theduckthief’s Comments (group member since Apr 10, 2008)

theduckthief’s comments from the The Classics group.

I don't know about you but I'm still slogging away at Les
Mis.

Here are February's choices. You have until Jan 25 to vote.

Lady Audley's Secret - Mary Elizabeth Braddon
Breakfast at Tiffany's - Truman Capote
Persuasion - Jane Austen
Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger

Here's the link to the poll

This is for discussing "Jean Valjean".

This is for discussing "St. Denis".

This is for discussing "Marius".

This is for discussing "Cosette".

This is for discussing "Fantine".

I know. I just went and picked it up today and couldn't believe the size of the thing. I doubt I'll be able to finish it by the end of January.

Happy New Year!

It looks like Les Mis slipped through by just a hair.

Wow, yes it is. Thanks for reminding me Rachel.

Sorry guys. I've been caught up with work, bad weather and Christmas shopping.

Alright so with the random number generator came up with 33, 42, 28 & 20. I'll put the poll up right away.

33 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo
42 Candide - Voltaire
28 Princess Bride - William Goldman
20 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens

I loved the creepy sentence where a hand draws aside the bed curtains!

The description for the first spirit is much more interesting than the versions I've seen in movies. I didn't know what the cap meant though. Scrooge had made the cap and it dimmed the top of the spirits head. I thought it might have some symbolic meaning.

And I though a Welsh wig was a wig but in fact it's a hat.

With the line "a positive light appeared to issue from Fezziwig's calves", all I could think was flashlight calves.

Oh gross. But thanks for the info.

I can't believe how short this book is but it was very enjoyable. A nice little snack of a book.

I wondered what a smoking bishop was but then I turned to the internets.

The drink is hot, spiced wine, something like a hot sangria, scented with oranges and infused with port.

Apparently people back in the 1800s enjoyed a range of “clerical drinks.” Pope = burgundy, Cardinal is champagne or rye, Archbishop is claret, Bishop is port. Very cool. The next time I have champagne I'll be sure to ask for a glass of Cardinal.

Okay I have a bone to pick with this section. The third ghost shows Scrooge life after his death. Surely he would recognize all those belongings as his own? Maybe not the shirt but certainly the watch.

In the various movie versions I've watched the third spirit has always creeped me out but here, not so much. It's actually a nice change.

Mrs. Cratchett confused me somewhat in this section when she talked about the "colour hurting her eyes", whatever that means.

I too liked the bit about the torch. What does everyone think of the authorial/narrator's voice? Does it intrude on the story or does it add to it?

Heh, fruiteners. I love when I find new words thanks to Dickens.

My copy has some illustrations interspersed and one includes a game of Snapdragon. This game sounds crazy. The idea is to put raisins into a wide shallow bowl, add brandy and then set the thing on fire. Whomever grabbed the most raisins out of the fire was the winner. If I haven't said it before, I'll say it again. People are crazy!

"Twice-turned gown". I'm assuming this means a hand me down though I'm not sure what 'twice turned' is supposed to mean.

Also, does Tiny Tim have polio? I don't remember him having leg braces in any of the Christmas Carol movies I've seen. At the Cratchett house I love how the two youngest stuff spoons in their mouths to keep from screaming for goose. There was also a "pudding like a speckled cannon ball", heh.

I didn't get the part about "barring the Spirit out" though and wasn't sure how that would be accomplished.

It's interesting to see how the story was compacted and edited for movie form. Scrooge's nephew has no name, Bob Cratchett is the sole employee and apparently a man of little imagination. But it's also nice to see how many lines were directly lifted from the text.

I like that the story has a narrator thought I'm not sure whether this narrator is meant to be Dickens or not.

We get it, Marley's dead. We don't need to be told 12 times.

I loved the description of Scrooge as being hard as flint but incapable or producing a generous fire. As well, for some reason I was reminded of "It's a Wonderful Life" while reading this, despite the stories having different plots.

The use of weather and the description of it created a gloomy 1840s London feel, especially this closed-in feeling thanks to the pervasive and ever-present fog. The writing does suffer from convoluted sentences but that's Victorian era writing for you.

Exactly how old is Bob that he slides down Cornhill 20 times after work? Also, why did Scrooge move into Marley's place after he died? Where was he living before?

Heh, he checks his dressing gown for spooks because it was hanging suspiciously. Marley may be a blob of mustard! But what's with that statement about the toothpick and goblins? I didn't get that at all and what happened to Jacob's jaw?

Hi Erika. Welcome to the group and thanks for the suggestions!

This is for discussing "Marley's Ghost".

The is for discussing "The First of the Three Spirits".

This is for discussing "The Second of the Three Spirits".

This is for discussing "The Last of the Spirits".