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What Are We Reading? 21 June 2021
Robert wrote: "AB76 wrote: " Rebel Richmond by Stephen V Ash is a balanced study of a town under siege, the remarkable photos taken in spring 1865 mean that this medium size Virginian town is fixed in the mind fa..."its size would suggest it was a 19th century version of Bonn! About 38,000 people in 1860, possibly as much as 100,000 by 1864 but not comfortably accommodated.
In wartime, capitals can grow like a mushroom. I've read excerpts from the diary of a Confederate War Department clerk named Jones. Is Jones one of the sources quoted in Rebel Richmond?
Robert wrote: "In wartime, capitals can grow like a mushroom. I've read excerpts from the diary of a Confederate War Department clerk named Jones. Is Jones one of the sources quoted in Rebel Richmond?"yes! Jones is a constant presence and very interesting observer of the ups and downs of life. Chesnutt is also quoted a lot (i have her diary on my pile) and am astonished at how well she lived, compared to many others, a dinner with the confederate first lady is like something from a Gogol novel, sumptious food while the majority of Richmonders eat a lot less. Ash remarks that she did have access to a plantation behind the warzone.
I see in this morning’s paper that they are going to open up the underground tram tunnel, Kingsway, after 70 years.https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2...
I used to love going on the tram as a child, always trying to get into the top front seat so there was the excitement of seeming to dip into the ground at Holborn, stop at the station, then clank on until the slope upwards towards the Embankment. It used to feel as if you would soar right up into the air, go flying, and there would be the river straight ahead before the tram turned. Wonderful.
CCCubbon wrote: "Flea constipation Little did I think that I would be reading about flea constipation when starting Alice Roberts book called Ancestors.
It is mentioned when discussing the way that archaeology a..."
Hahaha! Just catching up, and this definitely made me laugh! (You may have noticed that I have a peculiar sense of humour...!)
Hushpuppy wrote: "Look at what I've found online!Amazing, most of the books from @inter's little library are already gone... I hope people remember of placing some of their own in there when they get a chance, or ..."
Good stuff - unfortunately, I live a very long way away... this very week, I got rid of a dozen books at my wife's request/insistence. She's in the right, really - the shelves are overflowing despite a move to purchasing lighter stuff as e-books to reduce the sheer volume. It's just that I find it hard to part with books, once I have them...
Anyway, a local charity shop has benefited.
Hushpuppy wrote: "MK wrote: "I'm going to blame this Google foray of mine on you. I have no idea if there is a connection."Even without the help of google, @inter mentioned enough about her father on TLS to know t..."
I think some people - Justine's father, possibly - conflate principles with the institutions which subvert them. In principle, there is not much wrong with either communism or Christianity (IMO, of course - though I would not swallow the mystical bits of the latter), but the institutions (Soviet Russia/the Catholic church) which espouse those ideas actually are run (usually) by people only interested in power, and who would not know a moral principle if it hit them on the head. (I should clarify that neither approach is practical because of the inevitable subversion which takes place by the cynical.)
It's also interesting how some people always go for the extremes, swinging (most often) from some very left wing ideas, to very right wing ones as the get older (and richer, I suspect). Extremists of any stripe should be treated with suspicion - they are absolutists rather than people concerned with running things in a sensible and fair manner.
Mod
"Very good ..."
One can listen to one on the New Yorker Fiction podcast:
Lauren Groff joins Deborah Treisman to read and discuss Shirley Hazzard's “In These Islands,” from a 1990 issue of the magazine.
This series of podcasts consist of a reading and discussion with the fiction editor.
The New Yorker has another podcast with short stories: The Writer's Voice, where writers read their own stories
CCCubbon wrote: "I see in this morning’s paper that they are going to open up the underground tram tunnel, Kingsway, after 70 years.https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2......"
always used to wonder what that was in the middle of the road (the underpass), hopefully i will visit sometime in next 6 months
What a joy Elizabeth Von Arnim is! Am sure Justine will be smiling from above on the adventures of a determined english woman in her late 30s, around the German island of RugenLively and witty The Adventures of Elizabeth in Rugen is an edwardian gem, with the added interest of being set in Imperial Germany. A sleepy, under populated island at that time, it bewitches me now with its varied landscape and the cliffs that Casper David Friedrich made famous
CCCubbon wrote: "I see in this morning’s paper that they are going to open up the underground tram tunnel, Kingsway, after 70 years.https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2......"
Another reason to renew my passport! When I go to London, I try to stay at Connaught Hall (UCL), but in any case, somewhere close to Tavistock Square. I have often changed buses at Southampton/Theobalds Road and in the future will have to suss out the area better!
For any weather junkies I have just uploaded a Heat Dome graphic to photos. In this case it shows how Lytton, BC, got stuck by the heat.
MK wrote: "CCCubbon wrote: "I see in this morning’s paper that they are going to open up the underground tram tunnel, Kingsway, after 70 years.https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2......"
The slope up to the Embankment was fairly steep so from the top front seat all you could see going up was sky and that’s what made it seem as if the tram was taking off. As a child it was just magic.
Children, suppose I was between 8 and 12 had much more freedom to roam around London than nowadays so the museums, Hampstead Heath and many other areas were our playground.
AB76 wrote: "Last night i finished Ursula Le Guins 1976 SF novelThe Word for World is Forest" an intelligent, thought provoking read, invoking colonialism, climate change and the tensions of mutual misunderstan..."I haven't read this one, but like you I am a great fan of Le Guin. The Earthsea books put you-know-what totally in the shade in my opinion. I cannot stomach the latter, having attended an English grammar school modeled on the racist, sexist, public school. And as for "muggles", words fail me-is it really any different to calling people "wogs"? Not to me, an Indian. Sickening garbage.
Le Guin's science fiction is also superb, and she is one of the few authors who I find truly thought provoking and original. Her stories and the worlds she creates linger in the mind....
Thanks to Gpfr for taking pics at the top of the Montagne Ste Genevieve (see e.g., here). You can just about distinguish on the right the Tour Clovis that towers (well, duh) over my undergrad establishment. Sadly St Etienne du Mont my Catholic practicing friends from Classes Prepas have always avoided like the plague, it is notoriously full of integristes (this might have changed over the past 20+ years, but I doubt it).It is only a 2-min walk from the Rue Tournefort (a dead straight street!), made famous in Pere Goriot. I used to live around the corner (rue Amyot). I am with Paul and Russel/vtlogger on this, I did really rate that novel, even if I read it as a teen. The sketching of the female protagonists I wouldn't been sensitive to, back then.
And then we have the photo of inter in front of that Cafe Mach had a bad dinner at (reviews seem good, you had a bad night apparently, or maybe they've turned it around!). I have been to the nice restaurant that is just behind her, in that lovely pedestrian alley that leads to Eglise St Gervais where I attended mass once (a sufficiently rare even that I remember it clearly), to be kind to a friend, and to my surprise the priest was very progressive - I mean, for a Catholic, something I am too, technically...
scarletnoir wrote: "conflate principles with the institutions which subvert them"Yes, I'd agree with that. For a long time I was guilty of doing just the same, and I'm not completely over it tbh, finding Catholic friends and relatives' practices incomprehensible, my disdain of the institution (barring a few counter-examples) being so strong...
It's also interesting how some people always go for the extremes, swinging (most often) from some very left wing ideas, to very right wing ones
Yes, I have witnessed this too... They do say that political beliefs are arranged around a circle, and making the shift from extreme right wing to extreme left wing (or vice versa) is not such a big leap after all, being both joined at the top (or bottom) of that circle. But then again, for American people (and far too many English ones too), Socialism is a fringe concept, bordering on extremism, so 🤷♂️.
MK wrote: "For any weather junkies I have just uploaded a Heat Dome graphic to photos. In this case it shows how Lytton, BC, got stuck by the heat."thanks MK......i knew Lytton had some of the warmest temps in BC during summer,, setting record temps in the past, the valleys and inland areas of BC being so far from the sea and air gets trapped by the mountains but for Vancouver and Seattle, seaside towns to hit 40c is awful
Machenbach wrote: "It was lunchtime and their vegetarian option was duck salad. My food was pretty decent, 'though entirely unrelated to what I'd ordered. I also got to eat a duck salad."Oh, that is the place of the infamous vegetarian duck salad? Ah! That's funny. Glad to hear the food was decent though, if not quite matching its description.
Yes, St Gervais is really quite lovely, esp. when you approach it from that alley. Just a wonderful area anyway (and of course, the kouign amann are not too far either). The only other times I've been in church as an adult in Paris were for classical concerts too, it just has that amazing acoustic. I need to read Pym.
Fuzzywuzz wrote: "I'm saddened that a lot of my local charity shops are no longer taking book donations - I had suspected as much because there are fewer books for sale."Oh, I'm surprised by that, but that's perhaps because I haven't been out and about at all in the past year, so don't know the state of things really. I have one bag of books to donate too (just like @scarletnoir, I find it difficult to part with any, but I've become a bit more ruthless recently).
Mod
My visits to churches are also for concerts - or to look at the building. I didn't know/ remember St Etienne du Mont being intégriste, but years ago I went with a visiting friend to a concert in Saint-Nicolas du Chardonnet, another notoriously intégriste church. I spent a good part of the concert trying to remember why I knew the name of the church. The end of the concert overlapped with people arriving for a service and we were hovered over, glared at and muttered about by elderly ladies whose favourite seats we were obviously occupying.
And yes, you must read Barbara Pym!
Gpfr wrote: " I didn't know/ remember St Etienne du Mont being intégriste, but years ago I went with a visiting friend to a concert in Saint-Nicolas du Chardonnet, another notoriously intégriste church."Oh yes, that's probably the most famous by far. If only all of them were elderly ladies, I wouldn't mind them so much. I have Excellent Women on my virtual TBR list.
Robert wrote: "If I recall, a Russian "civil execution" gave the spouse the option to treat her husband as if he was actually dead. Which may be why Dostoevsky's prison memoir was called "Letters From the House of the Dead."Interesting - it may be so. I read it too long ago to remember if that was mentioned in any introduction.
AB76 wrote: "I think it was Andy who recommended The Cold Summer by Carofiglio.."Perhaps - though I have recommended this author several times... whoever, let me know what you think.
scarletnoir wrote: "AB76 wrote: "I think it was Andy who recommended The Cold Summer by Carofiglio.."Perhaps - though I have recommended this author several times... whoever, let me know what you think."
could have been Mach too, he has been active again after a long absence, but also i think it was you scarlet!
giveusaclue wrote: "You might want to try Michael Dibdin's Aurelia Zen series...I liked the Zen series a lot... less keen on his stand-alone novels. As I don't know Italy well, I can't comment on how accurately he portrays the country. I have also read two or three of Donna Leon's Venice-set mysteries - not bad, but not as addictive (for me) as some series. I may read some more, eventually...
In passing - I read somewhere that Dibdin was part of an informal group of budding Scottish crime writers then living in London, along with Ian Rankin and Philip Kerr - though he was born in England. I'm not clear what his Scottish connection was, apart from some schooling. All three are well worth reading.
AB76 wrote: "France has never had more than a small protestant minority since the 16thc..."With good reason - as I expect you know, "The Huguenots of the Reformed Church of France were followers of John Calvin, and became the major Protestant sect in France. A large portion of the population died in massacres or were deported from French territory following the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685." (for example - from Wikipedia).
Of course, the Catholic church didn't restrict its 'attentions' to Protestants. You probably already know of the fate of the Cathars in southern France, and may have already read the interesting historical work describing life in the village of Montaillou: The Promised Land of Error in the 14th C. There is an excellent son et lumière representation of the history of the region held annually in Foix.
MK wrote: "Before I quit here and get something done, I wanted to tantalize others with the weekly newsletter from Daunt Books. They pick five to review, and I usually find at least one to put on my never-end..."Alexander the Great was not known for his modesty, and named a ridiculous number of cities after himself. I'm not at all surprised that at least one of them got mislaid!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...
Mach and HP - as a veggie who lived in France for several years, I can say that it wasn't always easy! 'Lardons', or ham, are not considered to be 'meat' over there for some reason. On more than one occasion, faced with no cheese sandwich, I have had the offer that they would 'remove the ham' so I could eat it!As for concerts in religious settings - one of the most beautiful I ever heard was held in the Sainte Chapelle, next to the Palais de Justice - a wonderful setting:
https://www.travelfranceonline.com/sa...
On another occasion, when we had not been living in Paris very long, we wandered into Notre Dame, to hear a superb performance on the organ - it seemed to be the organist practising for a concert later in the day (my guess).
scarletnoir wrote: "AB76 wrote: "I think it was Andy who recommended The Cold Summer by Carofiglio.."Perhaps - though I have recommended this author several times... whoever, let me know what you think."
I've read #1, 3 and 4 of the Guerreri series. Might not be to everybody's taste, because it is more legal than criminal procedure and the protagonist is given a more prominent role than is usual. I really enjoyed the first 2; and fell in love with Guerreri. Missed the courtroom scenes in #4, which I thought was rather weak compared to the others.
scarletnoir wrote: "AB76 wrote: "France has never had more than a small protestant minority since the 16thc..."With good reason - as I expect you know, "The Huguenots of the Reformed Church of France were followers ..."
The Sun King caused so much persecution with that revocation..
yes, the catholic church was violent towards so many minorities, the waldensians in italy suffered badly too. on my fathers side of the family i have Hugenot(French protestant) ancestry, from the St Quentin area of Picardy
An ancestor Louis Debay(that surname is long gone now) came to London from Picardy in 1721, the family coincidence is that my GGF won a medal for bravery under fire at the Somme in 1916, in same region of Picardy
scarletnoir wrote: "giveusaclue wrote: "You might want to try Michael Dibdin's Aurelia Zen series...I liked the Zen series a lot... less keen on his stand-alone novels. As I don't know Italy well, I can't comment on..."
I've recently re-read Così fan tutti. As far as I can tell he has captured the Neapolitanian spirit quite well. And the opening scene is absolutely brilliant.
Donna Leon: can't read her any more. I just hate Commissario Brunetti and his bloody family from the bottom of my heart.
Hushpuppy wrote: "Fuzzywuzz wrote: "I'm saddened that a lot of my local charity shops are no longer taking book donations - I had suspected as much because there are fewer books for sale."Oh, I'm surprised by that..."
I had to be ruthless in the end. The pile of books was sitting by my front door for a while and despite this, went through the pile in case I changed my mind and wanted to re-read some. Then I copped myself on by looking at my TBR pile and quickly reconsidered.
I'm not sure who needs to hear this, but NYRB Classics is having a sale covering all their titles through tomorrow (FAQ says, "Yes, we ship outside the US"), offering a chance to buy a copy of Stoner for all your frienemies.I knew I wanted a copy of Reflections of a Nonpolitical Man, and hoped to find another title to get at least 20% off. No fear: after less than a half hour browsing, I passed the quantity to get 40% off and made it to the free shipping level.
Bill wrote: "I'm not sure who needs to hear this, but NYRB Classics is having a sale covering all their titles through tomorrow (FAQ says, "Yes, we ship outside the US"), offering a chance to buy a copy of [bo..."Thanks, there are a few things I'm looking for, now mght be the time to buy them.
I vaguely remember seeing some discussion on the old TLS about their translation of Berlin Alexanderplatz as opposed to the old Penguin one - was there a consensus that the NYRB's, by Michael Hofmann, is superior, does anyone recall?
Berkley wrote: "I vaguely remember seeing some discussion on the old TLS about their translation of Berlin Alexanderplatz as opposed to the old Penguin one - was there a consensus that the NYRB's, by Michael Hofmann, is superior, does anyone recall?"This LARB article was one I remember reading. The general preference seems to be for Hofmann, though I often thought the Jolas version fared better in those reviews that gave side-by-side excerpts, even when the reviewer stated a preference for the Hofmann. I confess to having both versions on my shelves, along with a German edition, for when I finally undertake it.
Thanks, I went ahead and ordered it, along with a few others - and this after resolving a few days ago to slow down with the book-buying! But most were titles I'd been searching for for quite a while.
BTW, for anyone interested, shipping to Canada was $52.83 - that was the cheaper of the two options offered, Fed Ex.
Bill wrote: "(FAQ says, "Yes, we ship outside the US")"Thanks Bill, unfortunately there is a hefty shipping charge for Australia, so it's a bit complicated. It might still be the most affordable way to get them if you buy in bulk, but I'm not sure I'll take the plunge.
I've added a religious picture by American artist Gary Larson. Would be interested in any comments.
AB76 wrote: "scarletnoir wrote: "AB76 wrote: "France has never had more than a small protestant minority since the 16thc..."With good reason - as I expect you know, "The Huguenots of the Reformed Church of Fr..."
My grandfather was captured at St Quentin and became a POW.
Having had cause to get up at 5 a.m. (after approximately five minutes sleep), I find myself, having run my errand in the city and had a walk in the Phoenix Park where I communed with the deer, flicking through a copy of the Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám, Khorasan edition, that I bought yesterday. It was open at this page in the case, hard to say what about it called to me...https://i.postimg.cc/G3PcRfY1/IMG-236...
It's inscribed on the flyleaf:
Sep. '78
To Anne,
Love from Mary
Mary, whoever she was, didn't like to waste words, or letters for that matter.
Happy Monday. I'm off to work now. Great to get a good run at the day!
Georg wrote: "I've recently re-read Così fan tutti. As far as I can tell he has captured the Neapolitanian spirit quite well. And the opening scene is absolutely brilliant.Donna Leon: can't read her any more. I just hate Commissario Brunetti and his bloody family from the bottom of my heart.
Thanks for that - I take it you know Italy far better than I do, and it's useful to know.
I don't recall why the Leon stories grabbed me less than Dibdin's - whether there was 'too much family' or something else, I don't know. I just read two at random some years apart, not in order, so that stuff would probably not have meant much in any case.
Bill wrote: "...offering a chance to buy a copy of Stoner for all your frienemies."I would only buy that book for someone I hated, with the intention of sending them into a downward suicidal spiral! (In truth, I doubt that my real life enemies were readers...)
giveusaclue wrote: "AB76 wrote: "scarletnoir wrote: "AB76 wrote: "France has never had more than a small protestant minority since the 16thc..."With good reason - as I expect you know, "The Huguenots of the Reformed..."
Was that in 1916, or earlier?
Berkley wrote: "Bill wrote: "I'm not sure who needs to hear this, but NYRB Classics is having a sale covering all their titles through tomorrow (FAQ says, "Yes, we ship outside the US"), offering a chance to buy a..."as a fan of Hofman and his translations, i would suggest he is the best german translator out there but i havent read his new translation of the Doblin novel. I think i will do in a few years, i read Berlin Alexanderplatz in 2002, an old, dated looking version, cant remember the translator
Bill wrote: "I'm not sure who needs to hear this, but NYRB Classics is having a sale covering all their titles through tomorrow (FAQ says, "Yes, we ship outside the US"), offering a chance to buy a copy of [bo..."damn....i'm attempting to have an "austere july" regarding books and not to order any as piles upon piles are now proliferating through my very modest size 1790s house. When i moved in back in 2002, i was just starting to read and all the bookshelves were empty, 19 years later and i predict that piles on the floor is only about 3 years away. I would do some DIY shelving but i have some beautiful halftimber framing on one side of the house and i dont want to obscure it
AB76 wrote: "i'm attempting to have an "austere july" regarding books and not to order any."I was just thinking, every time I look at that website I spot something, or multiple somethings, to add to my list.
Mod
Ditto.
SydneyH wrote: "AB76 wrote: "i'm attempting to have an "austere july" regarding books and not to order any."I was just thinking, every time I look at that website I spot something, or multiple somethings, to add..."
we are all addicted in that way i think, you cant possibly be a voracious reader and not start clicking your way through a publishing website, its hard to resist.
i learnt the hard way in my younger years, when i'd find a rare-ish novel and just leave it to another time, sods law, i either could not find it again or it had sold out or was out of print
NYRB classics is a real gem, i first read one of theirs around 2005, it was Moravia's Boredom, a superb Italian novel and since 2007 i have subscribed to the NYRB journal
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Ersatz TLS
Books mentioned in this topic
Stoner (other topics)Reflections of a Nonpolitical Man (other topics)
Stoner (other topics)
Montaillou: The Promised Land of Error (other topics)
M Word (other topics)
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Ricardo Romero (other topics)Sacha Batthyany (other topics)
Friedrich Glauser (other topics)
Ricardo Romero (other topics)
Marcelo Figueras (other topics)
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H.L. Mencken wrote that, had the Confederacy succeeded, Richmond would have become "one of the world's charming second-rate capitals."