Pam’s Comments (group member since Jul 12, 2018)

Pam’s comments from the Never too Late to Read Classics group.

Welcome to the group Luffy!

The schedule looks good to me, also. Thanks Montse! I will have company June 5-12 so will be limited with reading that week.

Glad to see you will be joining us Chad!

Thank you Lesle!

Thank you Ayush and Montse for your condolences. I wish I would’ve read it sooner but now is a good time. My husband has been encouraging me for years to read this book also. It’s his 3rd favorite!

I think Montse’s idea of dividing it up by chapters is a great idea and will help us keep on track. Do one of you want to create/post a schedule by week and chapter? I am fine with whatever you both want to do! I’m on vacation starting today but will be back on Saturday. I can start next week. I look forward to reading with both of you and whoever else decides to join in!

Ayush - Your plan sounds great! May-September with a break between parts 1 and 2.
I started it a few years ago so I will probably skim read the first 75 pages this weekend, to refresh my memory.

I have been wanting to read the book in its original language and my husband recently convinced me to buy the Spanish edition. We will see how that goes! It’s going to be very ambitious for me. I had originally planned to do a buddy read with my father, since this was his favorite book. We didn’t get around to doing it and then he passed away unexpectedly in March this year. So, I want to read it in his memory to remind myself of how much he appreciated humor. He would start laughing just telling me about parts of the book! I’m guessing that he was picturing the scenes in his mind. I hope we all enjoy it as much as he did!

Ayush wrote: "Hi guys! I have been wanting to read this classic piece of literature for a long time and would love to have someone read it along with me..."

Hi Ayush - Lesle is correct that we had talked about adding a Don Quixote thread under the Latin American Reads topic. However, I am fine with having the thread as a Buddy Read here, especially since Cervantes is a Spanish author. I do want to read the book this year but may not get started in May. Are you willing to start it in June or later? If not, I can squeeze in some reading this month.

Like Montse, I plan to read it in Spanish. But, I will more than likely alternate between English and Spanish since Spanish is not my first language. I know this will slow me down so I'm thinking I will need at least 3 months. I'm thinking May-August/Sept.

If you want to start reading now, I don't want to slow you down! Montse and I and other members can chime in once we get started. I can certainly start in May with the English edition (Edith Grossman translation) since that will be quicker for me to read, to keep up with you at the beginning, maybe through Part I. I suggest that, when we post, we state the page we are on and keep the public comments of a general nature (avoiding spoilers) and use the GR spoiler tags for anything that gives away the plot, since we will be at different places with our reading.

What are your thoughts?

I was at the National Museum of Nuclear Science and History this past Saturday and discovered the children's book Miss Pickerell and the Geiger Counter by Ellen MacGregor on display in the nuclear-themed toys section. I had never heard of this series, which was started in 1951, so I found it on the Hoopla app and checked out the Mega Pack (first 4 stories). I read the first one Miss Pickerell Goes to Mars which was like Amelia Bedelia starring in a 1950s sci-fi movie, with the tiny rocket (built in a month in her pasture) and the ladder to get in and out. The story was silly but, hopefully, it inspired children, especially girls, in the '50s to take an interest in studying science. The author did a good job of explaining basic science principles. I'm just starting the 2nd book, Miss Pickerell and the Geiger Counter. I think that I would've enjoyed these books as a kid (3rd grade?) They're kind of fun to read now, keeping in mind the times when they were written.

Luís wrote: "I've already read two authors from this thread. ..."

Muchas gracias Luis for kicking off the discussion with Julio Cortazar's first short story collection Bestiario (1951) and Gabriel Garcia Marquez's Big Mama's Funeral (1962). I couldn't find an English translation of Bestiario but found this info on Wiki:

"Bestiario is a book of eight short stories written by Julio Cortázar. All the stories (except "Cefalea" and "Circe") were translated to English by Paul Blackburn and included in the collection End of the Game and Other Stories (1967). The "Cefalea" ("Headache") was translated in English by Michael Cisco in 2014 and published online by tor.com."

I will be travelling by car (12 hrs roundtrip) this weekend and plan to do some short story reading and maybe even some book journaling. I will update message 2 on Sunday, if needed.

Short story collections (some options but not exclusive):
* Collected Stories by Gabriel García Márquez
* Blow-Up and Other Stories by Julio Cortázar
* The Alienist and Other Stories of Nineteenth-Century Brazil by Machado de Assis
* The Penguin Book of Latin American Short Stories Edited by Thomas Colchie
This book looks really interesting with 26 different authors, some of them never published in English before! Some of the stories are likely outside of the classics period, as we have defined it, but feel free to report it anyways and put the publication date in parenthesis. I have found that it is not always easy to discover the publication date of specific stories and a lot of these authors' writing spans several decades and crosses the 1974 cutoff.

Stories or Collections Read (as commented in this thread):
- Bestiario by Julio Cortázar
- Big Mama’s Funeral by Gabriel García Márquez

Happy May! This month is your opportunity to read and discuss short stories written by Latin American authors. There are lots to choose from! A few well know writers include Gabriel García Márquez, Carlos Fuentes, Julio Cortázar, and Jorge Luis Borges. Some of the authors are well known for their short stories and their collections are easy to find. Some authors are not as well known but their works can be found in a collection with other authors. I'll start a post (#2) to add some collections and update it with stories that members read in this thread. Let's see how many different stories and authors we can read! Happy reading everyone!

Glad to hear you are enjoying it Chad! I’m hoping to read a bit more of it today.

Welcome Ethan! A few classics (from the Americas) that I recommend are A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith, An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser, Masters of the Dew by Jacque Roumain, and Doña Barbara by Rómulo Gallegos. Two short European classics I loved are Anton Chekhov’s Kashtanka and The Metamorphosis by Frank Kafka. It sounds like you are off your a good start with reading classics!

Rosemarie - That’s awesome! My parents both grew up in a Polish-American community. My dad played the accordion as a kid. In NM, you’re more likely to hear Mexican polkas (norteño) rather than Polish or German, unless you are at an Oktoberfest or the German Club! It’s the same beat but really fast! It’s fun but exhausting. 😂

Thank you friends! My mom died 3 years ago but we couldn’t hold a gathering at the time because of Covid restrictions. Even afterwards, my father didn’t want to do anything. I think it was too emotional for him so now we’ll celebrate both of their lives. I think it will be easier since some time has passed, but will still be emotional. It’s never easy. I like Karin’s idea of giving guests 3 minutes to say something. My parents were polka champs in Brooklyn back in their youth so I’m thinking about playing some polka music. I don’t know who in the group, other than me, knows how to polka but it will be lively at least! 🪗

Welcome Parsa! That sounds like an awesome group you have going. How long have you been meeting? Do you have some favorites?

Karin - I’m so sorry to hear about your mom’s passing. ❤️ I’m glad the Celebration of Life went well! I just started planning a joint one in June for both of my parents.

Lesle - Great! I’m glad to hear that! No hurry. I had to renew my copy for 3 weeks so I will still be reading it in May, as others may be also.

That’s funny Chad but I have to admit I’ve done something similar with downloading the study guide and then realizing that’s all my library offers! I’m glad you will be joining us! I’m only on page 31. I’ve had a hard time getting into it but I think the story will start to pick up. It starts off with Artemio Cruz doing a lot of philosophizing on his deathbed. I’m impatient and just want to get into his life story.

Luís, I don’t know about courageous but my health is suffering likely from the apnea so it’s important to address. Hopefully, I will start feeling more energetic and less tired!

I hope everyone has a good weekend!