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<![CDATA[new comment from Paula]]>
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/217711-general-chit-chat-and-information-part-2
Paula made a comment in the Victorians! group:
Rebecca wrote: "Does anyone belong or can they suggest a good group for African American Lit. I want more exposure to it. Thank you."
Have you read anything by Chinua Achebe? I read Things Fall Apart for a world lit class once, and re-read it a few years ago. It's a fantastic book. He's written several other notables, but TFA tends to be the one people think of first with him.
I think one of the things I like most about his books is they focus on a lot of tradition, and then how those traditions are impacted by changes in society, changes in culture, changes in values, etc.
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<![CDATA[new comment from Paula]]>
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/126901-introducing-ourselves
Paula made a comment in the Victorians! group:
Hi Windfall - glad to have you join us :)
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<![CDATA[new comment from Paula]]>
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/242046-our-mutual-friend-charles-dickens
Paula made a comment in the Victorians! group:
We can still do multiple posts; I'd like for Christopher to go ahead (if he doesn't mind) with the ideas he hints at above. My note was just a caution, that's all :)
I was so very bummed that my local Barnes & Noble didn't have a paper copy of this book; I only have it in Kindle and this seems a great book to curl up with in the cold winter months ahead!
Did you finish it? I hope you write a review as I sincerely enjoy your commentaries :)
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<![CDATA[new comment from Paula]]>
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/225589-victorian-word-of-the-day
Paula made a comment in the Victorians! group:
I think you're spot on, actually - another source lists it as a precursor to today's pin-ball machine:
"Bagatelle is a precursor of the pinball machine (which is also descended from pachinko), and laterally related to miniature golf." (care of wiki).
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<![CDATA[Paula added 'Lucky Jim']]>
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/78566848
to: Lucky Jim (Penguin Classics)byKingsley Amis bookshelves: 1001
Funny, witty, so easy to identify with - this book was a pleasurable and light read from start to finish. The agony of the speech was palpable and how I wish I could have been in the audience!
Unfortunately, I had to rush through the ending quite a bit, as I wanted to finish it before I left for Ireland (leaving tomorrow). This book was best for me in small doses, when I could appreciate the plot, characters, and humor a bit at a time.
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<![CDATA[Paula added 'The Power and the Glory']]>
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/78566441
to: The Power and the Glory (Audio Cassette)byGraham Greene bookshelves: 1001
Done as a book on CD, this was a dark and rather depressing book. It covers the story of a priest in post-revolution Mexico, a time when being a priest was tantamount to treason. The priest is wanted by the people and hunted by the police, and often the two are combined, whereby the people are afraid of the repercussions of aiding the priest, yet long for the services he can offer in the way of religion.
The priest, Padre Jose, is not the quintessential priest; he has a predilication for brandy and an illegitimate daughter. Nevertheless, he does what he can by way of religion and often laments his inability to do more.
There are times in this story where the descriptions of events are especially poignant; at one point, watching a police chief drink the illegal wine that Padre Jose just purchased with his last pesos, I found myself ready to scream at the injustice as the last drops were consumed (the priest had intended for it to be sacramental wine).
When the book reached its inevitable ending, I found myself a bit relieved that it was over, and that I had not actually lived through the experience of the story.