December 6, 2021 at 4:58 am (Books, Explorers, Places, Sundays, Traveling, Women Writers)
Tags: Antarctica, Beryl Bainbridge, COVID Reading, historical novel, inspiration, Mendocino, novel, reading lists, road trip, Robert Falcon Scott
There is nothing on earth so vast, so glorious, as the southern heavens. In the ordinary world a man measures himself against the height of buildings, omnibuses, doorways; here, scale blown to the four quarters, he’d be a fool not to recognise he’s no more significant than a raindrop on an ocean. Standing there, it seemed irrelevant where Amundsen was — we were both cut down to size.
The Birthday Boys, p. 109
November 24, 2021 at 4:25 pm (Books, Explorers, Recommended, Weather, Women Writers)
Tags: Beryl Bainbridge, COVID Reading, historical novel, reading lists, second reads
There’s a trick to holding attention, to keeping interest at full pitch, and I learnt it as a boy from Idris Williams, the preacher in the chapel at the bottom of Glamorgan Street. It’s a matter of knowing which way the wind blows and of trimming sails accordingly. All the same, I’ve never found it necessary to alter my description of the cold, or of the ice flowers that bloomed in winter along the edges of the sea.
The Birthday Boys, p. 8
November 23, 2021 at 4:50 pm (Books, Explorers, Places, Recommended, Women Writers)
Tags: COVID Reading, historical novel, novel, reading lists, second reads
Opening Sentence:
October 20, 2021 at 6:36 pm (Books, Links, Lists, Personal Bookshelf, Philippine History, Recommended)
Tags: Filipino writers, historical novel, history, The Philippines, work-in-progress, writing process
Self is a first-generation immigrant from the Philippines. Her Dear Departed Dad’s province was an island in the central Philippines called Negros (yes, really, the Spanish named the island after its inhabitants, who were dark-skinned)
For today’s Past Squares post (many, many thanks to Becky at Life of B for hosting the Squares Challenge), here are two books on Philippine History that she’s found invaluable while doing research for her current project, a novel about a 16th century Spanish priest who is sent to the Philippines to fight demons:
November 10, 2020 at 4:17 pm (Books, Lists, Personal Bookshelf, Recommended, short story collections, Women Writers)
Tags: Asian American Writers, book lists, COVID Reading, English writers, essays, historical novel, James S. A. Corey, novel, politics, reading lists, science fiction, Stendhal, The Expanse, US history, war novel
The books below took her through a tumultuous year. Books are listed in the order in which she read them:
September 4, 2020 at 4:50 pm (Artists and Writers, Books, Lists, Recommended, Women Writers)
Tags: African American Writers, biographies, COVID Reading, Fridays, happiness, historical novel, novel, reading lists
The Charterhouse of Parma: Five Stars
In terms of her reading life, August was the bomb. All the books she read were library check-outs (YAY! Library’s back, it’s back, it’s back!)
She read, in addition to The Charterhouse of Parma: Colonel Chabert, by Balzac; First: Sandra Day O’Connor, by Evan Thomas; and The Shadow King, by Maaza Mengiste.
Excited to begin a new novel (and discover a new writer). Opening Sentence of In West Mills:
In October of ’41, Azalea Centre’s man told her that he was sick and tired of West Mills and of the love affair she was having with moonshine.
Well! That is some opening.
The author bio on the book jacket says that De’Shawn Charles Winslow is from North Carolina. He is a 2017 graduate of the Iowa Writers Workshop.
Stay safe, dear blog readers. Stay safe.
September 3, 2020 at 1:48 am (Books, Lists, Recommended, short story collections)
Tags: biographies, book lists, COVID Reading, historical novel, humor, literary awards, nonfiction, novel, reading lists
These are exciting times. Self is reading The Charterhouse of Parma (Brilliant and funny and moving).
Five on her ‘To-Read’ List
September 2, 2020 at 11:24 pm (Books, Recommended, Surprises)
Tags: COVID Reading, favorites, historical novel, humor, reading lists, satire, Stendhal
SPOILER ALERT SPOILER ALERT
The Charterhouse of Parma has reached a turning point. Fabrizio is recognized by a former servant as he tries to cross the Po River. From loneliness, Fabrizio tells this servant, right away: I killed a man this morning.
Ludovic promises to help Fabrizio. They manage to evade the police, but during “the long intervals” of hiding, Ludovic decides to make Fabrizio listen to his sonnets.
Who knew this former coachman always had a deep desire to write poetry!
Fabrizio’s reflections on Ludovic’s sonnets:
Poor Fabrizio, hiding in the willows on the banks of the Po River, forced to listen to his companion recite his bad poetry!
Stay safe, dear blog readers. Stay safe.
September 1, 2020 at 11:36 pm (Books, Recommended)
Tags: COVID Reading, favorites, historical novel, novel, reading lists, satire, Stendhal
Chapter Eleven, The Charterhouse of Parma:
As we see, Fabrizio was one of those unfortunates tormented by their imagination, this is frequently the defect of intelligent men in Italy. A French soldier of equal or even inferior courage would have ventured to cross the bridge immediately, without brooding in advance upon the difficulties, but he would also have proceeded with all his composure when, at the end of the bridge, a short fellow dressed in gray said to him: “Go into the police office and show your passport.”
At this point, 1/3 of the way through The Charterhouse of Parma, self sincerely hopes dear blog readers adore Stendhal as much as she does. Otherwise it’s going to be a long September.
Interesting side note: In Chapter Eleven, Fabrizio’s height is revealed. He is five foot five. Wow, that is short! Somehow, she imagined him as tall and lean.
Stay safe, dear blog readers. Stay safe.
August 31, 2020 at 9:54 pm (Books, Recommended)
Tags: COVID Reading, historical novel, irony, Mondays, novel, reading lists, Stendhal, summer
Sometimes her eager imagination concealed things from her, but she never entertained those deliberate illusions produced by cowardice.
— Chapter Six, The Charterhouse of Parma
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