Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion
2019 Challenge Prompt - Advanced
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50 - A book set in an abbey, cloister, monastery, vicarage, or convent
Nullifidian wrote: "Personally, I'd like nothing better than to reread The Name of the Rose. I've bought a new copy because my previous editions have become worn from frequent rereading. It's one of my v..."Eco's The Name of the Rose is excellent and the first one I thought of when I saw this prompt! Watch the movie, too, if you haven't already. The faces of the monks alone are worth it.
Joyce wrote: "I'm just finishing The Pillars of the Earth which is set in a priory that builds a cathedral. I'll probably read the second book in the trilogy World Without End for ..."I had no idea Pillars of the earth is a trilogy. I will have to check the next one out as well.
I highly recommend Pillars of the earth to someone who has not read it.
Joyce wrote: "I'm just finishing The Pillars of the Earth which is set in a priory that builds a cathedral. I'll probably read the second book in the trilogy World Without End for ..."Read both of them last year and LOVED them... Great choice!
I don't know what I'll be reading yet myself, but I'll recommend Sacred Hearts by Sarah Dunant, it takes place almost entirely in a convent.
Brittany wrote: "I want to find something good to read about the Borgia family. I don’t know if anyone ever watched the tv show the borgias when it was on showtime, but that family was scandalous and had two popes ..."I haven't read the book but there is a book by Mario Puzo called The Family. It's about the Borgia's, and by extension there's a play by Victor Hugo called Lucrezia that takes an interesting (to say the least) look at her and her son Giovanni.
What about books about the mistreatment of women in Ireland by the catholic church, the use of Magdalen Laundries etc? I read Kathy's Story: The True Story of a Childhood Hell Inside Ireland's Magdalen Laundries (the validity of which has been questioned) and The Light In The Window after seeing the film The Magdalen Sisters, and find it so hard to get my head around. I'd like to read more about it.
Deena wrote: "Would the Infernal Devices series count? The London Institute is in a church..."Abbie wrote: "The Mermaid Chair would work for this, especially if you prefer something with a contemporary setting."
I think so!
In This House of Brede (set in a Benedictine monastery in England) or Black Narcissus (set in an Anglican convent in the Himalayas), both by Rumer Godden would work for this.For those looking for a non-Christian setting, The Mists of Avalon would qualify, although its author (Marion Zimmer Bradley) is problematic.
If you haven’t read The Ninth Hour by Alice McDermott, I highly recommend. It is set largely in a convent and the surrounding neighborhood it serves.
I think I’m going to read The Cloister Walk. Sounds really interesting.
Since I've had it sitting on my shelf for a little, I'm going to go with The Guineveres for this task.
Tabitha wrote: "Since I've had it sitting on my shelf for a little, I'm going to go with The Guineveres for this task."I was wondering if anyone else would read that. You're the first person I saw mention it, other than my question earlier in the thread.
The White Queen by Philippa GregorySome parts of the book take place in an abbey.
Redwall by Brian Jacques - takes place in Redwall Abbey!
So I googled the difference between a rectory and a vicarage and according to the Oxford dictionary there is no real difference for modern times. So I’m going to read this one that’s been on my TBR list forever! In the Bleak Midwinter
Mod
I agree. When I was reading Middlemarch, I got confused with all the titles, and I looked them up, and I learned a rector was the rich guy who hired the vicar to work for him, but they were effectively the same position, so the terms are synonymous today.
Mod
I may read Murder in the Vicarage by Agatha Christie and reread a book I read as a kid (thus 2 categories)
A few have recommended A Canticle for Leibowitz, which is a great choice...one of my favorite reads from the past couple years.I think I'll try World Without End, it has been a while since I read it but The Pillars of the Earth has stuck with me.
Nadine wrote: "Hope wrote: "Time to read about murder nuns...Red Sister
or
Grave Mercy"
Yes! I loved Grave Mercy!! There is a fourth book possibly coming out in 2019, and I'm hop..."
Do you know if the second book Dark Triumph works? I can't tell from the description.
Has anyone read Kristin Lavransdatter? Would it count?
Miriam wrote: "I think I am going to read Conclave, even though it is not technically a convent or cloister or monastery etc., but since it is about a conclave deciding who the next Pope should be..."I loved Conclave! Hope you enjoy it too Miriam :-)
Brittany wrote: "I want to find something good to read about the Borgia family. I don’t know if anyone ever watched the tv show the borgias when it was on showtime, but that family was scandalous and had two popes ..."Brittany, Christopher Hibbert wrote quite a good one called The Borgias and their enemies
I've just been browsing for this prompt and found these...Northanger Abbey by Val McDermid
The Girl in the Abbey by Jessica Collett
Murder in the Monastery by Lesley Cookman
The Monastery Murders by E M Powell
Trappist Beer Travels: Inside the Breweries of the Monasteries by Caroline Wallace
The Cloister by James Carroll
There's also Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie (which I've already read)
Brandyn wrote: "Has anyone read Kristin Lavransdatter? Would it count?"Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset is one of those books that you continue to remember months and years later (I read Kristin in 2015). Highly recommended. But it doesn't fit this prompt as the setting is the farm where Kristin is raised and then raises her family.
Loved Louise Penny’s The Beautiful Mystery-ste in a monastery
Tracy wrote: "The Thorn Birds was excellent!!I also read and loved The Smell of Other People's Houses, part of this ( not all) takes place in a convent."
I loved The Smell of Other People's Houses so much. Definitely my favorite book I read in 2017! Highly recommend. It would also work for multiple perspectives.
Brandy wrote...Has anyone read Kirsten Lavransdatter? Would it Count? This is a trilogy and the third part- ‘The Cross’ is the last part of Kirsten’s life when she joins a religious order. I think you could make the case that part of the book involves a cloister. In the first book ‘The Bridal Wreath’ she spends time at the convent in Nonnenster. There are several settings for this story because it takes place over the whole course of Kirsten’s life but I think parts of it definitely fit the category.
It also happens to be my all time favorite book because Sigrid Undset does such a great job of creating a distant time and place and because this book resonates with people across time depending upon where you- the reader- are in relation to the corresponding time in Kirsten’s life. Reading it at 25 was a very different experience than reading it at 55. It’s long but sure makes you feel that the time spent with it was worth it.
I recommend Bitter Greens by Kate Forsthye. Set in convent
I'm currently reading Tears of the Silenced: An Amish True Crime Memoir of Childhood Sexual Abuse, Brutal Betrayal, and Ultimate Survival, would that be too much of a stretch for this prompt?The book is mostly set in an Amish community and the main character lives with a minister and then the bishop so the church is a huge part of the book.
I also wanted to add The Monk by Matthew Lewis. Written sometime in the 1740's it has some surprisingly sexual moments (for its time, not by today's standard) it's a good story, and of course is set in a monastery.
Tonya wrote: "I'm currently reading Tears of the Silenced: An Amish True Crime Memoir of Childhood Sexual Abuse, Brutal Betrayal, and Ultimate Survival, would that be too much of a stretch for th..."If it's not set in a abbey/cloister/monastery/vicarage/convent, then I say it doesn't count
a darker shade of magic counts??? there's an abbey in grey london and apparently it's important
Contrition is a modern, briskly paced novel set in a convent that explores art, faith, and family in a way that is very sensitive and appealing even to the non-religious.
I thought I'd have a hard time with this prompt, but Agatha Christie comes through again. I'm going to take the easy way out and use Murder at the Vicarage.
The Ninth Hour! It has a surprising twist at the end. Most of it takes place in a convent.
Dan wrote: "a darker shade of magic counts??? there's an abbey in grey london and apparently it's important"I’d like to know if this counts too.
Do you guys think The Anchoress would count? "Sarah is an anchoress, a holy woman maintained by the lord of the manor in a small stone hermitage attached to the village church, where she spends her days and nights in prayer for her community. "
I don't know that much about what counts as an abbey/cloister/etc.
Megan wrote: "Tonya wrote: "I'm currently reading Tears of the Silenced: An Amish True Crime Memoir of Childhood Sexual Abuse, Brutal Betrayal, and Ultimate Survival, would that be too much of a ..."I keep going back and forth on whether I would count this personally. Part of me thinks there are already several specific options for this prompt, so interpreting it strictly, there's no reason to add to them. But part of me thinks since a vicarage is basically just a place where a member of the clergy lives, any house of clergy/pastor/etc is a reasonable interpretation. I guess it's really up to how strict you want to be with the prompt.
Sam wrote: "Do you guys think The Anchoress would count?
"Sarah is an anchoress, a holy woman maintained by the lord of the manor in a small stone hermitage attached to the village church, wh..."
Similar to my thoughts above--a hermitage is somewhat like a cloister, but it's not quite the same, so how much do you care about following the prompt literally? Though, I would probably just go ahead and count this one myself--I'm sure there are technical differences between an anchoress and a nun, but they seem very similar.
Mod
I just looked up the definitions.
A monastery is where monks live.
A convent is where nuns live.
An abbey and a cloister are both defined as "a monastery or convent."
A vicarage is where the vicar lives, so that one is sort of different from the other four.
A hermitage or anchorhold is where ONE religious person (aka hermit) lives, so it's sort of like a cloister or abbey for one.
Raquel wrote: "Megan wrote: "Tonya wrote: "I'm currently reading Tears of the Silenced: An Amish True Crime Memoir of Childhood Sexual Abuse, Brutal Betrayal, and Ultimate Survival, would that be ..."Last year I was pretty strict with the prompts, but this year not so much. There are several prompts that I'll have to stretch anyway. If I don't end up reading anything else that could fulfill this one then I'm just going to count it.
I'm pretty sure I'm going to listen to Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie on audiobook as I already have it downloaded on my phone! It'll double up for one of the topics in the BookRiot Read Harder challenge which I'm also attempting this year - a cosy mystery.
Michael Jecks has written a huge series of books, I know some have religious buildings in them. Knights Templar series, many have religious settings.
Anything by or about Thomas Merton would be a good fit. His most famous book is The Seven Storey Mountain.
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I'd say yes since the story centers on her time living in the rectory as a child and then again as an adult.