What are we reading? 6/05/2024

[Gpfr]

Hello and welcome to the new thread!

Bank holiday Monday for those in the UK and in the midst of May holidays here in France. The 1st and the 8th are holidays and this year Ascension Day (also a holiday) is on the 9th, so a lot of people will take the opportunity to faire le pont as they say and have Friday off too. My students would often ask what was the English expression, only to learn there isn't one as public holidays are Mondays.

Whit Monday is on the 20th, also a day off for many. May 1st is the only one of the 11 legal public holidays which employees must be given off (or paid double if in sectors where people have to be working).

Best wishes to CC for your recovery, good that you're back home.
Andy is now in Norway. Lovely photos on his blog as usual.

Anyway, all the more time for reading — here's hoping you've all got good books on the go.

[AB76]

Happy Mayday all, workers of the world unite

It has dawned in typical english fashion with steady rain, the countryside is now lush and green, bluebells in my shaded spots of my garden and only the ash are still slowly leafing, the oaks are all out, so maybe just a splash of rain this summer (oak before ash-splash) but lets see

[Paul]

Huh, the UK does the same as the USA, by celebrating Labor Day on the first Monday of May. I hadn't realized that.

[AB76]

Paul wrote: "Huh, the UK does the same as the USA, by celebrating Labor Day on the first Monday of May. I hadn't realized that."

though as a kid i associated it more with maypoles and morris dancers!

[Paul]

AB76 wrote: "Paul wrote: "Huh, the UK does the same as the USA, by celebrating Labor Day on the first Monday of May. I hadn't realized that."

though as a kid i associated it more with maypoles and morris dancers!"

Yeah, we definitely didn't do either one of those. Sunburns, scorched hot dogs and far too much soda for us

[RussellinVT]

Thanks for the new thread, GP, and best wishes to CC for her recovery.

Following up on the Patrick Leigh Fermor discussion last week, I read the first two of the books and was entranced by them - the adventure of the journey the elegance of the writing, and the evocation of a mid-European culture blown away by war.

The privilege was certainly there – an entrée into one castle after another, the education that gave him his fluency in classical literature - but I can’t say I was much troubled by it beyond being envious of his good fortune.

The characters who have stuck in my head were not in fact the aristos but rather the working types – the log cutters calling their long farewells from the barge down the river, the young Nazi in a hostelry spitting venom at the young Englishman.

I have the third volume that came out after his death but haven’t read it. The discussion here may be the prompt I need.

[Gpfr]

Logger24 wrote: "Following up on the Patrick Leigh Fermor discussion last week, I read the first two of the books and was entranced by them - ..."

The only Leigh Fermor I've read — and enjoyed — is Roumeli: Travels in Northern Greece. No castles or aristocrats ...

[Bill]

Paul wrote: "Huh, the UK does the same as the USA, by celebrating Labor Day on the first Monday of May. I hadn't realized that."

You've been away too long, @Paul. US Labor Day is the first Monday in September. In the US today is simply "Monday".

[Gpfr]

AB76 wrote: "Paul wrote: "Huh, the UK does the same as the USA, by celebrating Labor Day on the first Monday of May. I hadn't realized that."

though as a kid i associated it more with maypoles and morris dancers!"

When a child, I didn't have any thoughts about Labour Day, but I also never saw maypoles (though read about them in books) or morris dancers.

[scarletnoir]

Thanks to GP for the new thread...

Good to hear that CCC is at home... and a tale about the Bayeux Tapestry (or at least, our family's experience of it.) Some years ago, we were due to sail out of Caen (Ouistreham) on the ferry - but, disaster! It turned out that the vet who had treated our dog for ticks etc. as per regulations had put the wrong date on the paperwork, so we had to have him re-treated at an emergency vet and delay departure by 24h. With a day to kill, we went to see the tapestry in nearby Bayeux... our younger daughter was fascinated, especially with some of the goings on at her eye level - we tried to distract her!
https://www.bayeuxmuseum.com/en/the-b...

I know that one is so well known in the UK for its historical significance, but as a work of art I much prefer the later Apocalypse tapestry which can be seen in Angers:
https://www.tourisme.destination-ange...

[scarletnoir]

May Day is a curious one in the UK... May Day has been celebrated in some form for centuries in many countries including England, but the May Day bank holiday in the UK was only introduced in the UK in 1978 by left-wing Labour politician Michael Foot. No doubt because of this, and because in more recent times (i.e. since the late 19th C.) May Day has also become identified with workers' rights, some Conservatives and other right-wingers opposed its introduction. It is also not usually held on May 1st, but on the first Monday in May, whatever the day of the week.

I am not aware of any who have actually refused to take the holiday on offer, though!

[Paul]

Bill wrote: "Paul wrote: "Huh, the UK does the same as the USA, by celebrating Labor Day on the first Monday of May. I hadn't realized that."

You've been away too long, @Paul. US Labor Day is the first Monday ..."

Oh yeah. Wow, I'm out of the loop

[AB76]

Gpfr wrote: "AB76 wrote: "Paul wrote: "Huh, the UK does the same as the USA, by celebrating Labor Day on the first Monday of May. I hadn't realized that."

though as a kid i associated it more with maypoles and..."

Morris Dancing has been a feature of May-June in my life since i was 4 or 5. Not that i take part of attend much of the dances but you hear the bells and the clacking of sticks on village greens and parks during that period

[CCCubbon]

Ah maypole dancing.
When aged nine or maybe ten I forget, I was back in a children’s home for a while in remote Gloucestershire. The village school which I was sent to had two classes as I remember, one for juniors, one for seniors. The school nestled at the foot of what seemed to me to be a large hill where cowslips studied the grass - i had never seen such flowers before.
For some reason I was put in with the older children and, strangely, in a way it was my first teaching experience. Many of the young people, well, they didn’t seem young then as they were older than I was, were having awful difficulty with long division which seemed simple to me. Someone found out and I remember finding myself surrounded as I worked out long divisions for them on pieces of paper. Odd what one remembers.
But back to maypoles. May Day was celebrated with two maypoles suitably decked and all the students dressed up in their best dresses and clothes to hold the ribbons and weave the patterns as we skipped round and round, over and under with proud mums and dads all smiling and clapping.
There was just one problem for me. In the Home we had to wear the clothes provided which was a dark skirt and thick grey ugly jumper. I was so self conscious amid the other girls in their pretty dresses -
The next day I was given a dress to wear. One learns to shrug one’s shoulders!

[Greenfairy]

We maypole danced at our primary school, for some reason the the teachers wanted the girls dressed in yellow, I look awful in yellow!...

[AB76]

A Guardian Angel Recalls by WF Hermans (1971) has started well

Newly translated in 2021, it has started with a portly 38yo public prosecutor saying farewell to his jewish lover at the Hook of Holland. Conversational and analytical in style, a guardian angel and the devil watch over the conduct of this public prosecutor as he goes about his life

Soldiers are everywhere, the general mobilisation for the Dutch military is underway, in a bar he discusses the war with two officers, will Hitler come for Holland, or will he respect their neutrality. The example of Denmark and Norway is on peoples minds, the public prosecutor has cases to attend to and there is the small matter of the child he ran over, in his hurry to be back in Rotterdam the day before....

and will the Germans invade?

[RussellinVT]

The Whit Bank Holiday always used to be such a lovely holiday in England, generally warm weather - in 1976 it was the start of the summer-long heatwave - and for an older generation the start of a week’s break from school. Does that still happen, or do schools now limit themselves to the bank holiday itself? I have impression also that “Whitsuntide” would meet with blank looks among school children today.

[Robert]

Gpfr wrote: "Hello and welcome to the new thread!

Bank holiday Monday for those in the UK and in the midst of May holidays here in France. The 1st and the 8th are holidays and this year Ascension Day (also a h..."

Thanks for the new thread.

[AB76]

Logger24 wrote: "The Whit Bank Holiday always used to be such a lovely holiday in England, generally warm weather - in 1976 it was the start of the summer-long heatwave - and for an older generation the start of a ..."

i think whitsuntide would be met with a blank look, i have rarely used the term which i am ashamed to admit!

[giveusaclue]

Thanks for the new thread as ever G.

I have just finished reading

First of his books I have read. Two brothers digging peat on Islay come across a hand. When the police and SCOs come in they find a total of 5 bodies of young men. They date back to the war when Islay was used as a military air base. What happened to them, who is trying to stop the investigation? It was a bit different and I did enjoy it, although I prefer it when the author doesn't evidence their own political views, however obliquely. Can recommend.

[Gpfr]

I picked up some books from the library last week, including The Camomile Lawn by Mary Wesley which I felt like re-reading. And I have just done so with great enjoyment.

Another book I borrowed but haven't yet read is The Sentence by Louise Erdrich. I liked her non-fiction Books and Islands in Ojibwe Country very much.

I'm just starting now Le Mage du Kremlin / The Wizard of the Kremlin by Giuliano da Empoli.
This prize-winning novel published in 2022 tells the story of Vadim Baranov, spin doctor of the Putin regime.
It's the Italian-Swiss writer's first novel. He has written in both Italian and French on politics and economics.

I'm also continuing with The Restless Republic: Britain Without a Crown, after being seduced away by Shirley Hazzard. After reading about the sad fate of the Diggers who believed in communal ownership of land, we're now with the Countess of Derby maintaining a royalist stronghaold on the Isle of Man.

[Tam]

I have just booked 2 nights hotel in central Paris, on my way to Sete, and Barcelona, in September and have been shocked by how much the hotel prices have gone up since the last time I was there, five years or so ago. I intend to visit the Cluny Museum and I also hoped to see the Impressionists, Paris 1847, which I noted a long time ago, but alas I find that it finishes in July, so I will have missed the 'Impressionistic boat'.

But I would be grateful for any reviews, if anyone here happens to go and see it.

[Robert]

On my last visit to the Auburn Library, I picked through the new books shelves, and found Collisions by Michael Kimmage, a study of the state of Ukraine after a generation of conflict, and Library for the War-Wounded, an Austrian novel by Monika Heller.

[scarletnoir]

Gpfr wrote: "I picked up some books from the library last week, including The Camomile Lawn by Mary Wesley which I felt like re-reading. And I have just done s..."

Never read any of Wesley's books, but much enjoyed the excellent TV adaptation from 1992 which we re-watched a couple of years back. It's available on Channel 4's streaming player for those in the UK or equipped with a VPN:
https://www.channel4.com/programmes/t...

The cast was excellent:
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103381/...

She clearly led an extraordinary life - three sons by three different fathers wasn't the norm in her social group - and her novels reflected her bohemianism. There are many interesting newspaper articles about her, and at least one biography: Wild Mary: The Life of Mary Wesley by Patrick Marnham.

[scarletnoir]

Tam wrote: "I have just booked 2 nights hotel in central Paris, on my way to Sete, and Barcelona, in September and have been shocked by how much the hotel prices have gone up since the last time I was there..."

You are not wrong... city breaks of more than a day or two are becoming unaffordable.

[scarletnoir]

by Walter Mosley

Another re-read as my Kindle has died on me... this is one of the later books in Mosley's excellent 'Easy Rawlins' series, where the black PI deals with evildoers in Los Angeles... here, it's the mid to late '60s. I enjoyed it again, but think that for a new reader it would be wise to start with an earlier story. A great many characters feature here, and quite a few are recurring characters - Easy's family, friends and collaborators - which helps those familiar with the series, but won't do anything for new readers to keep track of who is who!

(After 3 1/2 weeks, the new air heat pump is not only up and running, but madame also got the online app to work - but only after 'phoning the company. So she can now enjoy 3 days of holiday before we return back to the UK! Plus, just in time for our departure, we got a fibre internet connection - no more buffering as we streamed 'The Hour' last night - just in time for our departure. Ah, well.)

[AB76]

In Victorian Cities by Asa Briggs,l the chapter on Manchester from 1830-1880 has been fascinating.

Briggs follows the middle class Anti-Corn Law League and the more working class Chartists as they expand and begin to influence this huge industrial city which springs from the damp soil of Lancashire.( Already housing 90,000 people by 1800). He is very good on the patterns of politial influence on the city, how the Manchester Guardian was mostly pro-league and less chartist, how as the city xpanded after the Corn Law repeals, it became less Liberal and more Conservative in values. Both Cobden and Bright faded as local figures, Bright losing his parlimentary seat in 1857.

Into this more conservative world(even the working class were voting conservative more by the 1850s), came the first signs of cultural development, music venues and exhibitions. The key thing for me about victorian manchester was its strong capitalist individualism(of which Thatcher would have been proud), with minimal civic presence or responsbility within local government. Private funds and charity created parks,libraries and musuems. Briggs remarks that this was quite different to Birmingham, yet to become the second city of England.

Obviously i loathe individualism, private funds and charity being a bedrock of anything but one can see the seeds of what Thatcher re-ignited in the British people, especially the working-classes, which re-created this approach and his remained too strong in Britain since 1979.

In 2024, we have seen 13 years of deliberate de-funding of any local government, the hollowing out over decades by improvisation of utlities and other services and a slow trickle of private provision in the NHS and other services. (to my fustration, where i live a private GP practice has opened, taking over shop space from a funeral home that popped up during covid. i find no issues with my local NHS GP in timings, blood test results or anything else but i did think to myself, these are not emergency appointments, i can wait a few weeks, many people cannot wait but also cannot afford £100 for 10 mins with a private GP...say no to private GPs!

[RussellinVT]

scarletnoir wrote: "Gpfr wrote: "I picked up some books from the library last week, including The Camomile Lawn by Mary Wesley which I felt like re-reading. And I have just done s..."

Never read any of Wesley's books, but much enjoyed the excellent TV adaptation..."

I’ve read them all. Some are very good and some are OK. Top of the pile for me is The Camomile Lawn, which like GP I like to re-read, after longish breaks so I no longer quite remember what happens.

I too really enjoyed the TV series, one adaptation that faithfully captures the spirit of the book, though the last time I looked it had dropped out of channels in the US. Where did they find that dreamy house?

The Patrick Marnham biography is a good read. She seems to have been one of those ladies who did secret work in London during the War. (At my aunt’s funeral it gave me a start when the person giving the address said she had been Chief Cypher Officer in the RAF. She never gave the slightest hint.)

Was it someone here who kind of knew Mary Wesley in old age when she was living in Totnes?

[giveusaclue]

AB76 wrote: "
Briggs follows the middle class Anti-Corn Law League and the more working class Chartists as they expand and begin to influence this huge industrial city which springs from the damp soil of Lancashire."

You will need to concentrate!

A son of my grandmother's cousin has done extensive research into our family tree and sent me a composite photo of his line from him as the latest at the time going back to who is Henry my great great great great grandfather (if I have counted correctly) born in 1797 and died 1877. He was a member of the Chartist movement in Lancashire as my family come from a line of mill workers in and around Burnley.

Of interest to me certainly is that Henry was the grandfather of "Uncle Richard" my great great uncle who lived from 1868 to 1963. So I can say I met a relative who knew a relative who was born in 1797. Apparently Henry, as second and third marriages, married spinsters in 1849 and 1853!

My apologies if I have said this before but it makes my mind boggle a little.

[scarletnoir]

Logger24 wrote: "Where did they find that dreamy house?."

From a link on IMDB, I find that the house featured is Broom Parc House, Veryan, Cornwall, England, UK. Clearly, until 2019 it was being used as a small hotel or B&B, but as there are no more recent reviews on Trip Advisor, I assume that is no longer the case. The second review specifically mentions the Camomile Lawn link:

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_R...

[AB76]

giveusaclue wrote: "AB76 wrote: "
Briggs follows the middle class Anti-Corn Law League and the more working class Chartists as they expand and begin to influence this huge industrial city which springs from the damp ..."

thats brilliant, love exploring family trees and great to have a link to the chartists!

[AB76]

Logger24 wrote: "scarletnoir wrote: "Gpfr wrote: "I picked up some books from the library last week, including The Camomile Lawn by Mary Wesley which I felt like r..."

as a hormonal teenager, i had a thing for Jennifer Ehle(the blonde version) and i watched the tv series for rather non-plot related reasons. i must re-read or watch it as an adult.

[CCCubbon]

Bayeux Tapestry contd……

There are some detailed observations on how the eleventhcentury embroiders could have tackled this huge task. The Tapestry was most likely created at Barking Abbey and the width is consistently measured at half an ell.

An ell was never defined in English law but was about 45 inches corresponding to the cubit measurement from elbow to the tips of fingers. Cloth was made in bolts of 24 ells and this was cut in half for the Tapestry.
This set me wondering how this was done. How was it done so accurately? They must have had some kind of very sharp scissors and means to sharpen them for scissors blunt fairly soon. Did the embroiderers cut of a necessary section from the bolt then cut in half?
The whole Tapestry was precisely measured to fit the new Cathedral in Bayeux that Odo, William’s brother ordered. The necessary mathematical expertise to work everything out holds one in awe.

[giveusaclue]

CCCubbon wrote: "Bayeux Tapestry contd……

There are some detailed observations on how the eleventhcentury embroiders could have tackled this huge task. The Tapestry was most likely created at Barking Abbey and the ..."

There was a recent tv programme about the tapestry. They were examining in inch by inch through some very modern electronic means and were able to work out the chemical formula for the dyes used. They then replicated it electronically to show it as it was originally in glorious technicolour.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode...

[RussellinVT]

scarletnoir wrote: "Logger24 wrote: "Where did they find that dreamy house?."

From a link on IMDB, I find that the house featured is Broom Parc House, Veryan, Cornwall, England, UK..."

Thank you for the link. It looks fab, and (checking the Trip Advisor website) it seems to be still very much open as a B&B.

[Gpfr]

Logger24 wrote: "scarletnoir wrote: "Logger24 wrote: "Where did they find that dreamy house?."

From a link on IMDB, I find that the house featured is Broom Parc House, Veryan, Cornwall, England, UK..."

Thank you ... it seems to be still very much open as a B&B..."

I saw a thing saying it's closed.

[CCCubbon]

Thank you, give. I shall have a look

[Robert]

AB76 wrote: "In Victorian Cities by Asa Briggs,l the chapter on Manchester from 1830-1880 has been fascinating.

Briggs follows the middle class Anti-Corn Law League and the ..."

I seem to remember Thomas Carlyle, in Past and Present, saying "If I were the Conservative Party of England, in itself a mighty statement, I would not suffer these Corn Laws to remain in force."

[Lass]

Must wish Alan Bennett a Happy 90th Birthday. His words have kept me amused and entertained for many years. Had the pleasure of seeing him speak, revelled in his memoirs, and of course his book/ play The Lady in the Van have brought joy to many. Happy Birthday, Yorkshire lad!

[RussellinVT]

Gpfr wrote: "Logger24 wrote: "scarletnoir wrote: "Logger24 wrote: "Where did they find that dreamy house?."..I saw a thing saying it's closed."

That is a pity.

[AB76]

Robert wrote: "AB76 wrote: "In Victorian Cities by Asa Briggs,l the chapter on Manchester from 1830-1880 has been fascinating.

Briggs follows the middle class Anti-Corn Law Le..."

i have a collection of Carlyle essays which i must read....he is mentioned in the book but not as often as Ruskin

[RussellinVT]

Anyone wanting to catch up on the contemporary relevance of Nietsche should check out the report in The G today about the recent resignation of Miss USA, followed now by that of Miss Teen USA. The first began her post with a quote from Nietsche: “There are no beautiful surfaces without a terrible depth.” (Had he been reading Bacon?) The reporter says:”The German philosopher has been accused of many things, some of them regrettable, but pageant-lover is not one of them.”

[Berkley]

even the working class were voting conservative more by the 1850s.

How many members of the working class would have been able to vote in 1850? I thought there were property qualifications that still excluded most of them at that time.

Looking it up on wikipedia it seems that it was the Reform Act of 1867 that gave most male citizens the vote, regardless of their social or economic status, but perhaps there was a gradual loosening of restrictions before then?

[AB76]

Berkley wrote: "even the working class were voting conservative more by the 1850s.

How many members of the working class would have been able to vote in 1850? I thought there were property qualifications that sti..."

Excellent question Berkley, this refers to Manchester alone though, not a natipn wide w/c vote , Briggs refers to the 1867 act when he mentions the w/c vote, though he also refers to the changes in Manchester during the 1850s. I would expect the upper w/c vote would have been large in a working city, what they called "skilled" in the 20thc, so maybe 20% of the w/c were voting b4 1867(1850s-1867). it suprised me to think of any votes from the w/c b4 1867 mind you

the reform act of 1832 may have supplied some lower class voting, it certainly looked to give more represenation to the new large cities over the rotten boro system

one flaw in Briggs book is the lack of data, its very well written and in depth but he doesnt give statistics when mentioning things like the w/c vote, which would be helpful

to conclude he may mean that post 1867, the w/c vote influenced the tory increase and not before that year

[AB76]

I Have No Regrets: Diaries, 1955–1963 is a really top notch first collection of diaries by Seagull Books

Seagull editions of German writing are tempting me every few months, the Reimann diaries have just become my essential late night immersion in the troubled, tumultuous life of this promiscious, complicated German writer.

I dont think i have ever looked at the East German world of writing from a socialist perspective in such depth, from a personal account. The petty denounciations, the endless meetings, the infighting, the censorship, the snake like Stasi stooges and her wild love life all combine to make this a very unique read

She can be brutally honest and then practice self-deception, her health is poor and her faith in the communist idyll is being shaken every day. She retains elements of her catholic faith(her father was descended from Rhinelanders) but is also wracked by doubt.

Reimann was one of the most important female writers in East Germany up till her death at a young age and represents what i would call a tiny flicker of "new woman" or "feminist" thought within the dull, patriarchy of East Germany but by western standards she is not really a feminist at all

This is the first volume of two diary collections, her novel Siblings has been translated by Penguin recently

[CCCubbon]

giveusaclue wrote: "CCCubbon wrote: "Bayeux Tapestry contd……

There are some detailed observations on how the eleventhcentury embroiders could have tackled this huge task. The Tapestry was most likely created at Barki..."
An interesting programme, thanks

[giveusaclue]

CCCubbon wrote: "giveusaclue wrote: "CCCubbon wrote: "Bayeux Tapestry contd……

There are some detailed observations on how the eleventhcentury embroiders could have tackled this huge task. The Tapestry was most lik..."

Glad you enjoyed it, and I hope your recovery is continuing.

[Robert]

CCCubbon wrote: "Bayeux Tapestry contd……

There are some detailed observations on how the eleventhcentury embroiders could have tackled this huge task. The Tapestry was most likely created at Barking Abbey and the ..."

Once I worked with an economics professor who was fascinated with naval power. He quite enjoyed the images of shipbuilding on the tapestry.

[Robert]

AB76 wrote: "Robert wrote: "AB76 wrote: "In Victorian Cities by Asa Briggs,l the chapter on Manchester from 1830-1880 has been fascinating.

Briggs follows the middle class A..."

I got into Carlyle when I read his "Everlasting No."

[Robert]

The Guardian ran several photos of the Kremlin's May 9 march. Putin will never let go of the Second World War.

Once my Russian friend and I were talking about the choice of dates. The Germans signed the surrender agreement at Eisenhower's headquarters early in the morning of May 7, 1945. A Russian general who acted as liaison signed as a witness.
Stalin insisted that there were errors in the text and demanded a second ceremony in Berlin. Stalin announced the surrender to the Russian people on May 9, the day that the Russians now celebrate.