Please Introduce Yourself

[Kim]

I love that quilt you made after your Alaska trip. I'm still smiling thinking about it.

[Julie]

So impressive, Bobbie! I take my kids to the county fair each year and the quilt section is always my favorite in the crafts barn. I make my kids pick out the one they like best so I can slow them down enough to really take a look.

[Bobbie]

Thanks so much to all of you for the kind words. I did manage to post a few pics of Christmas decorations on the profile because I don't know how to put them on the thread. Kim, I will put the miniature village on once I receive the one ordered most recently.

[Kim]

I can't wait to see it!

[Sarah]

Hello group,

My name is Sarah. I'm a late-comer to Dickens. As a teenager, I found him unbearably tedious. But when I became an amateur scholar of the history of London, I kept bumping up against Dickens everywhere I went. He was ubiquitous! Especially in the pubs. An intense study of Victorian illustrators forced me into finding a way to become Dickens' friend. I did battle with a couple of his doorstop books and have been a steadfast devotee ever since. Every year, from Nov 22-Jan 2, I read only the works of Charles Dickens. This year it is The Pickwick Papers.

[Kim]

Sarah wrote: "Hello group,

My name is Sarah. I'm a late-comer to Dickens. As a teenager, I found him unbearably tedious. But when I became an amateur scholar of the history of London, I kept bumping up against..."

Welcome Sarah, it's nice to meet you. Your reading only Dickens each year reminded me that I read A Christmas Carol every July. :-) Have fun with us.

[Peter]

Sarah wrote: "Hello group,

My name is Sarah. I'm a late-comer to Dickens. As a teenager, I found him unbearably tedious. But when I became an amateur scholar of the history of London, I kept bumping up against..."

Hi Sarah

Perfect timing. We will be reading A Christmas Carol next month.

Please join us.

[Sarah]

Thanks for the welcome! I Love A Christmas Carol. It's one of my very favourite books. I've never seen a film version that quite lives up to the novel.

[Tristram]

Hi Sarah,

Welcome to our group! We are reading Dickens all the year, but in such small doses that we have a lot of time for other authors as well. If you like, you can participate in our discussions whenever you want. Some people discuss on a regular basis, others skip one novel and chime in whenever they feel interested.

Have fun!

[Bobbie]

Welcome, Sarah, I am a rather new member of the group as well. NN is my first with the group and I started late so I am behind but I am enjoying the discussion. I will skip the ones I have read previously and hope to get through them all. I'm looking forward to getting to know you.

[Sarah]

Wow, thank you everybody! I think this is the most active Goodreads group I've ever belonged to. Very exciting.

[Catherine]

Hello Fellow Dickens Readers, I'm Catherine, I'm an English teacher living in Melbourne Australia. In January of this year I joined the local chapter of The Dickens Fellowship and next year I'll be invited to make my inaugural presentation at the monthly gathering. I'll be honest, I've read and loved more Hardy and Eliot than Dickens but I'm keen to remedy that. I'm looking forward to joining in the online conversation about Dickens' work, I've just read Hard Times and was surprised to find Josiah Bounderby sounding very much like the Four Yorkshiremen of the Monty Python comedy sketch.

[Julie]

Catherine wrote: "Hello Fellow Dickens Readers, I'm Catherine, I'm an English teacher living in Melbourne Australia. In January of this year I joined the local chapter of The Dickens Fellowship and next year I'll be..."

Hi Catherine and welcome! I'm also an English teacher and just put Hard Times on the syllabus for my class starting in January. I will have to look up the Four Yorkshiremen now!

[Catherine]

Thanks Julie, good to hear that Dickens is still on the syllabus. I have a feeling the chaps from the Monty Python team must have read Hard Times back in their schooldays, the similarities to Mr Bounderby’s constant utterances can’t be coincidental methinks. Cheers.

[Tristram]

Welcome to the Old Curiosity Club, Catherine! You are not the only English teacher around here, as Julie pointed out. I am an English teacher as well, although I teach English as a foreign language in Germany, which means that I will never be able to read Victorian literature with my students at school, the focus being on modern literature and Shakespeare.

Unfortunately, there is no branch of the Dickens Fellowship where I live but this reading group here gives me my daily dose of Dickens.

If you like, feel free to contribute to our discussions, Catherine, and have a good time being around!

[Catherine]

Thanks for the welcome Tristram, good to hear that there’s a few teachers in the group. I too am an English as Second Language teacher. I used to teach English in Switzerland and no, I’ve never taught Dickens to my language students either, they’re more fans of Murphy and Michael Swan. Cheers

[Tristram]

If you lived in Switzerland, you will probably speak either French, Italian, or German. Or all three of them?

[Catherine]

Only German, I taught in Zürich, my high school French wouldn’t get me far in Geneva.

[Peter]

Hello Catherine

Welcome to the Curiosities. You have found the right place to read, discuss, and wander around the wonderful world of Dickens with people as interesting as any found in a Dickens novel.

I too taught English. Presently, I am retired and learning how to be a grandparent with my wife. We live in Toronto, Canada, and I am a member of the Toronto branch of The Dickens Fellowship.

Please join us for our reading of A Christmas Carol next month.

What larks!

[Sarah]

Welcome to the group, Catherine - I am, also, new. I am reading The Pickwick Papers and was just remarking how large bits of it were reminiscent of a Monty Python sketch!

I was heretofore ignorant of this Dickens Fellowship - apparently there's a branch two hours west of me. Hm! I hope it's not the sort of thing that expects me to act like a serious person...

[Kim]

Welcome Catherine, it's nice to meet you! I get the feeling at times that I'm the only person around here who isn't an English teacher. It brings back my awful childhood days. :-)

[Bionic Jean]

Take heart Kim; I did all sorts of things but never taught English :)

[Kim]

You were a teacher weren't you?

[Bionic Jean]

Mmm, eventually, after years in libraries - lots of inner city work - then a deputy head - but I specialised in much younger age groups, and did music and art, end of year productions and such like, as well as general subjects.

[Bobbie]

Welcome, Catherine. I am also a fairly new member just joined after the NN read started and I'm enjoying it very much. I am also not a teacher but a retired nurse. But, I do have 2 sons who are English/Creative Writing teachers, one who is just starting out and has nothing published yet except short stories. So, that's the closest I've gotten to writing or teaching.

[Catherine]

Hi Bobbie, Kim and Bionic Jean, thanks for the welcome. I’m thinking this is a bit like a virtual book club where you get to meet really friendly folk and read books together. Nice to meet you all and I’d better start reading NN. Cheers

[Tristram]

Bionic Jean wrote: "Take heart Kim; I did all sorts of things but never taught English :)"

The same can be said for some English teachers I know in Germany ;-)

[Bionic Jean]

LOL, surely not!

[John]

Candace wrote: "Hi, I'm Candace from Arizona. Although I majored in English Literature, I don't remember reading any Dickens in any of my novels classes. I've always loved reading , but never gotten into Dickens. ..."

Interesting. I also majored in English, but I have to say that things were a little "light" with Dickens. I recall only one required reading at the college level -- Hard Times -- and I am truly unsure about that. I know I had GE in high school.

I think in some ways, it is how things are tailored at American schools. I had 19th Century American Literature, where we read our Hawthorne, Thoreau, Emerson, Dickinson, and Whitman.

But British literature went from my Intro to Shakespeare right to 20th Century British Literature (as the class was called).

The text for it was the Oxford anthology, which started right out with Thomas Hardy's poetry.

[Tristram]

Bionic Jean wrote: "LOL, surely not!"

As usual, you are full of optimism, Jean ;-)

[Kim]

Tristram wrote: "Bionic Jean wrote: "LOL, surely not!"

As usual, you are full of optimism, Jean ;-)"

What's that?

[Tristram]

Kim wrote: "Tristram wrote: "Bionic Jean wrote: "LOL, surely not!"

As usual, you are full of optimism, Jean ;-)"

What's that?"

Something that is easier to define than to maintain ;-)

[Kylie]

Hi, I’m Kylie. I live on the Mid North Coast of NSW Australia. I love to read, and look forward to joining the read along of The Old Curiosity Shop.

[Kim]

Welcome Kylie! It's nice to meet you. We'll be at The Old Curiosity Shop before we know it. :-)

[Catherine]

Hi Kylie, I’m also from Australia, down south in Melbourne, welcome to the group.

[Kylie]

Thank you for the welcome Catherine and Kim 😊

[Peter]

Hi Kylie

I add my welcome to you. We begin The Old Curiosity Shop in a couple of weeks. Pull up a chair and join us.

[Tristram]

Hi Kylie,

Welcome to the group! You've chosen a good moment because we will soon start another novel. So like the others, I can only recommend you to stay tuned and enjoy the discussions!

[Kathleen]

When are we starting The Old C. S?
Thanks. Kathleen in Vermont

[Bobbie]

Welcome, Kylie!

[Peter]

Kathleen wrote: "When are we starting The Old C. S?
Thanks. Kathleen in Vermont"

Hi Kathleen

If you go to the “discussions” tab which will be found by activating the upper right pull down tab you will find the reading schedule.

Basically, we begin TOCS on January 17th and will be reading 5 chapters per week.

Please join us as we follow Little Nell.

[Armani]

Bionic Jean wrote: "Hello and I'm Jean, the first English member so far! My favourite book of all time is A Christmas Carol, which was also my Dad's favourite book. I feel lucky to have discovered the joys..."

This is a great introduction

[Bionic Jean]

Tham you Armani! Sorry - I didn't seem to see this, somehow.

And welcome to all those members who may have joined quietly, but not yet said anything :)

[Pat the Book Goblin]

Hello! My name is Patrick and I just got into Charles Dickens last year. So far I've read David Copperfield, A Christmas Carol, Great Expectations and A Tale of Two Cities. I would love to read Bleak House, Hard Times, and Nicholas Nickleby this year to round off my Dicken's novels! Normally, I read classics, fantasy, science fiction, and graphic novels. At this point I'm itching for another chunky Dickens Novel!

[Peter]

Patrick wrote: "Hello! My name is Patrick and I just got into Charles Dickens last year. So far I've read David Copperfield, A Christmas Carol, Great Expectations and A Tale of Two Cities. I would love to read Ble..."

Welcome Patrick

If you enjoy chunky Dickens novels your timing is perfect. We have just begun Barnaby Rudge. Our group is reading the novels in chronological order.

Please join in on the discussions..

[Mary Lou]

Yes, Patrick, welcome! And by all means, grab a copy of Barnaby Rudge and join us. We're only in the second week of our reading, so it should be easy for you to catch up.

[Pat the Book Goblin]

Thank you! I hope to find a copy at a used bookstore!

[Kim]

Welcome Patrick! I'm glad you are enjoying our favorite author.

[Tristram]

A belated welcome from me, Patrick!

We'd be happy if you could join us in our Barnaby Rudge adventure. You may count yourself lucky that you missed The Old Curiosity Shop with its sentimental journey ;-)

Now, there are eventful times ahead. Riots, murder, family feuds and all that. So feel invited to join us!

[[deleted user]]

Hello everyone,
I'm Jantine (surprise!). I come from The Netherlands, and started reading in English as a sixteen-year-old girl who forgot to bring a book at an excursion to London that lasted a week. My granddad (who passed away two months ago :-( ) got me hooked to Charles Dickens. At the moment I'm reading a couple of books at the same time, among them Bleak House in his memory, since that's the book he pushed into my hands to read 13 years ago. So I'll probably not read along with Barnaby Rudge yet, but I'll tag along after a while.