Bob’s Comments (group member since Jun 22, 2011)

Bob’s comments from the Catching up on Classics (and lots more!) group.

The Bear by William Faulkner is our August 2023 Short Story/Novella Read.

This discussion will open on August 1

Beware Short Story Discussions will have Spoilers

Mini and Matthew, Welcome to the group!!

These are the 14 titles randomly selected titles from our Master Short Story List. Please vote for the one that interests you the most. You can cast your vote by using the list number or the titles name. The top 7 will move forward to the poll on the 15th. Feel free to change your vote, as there maybe be ties. A maximum of 7 titles will move to the poll. If there is a tie for 7th place only 6 titles will go to the poll.

Example: I vote for #__ -or- I vote for Story Title

160. The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas by Ursula K. Le Guin
241. The Afternoon of a Writer by Peter Handke
247. The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven by Sherman Alexie
231. A Hunger Artist by Franz Kafka
260. And of Clay Are We Created by Isabel Allende
12. The Rocking-Horse Winner by D.H. Lawrence
176. Watchers of the Sky by Alfred Noyes
280. The Tree by John Fowles
89. An Outline of Intellectual Rubbish: A Hilarious Catalogue of Organized and Individual Stupidity by Bertrand Russell
355. Fifty Grand by Ernest Hemingway
195. The Dialogue of the Dogs by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
158. The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin
282. Noon Wine by Katherine Anne Porter
69. So Long a Letter by Mariama Bâ

Welcome, Marti.

Welcome Dina, you are in the right place, glad you are here.

Ron, welcome to the group.

Annette wrote: "Congratulations, Bob! Not surprisingly, I added a few to my Mt TBR. Which were your favorites?"

Annette, if you listed all 25 from my bingo card, I can’t warn you off any of them. This year has been an exceptional reading year and I have been lucky to read so many great books. The only one that while good that didn’t live up to what I expected based on past reads by the author was Sunset Pass by Zane Grey

Terris wrote: "Woohoo! Great job, Bob!! :)"

Thanks, Terris. I noticed in an earlier post that you also planned to read Shute’s The Far Country. If you haven’t gotten to it yet, move it up on your list, it is typical of Shute’s books, it’s really really good. You also asked me to let you know about No Highway, get a copy, it is excellent, perhaps slightly better than Far Country.

Matt wrote: "Congratulations on the blackout.

Enough time to do another BINGO board Bob! : )"

Matt, I did two bingo cards a few years ago. It was fun, but not something I will try again.

Cynda wrote: "You did Bob! You did it. Gimpel the Fool sounds like a folktale name. I will see if I can find a copy."

Cynda, I believe you would like the story. I have it in one of my short story anthologies, I checked, and it is readily available on-line. It is short enough that reading it on the computer screen should not be a pain, it is also short and doesn’t take long to read.

Sara wrote: "Look at you!!!! Tell me how you liked Shogun."

Sara, thanks for your encouragement about how good a book Shogun is. I can’t consider it a bucket list book, just one I was aware of and had some curiosity about. Now, it has become a favorite and one I will gladly recommend. It is a marvelous story. One I will never forget. Thank You!!

I want to say thanks to all of you who have taken the time to acknowledge my completing my challenge, it means a lot, Thank You All.

Welcome Anulekha

The winner for our August Short Story - The Bear by William Faulkner

Seven early vote winners moving on to the poll
30 members voted

7 Votes - 51. A Pair of Silk Stockings by Kate Chopin
6 Votes - 393. Recitatif by Toni Morrison
4 Votes - 273. Address Unknown by Kathrine Kressmann Taylor
3 Votes - 240. The Bear by William Faulkner
2 Votes - 119. First Love by Ivan Turgenev
2 Votes - 261. Michael Kohlhaas: A Tale from an Old Chronicle by Heinrich von Kleist
2 Votes - 357. The Fatal Eggs by Mikhail Bulgakov
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1 Vote - 7. Rock Crystal by Adalbert Stifter
1 Vote - 279. Butterfly Valley: A Requiem by Inger Christensen
1 Vote - 332. The Duchess of Malfi by John Webster
1 Vote - 313. Do You Love Me? found in The Fat Man in History and Other Stories by Peter Carey
0 Votes - 46. Morning In The Burned House by Margaret Atwood
0 Votes - 212. Bunner Sisters by Edith Wharton
0 Votes - 67. Futility or the Wreck of the Titan by Morgan Robertson

Kathleen, I read The Crystal Cave earlier this year, one of the best Reads this year. Oh, also congrats, on finishing your short story challenge.

Another great review. I have only read one by Zola. I remember it was really good.

Congrats, hope you continue to get better.

Congratulations Sara!!

I nominate, The Man Who Laughs by Victor Hugo