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I do like the thought that a great books exist on their own. I think think this is one of the things that makes them such personal choices; that world is contained in our head, and world and container become inseparable. (What the book means, that sense of greatness, is so much a part of who we are.)
Reviewing The Scarlet Pimpernel with an eye to Orczy as an aristocrat does add an extra layer of interest. I can't help wondering: Did she have any idea how hard it would have been for an aristocrat to convincingly pretend to be a menial in those times? Was this naivety, or deliberate "we're just having fun"? Probably no way of knowing now ... unless subsequent books reveal more knowledge of the difficulties.
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