Those with any sort of fascination with arts benefactor Peggy Guggenheim, or with the sad story of her daughter, Pegeen Vail Guggenheim, should appreciate Courtney Maum’s novel, Costalegre, in which readers, along with Peggy and Pegeen, will venture to the west coast of Mexico, more specifically to a place remarkably similar to a resort called Careyes in Costalegre in the Mexican state of Jalisco. If the enigma that is Peggy Guggenheim and the money/happiness conundrum aren’t a sufficient draw, consider the novel Costalegre at the very least for the parallelism between its plot and our present circumstances.
Where Is Costalegre, Jalisco, Mexico?
In this imagined, alternative world, Peggy Guggenheim brings her daughter and some artist pals to the coast of Mexico on the eve of World War II to escape challenging times and crazed leaders in Europe. In the world of the book, no one knows what the future portends or if more of their friends will be able to make their way to this retreat or if significant artworks will manage to be saved. An escape to an undertouristed location in Mexico may well indeed be the perfect place to ride this storm out, both then and now.
Who is Peggy Guggenheim?
Peggy Guggenheim herself could fill a book, and, indeed, she has; in this one, her outsized personality, and her fortune, make for plenty of personal politics. Guggenheim managed, thanks to her money, to draw artists in need of benefactors, and yet, some seemed to resent her for her largesse. Her circle of friends, more aptly referred to as frenemies, seemed so often to snipe at her while holding their hands out for more. Much—too much—was made about Peggy Guggenheim’s looks, her intelligence, both of which some deemed lacking.
In the real world, Guggenheim’s both grand and sad existence can be glimpsed at Venice’s Palazzo Venier dei Leoni, which houses the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. A little room displays some works of Guggenheim’s daughter, Pegeen Vail, a cipher who died from an overdose at age 41. Pegeen is buried in Père-Lachaise cemetery in Paris. Peggy herself is buried on the grounds next to the bodies of her dogs.
Art and Anger in the Mexican Jungle
Writer Courtney Maum takes us to the 1930s on an imagined retreat to Costalegre, Jalisco. Peggy brings one of her two children, the teenage Pegeen, on her escape to a strange little house in remote part of Mexico. Pegeen, our narrator, is at a strange moment: Not quite an adult but longing to be one, she is surrounded by a house full of creatives, each one ripe with personality and outrageousness. Somewhat overlooked by her mother as well as the other grownups peopling her small universe, Pegeen finds her way through the oddities of her days as the others drink too much, complain too much, and do all sorts of things they probably shouldn’t. Pegeen turns to writing and art to make sense of her stressed-out world.
Readers who happen to have the sort of mothers for whom their daughters were a second thought, or who considered their female offspring to be competitors in need of a put-down, may well appreciate the relationship between Peggy and Pegeen that Maum so vividly creates. Anyone who has ever been on a long weekend away with oddballs and strange ducks will savor the surreal qualities of a vacation you can’t quickly or easily escape.
Does the Book Make You Want to Go There?
Absolutely. Real-world travelers will be drawn to the mysterious Costalegre, its heat, the jungle, the cliffs leading down to the ocean. It’s a destination not many had heard of then and it is not exactly overtouristed now, which makes it all the more appealing in this time of coronavirus.
—Lori Tripoli
Lori Tripoli is the editor and publisher of Bashful Adventurer. Based in the New York City vicinity, she writes about travel for a variety of publications.
Contact Lori at loritripoli @ bashfuladventurer.com.
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