April's 2020 Old and New Challenge

[April]

Read 11/12

Pre-1900
1. The Portrait of a Ladyby Henry James
2. Autobiography Of A Saint Therese Of Lisieux by Thérèse de Lisieux
3. Interior Castle or the Mansions by Teresa of Ávila

1900 to 1999
4. Becket Ou / l'Honneur De Dieu by Jean Anouilh
5. The Quiet American by Graham Greene
6. A Pale View of Hills by Kazuo Ishiguro

Others
7. The Complete English Poems by John Donne
8. The Symposium by Plato
9. Speak, Memory: An Autobiography Revisited by Vladimir Nabokov
10. Four Comedies: The Venetian Twins / The Artful Widow / Mirandolina / The Superior Residence by Goldoni Estevam Everton Jose
11. The Oresteian Trilogy by Aeschylus
12. Pierre et Jean by Guy de Maupassant

Alternatives:
1. Everyman and Medieval Miracle Plays
2. A Yankee in the Court of King Arthur by Mark Twain

[April]

I've enjoyed this challenge in the past, so I'd like to do it again next year. I only have 10 books so far, so need to put some work in to get a complete list by the end of the year.

[Bob, Short Story Classics]

Looking forward to seeing it, good luck and have fun.

[April]

Bob wrote: "Looking forward to seeing it, good luck and have fun."

Thank you. I'm sure I will.

[April]

I've made my list. It has shorter books than last year. If I don't get on with something, I won't have to suffer through 600 pages.

[Sue]

I loved the film Becket, and didn't know it was a play! I'll have to read that one. I haven't read any on your list other than one of your alternates. I'll be curious to see how you like them. Good Luck April!

[April]

Thank you. I'm looking forward to reading Becket. I liked the film, but haven't seen it for many years.

[Susie]

Good luck April!

[April]

Susie wrote: "Good luck April!"

Thank you, Susie

[Renee]

Good luck with your challenge, April! Happy Reading!

[April]

Renee wrote: "Good luck with your challenge, April! Happy Reading!"

Thank you. I think there are a few books on the list that I'll enjoy.

[April]

I'm starting the year with The Complete English Poems by John Donne and A Pale View of Hills by Kazuo Ishiguro. The idea is to read the poems throughout the year.

[April]

I've finished the first book. A Pale View of Hills is short, but it packs a punch in the final pages and I shall have to read it again soon to see if I can work out what really happened.

[Ila]

Glad to see you're making good progress. All the best!

[April]

Ila wrote: "Glad to see you're making good progress. All the best!"

Thank you.

[Sara, New School Classics]

I loved A Pale View of Hills...so, I'm thinking you are off to a good start.

[April]

Sara wrote: "I loved A Pale View of Hills...so, I'm thinking you are off to a good start."

I loved it, too. I'm reading it again and I'm already seeing things I missed the first time. I've also had further thoughts about things I did notice first time, but dismissed because the narrator also dismissed them.

[Sara, New School Classics]

He is an depth writer--always a benefit to read him twice. I have read six of his books and liked them all. He knows how to put a lot into a book without making it a chunker.

[Erin]

April wrote: "I've finished the first book. A Pale View of Hills is short, but it packs a punch in the final pages and I shall have to read it again soon to see if I can work out what really happened."

Glad you enjoyed your first read for your challenge and you’ve intrigued me to add it to my TBR list! I hope you enjoy the rest of your reads! :)

[April]

Erin wrote: "April wrote: "I've finished the first book. A Pale View of Hills is short, but it packs a punch in the final pages and I shall have to read it again soon to see if I can work out what ..."

Thank you. It's definitely worth reading.

[April]

I've finished Autobiography Of A Saint Therese Of Lisieux, which I didn't particularly enjoy.

[Sara, New School Classics]

Sorry this one didn't please. I certainly get those, but I am waiting for my first for 2020.

[April]

I enjoyed Pierre et Jean, but I didn't enjoy the edition I read. The editor's notes are very intrusive. Maupassant's writing is very clear and I don't think it needs all the explanation that the editor provided. The incest theme doesn't have to be pointed out, nor does the exclusion of Pierre from the family. Maupassant conveys all of that.

[April]

I've finished Goldoni's Four Comedies. They're amusing, but very similar to one another, apart from The Superior Residence, which is a lot more thoughtful and entertaining.

[April]

Interior Castle by St Teresa of Avila proved to be a bit of a slog, but it was an interesting insight into sixteenth-century Catholic mysticism.

[April]

Book 6 finished. Speak, Memory by Vladimir Nabokov wasn't as enjoyable as I thought it would be, particularly the chapter about lepidoptery. The detail of his recollections from childhood is amazing, though. I certainly can't recall the names of any of the children I met on the beach and played with while I was on holiday as a young child. I can, though, like him, remember the views and events that inspired the very bad poetry that I've written. I preferred the later chapters about his adolescence and adulthood, even though they're more superficial than those about his childhood.

[April]

7 down 5 to go. I enjoyed Becket by Anouilh. It's short and to the point. How do you deal with a ruler who has absolute power and how much can an absolute ruler love a subject?

[Cynda]

Hi April. Will you let me know if you decide you read your alternate Everyman and Other Miracle and Morality Plays. It has been decades since I have read Everyman. And I want to read other miracle plays.

[April]

The Symposium was much easier to read than the work I read by Plato last year. It makes me a bit more hopeful about being able to get through The Republic when I get to it.

[April]

I've just started The Oresteian Trilogy. It's been on my shelves for almost forty years, so I'm quite keen to find out what it's like.

[April]

I've finished The Oresteian Trilogy. It was interesting, but Ancient Greek drama is not a form I'm very familiar with and it was hard to work out what the point of some of the speeches is.

[Cynda]

April wrote: "I've finished The Oresteian Trilogy. It was interesting, but Ancient Greek drama is not a form I'm very familiar with and it was hard to work out what the point of some of the speeches is."

April, I am sorry I did not notice before that you were reading the Oresteian trilogy. It is very hard read for our Post-Modern minds. Just in case my review of the trilogy with a very few rhetorical comments might help, I link it here.

[April]

Cynda wrote: "April wrote: "I've finished The Oresteian Trilogy. It was interesting, but Ancient Greek drama is not a form I'm very familiar with and it was hard to work out what the point of some of the speeche..."

Thank you. Your review was helpful.

[April]

The tenth book is finished. I really enjoyed The Quiet American, despite the subject matter. Greene understood people's weaknesses and self-delusion, and the spaces in his dialogues speak volumes

[Sara, New School Classics]

Congratulations, April. I also appreciate Greene, and The Quiet American is one of my favorites. I'm sure you will make it to the end of this challenge. You have put some great works on the "done' list.

[April]

Thanks, Sara. It's the only work I've read by Greene, but it will definitely not be the last. I'm struggling with Donne's poetry, but I should be able to finish it. I'm looking forward to the Henry James novel, as it's from the period of his works that I find most accessible.

[Sara, New School Classics]

I'll be interested in what you think of the James. I have it on my "for sure" list for 2021.

[Bob, Short Story Classics]

My first book by Greene was the Quiet American. There have been a few more enjoyed since then. I think you will like The Portrait of a Lady.

[April]

April wrote: "Thanks, Sara. It's the only work I've read by Greene, but it will definitely not be the last. I'm struggling with Donne's poetry, but I should be able to finish it. I'm looking forward to the Henry..."

So far (after 100 pages) I'm enjoying it very much.

[April]

Bob wrote: "My first book by Greene was the Quiet American. There have been a few more enjoyed since then. I think you will like The Portrait of a Lady."

When I can get to a library, I'm definitely going to take out some Greene. I'm enjoying The Portrait of a Lady very much. I've come to the conclusion that late James isn't for me, but earlier James is wonderful.

[Richard]

April wrote: "April wrote: "Thanks, Sara. It's the only work I've read by Greene, but it will definitely not be the last. I'm struggling with Donne's poetry, but I should be able to finish it. I'm looking forwar..."

Try not peeping through lattices of eyes, and learn by circuit and collection to discern.

[April]

Book 11 finished. I loved The Portrait of a Lady and I'm very glad that I read it.

[Lynn, Old School Classics]

I am started the Portrait of a Lady for our Quarter 1 read. I am glad that you enjoyed it! You read a lot of good books in your Challenge.