Thank you, Stephen Basdeo and Mya Driver, for writing Victorian England’s Bestselling Author: The Revolutionary Life of G. W. M. Reynolds. This book, published in 2022, provides the first full-length biography of the man who may have been more popular than any other Victorian author, including Charles Dickens and William Harrison Ainsworth. While critics have long been dismissive of Reynolds and many literary scholars do not even know his name, a growing body of Reynolds scholars has been reviving his reputation. I have myself written numerous blog posts about his novels (links to some of them are included below), and I also wrote extensively about many of them in my book Vampire Grooms and Spectre Brides: The Marriage of French and British Literature, 1789-1897 (2023). Unfortunately, this new biography came out too late for me to use it as a resource in writing my own book, but I have read it with great pleasure, and it only makes me want to read more of Reynolds. Unfortunately, few of Reynolds’ novels have been printed in readable editions, so I have only so far read a dozen of his fifty-eight novels.
This biography fills in a lot of blanks about Reynolds’ life and even clarifies some misconceptions and fanciful stories about him, such as that he employed Thackeray while living in France or that he became a church alderman at the end of his life. More importantly, it shows how Reynolds developed and refined his views on the social problems of his day and how he was a true champion of the people in ways not even Charles Dickens could claim.
One aspect of the biography that particularly interested me was the discussion of Reynolds’ early life, his short stint in the military, and his life in France. The authors seem to have read almost everything Reynolds wrote, and they quote him frequently. In fact, Basdeo is a collector of first editions of Reynolds’ novels. Passages of Reynolds’ first book, The Errors of the Christian Religion Exposed, are quoted. His time spent in France is discussed, which led to his interest in French literature, his writing The Modern Literature of France, his translating several French novels, and his being inspired by French literature in writing his own fiction, such as his novel Robert Macaire.
While Reynolds’ fiction has always been my chief interest, I was also impressed by how Basdeo discusses why Reynolds was willing to change his views on important topics. Initially, Reynolds was pro-British imperialism, but in time, he became a champion for those oppressed by the British Empire. He was also against being a teetotaler, but after engaging in a public debate on the matter, he changed his mind and even went on to publish a magazine called the Teetotaler.
Reynolds’ role in the Chartist movement will especially be of interest to readers. We learn about his public speeches, his contemporaries’ opinions of him, including Charles Dickens and Karl Marx, and how he used his nonfiction publications to further the causes he believed in, such as bettering the situation of the working class and giving the vote to all men regardless of how much property they owned.
Basdeo discusses the significance of many of Reynolds’ novels, including The Mysteries of London, The Seamstress, and The Soldier’s Wife. I would have liked more discussion on some of the novels, especially my favorites like Wagner the Wehr-Wolf, Faust: A Romance of the Secret Tribunals, and The Parricide, but they are all mentioned. I should mention here that another wonderful book on Reynolds appeared recently—G. W. M. Reynolds Reimagined (2023) edited by Jenifer Conary and Mary L. Shannon. It includes essays discussing many of the novels, as well as Reynolds’ popularity in India, and his role as an employer with his workers. Those wanting more literary criticism beyond what Basdeo includes would do well to consult it because I feel every essay in it is excellent and it is one of the best books I have read in the last year. That said, Basdeo could not possibly discuss in detail every Reynolds’ novel and his discussions made me want to read all of those I have not read.
As an employer, Reynolds was also ahead of his time. Basdeo includes some information also mentioned in an essay in G. W. M. Reynolds Reimagined about how Reynolds annually hosted a mini-vacation for his employees including taking them on a picnic, a sort of employee appreciation day. As Basdeo notes, Reynolds used these events as a way to promote his own generosity in his magazines, but they still show he was ahead of his time in how he treated his employees.
Details of Reynolds’ family life are also discussed, including his marriage with his wife Susannah who was an author herself, and the growth of his large family, both children and grandchildren and what became of some of them.
A few special treats in the book worth mentioning include the large number of photographs in the center insert that show many of the illustrations and covers of Reynolds’ novels. The complete texts of all of Reynolds’ editorials for the Political Instructor (1849-50), transcribed by Mya Driver, are included in the back; they provide Reynolds’ opinions on politics, the Chartist movement, and European politics, especially in France. Dr. Rebecca Nesvet, a scholar of penny dreadfuls, provides the foreword, advocating for why Reynolds deserves serious attention from scholars. I could not agree more and join with Basdeo in wishing a publisher would come out with a scholarly series of Reynolds’ novels. So far, only Valancourt Books has republished a few of them, and most are difficult to find. Finally, a useful timeline of Reynolds’ life is provided.
No book is perfect, and I admit this biography has a few flaws, but they are insignificant beside the fact that it is the first biography about an author who deserves to be a household name along with Dickens. Among the shortcomings is no mention of French author Paul Féval, who wrote his own The Mysteries of London before Reynolds and may have inspired Reynolds to do the same. After all, Féval was the first to capitalize upon the popularity of Eugene Sue’s The Mysteries of Paris, which would go on to have many imitations (including The Mysteries of Lisbon, which Basdeo is currently translating into English). The book also has numerous typos and some awkward sentences, but hopefully as more information about Reynolds becomes available, the authors will come out with a second edition and correct these errors, which did not distract from my keen interest and pleasure in reading the book. Such faults are small compared to the significant undertaking and achievement it is to have written the first full-length biography of George W. M. Reynolds, who literally wrote circles around Dickens. I believe everyone, scholar or reader, interested in Reynolds will embrace this biography.
You can learn more about Stephen Basdeo and his work at his website: Reynolds’s News and Miscellany.
Victorian England’s Bestselling Author: The Revolutionary Life of G. W. M. Reynolds is available from Pen and Sword Books and most online bookstores.
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Tyler Tichelaar, PhD, is the author of The Gothic Wanderer: From Transgression to Redemption, Vampire Grooms and Spectre Brides: The Marriage of French and British Gothic Literature, King Arthur’s Children: A Study in Fiction and Tradition, Haunted Marquette: Ghost Stories from the Queen City, and The Mysteries of Marquette: A Novel, plus many other fiction and nonfiction titles. Visit Tyler at http://www.GothicWanderer.com, http://www.ChildrenofArthur.com, and http://www.MarquetteFiction.com.
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