Afternoon Tea and Scones with the Lovely Ladies discussion
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Evelina
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February 2021: Evelina: Volume I: Letters I- XXXI: Thoughts While Reading
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Thank you Ruth for providing me with an outlet to vent my frustration, with this topic!Wow, has it been... tedious. I've read the first 10 letters and am now having wine to reward myself, because wow... has it been tedious. I had to re-read the first letters for clarity but no clarity came and I spaced out a bit while reading until I realised that I finished a letter and can't quite put my finger on what I just read.
All these older, epistolary novels give me the same vibe, I thought that after reading Clarissa, or, the History of a Young Lady I got the hang of it, but it seems again I have to re-learn this rhythm...
This does not sound like a relaxing read at all, May!Stock up on the wine 😉
The pace does pick up, it really does!
Elke, I'm drunk 😅
Lady Mayfair wrote: "Elke, I'm drunk 😅"Pace yourself!
Well, Evelina gave me the first hangover since New Year's, I guess things are going great between us.
I found it hard going at the start, I think it’s because the letter writers were giving each other the whole back story about Evelina’s past (which they would have known already). It felt really clunky in a letter and it didn’t sink in at first. It’s now starting to pick up a bit for me.
I‘ve just started with the novel, listening to the preface and the first two letters on LibriVox. Am I immune? I didn’t find it tedious and I only barely survived Dangerous Liaisons thanks to the serial reader, so I generally have a mixed view of epistolary novels. I also hated Werther, but I like the idea of the epistolary novel very much.
My only issue at the moment is Kristine Bekere, the narrator of Lady Howard‘s letters, who has such a thick accent I had to re-listen to the first letter, because it was extremely hard to get into that accent.
I also started this novel.I am wondering how the dual plot line
will play out.
The Reverend Mr. Villars is endearing, caring
and protective of Evelina- another orphan.
Philina, I dunno... I'm almost through with it and somehow it's just not working out for me. Evelina annoys me and there's something about the writing that annoys me as well although I can't quite put my finger on it. Dangerous Liaisons was So much better, I really enjoyed that one actually.
Lady Mayfair, I couldn’t agree more. Tedious is exactly the right word. I’m trying to make it to the end just to be a good sport but I am really not enjoying it. I can’t join you with the wine because I’m afraid I will understand even less. 😛
It's lovely to see you, Heather.😊Hi Ladies,
I am struggling with the book as well.
I have a couple of questions for you:
The plot of Evelina is also partly dependent on
various misunderstandings and misinformation.
Some of these may be innocent, some not.
How important are such misunderstandings to
the meaning of the novel?
Or are they merely devices of plot?
Heather, please call me May, shorter and quicker 😊I'm too deep into it now for wine, I feel like I will go mad. Maybe I've read too many epistolary novels?
Ruth, I shall ponder more on this but all these misunderstandings, it's a bit ridiculous already as they say about movies, this is milking the plot line!
Evelina as a character, I'm not sure how to describe her, she's more of a caricature, I had this feeling since the start of the novel, I thought it would pick up the pace and she would take more shape but she never does (to me).
Many of my friends on Goodreads did like it (a lot of 4 stars) and describe it as funny. Not my type of humour, I guess?
That's so interesting, May! Dangerous Liaisons for me was only not a dnf, because it was a group read and I managed with the serial reader. We are the polar opposites here. I also cannot put my finger on "why" with DL...
I'm nearly through now and loving it more with every letter. For me, it is so very close to Austen. Lord Orville as a kind of proto Darcy (not necesarrily rude, but a powerhouse in the background), Lady Louisa as the sister of Mr. Bingley, the embarrassing family members to contend with, a secret plot nobody knows until the later parts of the story as in S&S, a young, inexperienced and virtuous lady as in Mansfield Park...
What do you think? Can you help me elongate the list of parallels?
This book is growing on me, although the social events are a bit repetitive at times. I loved Captain Merven’s altercations with Mme Duval, he certainly didn’t pull any punches with his insults towards her and the French in general!
(Librivox- Letters 1-31)
Through letter writing, Evelina learns in the course
of the novel how to best shape her history, becoming
more constructive and less merely descriptive a story-
teller.
Observe the realism in this story.
Enjoy the novel.📖☕