A Work in Progress

A Woman in Berlin

A Woman in Berlin: Eight Weeks in the Conquered City - A Diary is not easy reading.  I have wanted to read this book since it was published in hardcover, but waited until it came out in paper to finally pick it up.  And then I picked it up and wanted to read it, but didn't want to read it--if that makes any sense.  The subject matter does not really lend itself to "pleasurable" reading.  I can say that the book is very compelling, however, and once you get into the book it can be hard to put down.  It was written in diary format during the weeks after the fall of Berlin in April 1945 when the Russians occupied the city.

Probably since the dawn of time whenever an army has invaded/conquered enemy territory, to them falls the spoils of war.  Unfortunately women tend to be part of the spoils.  This usually means mass rape--we see this even now in places like the former Yugoslavia in the 90s and in parts of Africa in the recent past (though the motivations for rape may be different--the act is no less reprehensible).  According to the foreword in the book it was estimated that more than 100,000 women were raped when the Russians conquered Berlin. 

What makes this book so readable, despite the horrible subject, is the way the author writes about what happened.  She does not look for sympathy from the reader.  She portrays the events very matter-of-factly, and at times her writing feels almost clinical.  Although these awful things happened to her, she talks about them as if she were on the outside looking in.  I suppose in a time of war  you do what you can to cope and survive.  In the case of the author, who could speak Russian, she tried to find a sort of protector--a Russian high enough up in the ranks to keep the other wolves at bay. 

Thankfully the book is not filled exclusively with scenes of rape.  The book begins with the approaching Russians.  The author is living in an apartment building, spending much of her time in the basement with other Berliners trying to avoid the Allied bombs.  Once the Russians enter the city it is indeed mayhem for a while.  Eventually the tide of Russians subsides and then the citizens are left trying to pick up what's left of their lives and continue on in an occupied city.  There is no running water, no electricity, not much food.  But the scenes of chaos do end and life eventually goes on.  It was interesting reading about her interactions with other women--women she didn't know or that she was only slightly acquainted with before the war.  While the rapes stop, what happened is still omnipresent.  It was a little shocking how the women came to talk about what happened.  There was a sort of gallows humor in their discussions, but I imagine this was another coping mechanism.

The identity of the author has never been revealed.  She chose to remain anonymous for obvious reasons.  She had worked as a journalist prior to the war, traveling aroad and to the Soviet Union, which likely accounts for her dispassionate treatment of the subject matter.  The book was published in Germany in 1953, but it soon went out of print.  It was received rather dismally by the reading public.

"German readers were obviously not ready to face some uncomfortable truths, and the book was met with either hostility or silence.  One of the few critics who reviewed it complained about the authors 'shameless immorality.'  German women were not supposed to talk about the reality of rape; and German men preferred not to be seen as impotent onlookers when the Russians claimed their spoils of war."

The author did not want the book published again during her lifetime.  She passed away in 2001, which opened the door to the possibility that the diary could finally be published again (in its entirety--apparently the original book had sections left out to avoid "touching on delicate matters").  This was an interesting perspective on the aftermath of war, not told very often it seems, but this one is told very well.  My only complaint is not knowing what happened after the diary ends.  I'm curious about what happened to the author, but I guess I will have to be content with this small slice of her wartime experience.

And Yet More

Since I am admitting to buying more Persephones, I might as well own up to the books I bought at the bookstore earlier this week.  When I decide I am going to do something, and I really set my mind to it, I usually can't wait to get started--I don't have a lot of patience.  Shakespeare is all over the place--free online, multiple editions in the library, but I want my own copy in this case.  I know I could probably mooch the plays I want, but I wanted to browse the possibilities at the bookstore.  I have decided that after Romeo and Juliet, I am going to attempt Twelfth Night next.  I have heard good things about Folger Shakespeare Library editions (just found their website...must check out their online store), so I am giving them a try next.  It is still a mass market size paperback, reasonable size print, and the glosses are on the verso.  Now you know what would make it perfect (well possibly), would to have the unknown word highlighted some way on the opposite page.  Then again maybe that would be distracting.  Of course there are the usual prefatory remarks, and an essay and bibliography in the back.  There are textual notes, which are a bit beyond me.  The back says there are scene by scene summaries, but maybe I am missing those?

As I was at Barnes and Noble, and they have a new series of Shakespeare plays, I thought they might be worth a try as well.  I opted for Othello (thinking about my recent read).  These are trade size paperbacks (inexpensively priced).  Once again the glosses are on the verso.  The print is a nice size and a nice readable typeface, with lots of space at the edges for notes.  There are the usual essays and even some line drawings of how Othello was originally staged.  I do like the layout of these Barnes and Noble editions--they are nice and clear and readable.  Have you noticed these Spark Notes No Fear Shakespeare editions?  I'm not sure what I think of them--they have the play using Shakespeare's original language on one side, and the play in modern language on the opposite page.  They could be very helpful, but I wonder if students just opt to read the modern version?  I also found Shakespeare Alive! by Joseph Papp, who is a theater producer.  I'm not sure that this is terribly scholarly, but it looks like a fun read. 

My intention for going to the bookstore was to only buy a copy of Twelfth Night, but I couldn't leave without looking around a little at other books.  I spent most of my time in the mystery section and came away with Morag Joss's Half Broken Things--a psychological suspense thriller.  Why do I find those sorts of books so appealing?  I started reading Puccini's Ghosts by Joss a while back, but it had to go back to the library unfinished (not that it wasn't good--it's just that my track record with library books is not always so great--those due dates tend to put a damper on things when you are a slow reader).  It is due out in paper this summer, so perhaps Half Broken Things will keep me occupied until then.  I also received a used copy of Margaret Forster's biography of Daphne Du Maurier in the mail as well.  Did  you know that this year is Du Maurier's centenary?  I plan on reading more of her fiction this year as well as the Forster biography.  Every time I stop by the bookstore I tend to pick up Sally Beauman's Rebecca's Tale, a sort of sequel if I am to understand correctly, to Du Maurier's Rebecca.  I usually don't like to read sequels or prequels to famous books that I have read and loved that are written by another author entirely.  I have been tempted many times, but never buy the Beauman in the end.  Of course if I hear it is wonderful from someone out there, I might reconsider!

Just a couple more things.  Lately I have not gone near the magazines as I already have too many at home I am behind in reading, but I did take a look this time around.  This month's issue of Harper's has an essay on Shakespeare--"How Shakespeare Conquered the World", which I couldn't pass up.  There is also an article by Cynthia Ozick on the novel, which looks interesting.  Iliana occasionally mentions mystery magazines in her posts. I always mean to look for them at the bookstore, but then never do.  I did make a point this time around.  While I didn't find Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, I did find Mystery Scene.  I have never purchased a magazine that includes only mystery novels, so I hope to find lots of great new books.  These should keep me busy for a while.

More Persephones

I broke down.  Not only did I start reading one of the Persephone Books that I ordered a while back, but I placed an order for four more titles.  If you own or have read any Persephone Books most likely you will understand the temptations of these books and how hard it is to avoid them!  When I initially ordered a few titles I told myself I had to read what I purchased before I could order any more.  I guess I was rationalizing ordering more by starting one now.  In any case it is a win-win situation as I get to read a good book and order yet more Persephones!  I'm just trying not to think of that postage charge...(thanks to Nutmeg, however, for letting me know that The Book Depository actually carries Persephone titles--I thought you had to order direct--and they have that wonderful free shipping). 

I read Marghanita Laski's The Victorian Chaise-Longue earlier this year.  It was nice and creepy.  While I would hesitate to call the Laski "delightful", I get the feeling that many of Persephone's titles are going to delightful indeed.  I decided to read Monica Dickens's Mariana.  Monica is the great granddaughter of Charles Dickens.  Mariana is described as:

"the story of a young English girl's growth towards maturity in the 1930s.We see Mary at school in Kensington and on holiday in Somerset; her attempt at drama school; her year in Paris learning dressmaking and getting engaged to the wrong man; her time as a secretary and companion; and her romance with Sam. We chose this book because we wanted to publish a novel like Dusty Answer, I Capture the Castle or The Pursuit of Love, about a girl a girl encountering life and love, which is also funny, readable and perceptive; it is a 'hot-water bottle' novel, one to curl up with on the sofa on a wet Sunday afternoon. But it is more than this. As Harriet Lane remarks in her Preface: 'It is Mariana's artlessness, its enthusiasm, its attention to tiny, telling domestic detail that makes it so appealing to modern readers'."

I am not terribly far into the book, but I am enjoying it so far.  I think I am going to have to look for some of Monica Dickens's other works as well.  By the way I have read both I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith, which I loved, and The Pursuit of Love by Nancy Mitford, which I liked very much.  I guess I will have to dig out my copy of Dusty Answer by Rosamond Lehmann to read as well, since they are all similar reads. 

As for what I am getting?  I might even get the books by the end of the week--I love being able to look forward to good mail!  I ordered Every Eye by Isobel English (Muriel Spark called her an exceptionally talented young novelist), A House in the Country by Jocelyn Playfair, Greenery Street by Denis Mackail and Lady Rose and Mrs Memmary by Ruby Ferguson.  I wanted to order Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson as I have heard so many good things about it, but unfortunately at the time they were reprinting the book.  I see that they have it back in stock now, and they have also added two new titles to their list this spring.  More temptations.  By the way, I can't remember who mentioned this to me, but Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day is being made into a movie.  They are filming it currently and it is due out sometime in 2008.

A Fairy Tale for Grownups

My track record in terms of reading challenges (those organized by other bloggers and my own little personal ones) has been sketchy at best lately.  Perhaps I am going to have more success this time around with Carl's challenge.  The goal is to read a total of five books--a fairy tale, a fantasy, a myth, and something in folklore, and at the end to read Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream.  I have actually completed my first book.  Not too shabby considering how dismally my last few challenges have gone.

Neil Gaiman's Stardust is a wonderful fairy tale for adults.  Actually I think young adults could easily read and enjoy this book as well.  There are not many books that I would describe using the word "delightful" (as a matter of fact only Helene Hanff's books come to mind), but Stardust really is a delightful little novel.  Okay, there are witches, people are turned into animals, a little fratricide goes on and maybe other murderous sorts of thoughts.  But it is all portrayed in such a fanciful way, you can't help but enjoy yourself as you are reading.

I don't generally read books in the fantasy/fairy tale genre, so I wasn't really sure what I was getting myself into.  The book was a tad bit slow starting, but once the story gets going, you can't help but turn the pages quickly.  Wall, where the book is set, is a little village in Victorian England.  It is bordered on one side by a large rocky wall (hence the name of the town).  Through the gap in the wall you can see a meadow on the other side, but the opening is guarded by the townspeople of Wall.  No one can pass through except once every nine years when a market is held.  What makes this such an unusual market is that it is held in the realm of Faerie.  And as you might imagine it is not your usual type of market. 

Tristan Thorne's father brought home more than one unusual thing from the realm of Faerie on one of his visits.  Now Tristan will impetuously travel into Faerie to find a fallen star, which he promises to bring back for the beautiful Victoria Thorne.  If he brings it back, she will give him the one thing he wants most.  When he found the star, it was not what I expected.  As a matter of fact most of the book was not what I expected, which is what made it such a delight.  There were goblin press gangs, trolls, gnomes, flying ships (a favorite of mine), even talking trees!  This was a fun read, and I definitely recommend it. Stardust has been made into a movie (opening in August) and you can see the movie trailer here.

Although I had not planned on making a definite list of books to read, I have ended up making a list of books I want to read.  I may not stick to it, but I do want to read these books eventually (so why not now).  Next I plan on reading Angela Carter's Saints and Strangers (a retelling of folk tales), I want to finish (it is sitting on my night stand partially read) Marion Zimmer Bradley's The Mists of Avalon (mythology), and Susan Cooper's Over Sea, Under Stone (fantasy).  I have two more months, I hope it won't be a problem to get through these books.  One down anyway!

To Work, Romeo and Juliet, Act I

Over the weekend I finished reading Neil Gaiman's Stardust, and I was planning on posting about it today...However, I have also been reading Romeo and Juliet as well, and since that is fresh in my mind at the moment I am going to bombard you with yet a bit more on my encounters with Shakespeare.  I promise to talk about the other books I am reading this week, too (I have gotten back into a reading rhythm with a few other books, which I am very happy about).

Before I jump in I have to say thanks to all who have left comments on my Shakespeare posts.  I think it says something that these posts attract so many comments--even now--400 years after Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet, people are still reading, studying and enjoying the play--and talking about it.  I have found all the suggestions very helpful and have been picking and choosing methods and working out what is best for me.  This will probably change as I go, but at least I feel like I have sound advice on how to approach my reading--so, many thanks! 

Watching the play first and now reading it has worked out well for me.  I am able to visualize in my mind where the characters are and what they are doing when I read.  So fixed in  my mind now are Olivia Hussey as Juliet and Leonard Whiting as Romeo, it is hard to remember that when this was first staged, Juliet would have been played by a boy!  I have decided to just read and try not to be distracted too much by the language.  There is so much that is unfamiliar to me that I was stopping constantly and looking for the definition, only to have lost my place and have to reread sections I already read.  I thought I would never make any progress.  Now I am reading and marking the passages that are particularly confusing, and I plan on going back to these marked passages later and looking up meanings.  Even not stopping constantly, my reading is fairly slow.  The edition I am reading from is a little Bantam classic, which is fine, but I do think I will look for an edition that has the definitions on the facing page in the future.  Perhaps that will help my reading flow, too? 

As there are five acts, I plan on reading an act a day--finishing up just in time for the weekend, so I can watch the play again.  I realize that I am moving at a snail's pace, but I sort of like my daily Shakespeare visits to be honest.  I have to admit I broke down and bought a student guide and am reading the summaries after each scene and find the guide very useful.  I read the Garber essay on Romeo and Juliet, so I am aware of some of the major themes (light/dark, old/young, violence/romance), but the guide does help reinforce these points.  The summaries also clarify the action.  It's interesting to see what I am getting and what is going right over my head. 

Can I share a passage that I found particularly pleasing?  This is Mercutio talking in Act 1 Scene 4.  Romeo, Mercutio, and Benvolio are outside the Capulet's house getting ready to go into a masked ball that is being held (mostly for Juliet's sake, if I am to understand correctly, as her parents want her to marry Paris, and here she will meet him).  Mercutio is not a romantic like Romeo.  He doesn't believe that dreams foretell future events (unlike Romeo).  As with love, Mercutio is skeptical of dreams as well.  It is sort of long, but well worth the read:

"O, then I see Queen Mab hath been with you.
    She is the fairies' midwife, and she comes
    In shape no bigger than an agate stone
    On the forefinger of an alderman,
    Drawn with a team of little atomies
    Athwart men's noses as they lie asleep;
    Her wagon spokes made of long spinners' legs,
    The cover, of the wings of grasshoppers;
    Her traces, of the smallest spider's web;
    Her collars, of the moonshine's wat'ry beams;
    Her whip, of cricket's bone; the lash, of film;
    Her wagoner, a small grey-coated gnat,
    Not half so big as a round little worm
    Prick'd from the lazy finger of a maid;
    Her chariot is an empty hazelnut,
    Made by the joiner squirrel or old grub,
    Time out o' mind the fairies' coachmakers.
    And in this state she 'gallops night by night
    Through lovers' brains, and then they dream of love;
    O'er courtiers' knees, that dream on cursies straight;
    O'er lawyers' fingers, who straight dream on fees;
    O'er ladies' lips, who straight on kisses dream,
    Which oft the angry Mab with blisters plagues,
    Because their breaths with sweetmeats tainted are.
    Sometime she gallops o'er a courtier's nose,
    And then dreams he of smelling out a suit;
    And sometime comes she with a tithe-pig's tail
    Tickling a parson's nose as 'a lies asleep,
    Then dreams he of another benefice.
    Sometimes she driveth o'er a soldier's neck,
    And then dreams he of cutting foreign throats,
    Of breaches, ambuscadoes, Spanish blades,
    Of healths five fadom deep; and then anon
    Drums in his ear, at which he starts and wakes,
    And being thus frighted, swears a prayer or two
    And sleeps again. This is that very Mab
    That plats the manes of horses in the night
    And bakes the elflocks in foul sluttish, hairs,
    Which once untangled much misfortune bodes
    This is the hag, when maids lie on their backs,
    That presses them and learns them first to bear,
    Making them women of good carriage.
    This is she-"

I thought this passage was particularly apt as I am also reading books for Carl's Once Upon a Time challenge (hence the Gaiman).  Queen Mab is a fairy, so she fits right in with the theme.  Although I am planning on reading A Midsummer Night's Dream for Carl's challenge later on, I think I'd like to give Twelfth Night a try in the interim.

"Twins Viola and Sebastian are shipwrecked. Believing her brother drowned, and determined to survive alone, Viola disguises herself as a boy. As 'Cesario' she enters the service of Orsino and is sent by him to woo Olivia." But Olivia isn't interested and 'Cesario' is swept into a merry-go-round world of unrequited love, mistaken identities, high comedy, low tricks and desperate passion."

Does that not sound like fun?  Why did I wait so long to start reading Shakespeare?  As someone said in a comment--"Shakespeare rocks!".

Project Shakespeare Continues

I decided it was time to jump in.  Friday night I watched Franco Zeffirelli's version of Romeo and Juliet.  I feel like I cheated a bit as this wasn't an actual theatrical version, but a film version (there is probably a word for the difference, but I am not sure what it is--or maybe it is all the same whether it is presented in a theater or made especially to be seen in the cinema?), and I noticed that there were chunks of dialogue cut out.  I have just started reading the play this weekend as well, but I did follow along in the book loosely while watching the film.  By the way, I did greatly enjoy the film even if some it went over my head.  I didn't catch everything they said, but I still understood essentially what was happening. 

I am trying to find my footing with Shakespeare.  I have gotten very good, though slightly conflicting advice, on how to approach him.  Do I read first and then watch/listen?  Or the reverse?  Both ways have been suggested.  I have a feeling that it is going to come down to what works best for me, as both ideas sound as they would work well.  For Romeo and Juliet I decided to watch first and then read.  I have found a book called Studying Shakespeare (a York Handbook) by Martin Stephen at my library.  We seem to have an endless amount of books about Shakespeare, plays by Shakespeare, guides on how to study Shakespeare, criticisms of the works of Shakespeare...you get the idea.  I have gone up and wandered around once or twice and I am sure I will do so again.  I mostly just flip through and read sections that are helpful with what I am thinking about at the moment. This is what Stephen's has to say about how to approach a Shakespeare play:

"It is a bewildering experience to be faced for the first time with a Shakespeare play--especially if it is to be studied for an examination (NOT in my case).  It is frequently no less appalling the second or even third time round (should I be worried, but that makes me feel better slightly?).  There is the text itself--often difficult, obscure, and so laden with notes as to render it barely decipherable.  Then there is the realisation that even a small bookshop will have a shelf full of texts of the play, anywhere between one and five different  relatively short 'notes' on the play, longer critical introductions to the play, and a host of other impressive critical works on Shakespeare in general." 

"The first thing to try to do is to arrange to see the play.  If you cannot see a professional production (I wish!), see an amateur one (I still wish!); if an amateur one is not available, try to hire a video production (do you think he means rent the video?!).  In any event, try to see the play before you read it.  (Check!)."

"The next stage is to read it."

So now the next problem has presented itself.  He suggests not reading any sort of criticism before reading the play, though he does give a thumbs up for reading a summary if you are totally confused (I will keep this in mind).  His reasoning, which actually I think is rather sound, is that it is better to form your own opinions of the play first and then read criticism later.  He also suggests that after reading a play, you read something else that is related to it next.  For example if you read King Lear, you next read another tragedy.  First things first, however.  Must get through Romeo and Juliet.  I am finding things slow going.  Do I just read and ignore footnotes, and try and get what meaning out of it I can?  Do I read slowly with the help of footnotes and hope it actually makes much more sense than it appears to?  Actually, though, I have been using the footnotes and on occasion, I was able to discern the meaning all on my own (not every time though--as a matter of fact--more often than not I didn't know).  I hate to think it is going to take me two weeks to read a play that when performed lasts less than three hours. 

The public library has this audio dramatization (though I just noticed it is abridged).  Perhaps I should read the book slowly, then listen later?  Perhaps I am making this harder than it should be?  In any case, I will be reading the play, and then watching it again.  I have two more versions of it checked out from the library--this BBC version with Sir John Gielgud, and Baz Luhrmann's version with Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes.  If nothing else this should give me a good taste of this particular play.  And yes, I do intend to continue on.  I already have A Midsummer Night's Dream all lined up.  Now where was I...scene... 

Nathan Fox: Dangerous Times

Shakespeare seems to be turning up rather a lot in my life lately.  Of course I am seeking him out, but also by chance he has made an appearance.  I don't generally read many young adult books, but this year I have been reading more than normal.  Author L. Brittney kindly passed along a copy of her YA novel, Nathan Fox: Dangerous Times recently for possible review.   It was a thoroughly enjoyable adventure tale, which I think would appeal to young readers--perhaps middle school age.

It's 1587 and Mary Queen of Scots is beheaded.  Queen Elizabeth must defend her throne from all sides.  Thirteen-year old Nathan Fox is a child actor with a theater company also employing fellow actor Will Shakespeare.  When Nathan is approached by Spymaster General, Francis Walsingham, to join England's network of spies, he jumps at the chance.  He will work with John Pearce a seasoned and highly trained spy, but first he must master the art of self defense.  He learns how to fight using swords and daggers, even how to fire pistols.  One of his worst trials is learning how to escape the dreaded oubliette.  He must also learn how to cipher and how to size up his enemy--to know when to run and when to fight.

Pearce and Fox are then sent on a mission to Venice where they will encounter the famous General Othello, his lady Desdemona and the villainous Iago.  Nathan's adventure is only dampened when his older sister is added to the mission at the last minute.  Nathan is thrown into a situation full of dangerous intrigue and drama.  The story is essentially a retelling of Shakespeare's Othello.  Nathan will leave England a boy, and though he may not return quite a man yet, he will definitely be older and wiser.  When he returns he will recount his adventures to Will, and the rest is history so to speak.

As you know I am on a mission myself these days to read more Shakespeare, and I had only the vaguest knowledge of the play, Othello (yes, I do plan on reading this one eventually).  For me this was a fun read as some of the story was new and some was not.  I think young readers will enjoy the adventurous aspects of the novel and will be exposed to Shakespeare, his times, and his work without necessarily knowing it, which is always a good thing in my book.  Prior knowledge of the life and work of Shakespeare is not really needed, though I did notice that there are lots of little references to characters in Shakespeare's works peppered throughout the story.  Brittney's writing is very good and her descriptions of the time and place give a definite sense of what 16th century England and Venice must have been like.  I suspect we can look forward to more installments of Nathan's and John Pearce's adventures.

Nathan Fox: Dangerous Times is available in paper in the UK, where it was shortlisted for the 2007 Waterstone's Children's Book Prize.  The second Nathan Fox book is currently being edited by UK publishers.  Nathan Fox: Dangerous Times will be published here in the US early next year by Feiwel & Friends.  The UK edition of the book is also available from Amazon in Canada.  You can check out the author's website here.   

Southern Authors and Other Miscellanea

I seem to have lots of miscellaneous posts lately.  I hope you don't mind.  I tend to think of my blog as a sort of reading/book journal, and some days I just feel like adding lists or other miscellaneous sorts of thoughts about what I am reading or my reading plans. I have discovered a Southern Reading Challenge (via Pages Turned) that I am being tempted by.  Maggie has several posts about Southern authors to help me think about what I might want to read.  The challenge begins June 1 and ends in August.  The goal is to read three books by Southern authors.  Surely I can do that?  Well, maybe.  I do have several books on my shelves that would fit in nicely that I want to read or should have read long ago.  A few book ideas (though it is better not to make a definite list yet): Flannery O'Connor's A Good Man is Hard to Find and Other Stories (I recently mooched this and have been wanting to read it), Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neal Hurston, and Bastard Out of Carolina by Dorothy Allison (I hate to admit how many years this has been on my shelves unread!).  Other possible authors: William Faulkner, Erskine Caldwell, Carson McCullers, Reynolds Price, Anne Tyler (I wonder if she counts? ) or Kate Chopin.  I'll have to think on this one some more.  Hopefully I will have my books for Carl's Challenge mostly read by then!

I finished L. Brittney's Nathan Fox: Dangerous Times this morning--lots of fun.  I hope to post a review in a day or so.  I'd like to finish Neil Gaiman's Stardust this weekend.  This is definitely not my usual sort of book--it truly is a fairy tale, but I am really enjoying it.  It's light and fun to read.  I think I need something a bit different at the moment as I have been feeling rather ho-hum of late.  I am trying to concentrate on some of my shorter books for a while as well, in order to whittle that night table pile down!

I finally got around to looking through the most recent BookPages that I pick up every month at my public library.  I put a few holds on the titles that look promising.  Already one was on the hold shelf for me last night when I stopped by.  I really want to start Angelica by Arthur Phillips.  I has been compared to Henry James's Turn of the Screw, which I found satisfyingly creepy when I read it last year!  The book blurb in part reads:

"Angelica is a spellbinding Victorian ghost story, and intriguing literary and psychological puzzle, and a meditation on marriage, childhood, memory, and fear."

"It is also a thoroughly modern exploration of identity, reality, and love.  Set at the dawn of psychoanalysis and the peak of spiritualism's acceptance, Angelica is also an evocative historical novel that explores the timeless human hunger for certainty." 

The novel is set in 1880s London and the story is told from four different points of view.  It certainly sounds good, and I have a feeling I am going to have to start reading this one sooner rather than later.

One last thing.  I am feeling an overwhelming urge to order one or two (or maybe even three--they have a special deal for three, you know) new Persephone books!  I have narrowed my list down to five, so I will just have to narrow it down a tad bit more.  I also have a overwhelming urge to pull out one of the Persephone books that I bought last year and start reading it as well.  What was that I just said about not starting any new books?  I start too many books--I feel guilty with having too many books started--I say I am not going to start any new books--I forget what I say, and start a new book. It's such a vicious cycle. 

What I didn't buy.

I have been trying to show a little bit of restraint when it comes to buying books.  I'm not sure if this looks like restraint, but you should see the books that I passed up (so maybe I should qualify "restraint"--restraint for me--not buying everything that looks interesting!).  The pile on the right was from last weekend's visit to my favorite used bookstore, and the books on the left are from my quick stop at B&N last night.  I actually went with a list and bought only from my list (and not all the books on the list), with the exception of a title substitution.  They didn't have the Agatha Christie book I was looking for.

The new books: Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie--I love trains.  I wish Americans actually took trains, but we don't.  A mystery happening on a train should be fun and I want to read more of Agatha Christie's books.  The Road by Cormac McCarthy.  Once again I am feeling like the last person to read this book.  I have put it off due to the heavy subject matter, but I know it will be good even if it is depressing.  Happily it is now in paper and the Oprah sticker actually does peel off!  Not that I have anything against Oprah--truly I do not--I just don't like stickers on my books.  Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky.  The book everyone either loves, or well, doesn't!  I am inclined to think I will like it, but I will try and keep an open mind.  No Graves as Yet by Anne Perry.  Booklogged's recent review of a later book in this mystery series made me want to give Perry's WWI mysteries a try.

The used books: Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage by Alice Munro.  I have had this on my wishlist for ages and I found a practically brand, spanking new copy.  I keep threatening to read short stories.  It may actually happen some day.  Third Miss Symons by F.M. Mayor.  The Persimmon Tree by Marjorie Barnard.  My dreams of finding a pile of Viragos like this one or this one were completely dashed.  I found all of two!  On the upside I can look at it as though I am trying to show restraint.  Besides, where would I put all those anyway!  The Djinn in the Nightingale's Eye by A.S. Byatt.  More short stories, AND they are fairy tales, too. Aurora Floyd by Mary Elizabeth Braddon.  Victorian, sensationalist literature.  How could I pass that up?

While I passed up several really good looking books last night, the only two that I am having second thoughts about are A Poisoned Season by Tasha Alexander and The Secret of Lost Things by Sheridan Hay.  The first is the second installment in a new Victorian mystery series.  I was a bit lukewarm about the first book, but I liked it sufficiently to want to see how things progress.  The Hay book is one of those that I am never quite sure about.  I have come to wonder about  books that have an obvious "hook" to them.  This one involves a young Australian woman who comes to New York and ends up working in a large bookstore.  Book lovers are probably always going to look twice at a book like that--but will it be as good as it sounds?  As both were new hardcovers I was able to talk myself out of them and add my name to the library queue in both cases.  Do you ever regret not buying books?  Or is it a matter of giving yourself enough time and then they don't seem quite as interesting as they first did?  Patience.  It isn't as though I don't have enough to read until my turn comes to get these books from the library!

A Few Reading Notes

It's a little strange reading the unfinished writings of a famous author.  I finished the last two fragments that were included in the Penguin edition of Lady Susan, The Watsons, and Sanditon by Jane Austen.  Lady Susan was the Slaves of Golconda's last book choice, which I posted on last month.  Although I did enjoy reading these works, it is sort of an unsatisfying experience in the end.  If you really liked what you were reading, you're left knowing that there is no more (granted Lady Susan was actually finished, though I suspect she might have worked on it more had she planned on publishing it) when you finish it.  There was a note at the end of The Watsons, which gave the intended ending to the story.  Apparently Jane discussed it with her sister, so we do have some idea of how it ends at least.  And Sanditon just abruptly stops partway through the story with Austen's death.  I might have to give the completed novel (by Another Lady) a try eventually.  Happily there are still four of her novels left for me to read, which I am looking forward to.  Of course, that all said, I am quite happy to have read these works.  It certainly helps put her other writings into a bit of perspective--and even unfinished Jane Austen is better than nothing!

I have once again gotten back into my routine of reading one or two chapters a day of Charles Dickens's David Copperfield.  I am thoroughly enjoying the story and actually don't want to race through it too quickly.  I know he is not a favorite of everyone's, but I do like his writing style.  David is 17, finished with school and spending time in London (where he meets up with an old friend), and then off to Suffolk.  I like David's description: " From the windows in my room I saw all London lying in the distance like a great vapour, with here and there some lights twinkling through it."  A great vapour--isn't that wonderful?  I know he has been criticized for his female characters, and had I not liked this description, I think I might have been offended:

"There was a second lady in the dining-room, of a slight short figure, dark, and not agreeable to look at, but with some appearance of good looks too, who attracted my attention: perhaps because I had not expected to see her; perhaps because I found
myself sitting opposite to her; perhaps because of something really remarkable in her.  She had black hair and eager black eyes, and was thin, and had a scar upon her lip.  It was an old scar - I should rather call it seam, for it was not discoloured, and had
healed years ago - which had once cut through her mouth, downward towards the chin, but was now barely visible across the table, except above and on her upper lip, the shape of which it had altered.  I concluded in my own mind that she was about thirty years of age, and that she wished to be married.  She was a little dilapidated - like a house - with having been so long to let; yet had, as I have said, an appearance of good looks.  Her thinness seemed to be the effect of some wasting fire within her, which found a vent in her gaunt eyes."

Although I would cringe to think of anyone describing me as "a little dilapidated--like a house--with having been so long to let", isn't it terribly evocative? 

I have been spending most of my reading time with Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin.  I have been enjoying it, but...I'm sort of feeling a bit tepid about it at the moment.  I'm not sure why as I am very interested in the time period (set in the 1100s).  It just seems to be moving rather slowly for me.  I am enjoying reading about the details of time, place and gender, however.  The "mistress of death" is Adelia.  She is essentially a coroner--not an easy thing for a woman (and foreigner--she is from Salerno) to be in the 11th century!  She and two other Salernitans have come to England to help discover who is murdering children.  Once it is discovered that doctors have arrived in Cambridge, people line up outside their door looking for medical treatment.

"However, pain had gathered outside her door; she could not ignore it; something had to be done.  Yet if she were to be seen practicing medicine, every doctor in Cambridge would go running to his bishop.  The Church had never approved of human interference in disease, having held for centuries that prayer and holy relics were God's method for healing and anything else was satanic.  It allowed treatment to be carried out in monasteries and, perforce, tolerated lay doctors as long as they did not overstep their mark, but women, being intrinsically sinful, were necessarily banned except in the case of authenticated midwives--and they had to take care not to be accused of witchcraft." 

As I am halfway through the novel, I will keep going and hope that it picks up for me soon.  I'm still working on my Shakespeare readings (but those are posts all their own for later!), and dipping into Stardust by Neil Gaiman, and Nathan Fox by L. Brittney.  I'm waiting for something to really grab me, so I won't want to put it down...but then again I need to settle on one or two books and concentrate on them for a while, too, and actually give the book the chance to grab me!