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

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

I love the options and the creativity allowed so I will give it a try!

✅: Finished (12/12)

Box 1
✅Termush by Sven Holm (set in a "L"uxury hotel/coastal resort, per the GR description.)
Box 2
✅Heartbreak Tango A Serial by Manuel Puig (Love)
Box 3
✅A Zoo in My Luggage by Gerald Durrell (B for "beef" - pidgin for animals and British Cameroons)
Box 4
✅Miss Pickerell Goes to Mars by Ellen MacGregor (yellow cover)
Box 5
✅The Long Secret by Louise Fitzhugh (Harriet the Spy - detective)
Box 6
✅Maigret and the Toy Village by Georges Simenon (France)
Box 7
✅Carrie by Stephen King
(Hot - fire)
Box 8
✅An African in Greenland by Tété-Michel Kpomassie (gray and white cover)
Box 9
✅ The Manticore by Robertson Davies (salmon/pink color on the cover (picture frame); also has 30 in the number of pages 310)
Box 10
✅The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Other Stories (Horror)
Box 11
✅From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg (family - brother and sister)
Box 12
✅The Tunnel by Ernesto Sabato ( White type on cover)

I posted the 2024 reading schedule! Thanks again everyone for your ideas and support!

I'm excited to get started but we still have ~3 more weeks in 2023 so please keep posting in this thread if you have end-of-the-year reads!

Jen wrote: "So I'll give a conditional vote for CitC by Llosa if it's later in the year. And I'll also go ahead and vote for Puig's Heartbreak Tango!"

Thanks again Jen for your comments and support! I agree that it feels weird/funny to plan for books a year out! I almost always read books way ahead of time, for my IRL book club, but I'm getting better at waiting. It can be challenging if you rely on the library, though, and also have numerous group reads!

***2024 Latin American Authors Reading Schedule***

Jan: The Tunnel by Ernesto Sábato (1948)
Feb: Heartbreak Tango by Manuel Puig (1969)
March: Crick Crack, Monkey by Merle Hodge (1970)
April: The Death of Artemio Cruz by Carlos Fuentes (1962)
May: Short stories of your choice!
Some authors to consider: Gabriel García Márquez, Carlos Fuentes, Julio Cortázar, Jorge Luis Borges
June: The Burning Plain and Other Stories by Juan Rulfo (1953)
July-Aug: Gabriela, Clove and Cinnamon by Jorge Amado (1958)
Note: The group will also be reading Jorge Amado, during this time frame, in the 2024 Authors from Around the World thread, so please comment on that thread also!
Sept: The President by Miguel Ángel Asturias (1946)
Oct-Dec: Conversation in the Cathedral by Mario Vargas Llosa (1969)

Thank you everyone for your suggestions! I look forward to a great year of reading and discussions!

I know what you’re saying Luís. It’s not about the setting, though, but rather the author. I know we discussed Jean Rhys, who I don’t think of as a Latin American author. She grew up on the island of Dominica and the book that several of us read, Wide Sargasso Sea, was set in the Caribbean, but she’s still considered a British author. (But, I’m ok that we included her.) I feel like the criteria we’ve been using is whether they grew up or have nationality in a Latin American country. That might be a broader definition than others would consider. I hope you enjoyed the Panama book! I’m adding Lowry’s book “Under the Volcano” to my TBR.

Like Green Mansions, Palace of the Peacock is also set in the jungle and is an adventure story. I wasn’t sure whether Green Mansions was set in Guyana or Venezuela (which are bordering countries) but it didn’t really matter. Interestingly, today’s news had a story about a territorial dispute between the 2 countries. I like this book much better (the writing style) than Green Mansions but I’m not sure whether I will have to read the whole quartet. I hope the books are stand-alone!

I’m now at 66%. I had to pull up the Wiki plot summary to understand a few things. I missed one important scene so I was really confused! I think I dozed off for a few minutes. This is a problem w me and audiobooks!

I like the 2 women Jisbella and Robin but Gully is just awful. No redeeming qualities at all. The beginning where he escapes reminded me of the book Jack Glass by Adam Roberts. Have any of you read his novels? And the circus scene brought up images from Dr Seuss books with all of the odd creatures! (I’ve read so many of these in the last 10 years w my grandsons.) I’m hoping to finish the book by Monday.

Luis - I don’t think so since Malcolm Lowry was British.

Kathy - I’m glad to hear your 5 star review since I plan to read it in 2024. I thought Pedro Paramo was good, also. The writing style of the Latin American authors is very different to me, compared to other authors I read. I’m still getting used to it.

Jen wrote: " What if we just fielded ideas again later, for the second half of the year? Maybe there's new interest, new members and it's not alot to organize if it's just 1-2 books per quarter?"

Thank you Jen for your comments! I'm glad to see you are also interested in reading Conversations in the Cathedral. I added your support for it. I haven't set any months for books yet, other than the coordination with the 2 Brazil authors read in July-Aug. I'm giving group members a few more days to respond! One thing I would like to do is to have a variety of authors representing different countries.

Since we have a dedicated thread (which is new for 2024), rather than a Buddy Read, the protocol is to set a schedule for the year. However, if you read a book later in the year, you can still come back and discuss and, if you read it earlier, you can make some general comments at the time you read it but save a more detailed conversation until others are also reading it. I think that group members appreciate having a set schedule so they can plan for the year and order books or put them on hold, if using the library. This past year, I started a group reads calendar (by month) to keep track of my books of interest from this group plus an IRL club I attend. That's the only way I can manage. Personally, I have a really hard time reading to a schedule but I'm going to try to be more disciplined in that respect in 2024!

Wow Rosemarie! Congrats!

Luís wrote: "Pam wrote: "Jen and Lesle - Thank you for your comments. I will add those to the list!

Luís- Please give us your thoughts on the book even if we are not reading it!"

I will try."

Luis - Only if you want to. No pressure! I usually see your reviews anyway. I will probably not learn Portuguese, even though it is similar to Spanish, but am trying to read a few books in Spanish which don't have English translations.

I will suggest one more title - The Death of Artemio Cruz Carlos Fuentes (1962, 307 pages)

I will put together a schedule by Monday, Dec 11. Please add a comment if you want to support any other suggestions AND if you have a preference of when to read a specific book. I'm thinking about designating one quarter for The Burning Plain and Other Stories plus short stories of your choice. Also, I would like to include one Jorge Amado book during July-Aug, the time frame of the 2 Brazilian authors reads, since several of us are feeling overwhelmed with group read choices. We can piggyback on that thread. Does anyone have a preference out of these 3 options or a suggestion of a different book:

Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands (563 pp)
Gabriela, Clove and Cinnamon (448 pp)
The Violent Land (276 pp)

My preference is The Violent Land, which I will add as a suggestion to post 1, because it's the shortest! Also, it was one of his older works, written in 1943.

Thanks Kathy and Lesle! I thought unknown might mean anonymous.

I'm going to try for the first column and use all books I own. But, I might try 5 random and substitute 4a1 with 5 and 2c since I have lots of books on those shelves.

b1 - Canadian:
Fifth Business
Henderson the Rain King
The Blind Assassin

4a1 - Portuguese:
The Book of Disquiet

E - Greek, Roman, and Modern Greek :
The Iliad and the Odyssey
Zorba the Greek

✅4b03 - Brazilian:
Gabriela, Clove and Cinnamon by Jorge Amado

Questions -
What are unknown authors male and female? If they are unknown, how do you now if they are male or female?
What is the difference between choice and free?

I’m at the 40% point. It’s taking me awhile to get through since I’m listening to the audiobook. It’s definitely keeping my interest! If I had the book, I would be done by now. The narrator Gerard Doyle is actually really good! I don’t think I would’ve heard Gully’s voice the way he sounds. It’s perfect for the character.

Congrats Karin!

Thank you Jen for that info! I’ve never used that site.

For those of you interested in reading Heartbreak Tango and/or The Tunnel, they are available (in the U.S.) through the ILL system, if you can’t find them at your library and don’t want to buy them. ILL is a terrific program but it can take awhile to get the book! I requested both books. They are both in NM college libraries so I may get them this month but maybe not that soon because they shut down over the winter break. Next time I’m at the library, I’ll check on some of the others for availability.

I don't think I ever answered these questions so I'll give it a go!
O. Kindle or Book? Either
U. Tea or coffee? Tea especially chai and Thai Iced Tea
R. Favorite color? Blue and purple
B. Author you love? Abraham Verghese, Amor Towles
O. Book you just finished? Haruki Murakami Manga Stories 1
O. Can't live without? Music!
K. Dream job? Alpaca rancher
C. Vanilla or chocolate? chocolate!
L. Favorite book? The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories by Ken Liu and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
U. Favorite past-time? Hiking/walking and being out in nature, especially the mountains.
B. You are...? Stayin' Alive (I'm watching The Voice and they keep playing a commercial with this song. It feels right for me!)