Just Talking Showing 1,601-1,650 of 3,141

[Milena]

Laurie wrote: "Milena, I didn't mean to imply that not voting in the polls means that someone isn't interested....."

Of course you didn't imply that, Laurie. I just took your post as a chance to say that I like the group. :)

[Milena]

Pink wrote: "Bob, we couldn't do this job without you :)

I think as moderators and members, we all bring something slightly different to the group. Which is a wonderful thing!"

I am of the same opinion, Pink!

[Andrea AKA Catsos Person]

Yeah baby!

Serial reader just added "Dangerous Liaisons."

For the last two years of bingo, I had hoped/tried to read this, but it didn't happen.

To make matters worse, I couldn't find it in eBook format at the library or Project Gutenberg.

I'm so happy!

[Jen]

Andrea (Catsos Person) is a Compulsive eBook Hoarder wrote: "Yeah baby!

Serial reader just added "Dangerous Liaisons."

For the last two years of bingo, I had hoped/tried to read this, but it didn't happen.

To make matters worse, I couldn't find it in eBo..."

Woohoo!
I just downloaded serial reader after seeing it mentioned in the Musketeers thread. Think Dangerous Liaisons might be my next serial =D

[Darren]

Les Liaisons Dangereuses is available in English on gutenberg:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/45512

[Lena]

So there's a new law coming up in North Dakota that will let people run over Native Americans with their cars without legal consequences - HB1203
It's a bad dream... no it's America.
https://medium.com/@GaryRidesBikes/a-...
https://www.google.com/amp/theslot.je...

[Pink]

Lena, so much of the real world seems like a bad dream right now. That's why I'm taking solace in books, lately I've alternated between reading fiction for escapism and non-fiction to learn more about issues happening in the world. Some days I don't feel like reading anything at all. Today I need something totally different to cheer me up and as a reward for spending the morning completing my tax returns, so I'll be continuing with A Room with a View and hoping for some romance and adventures in Italy.

[Lena]

Oh Pink, you speak my language. I had initially deleted my news app but things have gotten so bad so fast. Mostly I have friends who keep me in the loop when I look up from my book. I will be attending the march in Austin. I don't think it will change anything but it's something, when you are not important it's what you've got.

[Karin]

I share your feelings Pink and Lena. Although I don't live in the USA I'm very worried about the world right now. I've taken up reading fantasy again. For me it's the best form of escapism.

[Kathleen]

This is horrific, Lena. Thank you for spreading the word. I worry that these horrors are coming at us with such speed that we'll become numb to them, and we can't let that happen.

I think Pink has it right--we have to balance between being aware and escaping to survive. (And A Room with a View is an excellent escape in my opinion!)

[Laurie]

I am ashamed of being in the same country as someone who would propose a law like the one you posted, Lena. I agree that the news is hard to watch these days. I have some books coming up that aren't easy reads, and I almost want to put them off because I need something more cheerful after seeing depressing real life news.

Lena, I am interested in the March in Austin. I will have to look into it since I am in Texas.

[Renee]

Laurie wrote: "I fully agree, Bob, that a great group requires great moderators. The two go hand in hand. And you didn't give yourself credit as a helpful and wonderful moderator along with the ladies so I will. All four of you do an awesome job. I applaud our moderators and our members who all make this a fantastic group."

Perfect response Laurie. All the moderators in this group are wonderful, and many times I've seen them try to encourage more people to participate in the group discussions. The moderators work hard to make sure this group is running as smoothly as possible, and we have so many members that like to participate in the group reads. That's what makes this such a great group.

[Bob, Short Story Classics]

I'm going to request that we leave current event politics and religion out of our discussions. I know this thread is headed "Just Talking" and no limits were established when it was created, but lets not jump down the rabbit hole of politics or religion. Why don't we keep controversy on Facebook.

[Lena]

Sometimes things are so bad you just have to give a damn. After four years at Vassar I thought I was all protested out but I'll be at the next march.

[Lena]

And I don't Facebook - this is my only social media. Book people, my people.

[Kathleen]

I absolutely agree with Laurie and Renee about the wonderful moderators in this group, and I've been so impressed with the way this group is run that I trust them to know best. So will do Bob! :-)

[Lena]

And I will continue talking when I feel lives are at stake.

[Pink]

Will do Bob. It's hard not to get into political discussions lately, but this is probably best left elsewhere.

I read just a little of my book today, which is still enjoyable. I was hoping to finish tomorrow, so that I can wrap it up in January, but I don't think that will happen now. Does anyone else race to finish off their books at the end of each month? I certainly wouldn't have done this before goodreads, but it's a habit I've picked up since I started tracking my reading and working through monthly tbr lists.

[Lena]

I try but I think many of my January reads will bleed into February. Mostly I think because I haven't enjoyed several of them as much as I thought I would.

[Pink]

That's a shame you're not enjoying them, I hope they improve if you decide to stick with them. I decided to return a couple of library books this week, as although they were interesting, I just wasn't interested in picking them up each day, which is never a good sign. Once I finish A room with a view, I'm looking forward to starting a few new books for Feb and crossing some more off my challenge lists! Plus I need to get stuck into The Three Musketeers for our 1st quarterly read of 2017, but I'll be listening to that one.

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Absolutely, race reading at the end of the month. Because I need to make space for the stack of new books that I want to read for the next month.

And Lena, I never feel bad about abandoning a book that I don't enjoy, but I do understand that many people can't do that. Hope February brings wonderful reading for you.

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

And just some good news here in the west -- we should get up to freezing this week!!! And then by the end of the week above freezing & then maybe we can thaw some of the snow-apocalypse!

[Brina]

I abandoned some too. I've decided if I can't get into a book to abandon it because reading is my escape/me time/ entertainment. Did pretty well for January. Still might finish a short story tomorrow or a book of poems. Focusing on African American history for February.

[Lena]

I'll drop contemporary books I don't like/get into but I feel like I have to finish a classic.

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Lena wrote: "I'll drop contemporary books I don't like/get into but I feel like I have to finish a classic."

Yes, I agree that I am much more likely to drop a contemporary read that I am not enjoying. With a classic I will at least give it a couple of tries before I give up -- they usually end up back onto the TBR pile, just not so near the top.

[Loretta]

Kathy wrote: "And just some good news here in the west -- we should get up to freezing this week!!! And then by the end of the week above freezing & then maybe we can thaw some of the snow-apocalypse!"

How lovely Kathy! Don't forget to bundle up! :)

[Laurie]

Kathy wrote: "And just some good news here in the west -- we should get up to freezing this week!!! And then by the end of the week above freezing & then maybe we can thaw some of the snow-apocalypse!"

Oh man, I don't think I am cut out to live in cold places. Here in Texas, we seemed to have just about skipped winter this year. I know we have a little ways to go, but I think we won't have 6 more weeks of winter. Guess I'll have to wait til Groundhog Day to know for sure. ;-)

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Well, we are not really that cold compared to many other states: Alaska, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, North Dakota, and several others too. I am sure I've got 6 more weeks of winter no matter what he groundhog says. Yes I will stay bundled.

[Susan O]

It's like a seesaw here. A couple of weeks ago we had single digit lows (rare for us) and the next week highs in the upper 60s. This week it is close to average for the area with highs near 50 and lows just below freezing.

[Brina]

Where I live we have winter but it doesn't really snow. If there's 1/2 an inch people panic. Being from Chicago I laugh it off but I really want snow just so my kids can play in it. Usually we go to Chicago for winter break just to experience winter-- actually it's this week-- but it didn't work out this year. The best I can hope for now is an early spring.

[Melanti]

I agree with the idea that Texas hasn't gotten much of a winter this year. Here, we've had a couple of cold days, but we've spent most of the month in the 70s or 80s.
It never gets that cold here, but it's been a lot warmer than normal the last few weeks.

[MKay]

Not sure where you all are in Texas, but I agree. I will say however, that we usually have at least one ice or snow day in February, so not giving up the warm clothes, etc. yet!

[siriusedward]

Karin wrote: "I share your feelings Pink and Lena. Although I don't live in the USA I'm very worried about the world right now. I've taken up reading fantasy again. For me it's the best form of escapism."

Me too.I am an escapist ? Too.

[Brina]

Cleaned out my to read list. I decided to do each month so it's becomes more manageable. This time I deleted 30 books and it felt good to do the housekeeping.

[Pink]

That's good Brina. I've been trying to do the same lately, but there's just so much I want to read!

[Laurie]

Very excited to see that GR now has a reread feature to add a new date for reread books without clearing out a previous date. I don't reread many books, but I have wanted to keep my original date read intact but count the current read toward my annual GR challenge. And now we can, so there is one improvement GR finally did.

[Lena]

Oooh nice. I do rereads yearly.

[Darren]

Excellent!
and very timely for me as I only started logging my reads a couple of years ago and I'm just about to start doing some re-reads... :oD

[Katy, Quarterly Long Reads]

Laurie wrote: "Very excited to see that GR now has a reread feature to add a new date for reread books without clearing out a previous date. I don't reread many books, but I have wanted to keep my original date r..."

Here is the link to the announcement: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

[Nente]

Nice! I'm a big rereader: I've reread the entire Austen works, Discworld, Jeeves&Wooster, Nero Wolfe canons, etc, etc, etc. I don't know, though, if it would be "fair" to count rereads towards the challenge: I certainly often find it easier to reread than to read a new book.

[Jen]

Also a big re-reader, although I have no qualms about counting re-reads towards challenges, so long as they're in different years, and that most of the books in the challenge are new to me. ^^'
I like to think that book + reader = complete book ... as the reader varies, re-reads become legitimate new experiences

[siriusedward]

I am a big re reader too.
Its like we are meeting friends again...

[Melanti]

I used to reread all the time when I was younger. So much so that I had certain books all but memorized.

I still do, every once in awhile. But not nearly as much as I used to.

Still, I'm glad they added the re-read feature.

[Jen]

siriusedward wrote: "I am a big re reader too.
Its like we are meeting friends again..."

That's a nice way to think about it (: it can be quite comforting to re-read a favourite book

[Steve]

Has anyone else had an issue with the "like" feature on GR's home page posts? Twice now, after clicking, a window full of code has opened and asked me to "Ok" it before it will go away. Can't be right. Anyone???

[Pink]

Nope not me, but i usually get some sort of glitch on here every so often. Hope it goes away again, if not you can report the error to GR.

[Melanti]

Not here either, but GR has plenty of glitches.

[Emerson]

I need your help!

For a project I am looking for a non fiction about abuses in nursing/care homes. How and why it is so common. Do you have a suggestion?

Also, has anyone tried to read an original version of Beauty and the Beast, which one did you choose?

[Melanti]

No clue on the nursing homes, but for Beauty and the Beast, I do know a bit about that.

There's two main "original" versions.

There's a long novella by Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve. (~100-150 pgs)
Then there's a much shortened abridgment by Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont written a couple of decades later. (~30-50 pgs)

I liked both versions, though Villenueve's is a little drawn out. It includes a lot more details about the prince's back story and more about Beauty's stay in his castle & their relationship.


Most of what people think of as "Beauty and the Beast" comes from Beaumont's condensed version. If you only want to read one definitive version and not put a ton of effort into finding a copy, Beaumont's version is what you're looking for.

Because it's a lot longer and a lot harder to find, I would only recommend Villenueve's if you're really interested - and I'd recommend that in addition to Beaumont's version, not in place of it.

Because it's more condensed, Beaumont's version is a LOT easier to find. And much of the time that you see a version attributed to Villenueve, it's actually just Beaumont's abridgment or Beaumont's with some added details from Villenueve.


SurLaLune is a really great resource when it comes to fairy tales. They do have a section dedicated to "Beauty and the Beast", and it includes Andrew Lang's Beaumont/Villenueve combo, as well as a page of history about the tale. http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/be...


There's not many good, complete English translations of Villenueve's version, but Jack Zipes has done one, and you can find it in his French collection of tales: Beauties, Beasts and Enchantments: Classic French Fairy Tales. Make sure you're getting the full "Beauties, Beasts and Enchantments" version. The Beauty and the Beast and Other Classic French Fairy Tales MMPB version omits the Villenueve version due to the length.

You can also find two different translations of Villenueve's version in Beauty and the Beast Tales from Around the World (collected by the women who run the SurLaLune site). They're both somewhat incomplete, but Heiner notes what's different about each.


Probably MUCH more detail about "Beauty and the Beast" than anyone other than a fairy tale fan wanted to know.

[Squire]

But great, nonetheless! (I could spout more information on The Tale of Genji than most people would care to know). Thanks for this.