Dickens, Charles "Nicholas Nickleby"

Dickens, Charles "Nicholas Nickleby. The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby" - 1838/39

For the Classics Spin #39, we received #3 and this was my novel.

I have read most of the books by Charles Dickens by now but there are still a few left. So, I was happy that this number got drawn. So, here was the chance to devour one more of his fabulous books.

And fabulous it was. It had everything a Dickens novel needs: villains and virtues, rogues and good people, a helicopter mother from the Georgian era, just a caleidoscope of people from his time with lots of intrigues. Not to forget the great names he gives his characters: The Cheerybles, The Crummles, Sir Mulberry Hawk, Newman Noggs, Peg Sliderskew, Wackford Squeers, one of them funnier than the last.

Of course, this is a novel against social injustice. And while we might think that is better today, some things never change.

Obviously, a lot happens in the story, much of it is already given in the synopsis, so I wouldn't want to add to that in order not to spoil it for the first-time readers. Therefore, I finish with a quote from Oscar Wilde (in "The Importance of Being Earnest"): "The good ended happily, and the bad unhappily. That is what fiction means".

From the back cover:

"When Nicholas Nickleby is left penniless after his father's death, he appeals to his wealthy uncle to help him find work and to protect his mother and sister. But Ralph Nickleby proves both hard-hearted and unscrupulous, and Nicholas finds himself forced to make his own way in the world. His adventures gave Dickens the opportunity to portray an extraordinary gallery of rogues and eccentrics, such as Wackford Squeers, the tyrannical headmaster of Dotheboys Hall, a school for unwanted boys; the slow-witted orphan Smike, rescued by Nicholas; and the gloriously theatrical Mr. and Mrs. Crummles and their daughter, the 'infant phenomenon'. Like many of Dickens's novels, Nicholas Nickleby is characterised by his outrage at cruelty and social injustice, but it is also a flamboyantly exuberant work, revealing his comic genius at its most unerring."

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.

Tevis, Walter "The Queen's Gambit"

Tevis, Walter "The Queen's Gambit" - 1983

We read this in our international online book club in November 2024.

I knew there was a TV series with that title and I thought this might be interesting.

Well, it wasn't. I know how to play chess but this was too professional for me. Someone who doesn't play chess at all might get bored even quickly. There was too much talk about the game, too many details.

And while I felt sorry for the little orphan, I didn't like the person she grew into, a selfish, addicted girl, too many drugs, too much sex, just not my thing. And none of the other characters were lovable, either, except for maybe the caretaker who teaches chess to Beth.

Comments by other members:

• I started listening to the audiobook, I even tried two different narrators but couldn't really get into the story. I will try reading it at some point, but right now I have too much else going on.
• I ended up hearing it as audiobook and it was an excellent listening experience. The different themes like addiction, family traumas and relationships were very lightly touched, but made for an easy entertaining experience. I got quite into the different chess-drama and main characters internal monologue about the games despite knowing nothing much about chess. Would recommend and considering giving the TV series a chance based on how much I enjoyed the book.
• At first I did feel some frustration that the book only skimmed, for example; the relationship with the children's home staff, adoptive parents, and her relationships with other chess players and eventually the issue about addiction and how to deal with it... I do not believe having a not-that-close old friend take you to the gym, to in any way solve the issue. Other subjects: Giftedness in children and adults, and gender equality in life and sports, religion, etc. But then I thought, if the book had gone deeper into these issues then it wouldn't have been a book about chess at all. And not that kind of easy read about chess at all, and learning and competing and winning.
• I started listening to the audiobook, I even tried two different narrators but couldn't really get into the story. I will try reading it at some point, but right now I have too much else going on.

From the back cover:

"When she is sent to an orphanage at the age of eight, Beth Harmon soon discovers two ways to escape her surroundings, albeit fleetingly: playing chess and taking the little green pills given to her and the other children to keep them subdued. Before long, it becomes apparent that hers is a prodigious talent, and as she progresses to the top of the US chess rankings she is able to forge a new life for herself. But she can never quite overcome her urge to self-destruct. For Beth, there’s more at stake than merely winning and losing."

Perry, Matthew "Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing"

Perry, Matthew "Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing" - 2022

Do you like F.R.I.E.N.D.S.? If you do, your favourite character might be the same as the one of many: Chandler Bing.

I knew he had a problem with alcoholism. I wondered how he still managed to play such an upbeat character.

Matthew Perry opens up, he tells us everything about his life. While some might find this a little too much, I think this is a great book for those trying to understand this illness. Because that's what it is, an illness. I suffer from migraines and I've heard a lot of things about it, like just taking an aspirin, ignoring it, can't be that bad etc. Anyone suffering from a chronicle, invisible illness can tell you about that. But suffering from alcoholism or drug abuse is different, a lot of people blame them for what they are "doing", not feeling compassion for what is happening to them!

I think when reading Matthew's autobiography, you can understand how hard it is to battle such an illness and that comments like the ones above don't help but hinder.

   

This was a book my son gave me for Christmas. He knows how much I love F.R.I.E.N.D.S. Actually, my whole family does. Say anything and we can answer with a F.R.I.E.N.D.S. quote, we can actually have whole conversations with F.R.I.E.N.D.S. quotes. We have lots of gadgets with F.R.I.E.N.D.S. quotes, coasters, glasses, cups, plates etc. We once gave the boys cushion covers with the quote "The Cushions are the Essence of the Chair" and they both have them in their apartments. Would he have given it to me if he had read it himself beforehand and had known about all the details? I don't know but I hope he would have and I am glad he did.

There is a lot of Matthew in Chandler and a lot of Chandler in Matthew, as could be expected. Reading this memoir makes me love him even more. This is probably one of the saddest story I will read this year. So dark, so devastating.

The book is so honest, you feel the author talks to you personally as his very best friend whom he can rely on. I wish Matthew Perry all the best in the future.

From the back cover:

"The BELOVED STAR OF FRIENDS takes us behind the scenes of the hit sitcom and his struggles with addiction in this 'CANDID, DARKLY FUNNY...POIGNANT' memoir (The New York Times)

A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK by Time, Associated Press, Goodreads, USA Today, and more!
'Hi, my name is Matthew, although you may know me by another name. My friends call me Matty. And I should be dead.'

So begins the riveting story of acclaimed actor Matthew Perry, taking us along on his journey from childhood ambition to fame to addiction and recovery in the aftermath of a life-threatening health scare. Before the frequent hospital visits and stints in rehab, there was five-year-old Matthew, who traveled from Montreal to Los Angeles, shuffling between his separated parents; fourteen-year-old Matthew, who was a nationally ranked tennis star in Canada; twenty-four-year-old Matthew, who nabbed a coveted role as a lead cast member on the talked-about pilot then called Friends Like Us. . . and so much more.

In an extraordinary story that only he could tell - and in the heartfelt, hilarious, and warmly familiar way only he could tell it - Matthew Perry lays bare the fractured family that raised him (and also left him to his own devices), the desire for recognition that drove him to fame, and the void inside him that could not be filled even by his greatest dreams coming true. But he also details the peace he’s found in sobriety and how he feels about the ubiquity of Friends, sharing stories about his castmates and other stars he met along the way. Frank, self-aware, and with his trademark humor, Perry vividly depicts his lifelong battle with addiction and what fueled it despite seemingly having it all.

Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing is an unforgettable memoir that is both intimate and eye-opening - as well as a hand extended to anyone struggling with sobriety. Unflinchingly honest, moving, and uproariously funny, this is the book fans have been waiting for."

Doyle, Arthur Conan "A Study in Scarlet"

Doyle, Arthur Conan "A Study in Scarlet" - 1887

We read this in our international online book club in October 2022.

I hardly ever read crime stories. I like to watch them on TV but they don't do much for me in written form. Now, this was chosen for our book club this month. Even on television, Sherlock Holmes has never been my favourite, except for the version with Benedict Cumberbatch but that has more to do with the actor than the stories (they called it "A Study in Pink" to make sure nobody complains, I guess).

Anyway, I read the chosen novel and found there was a huge difference between the book and the film, as usual. I quite liked the part where they explain how the murder came to pass, that was changed in the series, at least in my memory.

Still, it wasn't a bad book and if I enjoyed crime stories, I probably would love this. So, I can recommend it to anyone who likes this genre.

Some comments from other members of the book club:

• Me, I love the character of Sherlock Holmes. He reminds me of so many smart people I know!It was very enjoyable.
• A Study in Scarlet has aged well! The distinctive characters, their diverse interpretations of events, their small motivations, the intriguing clues, the unfolding of Holmes's revelations all combine to create such a satisfying tale. For me there was also an echo every few pages of my first reading, back when the world was young.
• Does anyone know, if the depiction of the oppressive nature of Mormon culture was accurate?
• Apparently the mormone culture was at the time of the writing of the book big shocking news in the British press, especially about the Danite faction.
• The way Doyle described the Mormons reminded me of Scientology. When I worked for the airlines, I visited Salt Lake City, went to the temple and listened to their spiel. Utah is definitely composed of a very tight knit Mormon community to this day. Unfortunately, when they told their history at the Temple they failed to mention the darker side of this group which I no doubt existed in the wild west although I have no factual evidence. I loved the book although, it is interesting that a good portion of it was a digression into the Mormons. The rest of his books generally focus on Sherlock and Watson and their escapades. I love how he portrays the sincere bumbling of the constabulary. Enjoyed it so much.

From the back cover:

"When Dr John Watson takes rooms in Baker Street with amateur detective Sherlock Holmes, he has no idea that he is about to enter a shadowy world of criminality and violence. Accompanying Holmes to an ill-omened house in south London, Watson is startled to find a dead man whose face is contorted in a rictus of horror. There is no mark of violence on the body yet a single word is written on the wall in blood. Dr Watson is as baffled as the police, but Holmes's brilliant analytical skills soon uncover a trail of murder, revenge and lost love . . ."

Eliot, George "Silas Marner"

Eliot, George "Silas Marner" - 1861

I have read several novels by George Eliot and liked them all. So, it was no surprise that I also enjoyed reading about Silas Marner and his life. There are a lot of books set in this location and time-frame (English Midlands, French wars of the early 1800's) and I always compare this author to Charles Dickens who lived at the same time and described similar lives.

But, you can tell that this is a woman who wrote the book, she makes different observations, I don't want to say they are deeper or better, just different. And thereby, she adds a lot to the understanding of people from that era.

Maybe we could say this book is about karma. As Oscar Wilde said: "The good ended happily, and the bad unhappily That is what fiction means." Stories like this one confirm this.

I will certainly have to read more books by George Eliot (pen name of Mary Ann Evans).

From the back cover:

"Although the shortest of George Eliot's novels, Silas Marner is one of her most admired and loved works. It tells the sad story of the unjustly exiled Silas Marner - a handloom linen weaver of Raveloe in the agricultural heartland of England - and how he is restored to life by the unlikely means of the orphan child Eppie. Silas Marner is a tender and moving tale of sin and repentance set in a vanished rural world and holds the reader's attention until the last page as Eppie's bonds of affection for Silas are put to the test."

Trotter, Derek "Del Boy" "He Who Dares"

Trotter, Derek "Del Boy" (Family of John Sullivan) "He Who Dares" - 2015

Last month, the subject for our Xanadu reading challenge was i.a. a comic novel or book of short stories, a biography or autobiography of a famous comedian or comic actor. So, I chose this one that had been on my TBR pile for a while since I wanted to wait until we finished the series on TV.

If you are British, you certainly have watched "Only Fools and Horses" and know all the stories about Del Boy (played by the fantastic David Jason), his brother Rodney (also called Dave), their grandfather and uncle Albert and their friends Trigger, Denzil, Boycie, Marlene, Mike, Mickey Pearce and many more. If you haven't watched this, you have missed out on a lot and certainly should start watching it ASAP. Here's a little glimpse of what you can expect on YouTube: Del Boy Falls Through the Bar.

Well, if that doesn't make you want to see more, I don't know what will.

John Sullivan was an English scriptwriter and he created "Only Fools and Horses" and all those lovely characters (and many other series). Unfortunately, he died at age 64, otherwise I am sure there would have been more great shows.

Well, his family has published Del Boy's "biography", "written by himself". (Obviously, we have no idea who wrote this because Del Boy doesn't exist and his creator wasn't alive anymore.) Here, he explains in his usual charming way and his impeccable French (sarcasm) how his life went. As amusing as the television series. If you love the British sense of humour, this is for you, the book AND the series.

From the back cover:

"International playboy and entrepreneur Derek 'Del Boy' Trotter knew from a young age that he was destined for greatness. He Who Dares is his no-holds-barred account of his dreams and schemes on the long and winding road to becoming a millionaire (and the short and straight one back to being potless)."

Christie, Agatha "Murder on the Orient Express"

Christie, Agatha "Murder on the Orient Express" (Hercule Poirot #10) - 1934

Who hasn't watched "Murder on the Orient Express"? I know I have watched it about a hundred times. First with Albert Finney as Monsieur Poirot, then Alfred Molina, then THE Hercule Poirot, David Suchet, and last but definitely not least, the great Kenneth Branagh.

So, I thought it was about time that I read the book. All those films I watched are all slightly different and I always wondered which one was closest to the book. Well, they all left something out or changed who said what or even who was who. But they are all close to the book. Agatha Christie had a huge imagination and this novel shows us again how wonderful her stories are.

From the back cover:

"Just after midnight, the famous Orient Express is stopped in its tracks by a snowdrift. By morning, the millionaire Samuel Edward Ratchett lies dead in his compartment, stabbed a dozen times, his door locked from the inside. One of his fellow passengers is the murderer.

Isolated by the storm and with a killer in their midst detective Hercule Poirot must find the killer among a dozen of the dead man's enemies, before the murderer decides to strike again …"

Hislop, Victoria "One August Night"

Hislop, Victoria "One August Night" - 2020

I absolutely love Victoria Hislop. My first book by her was "The Island" and I have read all her subsequent novels (see here). All of them were fantastic, great stories with a lot of information mainly about Greece but also some other Southern European countries (Cyprus, Spain, Turkey).

Fourteen years after her first novel, the sequel to it was published. It is the end of the leper colony in Greece since they found a cure. That is great news for some since their loved ones return, not so good news for others who fear their lives will change. And they do.

A drama that occurs on the return changes the life of everyone whom we got to know in the first book. It would have been nice to learn more about other inhabitants of Spinalonga but we learn more about Maria who spent a long time of her life there.

As in all her novels, Victoria Hislop tells us a lot about her beloved country Greece. She has been made an honorary citizen in the meantime, a well-deserved recognition. I always love her describing the Greek whom I got to know as a warm and loving people. And her stories always have a feeling of truth, you can believe the people really existed, they led this life. She always brings me back to Crete which I really love.

I am already looking forward to her next book which she will hopefully write soon.

From the back cover:

"25th August 1957. The island of Spinalonga closes its leper colony. And a moment of violence has devastating consequences.

When time stops dead for Maria Petrakis and her sister, Anna, two families splinter apart and, for the people of Plaka, the closure of Spinalonga is forever coloured with tragedy.

In the aftermath, the question of how to resume life looms large. Stigma and scandal need to be confronted and somehow, for those impacted, a future built from the ruins of the past.

Number one bestselling author Victoria Hislop returns to the world and characters she created in The Island - the award-winning novel that remains one of the biggest selling reading group novels of the century. It is finally time to be reunited with Anna, Maria, Manolis and Andreas in the weeks leading up to the evacuation of the island... and beyond."

See more comments on my ThrowbackThursday post in 2022.

Simenon, Georges "Maigret Sets a Trap"

Simenon, Georges "Maigret Sets a Trap" (French: Maigret tend un piège) (Maigret #48) - 1958

Even though I am not a reader of crime novels, I bought this book last year after I had watched the new adaptation with Rowan Atkinson. If you like to watch crime stories, I can hartily recommend the Maigret series. Unfortunately, he only did four but I hope there will be more. And now it fits in the challenge Paris in July.

Anyway, this was the first book I read by Georges Simenon and I really liked it. The way he builds suspense, the way he presents his characters, he has an interesting way of presenting his story. He tries to make Maigret (and thereby us) understand the thoughts and reasons of the murderer. Totally interesting.

From the back cover:

"With a serial killer on the loose in Paris, Maigret must outsmart the killer before he can strike again. The inspiration for ITV's feature-length adaptation starring Rowan Atkinson and the forty-eighth book in the new Penguin Maigret series.

Detective Chief Inspector Maigret is known for his infallible instinct, for getting at the truth no matter how complex the case. But when someone starts killing women on the streets of Montmartre, leaving nary a clue and the city’s police force at a loss, he finds himself confounded. In the sweltering Paris summer heat, with the terrified city in a state of siege, Maigret hatches a plan to lure the murderer out."

de Brunhoff, Jean "The Story of Babar"

de Brunhoff, Jean "The Story of Babar" (French: Histoire de Babar le petit éléphant) - 1934

I remember my little brother watching Babar the Elephant on TV. And since he's over 50 by now, that is a long, long time ago. My sons also loved Barbar, Céleste and their family both on TV and in their books.

I noticed that I never wrote about Babar even though my most favourite animal is an elephant. But since we do "Paris in July", this is the perfect opportunity to introduce him to those who haven't heard of him, though I doubt there are that many.

Well, Babar is an elephant. His mother is killed in the jungle and this is how he ends up in town. Jean de Brunhoff's wife Cécile had told their children these stories about an elephant in a city.

As happens with so many other books (especially children's books), the cover has changed a lot over the time (see the collage at the top) but the drawings have always changed the same.

Unfortunately, the author died of tuberculosis when he was only 37 years old. So, he didn't get to write all the many books about "his" elephant. Here is the list:

The Story of Babar (Histoire de Babar) - 1934
The Travels of Babar (Le Voyage de Babar) - 1934
Babar the King (Babar the King) - 1935
A.B.C. of Babar (L'ABC de Babar) -1936
Zephir's Holidays and Babar's Friend Zephir (Les vacances de Zéphir) - 1937
Babar and His Children (Babar en famille) - 1938
Babar and Father Christmas (Babar et le père Noël) - 1940

However, his son Laurent carried on the stories, he learned to draw the elephant just the same way his father had and so Babar and his family could experience many more adventures. That way, one can hardly tell which one is by the father and which by the son:

Babar's Cousin: That Rascal Arthur (Babar et ce coquin d'Arthur) - 1946
Babar's Picnic (Pique-nique chez Babar) - 1949
Babar's Visit to Bird Island (Babar dans l'île aux oiseaux) - 1952
Babar and the Circus (Babar au cirque)
Babar's Fair (La fête de Célesteville) - 1954
Babar and the Professor (Babar et le professeur Grifaton) - 1956
Babar's Castle (Le Château de Babar) - 1961
Babar's English Lessons (Je parle anglais avec Babar) - 1963
Babar Comes to America (Babar en Amérique) - 1965
Bonhomme (Babar à New York) - 1966
Babar's German Lessons (Je parle allemand avec Babar) - 1966
Babar's Spanish Lessons (Je parle espagnole avec Babar) - 1966
Babar's Birthday Surprise (L'anniversaire de Babar) - 1972
Babar visits a planet (Babar sur la planète mole) - 1974
Babar and the Wully-Wully (Babar et le Wouly-Wouly) - 1977
Babar's Mystery (Babar et les quatre voleurs) - 1979
Babar and the Ghost (Babar et le fantôme) - 1981
Babar and his Little Girl (Babar et sa fille Isabelle) - 1988
Babar's Battle (La victoire de Babar) - 1992
Babar's Rescue (Babar et la cité perdue) - 1995
Babar and the Succotash Bird (Babar et l'oiseau magicien) - 2000
Babar's Yoga for Elephants (Babar: le yoga des éléphants) - 2002
Babar's Museum of Art (Le musée de Babar) - 2003
Babar's World Tour (Le tour du monde de Babar) - 2005
Babar's Celesteville Games (Coup de foudre aux Jeux de Célesteville) - 2011
Babar's Guide to Paris (Babar à Paris) - 2017

I have found some other English titles that I could not relate to any French originals. I would assume they exist but the pages are not always great with different kind of translations and even Goodreads doesn't have them all.
A tue-tete - 1957
Serafina the Giraffe - 1961
Serafina's Lucky Find - 1962
Captain Serafina - 1963
Anatole and His Donkey -1963
Babar's French Lessons -1963
Babar Learns to Cook -1967
Babar Loses His Crown -1967
Babar Learns to Cook - 1967
Babar's Games -1968
Babar Goes Skiing -
Babar's Moon Trip -1969
Babar's Trunk -1969
Gregory and the Lady Turtle in the Valley of the Music Trees- 1971
Babar's Other Trunk -1971
Babar Visits Another Planet - 1972
Meet Babar and His Family -1973
Babar's Bookmobile -1974
Bonhomme and the Huge Beast- 1974
Babar Saves the Day -1976
The One Pig with Horns- 1979
Babar the Magician -1980
Babar's Little Library -1980
Babar's Anniversary Album -1981
Babar's A.B.C -1983
Babar's Book of Colour -1984
Babar's Counting Book -1986
Christmas with Babar & Baby Isabelle. 1987
Babar's Adventures, Calendar for 1988- 1988
Babar's Little Circus Star -1988
Babar in Hollywood, Calendar for 1990- 1989
Babar's Busy Year -1989
Babar in History, Calendar for 1991- 1990
Isabelle's New Friend -1990
Babar Goes to School - 2003
Babar's USA- 2008
Babar and His Family (An adaptation of Meet Babar and His Family. 1973) - 2012
B Is for Babar: An Alphabet Book (An adaptation of Babar's A.B.C.. 1983) - 2012
Babar and the New Baby (An adaptation of Babar's Little Girl. 1987) - 2013
L'île du Paradis -2014

Have fun with the elephant family.

From the back cover:

"The first of the tales starring the most famous elephant in the literary world.

In this classic that has delighted three generations of readers, Babar escapes from the hunter who killed his mother and comes to town. Here, with the help of an old friend, he will learn a lot of new things and one day, once returned to the great forest, he will be acclaimed King of the elephants!

A story beautifully told accompanied by fascinating and hilarious illustrations!
A must read for kids of any age!"

Brown, Marc "Arthur's Nose"

Brown, Marc "Arthur's Nose" - 1976

It's about time I wrote about one of my younger son's favourite series when he was little. He even dressed up as his favourite aardvark at one of the school's book parades.

We have always enjoyed reading those books together. Some of them are easier than others which makes them ideal for beginning readers.

This book about Arthur's nose was the first one in a long series about children that are different from others and it is still as relevant as in 1976. You can see from the two different covers, how much the drawings have changed but the message is still the same. No matter who you are, it doesn't matter what you look like. It's always the inside that counts.

Conclusion of the book: "There is a lot more about Arthur than his nose."

From the back cover:

"Arthur doesn't like his nose so he went to get a new one. Which did he choose? This is a fine lesson for young ones to learn that differences are nice and that we should be happy with ourselves just the way we are."

List of all the other books about Arthur and his friends:

1976 - Arthur's Nose
1979 - Arthur's Eyes
1980 - Arthur's Valentine
1981 - The True Francine
1982 - Arthur Goes to Camp
1982 - Arthur's Halloween
1983 - Arthur's April Fool
1983 - Arthur's Thanksgiving
1984 - Arthur's Christmas
1985 - Arthur's Tooth
1986 - Arthur's Teacher Trouble
1987 - Arthur's Baby
1988 - D.W. All Wet
1989 - Arthur's Birthday
1990 - Arthur's Pet Business
1991 - Arthur Meets the President (Early Moments)
1992 - Arthur Babysits
1993 - D.W. Thinks Big
1993 - D.W. Rides Again
1993 - Arthur's Family Vacation
1993 - Arthur's New Puppy
1994 - Arthur's First Sleepover
1994 - Arthur's Chicken Pox
1995 - Arthur's TV Trouble
1995 - D.W., the Picky Eater
1995 - Arthur Goes to School
1996 - Arthur Writes a Story
1996 - Arthur's Reading Race
1996 - Glasses for D.W.
1996 - Arthur's Neighborhood
1996 - Arthur and the True Francine
1997 - Arthur's Computer Disaster
1997 - Say the Magic Word
1997 - D.W.'s Lost Blankie
1997 - Arthur's Really Helpful Word Book
1997 - Arthur Tricks the Tooth Fairy
1998 - Arthur Lost and Found
1998 - Arthur's Really Helpful Bedtime Stories
1998 - Arthur Decks the Hall
1999 - Arthur's Underwear
2000 - Arthur's Teacher Moves In
2000 - Arthur's Perfect Christmas
2002 - Arthur, It's Only Rock 'n' Roll
2006 - Arthur Jumps into Fall

2011 - Arthur Turns Green

 

Apparently, in one of the newer books, there is a gay wedding by one of his teachers. I think that shows how relevant this series still is.

Mantel, Hilary "The Mirror and the Light"

Mantel, Hilary "The Mirror and the Light" - 2020

I have read both "Wolf Hall" as well as "Bring up the Bodies" by Hilary Mantel and I couldn't wait for the third book in the Wolf Hall Trilogy.

Well, knowing how the book ends didn't add to my enjoyment on the book, probably on the contrary. I am not surprised, the author didn't get the Booker Prize for this third book in the series (although it was longlisted) because I have the feeling, Hilary Mantel was dreading it as much as the reader did.

It starts with a lot of repetition, not as in someone is retelling the whole story but Cromwell more or less reliving the execution of Anne Boleyn, more or less a pre-shadow of the end of his own life.

I think we have all come to like Thomas Cromwell in the first two books, as opposed to what many historians try to tell us. Maybe it's good to recognize that not everyone in history was the way they have been portrayed. If any book teaches us this, "Wolf Hall" is the right one for that.

However, just as in the first two books, the writing was fantastic. The author managed to catch our attention, maybe not from the very first page but certainly soon thereafter. The Tudors always get there.

What surprised me most was how quick the fall from grace took place and how swiftly everyone stood there to see it and help bringing it to an end. You would have thought something really bad had happened, but no, just a few words here or there that are twisted in your mouth and you're a traitor. Incredible.

I would have liked a list of all the characters at the end, as I always find that useful in any historical book, fiction or non-fiction.

Now that Cromwell's life is over, I wonder who Hilary Mantel is going to write about next.

From the back cover:

"England, May 1536. Anne Boleyn is dead, decapitated in the space of a heartbeat by a hired French executioner. As her remains are bundled into oblivion, Thomas Cromwell breakfasts with the victors. The blacksmith’s son from Putney emerges from the spring’s bloodbath to continue his climb to power and wealth, while his formidable master, Henry VIII, settles to short-lived happiness with his third queen before Jane dies giving birth to the male heir he most craves.

Cromwell is a man with only his wits to rely on; he has no great family to back him, no private army. Despite rebellion at home, traitors plotting abroad and the threat of invasion testing Henry’s regime to the breaking point, Cromwell’s robust imagination sees a new country in the mirror of the future. But can a nation, or a person, shed the past like a skin? Do the dead continually unbury themselves? What will you do, the Spanish ambassador asks Cromwell, when the king turns on you, as sooner or later he turns on everyone close to him?

With The Mirror & the Light, Hilary Mantel brings to a triumphant close the trilogy she began with Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies. She traces the final years of Thomas Cromwell, the boy from nowhere who climbs to the heights of power, offering a defining portrait of predator and prey, of a ferocious contest between present and past, between royal will and a common man’s vision: of a modern nation making itself through conflict, passion, and courage."

One of my blogger friends (Brona from Brona's Books) organized a read-along here.

Bulgakov, Michail "The Master and Margarita"

Bulgakow, Michail "The Master and Margarita" (Russian: Мастер и Маргарита/Master i Margarita) - 1929-39

When the last "classics spin" number was drawn, I got this book to read. One of my blogger friends (Emma from Words and Peace) recommended I read an edition with many annotations. Since I had the book already (I bought it a couple of years ago when Russia was the theme of a German book fair) and it had no annotations, I searched the net and there are some great sites that explain all the meanings of almost every sentence meticulously.

These pages were especially helpful:
Master & Margarita (in several languages)
Along with much information on the novel, you will also find on this site different films and TV-series based on The Master and Margarita, and subtitled in English by your webmaster.
LitCharts (including a study guide)
Get Abstract (in German)
Inhaltsangaben 24 (in German)

And then there are some good blog posts about the book (I happily include yours if you let me know the link):
Words and Peace, one of my favourite blogs, Emma has a very diverse page and always gives the greatest tips.
Resolute Reader
A Guy’s Moleskine Notebook who reviewed it even twice, first here and then here.

Those sites were very helpful to understand the background of the novel but I think I would have enjoyed it just by itself, as well. And I surely could see some of the links to the Soviet Union. However, being interested in all these subjects, history, politics, religion, it made it even more fascinating.

What a book. Of course, from authors like Bulgakov, you foresee criticism of the Soviet State, it's expected. Bureaucracy is just as much criticized as oppression and everything that deviates from Karl Marx' original idea of communism.

But this book has so many more layers. There is a novel within the novel about Pontius Pilate and Jesus' last days, his friends and foes. The way, the two stories come together, is quite fascinating. There is a huge amount of references to both literature and history.

The book definitely gives us a lot of food for thought. The devil comes visiting Moscow together with some ominous companions, one of them a big black cat. As a result, the whole city is upside down.

I don't think it is possible to explain the concept of the book to anyone. You have to read it yourself, and if you really want to get down to the nitty-gritty, definitely have to read it with explanations. It's part fairy tale, part mystic realism, definitely political criticism, part comedy, part tragedy. It's not the easiest of reads but definitely one of the most worthiest.

And it certainly is one of the books I will want to read again.

From the back cover:

"Surely, no stranger work exists in the annals of protest literature than The Master and Margarita. Written during the Soviet crackdown of the 1930s, when Mikhail Bulgakov's works were effectively banned, it wraps its anti-Stalinist message in a complex allegory of good and evil. Or would that be the other way around? The book's chief character is Satan, who appears in the guise of a foreigner and self-proclaimed black magician named Woland. Accompanied by a talking black tomcat and a "translator" wearing a jockey's cap and cracked pince-nez, Woland wreaks havoc throughout literary Moscow. First, he predicts that the head of noted editor Berlioz will be cut off; when it is, he appropriates Berlioz's apartment. (A puzzled relative receives the following telegram: "Have just been run over by streetcar at Patriarch's Ponds funeral Friday three afternoon come Berlioz.") Woland and his minions transport one bureaucrat to Yalta, make another one disappear entirely except for his suit, and frighten several others so badly that they end up in a psychiatric hospital. In fact, it seems half of Moscow shows up in the bin, demanding to be placed in a locked cell for protection.

Meanwhile, a few doors down in the hospital lives the true object of Woland's visit: the author of an unpublished novel about Pontius Pilate. This Master - as he calls himself - has been driven mad by rejection, broken not only by editors' harsh criticism of his novel but, Bulgakov suggests, by political persecution as well. Yet Pilate's story becomes a kind of parallel narrative, appearing in different forms throughout Bulgakov's novel: as a manuscript read by the Master's indefatigable love, Margarita, as a scene dreamed by the poet - and fellow lunatic - Ivan Homeless, and even as a story told by Woland himself. Since we see this narrative from so many different points of view, who is truly its author? Given that the Master's novel and this one end the same way, are they in fact the same book? These are only a few of the many questions Bulgakov provokes, in a novel that reads like a set of infinitely nested Russian dolls: inside one narrative there is another, and then another, and yet another. His devil is not only entertaining, he is necessary: "What would your good be doing if there were no evil, and what would the earth look like if shadows disappeared from it?"

Unsurprisingly - in view of its frequent, scarcely disguised references to interrogation and terror - Bulgakov's master work was not published until 1967, almost three decades after his death. Yet one wonders if the world was really ready for this book in the late 1930s, if, indeed, we are ready for it now. Shocking, touching, and scathingly funny, it is a novel like no other. Woland may re-attach heads or produce 10-ruble notes from the air, but Bulgakov proves to be the true magician here. The Master and Margarita is a different book each time it is opened. - Mary Park"

It's always interesting to see the different kind of covers from different countries or different times but this one has as many fascinating editions, I just had to put a few together. You can find them all on Goodreads. I think it shows the diversity of the book and how different people perceive it.

Dickens, Charles "The Old Curiosity Shop"

Dickens, Charles "The Old Curiosity Shop" - 1840

When I mentioned to another blogger that I was just reading this book, he said that it "… was not one of my favorite Dickens, but that's a high bar, I still enjoyed it." Now that I just finished it, I can say that he put my thoughts into words. It's definitely not my favourite, that's still David Copperfield, but I have yet to read a book by Charles Dickens I don't enjoy.

The enjoyment of reading wasn't improved by the copy I had, an A4 sized cheap reprint (letter size in the US). Well, it couldn't be helped. It taught me to look for the size of an edition when ordering books online.

Funnily enough, this is supposed to be the most popular of Dickens' books during his lifetime. As it says on the cover, readers in New York even stormed the ship bringing the final instalment. Reminds me of Harry Potter today. Wow! This that not all tales stand the test of time equally well.

However, as with all books by Dickens, he observed his surrounding so well and could describe it so you are transformed to his world that it is definitely worth reading. Especially if you like classics. And chunky books.

I still have a few to go and I'm looking forward to getting my hands on them.

From the back cover:

"The Old Curiosity Shop is a novel by Charles Dickens. The plot follows the life of Nell Trent and her grandfather, both residents of The Old Curiosity Shop in London. The Old Curiosity Shop was one of two novels (the other being Barnaby Rudge) which Dickens published along with short stories in his weekly serial Master Humphrey's Clock, which lasted from 1840 to 1841. It was so popular that New York readers stormed the wharf when the ship bearing the final instalment arrived in 1841. The Old Curiosity Shop was printed in book form in 1841."

Ford, Ford Madox "Parade's End"

Ford, Ford Madox "Parade's End" (Tetralogy: Some Do Not - 1924, No More Parades, 1925, A Man Could Stand Up 1926, Last Post 1928) - 1924-28

I have read a lot of books about WWI and WWII and most of them were great reads. I never know what to say when I read a book about a war and "enjoyed" it. Because, obviously, I don't enjoy reading about cruelty and death but I do prefer these kind of books to rose-tinted stories about love and similar stuff. I'm definitely not a chick-lit girl.

As this is a highly acclaimed book by "one of Britain's finest novelists", I was really looking forward to it. Also, it's huge, almost 1,000 pages, I usually love that.

But you can already guess from my introduction that this was not my book. Not at all. The book was not just confusing by jumping from one setting to the next without any further explanation, it wasn't much about the war (could have been about any war or even any time), it wasn't much about the military but it also wasn't much about interesting characters. None of them was even remotely likeable but also too boring to get upset about them.

I hardly ever skim through pages but I was very tempted to do it here. But I was afraid I would "get" the story even less if I did that. However, not skimming didn't help, either.

The only question I have now, there is a BBC miniseries. Should I try it or leave that, as well? I do like Benedict Cumberbatch (I mean, who doesn't?) but the story ...

From the back cover:

"The Great War changes everything. In this epic tale, spanning over a decade, war turns the world of privileged, English aristocrat Christopher Tietjens upside down. It forces him to question everything he holds dear - social order, morality, marriage and loyalty. And it rocks the very foundations of English society.

This is a powerful story about love, betrayal and disillusionment in a time of horror and confusion by one of Britain’s finest novelists."

If you want to read good books about how the soldiers in WWI fared, check out
Faulks, Sebastian "Birdsong" 
Malouf, David "Fly Away Peter"
Remarque, Erich Maria "All Quiet on the Western Front" (GE: Im Westen nichts Neues)

or any of the other books I reviewed in War: WWI.

Christie, Agatha "Hercule Poirot"

Christie, Agatha "Hercule Poirot. The Complete Short Stories" - 1923-61

Hercule Poirot. As soon as you hear that name you think, moustache, French accent, hat. I am not a huge fan of crime stories. Or short stories. But I love to watch Agatha Christie's stories on TV. For "the Monsieur Poirot", I liked the old ones with Sir Peter Ustinov, even any of the others with Albert Finney and Alfred Molina (who I really, really like) or the new one with Sir Kenneth Brannagh. But my favourite, sorry to all the others, is, of course, Sir David Suchet. He is the epitome of Hercule Poirot as Agatha Christie described him. I'm sure she would have loved him.

So, when I saw this book, I thought, why not? Give Agatha a try and read some of her stories. You can always stop halfway if you're bored since they are all short stories. Guess what? I read them all.

Not only are the stories funny which was to be expected from the films, her writing is just great. Her stories are easy reads and even someone who doesn't guess right away who the killer was (like me) finds fun in trying to guess whodunnit.

Of course, the book is not like the films. Some stories were thrown together to make one film, others were just merely mentioned in the series. That was also fun, trying to think in which episode had I seen that.

If you like crime stories and/or Agatha Christie, this is an absolutely great collection.

From the back cover:

"More than 50 Poirot short stories, including one unique to this volume!

Hercule Poirot, the Belgian detective with the egg-shaped head and immaculate black moustache, has a passion for order, rational thought, and an overwhelming confidence in his deductive genius. He is, after all, the most famous detective in the world!

There is a spectacular diversity in the plots and themes of these cases. Violent murders, poisonings, kidnappings and thefts, all are solved or thwarted with Poirot's usual panache - and the characteristic application of his 'little grey cells'.

Includes Poirot And The Regatta Mystery, An early short story not published since 1936!"

These are the stories in the book:

Introduction: Enter Hercule Poirot

The Affair at the Victory Ball
The Jewel Robbery at the Grand Metropolitan
The King of Clubs
The Disappearance of Mr. Davenheim
The Plymouth Express
The Adventure of "The Western Star"
The Tragedy at Marsdon Manor
The Kidnapped Prime Minister
The Million Dollar Bond Robbery
The Adventure of the Cheap Flat
The Mystery of Hunter's Lodge
The Chocolate Box
The Adventure of the Egyptian Tomb
The Veiled Lady
The Adventure of Johnnie Waverly
The Market Basing Mystery
The Adventure of the Italian Nobleman
The Case of the Missing Will
The Incredible Theft
The Adventure of the Clapham Cook
The Lost Mine
The Cornish Mystery
The Double Clue
The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding
The Lemesurier Inheritance
The Under Dog
Double Sin
Wasps' Nest
The Third-Floor Flat
The Mystery of the Spanish Chest
Dead Man's Mirror
How Does Your Garden Grow?
Problem at Sea
Triangle at Rhodes
Murder in the Mews
Yellow Iris
The Dream
Four-and-Twenty Blackbirds
The Labours Of Hercules - Foreword
The Nemean Lion
The Learnean Hydra
The Arcadian Deer
The Erymanthian Boar
The Augean Stables
The Stymphalean Birds
The Cretan Bull
The Horses of Diomedes
The Girdle of Hyppolita
The Flock of Geryon
The Apples of the Hesperides
The Capture of Cerberus
Poirot and the Regatta Mystery

If you cannot find this edition, you can find the different stories in these books:

POIROT INVESTIGATES
The Adventure of "The Western Star"
The Tragedy at Marsdon Manor
The Adventure of the Cheap Flat
The Mystery of Hunter's Lodge
The Million Dollar Bond Robbery
The Adventure of the Egyptian Tomb
The Jewel Robbery at the Grand Metropolitan
The Kidnapped Prime Minister
The Disappearance of Mr. Davenheim
The Adventure of the Italian Nobleman
The Case of the Missing Will
The Veiled Lady
The Lost Mine
The Chocolate Box

DEAD MAN'S MIRROR
(Goodreads)
Dead Man's Mirror
The Incredible Theft
Murder in the Mews
Triangle at Rhodes

THE REGATTA MYSTERY
(Goodreads)
The Mystery of the Bagdad Chest or The Mystery of the Spanish Chest
How Does Your Garden Grow?
Yellow Iris
The Dream
Problem at Sea

THE LABOURS OF HERCULES
(Goodreads)
The Nemean Lion
The Learnean Hydra
The Arcadian Deer
The Erymanthian Boar
The Augean Stables
The Stymphalean Birds
The Cretan Bull
The Horses of Diomedes
The Girdle of Hyppolita
The Flock of Geryon
The Apples of the Hesperides
The Capture of Cerberus

From THREE BLIND MICE
(Goodreads)
The Third-Floor Flat
The Adventure of Johnnie Waverly
Four-and-Twenty Blackbirds

From THE UNDER DOG
(Goodreads)
The Under Dog
The Plymouth Express
The Affair at the Victory Ball
The Market Basing Mystery
The Lemesurier Inheritance
The Cornish Mystery
The King of Clubs
The Adventure of the Clapham Cook

From DOUBLE SIN
(Goodreads)
Double Sin
Wasps' Nest
The Theft of the Royal Ruby or The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding
The Double Clue

Austen, Jane "Sanditon"

Austen, Jane "Sanditon" - 1817

I've had this fragment of a novel on my TBR pile for a while already. I never was sure whether I really wanted to read it. I have read "The Watsons" and "Lady Susan" and Andrew Davies have just made this into a mini-series. He has already made other great series and movies from Jane Austen's novels and several other classics, so I'm almost certain it's a good one.

But I wanted to read it first. It is a very promising beginning of another Austen novel, the characters well depicted, the scenes worked out beautifully, you can tell that there are going to be a few problems along the way that need solving. It is lovely to read how she made fun of certain traits in people and I'm sure there was more like that to come. What a shame she wasn't well enough to tell her sister what her plans were for the story.

Do I really want to hear the end from someone else? Oh, Jane, why couldn't you live longer? It would have been great to have a hundred of your stories.

From the back cover:

"Written in the last months of Austen's life, Sanditon features a glorious cast of hypochondriacs and speculators in a newly established seaside resort, and shows the author contemplating a changing society with scepticism and amusement. It tells the story of Charlotte Heywood, who is transported by a chance accident from her rural hometown to Sanditon, where she is exposed to the intrigues and dalliances of a small town determined to reinvent itself - and encounters the intriguingly handsome Sidney Parker."

Metalious, Grace "Peyton Place"

Metalious, Grace "Peyton Place" - 1957

If you are looking for any topic in a book, this one probably has it. It tells us about the life in a small place in New Hampshire, starting in 1937, following its characters up until 1944.

The name of the town is fictional. The author herself said: "Peyton Place. Peyton Place, New Hampshire. Peyton Place, New England. Peyton Place, USA. Truly a composite of all small towns where ugliness rears its head, and where the people try to hide all the skeletons in their closets."

She's right there. If you have lived in a small town or village, you will recognize a lot of the characters. And if you have never lived in a small town or village, you can learn a lot about life in such a place. We always say, the disadvantage of living in a small town is "everybody knows everyone" and the advantage is "everybody knows everyone". Everybody knows all of your business but you are also never left alone in times of troubles.

Even though the story takes place a long, long time ago, I believe not that much has changed. I know a lot of Americans who still agree with the kind of double-sided morale shown in this book that was considered controversial, most notorious but also one of the best-selling novels of the 1950s.

The book was made into a movie (which won the Golden Globe and was nominated for 9 Academy Awards) and a television series.

The author was very philosophical and ahead of her time. Some of the quotes from her book could have been current ones:

"If every man … ceased to hate and blame every other man for his own failures and shortcomings, we would see the end of every evil in the world, from war to backbiting."

"Did it ever occur to you … that tolerance can reach a point where it is no more tolerance? When that happens, the noble-sounding attitude which most of us pride ourselves degenerates into weakness and acquiescence."

A great novel that deserves even more respect considering when it was written.

From the back cover:

"When it first appeared in 1956, Grace Metalious's Peyton Place unbottened the straitlaced New England of the popular imagination, transformed the publishing industry, and made its young author one of the most talked-about people in America. Metalious's debut novel - which topped the bestseller lists for more than a year and spawned a feature film and long-running television series - reveals the intricate social anatomy of a small New England town. This new paperback edition, which celebrates the seventy-fifth anniversary of Grace Metalious's birth, will reintroduce readers to a landmark of American popular culture. An introduction by Ardis Cameron explores Peyton Place's influential role in American literary and cultural history."

Collister, Linda et al. "Great British Bake Off: How to Bake"

Collister, Linda; Berry, Mary; Hollywood, Paul "Great British Bake Off: How to Bake: The Perfect Victoria Sponge and Other Baking Secrets" - 2011

A while ago, we had a TTT topic "Books that made me hungry". This brought up the discussion that we should probably post a few cookbooks from time to time.

It just so happens that one of my favourite shows has started again this week: The Great British Bake-Off. I love everything about it, the people most of all, the humour that they bring, the cakes that are all so wonderful, even the ones that seem a disaster.

The book is just as great. I already have a cookbook from Mary Berry (might review it another time) but here she - together with Linda Collister and her sidekick, Mr. Hollywood - gives more hints and tips to perfect baking. Like, how to make the perfect shortcrust. There is everything from sweet cakes, great pies, perfect bread. Everything is explained in a simple and easy way to copy, the pictures give an added bonus, so you can see what it should look like. I haven't counted the recipes but I am sure you can bake something new every day for a whole year and not repeat yourself.

There are chapters about cakes, biscuits and teatime treats, bread, pies and savoury pastry, tarts and sweet pastry, patisserie, puddings and desserts, celebration cakes along with a whole page of conversion charts.

Of course, I also have some other GBBO books but this was my first one and is giving some great beginner's tips.

If you haven't seen the series, yet, and can watch it, give it a go, even if you don't bake. And if you love it, like I do, and want to see more, there's always "An Extra Slice" by the fabulous Jo Brand. Every Friday.

From the back cover:

"This delightful cookbook takes you through the baking challenges from the second series of the Great British Bake Off and shows you how to achieve baking perfection. Throughout the book, Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood are on hand with practical tips to help you bake perfect cakes, biscuits, breads, pastries, pies and teatime treats every time, as well as showing you how to tackle their 'technical challenges', as seen on the show.

There are more than 120 baking recipes in this book, including traditional British bakes and imaginative twists using classic ingredients, as well as the best contestant recipes from the series. There is plenty to challenge keen bakers here, from brandy snaps to elaborate pastries, pavlovas to iced celebration cakes, and with a sensuous and yet practical design and full-colour, step-by-step photography, this really will become the baking book that you will turn to for years to come."

Christie, Agatha "And then there were none"

Christie, Agatha "And then there were none" (formerly: Ten Little Niggers) - 1939

I love Agatha Christie. But I usually just watch her on the television as I don't read many crime stories.

This one was different. Our online book club decided to postpone the chosen books and read some instead that are available on the internet. So, one of the choices was "And then there were none". I remember watching it in a local theatre where I knew half of the amateur actors personally. I remember it was great but I didn't remember the ending. Weird, because that happens to me very rarely. However, it was also reported by others that they had forgotten, maybe another great twist by the author?

Anyway, as with the tv adaptations, I thoroughly enjoyed this story. There was a lot of suspense in it, the characters were well written and you started to really like them. I couldn't imagine any of them being the "bad guy" (or girl), they all seemed so nice and had a good reason for the deed they were accused of. Yes, all of them supposedly had killed someone and therefore were lured onto the island in order to be killed.

I think we all know the nursery rhyme after which the book was named at first (there even was a German version and probably more in other languages, sometimes with a different title/different characters):

"Ten little Soldier Boys went out to dine;
One choked his little self and then there were nine.

Nine little Soldier Boys sat up very late;
One overslept himself and then there were eight.

Eight little Soldier Boys travelling in Devon;
One said he'd stay there and then there were seven.

Seven little Soldier Boys chopping up sticks;
One chopped himself in halves and then there were six.

Six little Soldier Boys playing with a hive;
A bumblebee stung one and then there were five.

Five little Soldier Boys going in for law;
One got in Chancery and then there were four.

Four little Soldier Boys going out to sea;
A red herring swallowed one and then there were three.

Three little Soldier Boys walking in the zoo;
A big bear hugged one and then there were two.

Two little Soldier Boys sitting in the sun;
One got frizzled up and then there was one.

One little Soldier Boy left all alone;
He went out and hanged himself and then there were none."

Apparently, at first the soldier boys were not soldier boys (check here) but I think it is a good idea to have changed that. A lot of translations still use the old title which I think is totally unacceptable, especially in this day and age. (Should have been back then but we know how things were. Unfortunately.)

It was quite nice to read this story. As usual with Agatha Christie's books, the ending is totally surprising. There are crime stories where you can try to guess who the criminal is. Hardly ever with Agatha. I have always been annoyed when some detail turns up in the end that changes the whole story. One cannot possibly know that.

However, I have watched all the Miss Marple and Monsieur Poirot (and some other) stories on TV in the meantime and probably should read a few of her books. At least this one was very good. Great mystery.

In the discussion, the plot was talked about and all the ways how the reader was being read into the story, characters and their crimes, motivations, archetypes. There seem to be also quite a few movies and series adaptations of the story, the new BBC one apparently being very much harsher and cruel. I will have to check into that.

We discussed this in our international online book club in May 2020.

From the back cover:

"Ten strangers are invited to Soldier Island, an isolated rock off the Devon coast. Cut off from the mainland, with their generous host mysteriously absent, they are each accused of a terrible crime.
Then one of the party dies suddenly, and they realise there may be a murderer in their midst who might strike again…and again…

And all the time, copies of a macabre nursery rhyme hang in each room, a nursery rhyme with an omen of death for all ten of them."