December Group Read #2- Don't Look Now

[Latasha]

Don't Look Now and other stories came in 2nd place. Pick a story, read, discuss, have fun! Please remember to use spoiler tags, page numbers, chapters or %.

https://www.amazon.com/Dont-Look-Now-...

[Kylie]

I have requested a collection of Du Maurier's short stories that has this from my local library, so hopefully should be able to start on time. Especially as my current book needs to go back on the 2nd.

[Kelly B]

I'd like to read this one, but Dec. is already shaping up to be really busy. I'll have to wait a few weeks and see if I have time.

[Michael]

I'm so glad that this is December's read. I started reading this one of my own accord; it will be nice to talk about it!

[Kylie]

I have the collection now but have to finish the book I'm on, plus at least one other is booked so need to try and do them before the borrowing time runs out (underfunding in public libraries meaning only one copy is available, damn it). So it might be towards the end of the month that I get around to this.

[Katy]

Michael wrote: "I'm so glad that this is December's read. I started reading this one of my own accord; it will be nice to talk about it!"

Hi. Just did the download from my library. I'll see if it shows up on my Kindle as this is my first time using this library feature. I read Rebecca earlier this year, and read The Birds years ago, so I'm looking forward to this one.

[Latasha]

Rebecca is soooo good!

[Kylie]

Latasha wrote: "Rebecca is soooo good!"

I really like Jamaica Inn as well, even though there's no evidence that wrecking actually ever occured in Cornwall.

[Katy]

Started and finished this one today. I liked the first one the best. Won't go into details as others might not have started yet.

[Latasha]

my library doesn't have it so I guess i'll skip this one. I haven't read that one Kylie so I have no idea what your talking about lol.

[Kelly B]

Latasha wrote: "my library doesn't have it so I guess i'll skip this one. I haven't read that one Kylie so I have no idea what your talking about lol."

Maybe they could get it for you via Interlibrary loan? That's how I get most of the group reads. My library is so small they don't have many horror novels:-).

I'm going to put my library request in Monday; hopefully within a week or two I'll have the book in hand.

[Kelly B]

Oh--and I've been meaning to ask. There's an older horror movie from the 1970s called "Don't Look Now" starring (I think?) Donald Sutherland. I've never seen it, but it's supposed to be good. Does anyone know if that movie is based on du Maurier's short story?

[Latasha]

Kelly wrote: "Oh--and I've been meaning to ask. There's an older horror movie from the 1970s called "Don't Look Now" starring (I think?) Donald Sutherland. I've never seen it, but it's supposed to be good. Does ..."

I have no idea.

[Kylie]

Kelly wrote: "Oh--and I've been meaning to ask. There's an older horror movie from the 1970s called "Don't Look Now" starring (I think?) Donald Sutherland. I've never seen it, but it's supposed to be good. Does ..."

Yes, it is. :)

[Latasha]

I'll have to try & find that.

[Harvey]

Kelly wrote: "Oh--and I've been meaning to ask. There's an older horror movie from the 1970s called "Don't Look Now" starring (I think?) Donald Sutherland. I've never seen it, but it's supposed to be good. Does ..."

It is, and it's a great movie IMO, but you'll enjoy it more if you don't go into it expecting a horror movie.

[Latasha]

Ok

[Imbunche]

Finally started it today and so far I'm already two stories in. So far so good, I quite like the writing style, but the ending of 'Don't look now' was rather unsatisfactory.

[Kelly B]

I just picked this up at the library today:-).

[Kelly B]

So I realized this morning I've got the wrong book! Mine is Don't Look Now: Selected Stories of Daphne Du Maurier. I'll just go ahead and read it anyway;-). It looks good, and it does have Don't Look Now in it.

[Kylie]

Kelly wrote: "So I realized this morning I've got the wrong book! Mine is Don't Look Now: Selected Stories of Daphne Du Maurier. I'll just go ahead and read it anyway;-). It looks good, and it doe..."

I have a different collection too Kelly, but still planning to read it. Since both these group reads are short stories it doesn't really matter, just might cause a bit of confusion if you talk about any of the other stories as the collections are all different.

[Kelly B]

John wrote: "Kelly wrote: "So I realized this morning I've got the wrong book! Mine is Don't Look Now: Selected Stories of Daphne Du Maurier. I'll just go ahead and read it anyway;-). It looks go..."

Some (maybe all?) of the rest of the short stories are different from this month's discussion book. Plus, I've already read at least one of them (The Birds). No big deal, though, I think I'll still like it;-).

[Kelly B]

Kylie wrote: "Kelly wrote: "So I realized this morning I've got the wrong book! Mine is Don't Look Now: Selected Stories of Daphne Du Maurier. I'll just go ahead and read it anyway;-). It looks go..."

I thought the whole book was the discussion book this month---my bad;-). Yeah, it definitely doesn't matter which version I read then, if we aren't going to talk about any of the other stories. I read Don't Look Now while working this afternoon.

[Kelly B]

Anastacia wrote: "Haha I remember the movie and laughed so hard at the end. I thought maybe the director botched the ending, but [spoilers removed]"

It kind of comes out of left field, doesn't it? My first response was (view spoiler)[ Huh??? What the .......! Then I started wondering why the psychic twin couldn't predict him getting stabbed in the throat;-) (hide spoiler)].

[Kelly B]

I was a bit disappointed in Don't Look Now, maybe because it didn't go the way I thought it would. I thought (view spoiler)[ it would be more about the ghost of the little girl. The irony was neat, I guess. If he hadn't stayed because he thought he spotted Laura, he wouldn't have been killed. (hide spoiler)].

[Imbunche]

By now I've read all the stories and surprisingly my favorite one one was not 'Don't look now' but 'The Way of the Cross'. I'm still not convinced the ending of 'Don't look now' worked for me.

[Kelly B]

Imbunche wrote: "By now I've read all the stories and surprisingly my favorite one one was not 'Don't look now' but 'The Way of the Cross'. I'm still not convinced the ending of 'Don't look now' worked for me."

I didn't care for the Don't Look Now ending either.

My favorite so far in the book I'm reading is The Blue Lenses.

[Tom]

John wrote: "Kelly wrote: "So I realized this morning I've got the wrong book! Mine is Don't Look Now: Selected Stories of Daphne Du Maurier. I'll just go ahead and read it anyway;-). It looks go..."

That solves the mystery! I have been listening to the audio version of Don't Look Now and Other Stories and wondering why its stories don't match the text copy of Don't Look Now: Selected Stories of Daphne Du Maurier that I have. Ah well. That just means more stories for me to read. So far I've listened to 'Don't Look Now' and 'Not After Midnight' and am now getting into 'A Border-Line Case'. I agree with the comments that the endings leave something to be desired but du Maurier does an excellent job of painting mental images. In all of the stories so far I have no trouble envisioning the setting. I guess that is to be expected, though, from the author who brought us Rebecca and Jamaica Inn.

[Tom]

I've been operating under the assumption that by selecting Don't Look Now and Other Stories, the plan was that we would also read the and Other Stories so that is what I did. In each case I thought Dame Daphne did a really great job of setting up the stories but in every case, the endings failed to satisfy me. They just seemed to fall flat. Here is my review.

[Kylie]

Okay, so I have read the title story, and I pretty much concur with the above comments. The end would've been okay if she'd omitted his last thought, which for me ruined the mood.

Kelly, maybe (view spoiler)[she DID, but only in the last trance, and by the time she came out of it it was too late to warn him. That might've been a more interesting ending, where the scene in the room ends as the dwarf lady turns round, and goes to the sisters for the ultimate reveal. (hide spoiler)]