In this segment, the actress and writer Dolores Brandon reads part one of chapter six, The Young Bride and the Other Girl, from Marguerite Young's epic novel Miss Macintosh, My Darling. Brandon's captivating reading style contributes to the hypnotic state provoked by Young's prose.
In this chapter we hear about a woman caught between dream and reality. Who's awake and who's dreaming? It's "too late to forget, for now she must remember". Through marriage, aging and giving birth, we discover a woman who plunges into questions of existence.
In 1976-77, Charles Ruas produced a series of WBAI radio programs focused on literature and radio performance, called The Reading Experiment. As part of this series, Miss MacIntosh, My Darling was read over a year-long period by Marguerite Young’s contemporaries from the New York City literary, musical and theatrical communities. All readings are underscored with soundscapes and music by artist Rob Wynne.
This program has been restored by The Clocktower Radio; with the assistance of Charles Ruas; and by agreement with The Yale Beinecke Library, home to the Marguerite Young Papers. Special thanks to Dr. Contance Eichenlaub for her passion and generosity.
