Sandi Toksvig is a women of many talents: she has been an actress, an author, a radio show host, a journalist, a stand up comedienne, a presenter, and a feminist political figure. Toksvig's feminist ideologies are strongly reflected in Valentine Grey, in which the autonomous protagonist moves to London from India in the late 19th century, and cannot bear the restraints, so goes off to fight in the Boer War in the place of her cousin, Reggie. The other central element of the plot is also dear to Toksvig's heart as she explores Reggie's homosexuality, a crime at the time, and his relationship with actor, Frank. The fact that both of these issues are so meaningful to Toksvig is evident in the earnest and forthright manner in which she portrays these three central characters, with equal weighting given to both aspects of the plot, alternating between Valentine's experiences as a volunteer in the Army and the issues that Reggie and Frank are facing home in London.
Since Valentine comes from India, all of the customs of England seem very strange to her, giving Toksvig an opportunity to critique Victorian England. One of the things that she calls into question is the importance of identity: servants are given universal or derogatory names to make it easier for their masters to remember, meaning they lose a large part of their own identity, showing that their individual identity is regarded as less important than the convenience given to their 'superiors'. Toksvig further investigates this through Reggie and Frank, who are having to restrict their true selves from the public eye, and are seen to identify as heterosexual under the public eye in order to avoid imprisonment.
Furthermore, during Valentine's prolonged period as a man in the Boer War, she is given access to unparalleled freedoms, responsibilities and hardships. Under the guise of a man, Valentine can ride a bicycle, go places alone and spend unchaperoned time with men - luxuries that she would never be granted as a woman. Before going to the war, Valentine's aunt gave her daily lessons in etiquette and propriety so that she would be prepared for marriage to a suitable gentleman. Such a manner of education was common across upper class families at the time, although the concept seems largely alien now. However, one of the reasons that Toksvig includes feminist issues in her novels is due to the fact that, although we have come a long way, we need to do much more to ensure equal pay, education, and career prospects for women from all walks of life. As a result of her dissatisfaction with the rate at which things are changing for modern women, Toksvig co-founded The Women's Equality Party in June 2015, which aims to bring greater equality to women across the UK as more women working would mean more income tax and less tax credits, and having more women in high end jobs has been proven to improve working environments and companies' success: "Equality is better for everybody".
Valentine Grey is a surprisingly hard-hitting novel, with a great deal of emotional and historical depth, showing the atrocities of the Boer War for what they truly were, whilst also exploring prevalent issues of the time that are continuing to affect our lives today. This combination of subject matters makes for a very interesting read that leaves the reader contemplating the advances that we have made since that time and the need for these things to continue improving today.
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