Reading the 20th Century discussion
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Group Reads -> October 2022 -> Nomination thread (The coast won by The Coast by Margaret Kennedy))
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The Feast (1949)
by
Margaret Kennedy
...that is my nomination
I feel confident it's a book that many here will love and there's some good discussion points too
It's set in the Pendizack Manor Hotel in Cornwall in July 1947. So far, it’s a great holiday type read.
Described as a cross between Agatha Christie, The Fortnight in September, One Fine Day, and Ingmar Bergman’s The Seventh Seal
The blurb….
Cornwall, Midsummer 1947. Pendizack Manor Hotel is buried in the rubble of a collapsed cliff. Seven guests have perished, but what brought this strange assembly together for a moonlit feast before this Act of God -- or Man? Over the week before the landslide, we meet the hotel guests in all their eccentric glory: and as friendships form and romances blossom, sins are revealed, and the cracks widen
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It's a rich vein of great literature, and indeed non fiction books
I was also tempted by...
The Kingdom by the Sea (1983)
by
Paul Theroux
It was the subject of a recent Backlisted Podcast and sounds fascinating. I'd love to read it
There are so many though - got to be 20th Century though for our Group Reads
Over to you
After eleven years living as an American in London, Paul Theroux set out to travel clockwise round the coast and find out what Britain and the British are really like. It was 1982, the summer of the Falklands War and the royal baby, and the ideal time, he found, to surprise the British into talking about themselves. The result is vivid and absolutely riveting reading.
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Evil Under the Sun (1941)
by
Agatha Christie
The beautiful bronzed body of Arlena Stuart lay facedown on the beach. But strangely, there was no sun and she was not sunbathing... she had been strangled.
Ever since Arlena's arrival the air had been thick with sexual tension. Each of the guests had a motive to kill her. But Hercule Poirot suspects that this apparent 'crime of passion' conceals something much more evil.
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Coasts don't, of course, have to be British - my first thought was Bonjour Tristesse set on the French Riviera, but I shall ponder further.
There's a list here of sea related books, not all of which are coastal:
www.goodreads.com/list/show/7590.Down...
The other book I thought of instantly is The Awakening by Kate Chopin - certainly lots to discuss but it is just a smidgen outside our period, having been published in 1899 - I might make a plea for it anyway, and it's set on the Louisiana coast.
Although I love Nigelb's suggestions, I am going to offer And to my Nephew Albert I leave the Island what I won off Fatty Hagan in a Poker Game
Foul Rock is a tiny speck only seventy meters wide and one hundred and forty meters long, just off the coast of England.
When he first sets foot on his inheritance, Albert quickly realises that there is absolutely nothing there, nothing except for the frequent presence of Victoria, a very attractive young girl in search of a suntan.
Just as the two are getting to know each other better, a Russian trawler (spy ship) runs aground on the Island.
The other side of the Island is soon occupied by the United States Marines and Victoria and Albert find themselves caught up in a precarious and hilarious Cold War stand off.
Which isn't on the list ...
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Nominations
The Feast (1949) by Margaret Kennedy (Nigeyb)
And to my Nephew Albert I Leave the Island What I Won Off Fatty Hagan in a Poker Game... (1969) by David Forrest (Rosina)
I will nominate a book I've wanted to read for some time. To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf.The serene and maternal Mrs. Ramsay, the tragic yet absurd Mr. Ramsay, and their children and assorted guests are on holiday on the Isle of Skye. From the seemingly trivial postponement of a visit to a nearby lighthouse, Woolf constructs a remarkable, moving examination of the complex tensions and allegiances of family life and the conflict between men and women.
As time winds its way through their lives, the Ramsays face, alone and simultaneously, the greatest of human challenges and its greatest triumph—the human capacity for change.
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Nominations
The Feast (1949) by Margaret Kennedy (Nigeyb)
And to my Nephew Albert I Leave the Island What I Won Off Fatty Hagan in a Poker Game... (1969) by David Forrest (Rosina)
To the Lighthouse (1927) by Virginia Woolf (Ben)
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www.theguardian.com/books/2016/aug/24...
I'm thinking about:
Zennor In Darkness set on the Cornish coast in 1917,
The Mermaid of Black Conch set on a small Caribbean island where a mermaid is fished up,
as well as Bonjour Tristesse.
Rosina wrote: "Although I love Nigelb's suggestions, I am going to offer And to my Nephew Albert I leave the Island what I won off Fatty Hagan in a Poker Game"I'm tempted to vote for that one just for the title! I think I'll probably give it a try even if it doesn't win. :o)
Sid wrote: "Rosina wrote: "Although I love Nigelb's suggestions, I am going to offer And to my Nephew Albert I leave the Island what I won off Fatty Hagan in a Poker Game"I'm tempted to vote for that one jus..."
I read And to my Nephew Albert I Leave the Island What I Won Off Fatty Hagan in a Poker Game... back in 2019. I thought it was slightly better than OK, so will be interested to see what you think.
I read it when it first came out - I think my father read it first, and passed it on. I was really happy to pick up a second hand copy through Amazon, decades later.
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I was also tempted by The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch, which is on the Guardian list - I looked up its details earlier today, then saw on BookBub that it is on special offer for £1.99 today. But I won't nominate it after all as it is rather long (about 600 pages) and, looking at the blurb, I realise I've read it before, many years ago.
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It's strikingly different from the sort of books being written in the UK in the 1950s:
Blurb:
Published when she was only nineteen, Françoise Sagan's astonishing first novel Bonjour Tristesse became an instant bestseller. It tells the story of Cécile, who leads a carefree life with her widowed father and his young mistresses until, one hot summer on the Riviera, he decides to remarry - with devastating consequences.
Contemplating - Voices of the Old Sea by Norman Lewis - about a Spanish fishing villageRain and Other South Sea Stories by W. Somerset Maugham - really just Rain but there are other stories in my book apparently
Beautiful Swimmers: Watermen, Crabs and the Chesapeake Bay by William W. Warner - I found out about this book in Chesapeake Requiem: A Year with the Watermen of Vanishing Tangier Island; it came out in 1976 so it is a little dated. I rushed off (online) to buy it but haven't actually read it yet. I no longer have CR or I might recommend that; and
The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald - I don't know if I heard about it here but it apparently impressed me as I bought it on both Kindle and on paper (it has been/will be donated) and I didn't realize it took place on the coast but I see it is on your Guardian list.
I will ponder and decide on the morrow.
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Interesting nomination RC. Always good to be back on the French Riviera, home to the beautiful people. Ooh la la...
None of the beautiful people are more beautiful than Cécile, the precocious 17 year old. Or her father Raymond, a vivacious libertine. Charming, decadent and irresponsible, the golden-skinned duo are dedicated to a life of free love, fast cars and hedonistic pleasures.
Over one long, hot summer Raymond decides to marry, and Cécile and her lover Cyril feel compelled to take a hand in his amours, with tragic consequences.
Bonjour Tristesse scandalized 1950s France with its portrayal of teenager terrible Cécile, a heroine who rejects conventional notions of love, marriage and responsibility to choose her own sexual freedom.
Nominations
The Feast (1949) by Margaret Kennedy (Nigeyb)
And to my Nephew Albert I Leave the Island What I Won Off Fatty Hagan in a Poker Game... (1969) by David Forrest (Rosina)
To the Lighthouse (1927) by Virginia Woolf (Ben)
Bonjour tristesse (1954) by Françoise Sagan (Roman Clodia)
I have decided to go with Voices of the Old Sea by Norman Lewis, an English travel writer, who has apparently fallen out of favor. After WWII he makes several trips to Farol, a small fishing village in Spain, now part of Costa Brava. He discovered it before the tourists and it became overrun with Europeans. Reading the description it reminded me of The Old Man and the Sea - before tourists discovered Cuba (and definitely before the revolution).
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Another tempting nomination. Voices of the Old Sea (1984) sounds like a remarkable account of the ruination of an ancient and rigid Spanish community. Tourism has a lot to answer for.
After World War II, Norman Lewis returned to Spain and settled in the remote fishing village of Farol, on what is now Costa Brava. Voices of the Old Sea describes his three successive summers in that almost medieval community where life revolved around the seasonal sardine catches, Alcade's bar, and satisfying feuds with neighboring villages. It's lucky Lewis was there when he was. Soon after, Spain was discovered by its neighbors in a more prosperous northern Europe, and the tourist tide that ensued flowed inexorably over the old ways of the town and its inhabitants.
Nominations
The Feast (1949) by Margaret Kennedy (Nigeyb)
And to my Nephew Albert I Leave the Island What I Won Off Fatty Hagan in a Poker Game... (1969) by David Forrest (Rosina)
To the Lighthouse (1927) by Virginia Woolf (Ben)
Bonjour tristesse (1954) by Françoise Sagan (Roman Clodia)
Voices of the Old Sea (1984) by Norman Lewis (Jan)
There's an article about the lighthouse that inspired Woolf's novel in today's Observer btwhttps://www.theguardian.com/books/202...
Think it's a wonderful book, I read it over and over in my teens and keep meaning to revisit it.
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Roman Clodia wrote: "That's inspiring, Alwynne - I don't know why I have such a mental block with Lighthouse when I love Woolf ☹️"It's definitely one of those books that you have to be in the right mood for.
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I'll get the poll up in about 24 hours so this is your last chance
Alwynne wrote: "There's an article about the lighthouse that inspired Woolf's novel in today's Observer btwhttps://www.theguardian.com/books/202..."
Oh, my yearning heart! Mrs Sid and I used to go to West Cornwall regularly and spend our days walking on the Coast Path. Godrevy was always where we went on our first morning. It's beautiful, there were often seals in the water...{sniffle} Can't so much as get there now, never mind walk on the Path, but it still has a special place in my heart.
I've never read To The Lighthouse and have struggled with the Woolf that I have tried. Maybe time to try again...
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Ooh, Sid, really? I'd go on the Lighthouse journey with you, maybe as a buddy even if it doesn't win?
Roman Clodia wrote: "Sid wrote: "I've never read To The Lighthouse and have struggled with the Woolf that I have tried. Maybe time to try again..."Ooh, Sid, really? I'd go on the Lighthouse journey with you, maybe as..."
I'm a bit over-committed at the moment so not just now. A few months time, maybe? (And I'm not guaranteeing I'll finish it, mind you. I'm prepared to struggle on fr a while, but if I hate it again, Im bailing. So there! 😊 )
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Ha, no rush, we'll wait to see how it does in the poll.
I've also dnf'd it numerous times, including the first time I had to read it at uni - lucky that experience didn't put me off VW for life, eh? ;)
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Let's see how the poll goes and then we can talk about a buddy.
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Sid wrote: "Alwynne wrote: "There's an article about the lighthouse that inspired Woolf's novel in today's Observer btwhttps://www.theguardian.com/books/202......"
It does look beautiful Sid. If it helps I've struggled with some of hers particularly The Waves. Have you tried Mrs Dalloway? That's a lot more concrete, and the story works really well.
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Yaroo!
Roman Clodia wrote: "And the Septimus Smith episodes in Mrs Dalloway (he's suffering from 'shell-shock') might be your way in, Sid."Mrs. Dalloway isn't especially easy either. I think I tried it three different times. A total of 9 years - bug I don't want to discourage you, Sid. My review tells me that at times it dragged and at times it was better and almost enjoyable.
I would be up for a Buddy Read of To the Lighthouse too if it doesn’t get through the “Group Stage”
I don't have a copy right now but given some warning I might be tempted.
Jan C wrote: "Mrs. Dalloway isn't especially easy either. I think I tried it three different times. A total of 9 years - bug I don't want to discourage you, Sid. My review tells me that at times it dragged and at times it was better and almost enjoyable""Almost enjoyable"? Well, quite. I know RC loves Woolf's books; I have the profoundest respect for her judgement and she and I agree on a great deal, but our responses to both Proust and Woolf diverge markedly. 😊
I may - may! - be willing to give To The Lighthouse one more shot at some point, but I must warn that Sidexit from a buddy read is a distinct possibility. It will depend on how strong I'm feeling at the time...
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https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/2...
VOTE VOTE VOTE
Nominations
The Feast (1949) by Margaret Kennedy (Nigeyb)
And to my Nephew Albert I Leave the Island What I Won Off Fatty Hagan in a Poker Game... (1969) by David Forrest (Rosina)
To the Lighthouse (1927) by Virginia Woolf (Ben)
Bonjour tristesse (1954) by Françoise Sagan (Roman Clodia)
Voices of the Old Sea (1984) by Norman Lewis (Jan)
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https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
It makes more sense to be discussing her over there. I hope that's okay with everyone
A shame we Mods cannot move posts from one thread to another otherwise I'd move all the other comments too
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https://www.goodreads.com/poll/show/2...
Poll watch
The Feast (1949) by Margaret Kennedy - 5 votes, 45.5%
To the Lighthouse (1927) by Virginia Woolf - 2 votes, 18.2%
Bonjour tristesse (1954) by Françoise Sagan 2 votes, 18.2%
And to my Nephew Albert I Leave the Island What I Won Off Fatty Hagan in a Poker Game... (1969) by David Forrest - 1 vote, 9.1%
Voices of the Old Sea (1984) by Norman Lewis - 1 vote, 9.1%
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I've voted for Bonjour tristesse by Françoise Sagan. It is not hard to get in English! I wish more would vote for it......The first two books I've read. Neither are bad but not winners for me. I've also read a book by Lewis, which I gave three stars. It's Sagan that attracts me.
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I’ll sort out the admin on a few days 🤠
Thanks for getting involved
See you next month 🙌🏻
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Reading the 20th Century
Books mentioned in this topic
Bonjour tristesse (other topics)Bonjour tristesse (other topics)
To the Lighthouse (other topics)
The Feast (other topics)
And to My Nephew Albert I Leave the Island What I Won Off Fatty Hagan in a Poker Game... (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Françoise Sagan (other topics)Margaret Kennedy (other topics)
Virginia Woolf (other topics)
Norman Lewis (other topics)
David Forrest (other topics)
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Our October 2022 theme is...
The coast
Please nominate a book set by or about the coast
Please supply the title, author, a brief synopsis, and anything else you'd like to mention about the book, and why you think it might make a good book to discuss.
Happy nominating.