave her freedom and company and a social life amongst the characters that stepped out of the pages and invited her to join them. In contrast to the reality around her, the books gave her joy and peace, they gave her a reason to continue, a reason to live.

She just loved to quietly share this joy with visitors to the library, although quite shy, she would quietly wander up behind browsers and gently whisper recommendations to them or softly she would silently pull a book half out of its column tap it and make eye contact with the browser and leave them with a little smile by way of a review. She was in a way inviting them to the same dinners parties she had attended, she was sending them to the fantasy lands she had enjoyed or sharing with them the knowledge that had delighted her the most.

On closer inspection, The Book she was knelt in front of turned out to be an account of the history of a library. It didn’t take Charlotte long to realise that the Library in question was this library, her library. It contained details of its birth and on through the war years, from its restoration and new resolve and through the post war decades. But it was not only a record of the building and its purpose; it also touched upon Charlotte's family where its activities were interwoven with the library.

Charlotte was a little surprised that someone had kept a log of the library and its events. It was even more surprising that it had been bound and published. The writing seemed factual and without frills but talked of her grandmother in the third person, and appeared to be written at an emotional distance to the daily workings of its subject. The binding and printing appeared shoddy: a quick flick through The Book revealed the last thirty pages to be completely blank. It was more than bad workmanship: it felt strangely frustrating. She inspected the last few paragraphs of text, before the blank pages. It wasn’t clear if a whole chunk was missing from the book, or if too many pages had been carelessly woven into the binding. The latter seemed unlikely, as on the last of the thirty blank pages two words stood bold and lonely: THE END.

She turned to the beginning and began to read in earnest, little knowing how this strange little red book would be pivotal both in determining her destiny and the very future of the library itself.

Chapter 1

It all began in 1929 when a beautiful and sophisticated debutante was officially introduced to the world of influence, money and connection. Alice was tall, slim and ballet-elegant, and (it was whispered) even more exquisite than her mother before her. She'd also inherited her mother's enigmatic quality, and whenever she entered a room, those around her became a little unnerved.

Her father George, widowed young, had invested wisely in the upbringing and education of his daughter. His daughter was his one remaining love and his reason to go on, the motivation behind his business and his only reason to smile. He'd ensured that Alice’s childhood and adolescence was one of comfort and gilt-edged security. She lacked for nothing and was shielded from the hard realities of London lurking beyond the garden wall. In this cloistered environment, George and Alice developed a comfortable routine together. George was affectionate and demonstrative and neither would retire to bed without placing a gentle kiss on the other's cheek.

When Alice was making her first steps as a debutante, George’s property developing business had never appeared more successful. His wealth had afforded him a power rarely seen in a man born of such lowly rank. Among his projects, George had commissioned a magnificent library, to be sold to the District Council upon completion. However, soon after the final brick had been laid, and at great expense, George tore up the contract between his company and the District Council after spotting Councillor Trig leaving a Soho brothel. George was a hard working and hard drinking man who was not averse to the occasional wager; however, he had an unshakeable core of old school morality which governed everything he did. Unfortunately for Councillor Trigg, he demanded strict adherence to the same code of behaviour from those he did business with and Trigg was not the first or the last man to fall foul of George’s lofty ideals.

Thus when Alice reached the age of 21, George gave her the magnificent new library. George understood Alice’s love of books and had realised that even from an early age she had shown signs of a generous philanthropic spirit. He left the building in her hands without instruction, knowing she would find the best use for it. He also understood that the responsibility for this building would ground her and focus her, giving her something of more value than the parties and nightlife which surrounded them. He made no provision for its upkeep other than the monthly sum paid directly to Alice for her own day-to-day living requirements. The fund was a generous one when it was just catering for one young lady’s needs, however, in later years as the building required more and more upkeep and repair, this fund would fall far short of the sums needed to maintain this grand old lady of books.

For several years the building stood empty. Its scale and significance frightened Alice. She visited only once and left vowing never to return whilst cursing her beloved father for his folly. Alice had never had anything to challenge or stretch her. She had not seen hardship or adversity of any kind. Whilst she was intelligent and sensitive, her lack of any real life experience and the empathy and motivation that it creates had left her unable to see the full picture. She never really understood that behind her father’s actions there were often deeper motivators.

As the years passed, the fate of the building and the fate of Alice were inevitably to become as one. George stood firm, silently allowing their conjoined story to unfold without his intervention in the hope that each would support the other and a solution might be discovered that would be the making of Alice and proof of his wisdom.

CHAPTER 2

1937 was the turning point that changed everything. George died suddenly of a heart attack and Alice was left without the only man she had ever loved and respected. His health had never been the best, and he had been visiting his doctor a little more frequently lately, but he had told Alice it was just a series of unrelated minor ailments particular to a man of his age.

He was her only parent, her guardian, her friend and her foothold. Her grief was compounded by the fact that, two weeks before his death, they had argued about his plans to move from London and take up permanent residence in the countryside. Alice would not leave London but at the same time did not want to live in London without him nearby. She accused him of being selfish and neglecting her. The argument was never resolved and whilst final plans were being made for the move, the heart attack had struck. To Alice’s horror, the real reason for the move was one she could never have predicted. The lawyers dealing with her father’s estate discreetly informed her of his dire financial predicament. Making the move to a smaller house in the country was born out an instinct merely for survival and not, as she had assumed, some hard-headed selfishness. The library building and the small monthly fund was hers and untouchable. There were also a small number of George's personal effects, his watch and cufflinks, a small grooming kit within a leather case, a little red book wrapped in brown paper, along with his diary and a photograph of his late wife Monika. Everything else, the apartments, the offices and even such personal effects as her late mother's dresser and trunk were all seized and scattered without regard through various London auction houses.

The sale of the library to the district council would have bought George enough time to get his business back on track, but once he had signed it over to Alice, his lawyers had ensured the deal was tied up so tightly that any future creditors