Katherine Mansfield: The Memories of LM

I have just finished reading, Katherine Mansfield: The Memories of LM.

LM (Ida Baker) was Mansfield's devoted friend and companion from the moment they met at Queen's College, London (Mansfield had moved to London from her native New Zealand) until Mansfield's untimely death from Tuberculosis at the age of 34.

LM's account of their life over the 20 year period is poignant, frank, raw and beautifully endearing.  At times we are subjected to moments of gushing sentiment from LM for Mansfield but we must remember that for Mansfield, LM was 'about the nearest thing to "eternal" that I could ever imagine'.

Mansfield's life is well documented and even when we read her letters and journals we think we get a sense of who she was; how she thought, what made her tick.  LM provides us with a valuable insight into the Mansfield behind the short stories and the poetry.  Reading LM's account of their life together over the 20 years allows us to understand Mansfield at her most vulnerable, frail, powerful and intuitive so that when we read her short stories, poetry, journals and letters we are able to read them from a different perspective every single time, peeling away layer upon layer of her prose to leave us feeling that we have only just scratched the surface, and that even if we read the same story 20 times, we still wouldn't be able to understand every single nuance of meaning or character.

Through LM's memories of Mansfield we see two women who were articulate, intelligent, loyal, demanding and so inextricably linked by their devotion to each other, in whichever guise that it took, that it feels as if we have intruded on a friendship which was deeply sacred for both women.  There are times within the book when you get frustrated with LM and her un-wavering dedication to Mansfield to the point that you feel she has sacrificed her own freedom and happiness, in order to play servant to a fickle and at times selfish woman.  You also get a sense that Mansfield was at times deeply lonely, craving love and affection in her many relationships, but never quite finding it.  Yet, what is never in doubt is the deep love and mutual respect that LM and Mansfield have for each other.

Reading this book feels as though you have been sat in a comfy arm chair and chatted to Ida Baker in person for many hours about her life with Mansfield.  It is a story that is told beautifully and now I've finished reading it, I feel like I've lost a dear friend.