Faulks, Sebastian "Jeeves and the Wedding Bells"

Faulks, Sebastian "Jeeves and the Wedding Bells: An Homage to P.G. Wodehouse" - 2013

I love Jeeves and Wooster. And I have read quite a few books by the original author, P.G. Wodehouse. And watched the TV series with Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie. I rarely laugh as much as when hearing the tales of the two.

When I saw that there was a "new" novel by author Sebastian Faulks (of whom I read and enjoyed "Birdsong. A Novel of Love and War", I was curious. Usually, I am not a huge fan of novels written by another author as the original one but I knew that this one was a very renowned author in his own right, so I gave it a try.

And I was not disappointed. What a lovely and funny story. Wooster is as clumsy as always, Jeeves the gentleman who has a solution to any predicament.

If you are a fan, have a look at this edition. Please, write more, Mr. Faulks

From the back cover:

"Bertie Wooster is staying at the stately home of Sir Henry Hackwood in Dorset. He is more than familiar with the country-house set-up: he is a veteran of the cocktail hour and, thanks to Jeeves, his gentleman’s personal gentleman, is never less than immaculately dressed.

On this occasion, however, it is Jeeves who is to be seen in the drawing room while Bertie finds himself below stairs – which he doesn’t care for at all.

His predicament is, of course, all in the name of love …"

Barrie, J.M. "Peter Pan"

Barrie, J.M. "Peter Pan" - 1904

The book description starts with Peter Pan and his "irritable fairy friend". That could be said about the whole book. While I read this, I thought, yes, it's another children's book, mainly for boys and I am getting too old for these stories. However, in the German description, they say it was originally written for adults.

Well, not my thing. They also compare it with "Alice in Wonderland". And I have to add that these two were my least favourites as Disney movies. And, if I remember it well, my kids weren't too fond of them, either. The only thing I like about the film is the crocodile. LOL

So, why did I not like this? I'm not much into fantasy and this is fantasy for me. I also don't like it when children are portrayed as the biggest heroes, they know everything better than adults. I didn't like that when I was a child, I don't like it now.

But some of the book club members really liked it, so it was a success in the group. Here are some comments:

"I enjoyed the book because of the language and because it was a light summer read, and am able to turn off my critical brain to just enjoy stories for what they are.

I was delighted that the book really divided the group on many agreeing with Marianne, about the book and about Peter. This made for a really good discussion much beyond what we had thought possible before when we chose the book. It was originally suggested because there had been some controversial studies on Peter Pan as a character, so maybe this shouldn't have been a surprise. 

While a few members really enjoyed the novel for its imagination, humour, and writing style, others also found parts of it engaging even if they did not fully connect with the story. Overall opinions were divided. Some members gave it fairly low ratings, with others falling somewhere in the middle. Some struggled with the episodic structure and never felt the novel developed a clear overarching plot, perhaps reflecting the book's origins in stories Barrie improvised for family friends' children. Others simply found the fantasy difficult to engage with and felt that Peter and Tinker Bell were more irritating than endearing.

One of our longest discussions centered on Peter himself. Rather than seeing him as a charming hero, many of us were struck by his darker qualities: his selfishness, emotional immaturity, forgetfulness, and inability to form lasting relationships. This led to a conversation about how some of these traits can also be recognised in people we encounter in real life and even in certain public figures.

Many members were also surprised by how brutal and uncompromising the novel could be, especially considering its reputation as a children's classic. We first explored what Neverland might represent before talking about Captain Hook and the significance of the pirates in the story. We discussed why pirates held such a strong appeal for readers of Barrie's time, ideas of loyalty to the Crown, and how these themes might have been understood when the book was first published.

The portrayal of women and children in the novel came up, especially how much they reflected the values of the time. The parents, especially the father, were seen as exaggerated caricatures, although there was also some discussion about whether this reflects British upper-middle-class attitudes of the time. It was also mentioned that dogs sometimes had a similar 'nanny' role with children in real life, which adds another layer to Nana’s character.

We also talked about Barrie's own life and its influence on the novel. We discussed the death of his older brother when Barrie was six years old, which may have influenced his writing and his ideas about eternal childhood. We also discussed why he wrote Peter Pan in the first place, including whether it was meant as satire aimed at adults. Many of the adventures also originated as stories he improvised for family friends' children, which may help explain why the novel feels so episodic.

Whether members enjoyed the novel or not, there was broad agreement that Peter Pan is far more complex than its reputation suggests. Most of us came into the discussion expecting a fairly straightforward fantasy story, but we ended up discussing far more topics than we had expected, from Peter's personality and Barrie's own life to pirates, symbolism, and the society in which the novel was written.

As we often do in our discussions, we also looked for connections to other books we have read. This time our conversation brought up Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, which we have previously read together, as well as Astrid Lindgren's children's books and Treasure Island."

Thanks to Karin, our group leader, for this report.

And another comment:

"What a pleasure to reread Peter Pan, a book which has followed me all my life. It has taken me through the love of adventure in my childhood, the dawning of second wave feminism in my adolescence, the later growing Canadian awareness of racism against indigenous peoples, the enchantment of my own children , and lately, insight into the characters of those who unduly influence so much of the world. It has always been a challenge for me to embrace the cultural contradictions in this well-loved book that grew up with me even if Peter didn't. Now my book is falling apart, but it continues to reveal. This latest reading showed me an appreciation of Barrie's nuanced comments and attitudes. I think he had a much deeper understanding of prejudices and cultural stereotypes than I had realized."

Lately, I have not been very pleased with our online book club reads, I hope this is going to improve soon. I know our group choses different kind of books from other book clubs but that is the attraction of it, I have found a few interesting ones that I would never have come across without this group.

This was our international online book club read for June 2026.

From the back cover:

"From the moment when Peter Pan and his irritable fairy friend Tinker Bell fly in through the nursery window, the story casts a magic spell. The Darling children are carried away to the Neverland where they meet the Lost Boys, watch shy mermaids playing in the blue lagoon and encounter Capain Hook and his wicked pirate band...

Peter Pan is one of the most popular of all children’s classics.  It blends autobiography, fancy, Oedipal myth and fantasy so satisfyingly that, like Alice in Wonderland, its child’s world appeals and intrigues on many levels."

Cela, Camilo José "The Hive"

Cela, Camilo José "The Hive" (Spanish: La colmena) - 1951

The Classicics Spin chose #9 from our list this month. Great, I thought, a Nobel Prize winner. Two birds with one stone.

Often, I find a new favourite author when I read a Nobel Prize winner. Was that the same this time? I don't think so. The book was alright but nothing too special. Apparently, this was his best, his most important novel.

It was a bit too much of a jumble for me. In German, we have a good word for that, "Kuddelmuddel". There were too many short stories that somehow had a connection but the break between one and the next was so large that you often didn't even remember who he was talking about. Yes, he wanted to show how much life in Spain during the Franco regime resembled a beehive. Unfortunately, he succeeded all too well in that.

Funnily enough, he mentions a book that has been published by F. Sempere & Co. in Valencia. I don't think he has any relation to the one in Carlos Ruiz Zafon's "Cemetery of Forgotten Books" series but I've been speculating whether it is or is not a coincidence. Now, Ruiz Zafón was a great Spanish author, one of my favourites.

Anyway, the story was distorted, the characters not very amiable, the whole book didn't give us a way to see into the lives. What a pity.

This appears on the cover of my book (translated):

"The morning rises ever so gradually. It crawls like a caterpillar across the hearts of the city’s men and women. Almost coaxingly, it taps against half-awakened gazes—gazes that never discover new horizons, new landscapes, or new settings. The morning—this eternally recurring morning—plays a little, seeking to alter the face of the city. It is a grave, a climbing pole, a beehive."

And this is the book description I found on the internet:

"The Hive presents a panoramic view of the degradation and sufferings of the lower-middle class in post-civil war Spain. Readers are introduced to over a hundred characters through a series of starkly rendered interlocking vignettes. Filled with violence, hunger, and compassion, The Hive captures the buzzing ambitions and set-backs of Spanish society under the rule of Franco."

Camilo José Cela received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1989 "for a rich and intensive prose, which with restrained compassion forms a challenging vision of man's vulnerability."

I contribute to this page: Read the Nobels and you can find all my blogs about Nobel Prize winning authors and their books here.

Here are all the books on my original Classics Club list.
And here is a list of all the books I read with the Classics Spin.

The Classics Club: The Classics Spin #44

"Words and Peace" is a blog I've been following for a couple of years and I have always found some interesting new (or old) books there, especially French ones.

On her page, I found the posts by "The Classics Club" asking us to create a post, this time before next Sunday 17^th May 2026, and list our choice of any twenty books that remain "to be read" on our Classics Club list. They'll then post a number from 1 through 20 and we have time until Sunday 7^th July 2026 to read it.

This time, I only read the one book from my old list (Classics Spin #43) (Fathers and Sons). I do want to concentrate on a couple of books in the near future, so I have listed only ten books and repeated them. The books are all in chronological order.

1. Dumas, Alexandre fils "Camille: The Lady of the Camellias" (La Dame aux Camélias) - 1848
2. Conrad, Joseph "Victory: An Island Tale" - 1915
3. Hamilton, Cicely "William - an Englishman" - 1920
4. Hesse, Hermann "Wir nehmen die Welt nur zu ernst" [We just take the world too seriously] - 1928
5. Hemingway, Ernest "A Farewell to Arms" - 1929
6. Meigs, Cornelia "Invincible Louisa" - 1933
7. Krleža, Miroslav "On the Edge of Reason" (Na rubu pameti) - 1938
8. Némirovsky, Irène "All Our Wordly Goods" (Les biens de ce monde) - 1941
9. Cela, Camilo José "The Hive" (La colmina) - 1951
10. Plaidy, Jean "The Sixth Wife: The Story of Katharine Parr" - 1953
11. Dumas, Alexandre fils "Camille: The Lady of the Camellias" (La Dame aux Camélias) - 1848
12. Conrad, Joseph "Victory: An Island Tale" - 1915
13. Hamilton, Cicely "William - an Englishman" - 1920
14. Hesse, Hermann "Wir nehmen die Welt nur zu ernst" [We just take the world too seriously] - 1928
15. Hemingway, Ernest "A Farewell to Arms" - 1929
16. Meigs, Cornelia "Invincible Louisa" - 1933
17. Krleža, Miroslav "On the Edge of Reason" (Na rubu pameti) - 1938
18. Némirovsky, Irène "All Our Wordly Goods" (Les biens de ce monde) - 1941
19. Cela, Camilo José "The Hive" (La colmina) - 1951
20. Plaidy, Jean "The Sixth Wife: The Story of Katharine Parr" - 1953

This is a great idea for all of us who want to read more classics. Go ahead, get your own list. I can't wait to see what I get to read this time.

This time, we received #9:
Cela, Camilo José "The Hive" (La colmina) - 1951

Here are all the books on my original Classics Club list.

And here is a list of all the books I read with the Classics Spin.

Rawls, Wilson "Where the Red Fern Grows"

Rawls, Wilson "Where the Red Fern Grows" - 1961

My youngest son read this in 3rd grade and it was his favourite book for ages.

So, when the 1961 Club read somehow went wrong for me (see here, my book was published in 1962), I decided to pick another one from that year. So this is my official book for our 1961 challenge.

I asked my son whether he could remember why he loved this book so much. We are neither American nor big animal lovers nor did we live in the middle of nowhere. He said that it's a long time since he read it (of course, it must have been more than 20 years ago) and that he just remembers it being a nice story.

I guess you have to be an eight to ten year old boy to really love that story. It was well written but I think I was a little too old for that.

But it deserves to be a classic children's book, emphasis on children.

Book Description:

"For fans of Old Yeller and Shiloh, Where the Red Fern Grows is a beloved classic that captures the powerful bond between man and man’s best friend. This special edition includes new material, including a note to readers from Newbery Medal winner and Printz Honor winner Clare Vanderpool, a letter from Wilson Rawls to aspiring writers, original jacket artwork, and more.

Billy has long dreamt of owning not one, but two dogs. So when he’s finally able to save up enough money for two pups to call his own—Old Dan and Little Ann—he’s ecstatic. It’s true that times are tough, but together they’ll roam the hills of the Ozarks.

Soon Billy and his hounds become the finest hunting team in the valley. Stories of their great achievements spread throughout the region, and the combination of Old Dan’s brawn, Little Ann’s brains, and Billy’s sheer will seems unbeatable. But tragedy awaits these determined hunters—now friends—and Billy learns that hope can grow out of despair."

See my other reads for this challenge here.

Turgenev, Ivan "Fathers and Sons"

Turgenev, Ivan "Fathers and Sons" (Russian: Отцы и дети/Otzy i deti) - 1862

I love Russian authors, as all my friends know. But I had never read a book by Turgenjew. So, I was happy that #2 was chosen for our classic spin this term.

Was it as good as most of the other Russian authors I read? Yes, it was. I loved reading about life in Russia in the middle of the nineteenth century, when times started to change, farmers got more freedom, serfdom started to be abolished and the whole order of society was questioned.

Almost any kind of character was described in this book, diffferent ages, different social status, different education, different housholds, town and countryside, students and farmers, parents and children, women and men (which doesn't happen often in those books).

According to Wikipedia, this is considered the first modern Russian novel. I can well believe that. Changes were coming and the author managed to put that situation to paper.

In any case, I can highly recommend this book. And not just to those who love classics and/or Russian literature.

From the back cover:

"Bazarov—a gifted, impatient, and caustic young man—has journeyed from school to the home of his friend Arkady Kirsanov. But soon Bazarov’s outspoken rejection of authority and social conventions touches off quarrels, misunderstandings, and romantic entanglements that will utterly transform the Kirsanov household and reflect the changes taking place across all of nineteenth-century Russia.

Fathers and Sons enraged the old and the young, reactionaries, romantics, and radicals alike when it was first published. At the same time, Turgenev won the acclaim of Flaubert, Maupassant, and Henry James for his craftsmanship as a writer and his psychological insight. Fathers and Sons is now considered one of the greatest novels of the nineteenth century.

A timeless depiction of generational conflict during social upheaval, it vividly portrays the clash between the older Russian aristocracy and the youthful radicalism that foreshadowed the revolution to come—and offers modern-day readers much to reflect upon as they look around at their own tumultuous, ever changing world."

Here are all the books on my original Classics Club list.
And here is a list of all the books I read with the Classics Spin.

Bjørnson, Bjørnstjerne "Absalom's Hair"

Bjørnson, Bjørnstjerne "Absalom's Hair" (Norwegian: Absalons Haar) - 1894

I enjoy reading books by Nobel laureates from time to time. So when I came across this novel, I had to check it out. It's a novella, so not very long. A bit more plot certainly wouldn't have hurt the story. I wasn't particularly impressed. The narrative jumped around, and the protagonists lacked any compelling qualities. It's simply a very old book that hasn't aged well.

And if it was meant as a satire, I would have expected some humor.

Bjørnson also wrote the Norwegian national anthem, "Ja, vi elsker dette landet" (Yes, we love this country).

Book Description:

"Harald Kaas was sixty. He had given up his free, uncriticised bachelor life; his yacht was no longer seen off the coast in summer; his tours to England and the south had ceased; nay, he was rarely to be found even at his club in Christiania. His gigantic figure was never seen in the doorways; he was failing. Bandy-legged he had always been, but this defect had increased; his herculean back was rounded, and he stooped a little. His forehead, always of the broadest-no one else's hat would fit him-was now one of the highest, that is to say, he had lost all his hair, except a ragged lock over each ear and a thin fringe behind. He was beginning also to lose his teeth, which were strong though small, and blackened by tobacco; and now, instead of 'deuce take it' he said 'deush take it.'"

Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1903 "as a tribute to his noble, magnificent and versatile poetry, which has always been distinguished by both the freshness of its inspiration and the rare purity of its spirit".

I contribute to this page: Read the Nobels and you can find all my blogs about Nobel Prize winning authors and their books here.

The Classics Club: The Classics Spin #43

 

"Words and Peace" is a blog I've been following for a couple of years and I have always found some interesting new (or old) books there, especially French ones.

On her page, I found the posts by "The Classics Club" asking us to create a post, this time before next Sunday 8^th February 2026, and list our choice of any twenty books that remain "to be read" on our Classics Club list. They'll then post a number from 1 through 20 and we have time until Sunday 29^th March 2026 to read it.

This time, I read two books from my old list (Classics Spin #42) (The Sound and the Fury" and "Urfaust. Faust Fragment. Faust I. Faust II"). I do want to concentrate on a couple of books in the near future, so I have listed only ten books and repeated them. The books are all in chronological order.

1. Dumas, Alexandre fils "Camille: The Lady of the Camellias" (La Dame aux Camélias) - 1848
2. Turgenev, Ivan "Fathers and Sons" (Отцы и дети/Otzy i deti) - 1862
3. Conrad, Joseph "Victory: An Island Tale" - 1915
4. Hamilton, Cicely "William - an Englishman" - 1920
5. Hesse, Hermann "Wir nehmen die Welt nur zu ernst" [We just take the world too seriously] - 1928
6. Hemingway, Ernest "A Farewell to Arms" - 1929
7. Meigs, Cornelia "Invincible Louisa" - 1933
8. Krleža, Miroslav "On the Edge of Reason" (Na rubu pameti) - 1938
9. Cela, Camilo José "The Hive" (La colmina) - 1951
10. Plaidy, Jean "The Sixth Wife: The Story of Katharine Parr" - 1953
11. Dumas, Alexandre fils "Camille: The Lady of the Camellias" (La Dame aux Camélias) - 1848
12. Turgenev, Ivan "Fathers and Sons" (Отцы и дети/Otzy i deti) - 1862
13. Conrad, Joseph "Victory: An Island Tale" - 1915
14. Hamilton, Cicely "William - an Englishman" - 1920
15. Hesse, Hermann "Wir nehmen die Welt nur zu ernst" [We just take the world too seriously] - 1928
16. Hemingway, Ernest "A Farewell to Arms" - 1929
17. Meigs, Cornelia "Invincible Louisa" - 1933
18. Krleža, Miroslav "On the Edge of Reason" (Na rubu pameti) - 1938
19. Cela, Camilo José "The Hive" (La colmina) - 1951
20. Plaidy, Jean "The Sixth Wife: The Story of Katharine Parr" - 1953

This is a great idea for all of us who want to read more classics. Go ahead, get your own list. I can't wait to see what I get to read this time.

This time, we received #2:
Turgenev, Ivan "Fathers and Sons" (Отцы и дети/Otzy i deti) - 1862

Here are all the books on my original Classics Club list.

And here is a list of all the books I read with the Classics Spin.

Larsen, Nella "Passing"

Larsen, Nella "Passing" - 1929

I had never heard the expression "passing" in this sense. A "black" woman who is white enough to be considered "white" and "passes" as "white". While I totally understand that in such a racist world, a women (or a man) would do that, I don't see the need why they should have to. First of all, to me it really shouldn't matter what skin colour someone has. But, if you distinguish between "black" and "white", shouldn't someone who looks "white" be considered "white". There is something I don't get. Or rather, that I really don't want to get. In what kind of world are we living???

Anyway, I found this book because it was mentioned in "The Vanishing Half" by Britt Bennett where a similar situation is described.

As we can read in the book description, the novel is about two different women, both light-skinned, both considered "black". But, whereas one of the women lives officially as a black woman, the other one didn't even tell her husband about her ancestry. He is extremely racist. Which is another thing, why do you marry someone like that? Oh, right, some people marry for money. And, as most characters, who do that, they have to pay the price at some point.

The author has used a lot of material from her own life, apparently.

This rather short novella could have been longer for my taste but we have been given a lot of food for thought here. Great book.

From the book cover:

"This Signet Classics edition of Passing includes an Introduction by Brit Bennett, the bestselling author of The Vanishing Half.

Irene Redfield is a Black woman living an affluent, comfortable life with her husband and children in the thriving neighborhood of Harlem in the 1920s. When she reconnects with her childhood friend Clare Kendry, who is similarly light-skinned, Irene discovers that Clare has been passing for a white woman after severing ties to her past--even hiding the truth from her racist husband.

Clare finds herself drawn to Irene's sense of ease and security with her Black identity and longs for the community (and, increasingly, the woman) she lost. Irene is both riveted and repulsed by Clare and her dangerous secret, as Clare begins to insert herself--and her deception--into every part of Irene's stable existence. First published in 1929, Larsen's brilliant examination of the various ways in which we all seek to 'pass,' is as timely as ever."

Mann, Thomas "Confessions of Felix Krull, Confidence Man"

Mann, Thomas "Confessions of Felix Krull, Confidence Man" (German: Bekenntnisse des Hochstaplers Felix Krull) - 1954

Thomas Mann, one of my favorite authors, turned 150, and since I didn't want to end the year without reading at least one of his novels new to me, I went on a search. I had this book on my TBR pile, so the decision was easy.

I must confess, I had no idea that this book was unfinished. I now know that Mann worked on it for a long time and certainly made numerous notes about the plot, but only completed the first part and then died before writing the second.

What a shame, the beginning is already good. The second part would certainly have been just as excellent as anything by Thomas Mann.

In any case, the book has a lot of tongue-in-cheek humor. And even though Felix Krull manages to outwit many people, one can only admire his cunning.

The book is a very good read; I really enjoyed it.

I am not very happy with the translation of the word "Hochstapler" into "Confidence Man". Maybe that's my German thinking but the word "confidence" sounds far too nice to call someone who tricks other people. Impostor, cheater, trickster, swindler sound much more accurate to me.

Book Description:

"'The most astonishing work that Mann ever wrote and also one of the most perfect. . . with Felix Krull the world receives from Thomas Mann the gift which German literature has almost proverbially withheld from it: the great comic novel' - Edwin Muir

Waiter by day man about Paris by night, the young and good looking Felix Krull has created for himself a personality to charm and deceive the world of wealth. Then the Marquis de Venosta makes a proposal that he can't refuse."

Thomas Mann received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1929 "principally for his great novel, 'Buddenbrooks', which has won steadily increased recognition as one of the classic works of contemporary literature".

I contribute to this page: Read the Nobels and you can find all my blogs about Nobel Prize winning authors and their books here.

Mann, Heinrich "The Blue Angel"

Mann, Heinrich "The Blue Angel" (German: Professor Unrat oder das Ende eines Tyrannen) - 1904

Since reading Heinrich Mann's "Man of Straw" (Der Untertan) two years ago, I only really knew this author as the brother of one of my favorite authors, Thomas Mann. But I enjoyed the novel so much that I absolutely wanted to read more of his work.

And I wasn't disappointed. The talent for writing clearly runs in the family, and I'm looking forward to reading more books by this author.

I've never seen the film "The Blue Angel" and didn't even know it was based on this book. The double standards of the Wilhelmine era are depicted in great detail, as is what happened when you rebelled against them. Of course, things are different today. Or have they really changed that much? Yes, some things have improved, but if you were to imagine the milieu of that time in today's LGBTQ+ scene, you could story the novel being set in a similar way. People don't change that quickly, after all.

But, as I said, a fabulous novel.

Book Description:

"Professor Unrat, which translates as 'Professor Garbage', is one of the most important works of Heinrich Mann and has achieved notoriety through film adaptations, most notably 'Der blaue Engel' (The Blue Angel) with Marlene Dietrich.

The book caricatures the middle and upper class educational system of Wilhelmine Germany and the double standards of the title character. "

Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von "Faust"

Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von "Urfaust. Faust: Erster und zweiter Teil" (German: Faust I + II) - 1772-1808

After reading "The Sound and the Fury" for our classics spin challenge, I thought I will never get through Faust in time if that gets chosen, so I started it right away.

The story is said to be the greatest work of German literature and I can well believe that. 250 years have passed in the meantime but I don't believe that there has been a single book that is as well-known around the world than this.

Even though my edition had more than a thousand pages, I got through it faster than I thought. I mentioned it a lot of times, I am no fan of reading plays, it's not so easy to follow through. However, I didn't find this too bad. Maybe because, growing up in Germany, I've come across descriptions and fragments of the story before. And I found a lot of aphorisms, metaphors, symbols and sayings that we use in German often, quite often. Goethe is our Shakespeare, he has moulded the language more than anyone.

The story itself, well, what can I say? It shows the view of women at the time, of the religion and beliefs of people. The morale of the time is depicted just as well as the internal struggles of the protagonist. And even for non-Germans, the play shows so much of people that would be valid anywhere.

My edition didn't just have the Faust that we know today but also the Urfaust, his early work. It shows all versions in parallel which helps in seeing what he changed and what he added. Totally interesting.

I can well believe that Goethe needed about sixty years to write the whole tale, starting with the Gretchen story and then passing on to Helena. Part I was first published as "Faust. A Tragedy".

All in all, I am really happy I finally read this.

Book Description:

"Goethe's Faust is a classic of European literature. Based on the fable of the man who traded his soul for superhuman powers and knowledge, it became the life's work of Germany's greatest poet. Beginning with an intriguing wager between God and Satan, it charts the life of a deeply flawed individual, his struggle against the nihilism of his diabolical companion Mephistopheles.

Part One presents Faust's pact with the Devil and the harrowing tragedy of his love affair with the young Gretchen. Part Two shows Faust's experience in the world of public affairs, including his encounter with Helen of Troy, the emblem of classical beauty and culture. The whole is a symbolic and panoramic commentary on the human condition and on modern European history and civilisation.

This new translation of both parts of Faust preserves the poetic character of the original, its tragic pathos and hilarious comedy. In addition, John Williams has translated the Urfaust, a fascinating glimpse into the young Goethe's imagination, and a selection from the draft scenarios for the Walpurgis Night witches' sabbath - material so ribald and blasphemous that Goethe did not dare publish it."

Kivi, Alexis " Seven Brothers"

Kivi, Alexis " Seven Brothers" (Finnish: Seitsemän veljestä) - 1870

This is supposedly the most famous and best classic Finnish book. Well, I haven't read much Finnish literature, but this was definitely not the best. As the title and description suggest, it's about seven brothers. One expects, or at least I expected, the story of a "normal" Finnish family from that era. I would have liked to learn about the life of an average family.

Instead, we only hear about fights and drinking bouts; the language is described as "rustic" but "coarse" or "crude" is still too flattering even with the most charitable interpretation. The brothers' behaviour towards each other was more like that of  pre-school or young school children; they displayed manners that one should have outgrown by the 1920s.

Some readers might find this amusing, but I didn't. What a shame.

And here are some of the comments from the discussion:

The book didn’t lead to dramatic reactions, but it did give us plenty to think about regarding its themes, its style, and its place in Finnish literature.

Most of us found the novel demanding. The older language, long passages, and slow pacing required some adjusting to.
It took a while to get into, but once I accepted the rhythm, the brothers’ development started to feel clear and honest.
Overall, many appreciated how the novel shows growth—learning responsibility, patience, and how to live with others.

We also talked about some of the more chaotic and difficult scenes, which help define the book’s realism:
The early conflicts with the village and authorities underline how unprepared the brothers are for adult responsibilities.
Their retreat to the forest isn’t peaceful: they burn down their own sauna-house during a careless moment, leaving themselves without shelter.
They face real danger, including the well-known scene where they end up killing a herd of bulls in self-defense.
Their years in the forest are marked by hunger, failed attempts to farm, heavy drinking, and frequent arguments.
These moments show the harsher side of rural life, and the distance the brothers must travel—practically and personally—before they can return to society.

We also revisited why Seven Brothers is so central in Finnish literary history:
Published in 1870, it was among the first major works written in Finnish at a time when Finnish-language literature was still new and culturally fragile.
Many expected Finnish literature to focus on noble, heroic, or uplifting themes. Instead, Kivi wrote about ordinary rural men, their flaws, and the unembellished reality of their lives.
Early critics found the book too rough and thought it gave a poor image of the Finnish people.
Over time, it became recognized as a groundbreaking work of realism—depicting rural life without idealization.
The brothers’ gradual journey from isolation and impulsiveness toward responsibility and community echoes broader changes happening in Finland at the time.

Our overall view was that Seven Brothers isn’t an easy read, but understanding its historical context and the realism behind its scenes helped us appreciate its significance. The rough edges and difficult moments give weight to the brothers’ eventual maturity, and the novel remains an important milestone in Finnish literature precisely because it chose honesty over idealization.

This was our read in our international online book club in November 2025.

From the back cover:

"Along with The Kalevala, Aleksis Kivi's Seven Brothers is Finland's most celebrated literary treasure. The crowning accomplishment of Finland's first literary genius, Seven Brothers remains 'the greatest Finnish novel of all time', the classic among the classics in Finnish literature. Published in 1870, in the author's 36th year and two years before his untimely death, Seven Brothers laid the foundation for what Kai Laitinen later called 'The Great Tradition in Finnish Prose'. This tradition is characterized by realism, humor, respect for the common people, and depiction of nature as both friend and foe. Received at the time of publication by uncomprehending arbiters of literary taste, who still delighted in romantic approaches to literature, Seven Brothers fared poorly in early reviews. Posterity, however, has resurrected the reputation of Aleksis Kivi, and critics, scholars, and readers at large continue to praise the virtues of this trail-blazing, exceedingly rich novel. Richard Impola's superb English translation captures the brothers' rustic milieu and the exceptional dynamics of Kivi's creative style and artistic conception."

Top Twelve Tuesday ~ Modern Classics

"Top Ten Tuesday" is an original feature/weekly meme created on the blog "The Broke and the Bookish". It was created because they are particularly fond of lists. It is now hosted by Jana from That Artsy Reader Girl.

Since I am just as fond of them as they are, I jump at the chance to share my lists with them! Have a look at their page, there are lots of other bloggers who share their lists here.

This week's topic is Modern Books You Think Will Be Classics In The Future
A modern classic, then, would have to be a book written after World War I, and probably after World War II.

I could have listed a hundred since there are so many great books that I believe will be classics in the future. But here are twelve. 

Adichie, Chimamanda Ngozi "Half of a Yellow Sun" - 2006

Brooks, Geraldine "People of the Book" - 2008
Chevalier, Tracy "Remarkable Creatures" - 2009

Ghosh, Amitav "The Glass Palace" - 2000 

Haig, Matt "The Midnight Library" - 2020

Lamb, Wally "The Hour I First Believed" - 2008

Morrison, Toni "A Mercy" - 2008   

Oates, Joyce Carol "The Man Without a Shadow" - 2016

Pamuk, Orhan "The Museum of Innocence" (TR: Masumiyet Müzesi) - 2008

Ruiz Zafón, Carlos "The Shadow of the Wind" (E: La sombra del viento - El cementerio de los libros olvidados #1) - 2001

Towles, Amor "A Gentleman in Moscow" - 2016

Zusak, Markus "The Book Thief" - 2005

Some of these authors have written earlier books where I am even more convinced that they will become classics, but I have tried to stick to books written in this century.

📚 Happy Reading 📚

Faulkner, William "The Sound and the Fury"

Faulkner, William "The Sound and the Fury" - 1929

For the Classics Spin #42, we received #17 and this was my novel. When I revealed this to the other bloggers, I got a lot of comments that people did not like the book at all. But I was determined to like it. After all, I loved "Light in August" by the same author.

However, this is not comparable to the first of his books that I read. I think I agree with most of the other readers.

But let's get to the book.

In one of the reviews (see here), I read "I appreciated the writer's skill a lot more than I enjoyed reading the novel." I think that hits the nail on its head. Another one compared it with "Look Homeward, Angel" which I could also agree on. Another Southern US writer whom you might only want to follow, if you are a Southerner yourself.

I'm sure you guessed it, this wasn't my favourite book of the year. But I appreciated having read it.

They mention "Ulysses" in the description. As you can see, I read that and said at the time "this is the most difficult book I have ever read". It still belongs on that list but I understood that better than this one. I also said "the longer I distance myself from this novel, the more it makes sense and the bigger an impact does it have on me." I doubt this will ever happen here but one can always hope.

I did understand the actions in the book but really didn't like a single character and couldn't follow any of their decisions.

It is also says in the description that "... in the next two sections ... the novel begins to reveal itself."

Nope, not really, it was still as confusing as before. If you're not a huge fan of stream of consciousness books, I wouldn't recommend it.

From the back cover:

"Ever since the first furore was created on its publication in 1929, The Sound and the Fury has been considered one of the key novels of this century. Although it is difficult, in the same way that Ulysses is difficult, it is rewarding. Few readers can fail to become absorbed in this imaginative creation of the degenerate und disintegrating Compson family.

Faulkner does not use characters as pawns in a plot: he is interested in minds and emotions, in the interaction of characters and the way incidents and events affect individuals and their relationships. This is done by dividing the novel into four sections: the first is 'told by an idiot' - Benjy, for whom time does not exist. It is in the next two sections, when the reader hears the tale told by Benjy's two brothers, that the novel begins to reveal itself.

In essence this is a novel about lovelessness - 'only an idiot has no grief; only a fool would forget it. What else is there in this world sharp enough to stick to your guts?' It is a novel about intense and passionate family relationships wherein there is no love, only self-centredness.

The cover shows a detail from 'The Scarecrow' by Andrew Wyeth in the National Collection of Fine Arts, Washington."

William Faulkner received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1949 "for his powerful and artistically unique contribution to the modern American novel."

I contribute to this page: Read the Nobels and you can find all my blogs about Nobel Prize winning authors and their books here.

Here are all the books on my original Classics Club list.
And here is a list of all the books I read with the Classics Spin.

Hemingway, Ernest "In Our Time"

Hemingway, Ernest "In Our Time" - 1925

I chose this book because the year 1925 was given for our Read the Year challenge. A whole century ago. I had read a few books from that year already, so the choice was not exactly limited but there wasn't a single book on my wishlist that would fit the challenge. So, I went for an author that I like and that I wanted to read more from.

Had I chosen it if I'd been aware that this is a collection of short stories? Probably not. Granted, they were linked with each other, somehow. But it still wasn't enough to really grip me.

However, this was his first publication and we can see a lot of topics that will come up in his later work. Having read some of those helped.

So, not my favourite of his books.

Book Description:

"A strikingly original collection of short stories and accompanying vignettes that marked Ernest Hemingway’s American debut.

When In Our Time was first published in 1925, it was widely praised for its simple and precise use of language to convey a wide range of complex emotions, and earned Hemingway a place among the most promising American writers of that period. In Our Time contains several early Hemingway classics, including the famous Nick Adams stories 'Indian Camp' and 'The Three Day Blow', and introduces readers to the hallmarks of the Hemingway a lean, tough prose, enlivened by an ear for the colloquial and an eye for the realistic. His writing suggests, through the simplest of statements, a sense of moral value and a clarity of vision.

Now recognized as one of the most important short story collections of twentieth-century literature, In Our Time provides key insights into Hemingway’s later works."

Ernest Hemingway received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1954 "for his mastery of the art of narrative, most recently demonstrated in 'The Old Man and the Sea' and for the influence that he has exerted on contemporary style".

I contribute to this page: Read the Nobels and you can find all my blogs about Nobel Prize winning authors and their books here.

Find all my Read The Year books here.

The Classics Club: The Classics Spin #42

"Words and Peace" is a blog I've been following for a couple of years and I have always found some interesting new (or old) books there, especially French ones.

On her page, I found the posts by "The Classics Club" asking us to create a post, this time before next Sunday 19^th October 2025, and list our choice of any twenty books that remain "to be read" on our Classics Club list. They'll then post a number from 1 through 20 and we have time until Sunday 21^st December 2025 to read it.

This time, I read two books from my old list (Classics Spin #41) ("Lysistrata"  and "Martin Chuzzlewit"). I do want to concentrate on a couple of books in the near future, so I have listed only ten books and repeated them. The books are all in chronological order.

1. Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von "Urfaust. Faust Fragment. Faust I. Faust II" (Faust) - 1772-1808
2. Dumas, Alexandre fils "Camille: The Lady of the Camellias" (La Dame aux Camélias) - 1848
3. Turgenev, Ivan "Fathers and Sons" (Отцы и дети/Otzy i deti) - 1862
4. Conrad, Joseph "Victory: An Island Tale" - 1915
5. Hamilton, Cicely "William - an Englishman" - 1920
6. Hesse, Hermann "Wir nehmen die Welt nur zu ernst" [We just take the world too seriously] - 1928
7. Faulkner, William "The Sound and the Fury" - 1929
8. Hemingway, Ernest "A Farewell to Arms" - 1929
9. Cela, Camilo José "The Hive" (La colmina) - 1951
10. Plaidy, Jean "The Sixth Wife: The Story of Katharine Parr" - 1953
11. Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von "Urfaust. Faust Fragment. Faust I. Faust II" (Faust) - 1772-1808
12. Dumas, Alexandre fils "Camille: The Lady of the Camellias" (La Dame aux Camélias) - 1848
13. Turgenev, Ivan "Fathers and Sons" (Отцы и дети/Otzy i deti) - 1862
14. Conrad, Joseph "Victory: An Island Tale" - 1915
15. Hamilton, Cicely "William - an Englishman" - 1920
16. Hesse, Hermann "Wir nehmen die Welt nur zu ernst" [We just take the world too seriously] - 1928
17. Faulkner, William "The Sound and the Fury" - 1929
18. Hemingway, Ernest "A Farewell to Arms" - 1929
19. Cela, Camilo José "The Hive" (La colmina) - 1951
20. Plaidy, Jean "The Sixth Wife: The Story of Katharine Parr" - 1953

This is a great idea for all of us who want to read more classics. Go ahead, get your own list. I can't wait to see what I get to read this time.

This time, the number that has been picked is #17. That means for me:
Faulkner, William "The Sound and the Fury" - 1929

Here are all the books on my original Classics Club list.

And here is a list of all the books I read with the Classics Spin.

Dostoevsky, Fyodor "A Little Hero"

Dostoevsky, Fyodor "A Little Hero" (Russian: Маленький герой/Malen'kiy geroy) - 1857

Novel in Nine Letters - 1847
A Gentle Creature - 1876
A Little Hero - 1849

This booklet consists of three short stories, but I liked the "Novel in Nine Letters" the best. It's the correspondence between two men who somehow always manage to miss each other. 

Dostoevsky said of this: "When I was penniless the other day, I visited Nekrasov. While I was sitting with him, the idea came to me to write a novel in nine letters. When I returned home, I finished the novel in one night. In the morning, I brought the manuscript to Nekrasov and received 125 rubles for it."

In this story, you can tell that Pyotr Ivanych wants something from Ivan Petrovich and vice versa. One excuse for why the meeting doesn't take place follows another. Very funny.

I had already read "The Gentle One" in another collection. (see here) Also an interesting story about the beginning and end of a relationship and how it all came about.

I found the actual story, or rather the one that adorns the title, rather boring. An eleven-year-old falls in love with his cousin, and the "gentlewomen" of society make this the subject of their amusement, making fun of him, and embarrassing him. Nevertheless, it's a Dostoyevsky story and therefore worth reading in its own right.

From the back cover:

"At that time I was nearly eleven, I had been sent in July to spend the holiday in a village near Moscow with a relation of mine called T., whose house was full of guests, fifty, or perhaps more.... I don't remember, I didn't count. The house was full of noise and gaiety. It seemed as though it were a continual holiday, which would never end. It seemed as though our host had taken a vow to squander all his vast fortune as rapidly as possible, and he did indeed succeed, not long ago, in justifying this surmise, that is, in making a clean sweep of it all to the last stick."

Dickens, Charles "Martin Chuzzlewit"

Dickens, Charles "Martin Chuzzlewit. The Life and Adventures of Martin Chuzzlewit" - 1843-44 

I'm a huge fan of Charles Dickens and am glad I read this novel. But I wouldn't recommend it if you haven't read anything else by him. For me, this was one of his worst novels.

Too many characters, even though he was able to include many interesting names. This also meant that some things got lost, such as the main love story, which is what everything supposedly revolves around. But it's barely portrayed. We hardly see the couple together. Otherwise, too much confusion, chaos, one catastrophe after another.

I read somewhere that this is Dickens' most underrated book. I wouldn't say that; I think it landed exactly where it belongs, somewhere at the very bottom of all his fantastic books.

I recommend "David Copperfield" for starters.

From the back cover:

"Old Martin Chuzzlewit believes that greed is so endemic in his family that he disinherits his grandson and hinders his courtship of Mary Graham. As the intricacies of he plot develop the story passes from sunny comedy to the grimmest depths of criminal psychology. Domestic tyranny is tellingly depicted through the household of Mr Pecksniff and public villainy - leading to blackmail and  murder - revealed in the activities of the Anglo-Bengalee Disinterested Loan and Life Assurance Company...

A brilliant satire on selfishness and hypocrisy revolving around a stubborn young protagonist. Martin Chuzzlewit is also one of Dickens's comic masterpieces. Peopled with a cast of characters - including Mrs. Gamp, Poll Sweedlepipe, Montague Tigg and Chevy Slyme - unequalled elsewhere in his novels."

Wodehouse, P.G. "Leave it to Psmith"

Wodehouse, P.G. "Leave it to Psmith" - 1923

We already know P.G. Wodehouse from the Jeeves & Wooster novels, all of which are simply delightful.

So I thought a book about his other protagonist would certainly be quite good. And it was. P.G. Wodehouse is more of a mix of Jeeves & Wooster, and I think that's excellent.

Rupert Psmith (Ronald in this book, though) is a jack of all trades, trying to make ends meet through all sorts of odd jobs after leaving his uncle's fish business. He doesn't shy away from the occasional petty crime. But he's also a true gentleman and is concerned about the welfare of his people.

This was the last book in the Psmith series, but that didn't bother me at all. I want to read the others as well.

This book is truly delightful, hilarious and gripping at the same time.

From the back cover:

"Ronald Psmith ('the 'p' is silent, as in pshrimp') is always willing to help a damsel in distress. So when he sees Eve Halliday without an umbrella during a downpour, he nobly offers her an umbrella, even though it’s one he picks out of the Drone Club’s umbrella rack. Psmith is so besotted with Eve that, when Lord Emsworth, her new boss, mistakes him for Ralston McTodd, a poet, Psmith pretends to be him so he can make his way to Blandings Castle and woo her. And so the farce begins: criminals disguised as poets with a plan to steal a priceless diamond necklace, a secretary who throws flower pots through windows, and a nighttime heist that ends in gunplay. How will everything be sorted out? Leave it to Psmith!"