Where've I been for the last few months? I thought I had subscribed to The Classics Circuit in Google Reader, but it seems I didn't, so I missed signing up for any of the great upcoming circuit tours. Technically I can just read along on my own, but somehow it feels sort of outside of things. Every time I pop in there I seem to come between sign ups, though that's not entirely true as Alexandre Dumas is in the works for April. I loved Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo when I read it a few years back--all 1400+ pages of it (talk about a thumping good read). It's my "desert island" book. If I was ever stranded I would be quite happy to take it with me! It's probably too long to read again by mid-April, so maybe I'll just watch for the next tour. I would have loved to join in on reading Georgette Heyer, and even have one of her earlier novels lined up to read, Helen, but it was only chance that I happened to pick it up at the same time. If nothing else I can enjoy everyone else's posts on her books (as well as Zola's as he's on circuit tour, too!).
I have another group read lined up, however. It's quite a chunky book and I wasn't sure I would be able to manage it at 800 pages. Edith Pargeter's The Brothers of Gwynedd is a forthcoming release from Sourcebooks and when I was asked if I'd like a review copy I was hesitant. Such a large book seems like it would mean a little pressure getting it read by a certain date. This time around, however, a group of us are reading it over the course of four months beginning in May. Two hundred pages a month seems far more doable. I love historical fiction, but I'm getting a little bit picky about it. As I've heard many good things about Edith Pargeter, who also wrote under the pen name Ellis Peters, I think I should be in safe hands. She's quite well known for her Brother Cadfael mysteries. The Brothers of Gwynedd is a quartet of novels set in 13th century Wales. As this is a period she knew well, I'm hoping this will be a good read.
This weekend, though, I hope to finish Elizabeth Chadwick's The Scarlet Lion. It's funny as The Scarlet Lion ends with the reign of Henry III, who will feature prominently in the Pargeter book. They line up nicely though I think the stories will be told from vastly different perspectives. I'm also nearing the end of Jerome K. Jerome's Three Men in a Boat, which is a humorous novel of misadventures. You can't but help shake your head at the antics that go on in its pages. I hadn't really planned on reading it, but did so in anticipation of reading Connie Willis's To Say Nothing of the Dog, which it spoofs.
Maybe I'll sneak in a few other books this weekend, too.