BookJumper
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Sony Readers are now grabbagle for under £100 quid, and I nearly caved. Why only nearly? Well.
Because no one thinks of making available ebooks of scholarly editions of The Complete Works of Shakespeare. I'm not fussed - RSC, Arden, Oxford, *insert name of reputable body of criticism here*, they'd all do, except none of them are available in electronic format. It's only one of the most videly read, analysed, adapted and generally consumed in some shape or other books in the entire history of books, its annotated editions counting between 500 and 2,000+ A4 pages... so why oh why oh why is it so difficult to grasp that making those lofty but hefty tomes available in such a back-friendly way would ensure that every student, everywhere, ever would buy one of these gizmos?
As it is, I'm keeping the money.
/rant over.
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I'd recommend Shirley Jackson's We Have Always Lived in the Castle - this is our current Reading Circle selection and the response has been unanimously positive. Then, technically modern but definitely gothic and definitely worth reading is Carl-Johan Vallgren's The Horrific Sufferings of Mind-Reading Monster Hercules Barefoot, His Wonderful Love and His Terrible Hatred.
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Which character does the author feel the strongest affinity with and why?
I don’t think this question is truly answerable (fellow circlers, correct me if you think I am talking rubbish!), because my writerly instint suggeste to me that the surviving Blackwoods – though they had a substance not to be found in the villagers – were more different extremised facets (the caring, the unhinged, the fearful) of a same rounded character than entirely different people. Therefore, I wonder whether Jackson actually perceived them as a cast of individuals as she wrote about them.
Which character does the author hate the most and how does the reader know that?
If the Blackwoods could feasibly be said to be aspects of the same personality, the villagers undisputably represent a single one-dimensional mentality; the contempt Jackson feels for them is to my mind apparent.
How does the author feel about existence and life? Does the author ultimately give hope to the human condition? How does the reader see that through the novel?
An interesting question I’m not quite sure how to answer – translation: help!
On the one hand, there would seem to be a pretty evident “sin (murder) + penance (torment at the hands of the villagers) + redemption (attempt make things right by the Blackwoods at the end)” process going on, but that kind of Christian analysis is undermined by the fact that there’s been no repentance to bring about the redemption: Merricat never regrets the murder, Constance never looks back on protecting her sister, and Uncle Julian seems more fascinated by the murder than disturbed by it. This could maybe be explained in terms of Merricat not having sinned at all, which however would make the threat the dead Blackwoods’ posed to her worse than I like to imagine it.Thoughts?
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I’m glad we all agree the book warrants no sequel. I think that very question is the product of an age where it staggers one to find a book, particularly a book of the gothic persuasion, which isn’t in fact part of a seemingly limitless series. I for one quite like finiteness: I find it satisfying, and there’s no risk of a good story being dragged on and milked beyond recognition.
I’m sorry you were underwhelmed by the book as a whole though, Pontalba. Is there anything that you would change if you could to make it more appealing, or was your dissatisfaction based on something you couldn’t quite place? It seems from your other comments that you thought it a good book, so I’d be interesting to know why you’re finding it forgettable.
I must admit, I (think I) know nothing about Southern Gothic and I definitely haven’t read any Faulkner. Are the genre / is the author worth investigating if I enjoyed We Have Always Lived in the Castle very very much indeed?
I loved your definition of Merricat as someone who ‘was just afraid of everything and didn't have the mental filters/brakes to know how far to go in protecting her "domain" was acceptable,’ it’s apt and well-put. Personally, I find it a testament to Jackson’s skill that one suspects her to be the murderer from the very beginning, and yet one doesn’t hate her at any point in the book – the closest we’ve come to feeling negatively about her regarded her immaturity… hardly strong detestation.
Ooshie - further to my further reading suggestions, may I recommend Frankenstein first followed by Hercules Barefoot? Both are absolutely beautiful, Frankenstein has been one of my favourite books for the past ten years, and Hercules Barefoot (as well as being my revelation book of 2008) was the closest any novel has ever gotten to making me feel what I’d felt upon reading Frankenstein… so accidentally add away!
I don’t have much money to spend on books (like Erasmus of Rotterdam, what I do spend on books I take away from the food and clothes budget), so when I do make a purchase I make a point of shopping around for the best of all possible editions. The Penguin Deluxes aren’t cheap - £12.99 each, which for a book as small as We Have Always Lived in the Castle may seem like a needless splash for some. I consider it money well-spent, because a pretty edition goes a long way to enhance the reading experience.
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A note to all circlers
My most sincere apologies regarding my sudden disappearance, as of Wednesday night I've been awaiting a (routine, I'm fine) operation and only now have I managed to get my hands on an internet connection of sorts - expect me back tomorrow with more answers, questions, and the universe knows what else... let us make these last ten days* count!
* should burning insights strike you after those are over, however, don't hesitate to fire them off and keep the flame of the thread burning (see what I did there?)!
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For the past six days, dinner had been hospital food
me unhappy, and sorely tempted by the takeout menus that litter the orthopaedics waiting room...! -
What she said. Will you stop reading good-sounding books faster than I can buy and read them pleaseSounds excellent! Thanks for the great review - they're always informative and well-rounded. I've so many books on my wishlist after you!
(no, not really 
)?!
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Do give Hellsing a go Echo, if you enjoy good vs. evil stories which blur the boundaries between the good and the evil, you'll love it. The only way I can describe Alucard is a Lestat with a sense of humour - and guns. Doesn't get much better than that.
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The favouritest book my Mum ever read to me - and continued reading to me even when I was perfectly able to read for myself - was the Paddington Bear omnibus:) can't go wrong with that.
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I like exploring people. I love the idea of having a characters thoughts laid bare to me. Also it allows us to understand the character where other characters in the book might not, which makes our own emotions towards the character so much more heightened. I find I have a lot more sympathy for them and it makes their opinions a lot easier to understand, be them bad or good!
As long as the writing is good it doesn't really matter. Though I've always loved books with several pov' in which the writer manages to give them all their own style; by using a different tempo, other expressions or lengths of sentences etc. they give a new flow to the text which I find very interesting.It is entirely possible though to lay a character's thoughts bare and suit the style to different characters in the third person, mind
personally I find this approach vastly more impressive, as IMHO it takes a different level of storytelling skill.The Vampire Lestat...
However I also agree with what some other people have said about the pit-falls of books written in the first person. I'm not a writer but I imagine writing in the first person would be much more difficult than writing in the third person.
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I think the thing with first person books is that when they are good, they're very very good, and when they're bad they're terrible!!
I also loved The Vampire Lestat, though unfortunately I read it over ten years ago, and I'm not sure I've encountered as effective a first person narration since - you've hit on the nail on the head for me when you said that when they're good they're very very good, and when they're bad they're terrible. Most of the ones I've encountered post-Lestat have been terrible, I'm afraid.
My writerly tuppence is that writing in first person seems easy, but is in fact - once the end results are studiously scrutinised - no such thing...
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I thought you were making a lot of wonderful senseReading and books are a link between all human beings. No matter what you experience or what bad times you are going through, you can bet that someone else down the line has gone through it and maybe wrote about it. It's like if everybody reads, it's like the whole of humanity is holding hands, people both past and present. There are a few missing links in the chain but more and more get linked everyday. Oh my god I'm so not making sense lol
all art (music. paintings. you name it) is about emotional connection. Why do people get talkative with strangers in front of figurative masterpieces, propose with classic love songs, write dedications inside books they want to share with those they care about? They do all of the above because creativity equals communication, between creative types and their audiences, as well as amongst audiences themselves. I for one write, apart from the simple fact that I happen to enjoy it rather a lot, because I want to reach out to people, tap them on the shoulder, tell them something - I most certainly do not write because I want to do all the thinking for a load of lazy bums...!
*un-Mod-like snigger*I'm on it, Harry, I'm on it! I'll report back forthwith...oh, hang on...no, no can do mate. I'd have to read the research undertaken...
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I don't seem to ever have the money to invest on mangas, so I usually borrow them and then the person I'm borrowing from stops buying the series in question just when I'm getting into it *grrr* still, my favourites - whether I actually managed to finish them or not is another matter altogether - are:
Dragonball & Dragonball Z
Hellsing
Berserk (technically too violent, too graphic, too everything for me, but the story is just that good!)
Fushigi Yugi
I also adored the animes of Versailles no Bara and Saint Seya (together with Dragonball & Dragonball Z, I watched little else as a teenager), so the mangas of those are definitely on my TBR.
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I've never really gotten to grips with Poe (my loss I'm sure, everyone I know who shares my tastes seems to revere him so it's all very odd), on the other hand I absolutely loved Interview with the Vampire and The Vampire Lestat - although I always thought they were flat out horror rather than gothic...? - so I'll look into the titles you mentioned
my own favourites are:Mary Shelley, Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus
Carl-Johan Vallgren, The Horrific Sufferings of Mind-Reading Monster Hercules Barefoot, His Wonderful Love and His Terrible Hatred
Bram Stoker, Dracula
Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey
It's amazing how discussion may gently lead to shifts in one's perspective - you have helped me to think more kindly of Constance, whom I thought of as essentially a wet rag, and I have helped you to think more kindly of Merricat, whom you found childishly tiresome. Am I allowed to be excited by this twin epiphany, what with this being my first circle and all
?Now for the new, shiny, gripping questions - Part #1:
Does the book challenge the stereotypes of its genre [gothic] in any way? Does it break the mould?
Gothic has always been about those who were scarily different. We Have Always Lived in the Castle is different from other books I've read which portray sympathetic accounts of misfits and outsiders however, in that after everything bad that befalls the Blackwoods, there is a happy ending of sorts. In comparison to something like Frankenstein, with its utter lack of hope for the Creature though his creator was in fact the true monster, this was a positively mirthful read. I always root for the Frankensteins and Blackwoods of literature, so I was glad to be surprised by a glint of redemption here.
Do you feel that it was dated well?
Absolutely - the language is still current, and (more importantly) so is the theme.
What kind of person would you recommend this book to?
Anyone pressed for time but still looking for a short yet deep, challenging, inspiring read.
Do you agree with the reviews of the book you've read?
When I researched the book in preparation for the Circle, I read a review on Amazon UK that concluded by saying,
'But there is also much tenderness to be found here alongside the pain and horror of the Blackwood family story. This is tragedy surpassing even the best work of Sophocles. Anyone who reads this novel and is not deeply affected emotionally is simply not human. If I could have reached into this fictional world and pulled Merricat, Constance, Julian, and Jonas out, I would have done so. The powerlessness I felt as a reader, quite unable to protect and comfort the characters, was truly agonizing, and it was sometimes all I could do to keep myself from getting up and running around the room in exasperation. Anyone feeling at all depressed really should not read this book; there is so much emotion stored in these pages that it really should come with a warning label.'
It was this review that made me want to read the book, and now that I have, I can say that I wasn't in the least let down.
How well do the book’s cover and synopsis of your edition represent the book? Do they suit the story / do it justice?
I shopped around for my particular edition (the Penguin Deluxe one) precisely because I loved the haunting black & white cover, the slightly unnerving presence of creepily-styled intriguing quotes sprawled where the blurb 'should' have been, and the beautifully old-fashioned look and feel of the rought cut page edges. Too bad the £12.99 sticker peeled a bit of black of the back cover...
If you were writing a sequel, what would you plan for the characters?
I wouldn't be writing a sequel at all; it doesn't warrant one, for it has successfully said everything it needed to say. If pushed, I'd write an extended dream sequence scene in which Merricat and Constance journey to the moon.
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Oh, so do I (Jasper Fforde should start paying me commission any day nowThat said, I have some favorite series I like to recommend to anyone who'll listen
!), I just wish authors whose story would make a marvellous standalone had the courage of conviction to write that one marvellous book rather than ruin the whole story by dragging it out beyond the pages it's meant to fill.
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In general terms, I'm annoyed by series. They take up space, time, and often end up milking one good idea well past its sell-by date. There have of course been exceptions to these findings, but I do try to research series 100% more thoroughly than standalone books, for I have much more to lose than with standalones should they turn out to be horrible. Although I believe in the reader's right to abandon a book, I don't like doing it unless I'm utterly forced to, so much so that even though I couldn't bear to finish HP6 and 7, I will get Stephen Fry to read them to me for the sake of completeness. Then, having experienced them, I can pretend like they never happened.
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My inner librarian being as neat as she is, I cannot bear to see a book mis-shelved, to the point that if there's no bookseller at hand I'll move it to the correct alphabetical position on the correct shelf myself. If a bookseller is at hand, I will politely but resolutely direct their attention to the mistake. I once found The Glass Book of the Dream Eaters in the YA section of Forbidden Planet...!
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I dread books that are written entirely in the first person, occasionally I'll come across a good one (in The Blue Girl for instance, Charles de Lint perfectly captures the way in which his young - intelligent and different and special but still young for all that - characters would think and speak) but in general, I tend to find them affectated, self-satisfied and largely inconsistent in tone. I much prefer the subjective third person, I.e. when an author manages to convey a character(s)' point of view throughout a novel or section without flattening* the storytelling into first person narration.
* I know others will disagree that this is what the first person does to narration; personally however I find it to be so, because you then lose effects as omniscient foreshadowing / flashbacking etc., which expertly combined with subjective first person can create a richness of perspective which I have rarely found in first person viewpoint.
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May I wholeheartedly recommend Keith Miller's The Book of Flying as the most gorgeously written fantasy book I have ever read? I think it should be compulsory reading for any aspiring genre author; it's one of those books which, as an (unpublished) writer, I just wish I had written myself.
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New, shiny, gripping questions (from The Reading Club):
- Does the book challenge the stereotypes of its genre [gothic] in any way? Does it break the mould?
- Do you feel that it was dated well?
- What kind of person would you recommend this book to?
- Do you agree with the reviews of the book you've read?
- How well do the book’s cover and synopsis of your edition represent the book? Do they suit the story / do it justice?
- If you were writing a sequel, what would you plan for the characters?
From Suite 101:
- Which character does the author feel the strongest affinity with and why?
- Which character does the author hate the most and how does the reader know that?
- How does the author feel about existence and life? Does the author ultimately give hope to the human condition? How does the reader see that through the novel?
Expect my own views & musings very shortly - in the meantime, what d'y'all think?
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New, shiny, gripping questions coming up in a new, shiny, gripping post in just a minute (you didn't really think I'd abandon you, now did you?) but first, let me take up some of you guys' excellent points:
I think that's precisely it, Jen - we're not told because knowing wouldn't (shouldn't...?) make a difference to our feelings about the story and characters. If pressed though, I'll say I'd like to think that the gothic fairy tale has its happy ending: traditional fairy tales usually achieve one no matter the amount of blood and tears shed in the intervening pages (just think of the ogre princesses who had their throats accidentally slit by their father in Tom Thumb, or the pit of snakes and venomous frogs the prince's mother tried sending Sleeping Beauty and her children into!), so I like to imagine that Merricat and Constance did live out the rest of their days in (their definition of) happiness.I also have to wonder - how long did the Blackwood girls live in their house? Did the house withstand time and weather for them to live out their days? I am assuming we don't have answers because it doesn't really belong to this story or the message that Jackson was sending...
I hadn't looked at her that way; admittedly she is very strong - in an unobtrusive way, which has a realer quality to it than brute, pushy strengtht. Thanks for helping me see that, Ooshie.I enjoyed all the characters very much, in different ways, but my favourite character was actually Constance; she was such a caring, nurturing person, quietly looking after Merricat and Uncle Julian and taking care of all their needs.
Out of interest, what would those beI haven't read anything else by Shirley Jackson, but would be happy to try another book by her. I didn't think I had read much gothic fiction until I looked the genre up on Wikipedia, when I discovered many of my favourite books come into that category!? I love gothic fiction and this latest delve into the genre didn't disappoint, so I'd be glad to scout out any good ones I might have missed!
I think so - it seems to me like she wanted to protect herself and those of the family who she didn't perceive as being against her from those she did consider a threat.Merricat probably used arsenic in the sugar because she knew who would eat it???
I on the other hand found her fascinating, but then I've always had a penchant for weirdness of character, and being prone to seemingly pointless daydreaming myself I found myself mesmerised by her bizarre inner life. I felt for her, and wished life was as easy as wishing yourself on the moon to escape from pain.I also struggled with just how childish Merricat was. At eighteen I was an adult, married and running a home, so at times I found her self-indulgence tiresome. I know she was obviously unstable, but I kept having to remind myself that she wasn't about eight years of age.
A mental institution was my guess, too - obviously detached from reality, she likely went to far with her defiance of rules other than her own at one point, causing her father to suggest she be sent away to be 'cured'. Her mother, though she protested against the idea, could have done more to actively protect her, and therefore (in Merricat's view) was no less dangerous than her father. The motive for the murder would then be at least understandable, given that the methods still around in the 1960s must have sounded like unadulterated torture, particularly for a teenager with the mind of a child who just wanted to live insider her own head.Wondering what caused Merricat to murder most of her family is very intriguing. I like to imagine that it was something to do with the quarrel Uncle Julian heard between Merricat's mother and father, with her mother saying "I won't have it, I won't stand for it, John Blackwood" and her father replying "We have no choice". Along with Constance saying that "Merricat was always in disgrace... She was a wicked, disobedient child" it makes me imagine that perhaps Merricat overheard that she was going to be sent away, perhaps to school for discipline or even to a mental institution of some sort, and that she decided then to take drastic action to stop that happening!
I'm normally not a fan of loose endings, but they didn't bother me here because I took it as a fairytale / fable / parable / allegory rather than a straightforward narrative novel.I think one of the best things about the book is the number of loose ends like that there are to exercise your imagination on. -
My mum's famous rice salad (tuna, capers, gerkins, cucumber, tomatoes, peppers and mayonnaise).
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I like being right when it helps create another MizzieJust a quick update, Les Miserables was worth the long read. Definitly has become one of my favorites books.
your update makes me happy.
D'you reckon I'd like this one my dearest? It sounds intriguing.I Vicerè by F. De Roberto -
Remy, I'm afraid I fail to understand your position on this matter. First off you say the literaryness of Lindqvist could be putting zombie book readers right off him; then you claim lots of zombie novels deal in subtexts, which - correct me if I'm wrong - are a literary device. Personally, I haven't read many books on zombies that I can even remember the title of, precisely because I'm after subtext over gore. Handling the Undead looks promising, because it looks like the grown-up version of Daniel Waters's clever Generation Dead YA series, as does Brains: A Zombie Memoir by Robin Becker, which themewise reminds me of Shelley's Frankenstein. In general however, though I have read zombie books aplenty (pretty much 80% of my reading material during my teenage years was horror), most of them so far have sadly been forgettable.
Also *puts Mod hat on* - first of all, play nice; sarkiness doesn't often win friends, nevermind readers. Secondly, not everything needs to connect back to your book, even if it is a discussion about the genre it fits into, and to be honest this isn't even that, as technically it's a place for thoughts on Lindqvist's novel and there is a thread in this section devoted to more general Zombie Book Recommendations. I am sure you are a voracious reader with much to contribute on other areas of the forum, so please do take the time to get out of your comfort zone, explore and contribute.
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Oooh! Can we go dressed as Glinda & Elphie - I don't mind being either - with, like, ballgown/cape, crown/pointy hat, wand/broom, facepaint and whatnot?!*hugs Giulia* Someday we shall go to Wicked and see it three times rapid fire!Breaking news: I have just discovered what may well be one of the awesomest musicals ever. Thank you,
, for introducing me to Man of La Mancha - I.e. Don Quixote, the Musical, class of 1965. While I haven't read Don Quixote yet, I've always been fascinated by the idealism in the face of so-called reality that it represents, and it seems to me like this may be another Les Mis-like case, where a book too long and complex to be captured properly on film finds its best adaptation through the emotionally concentrated medium of song. Just consider the sheer stunningness of these words:To dream the impossible dream, to fight the unbeatable foe
To bear with unbearable sorrow, to run where the brave dare not go
To right the unrightable wrong, to love pure and chaste from afar
To try when your arms are too weary to reach the unreachable star.
This is my quest, to follow that star
No matter how hopeless, no matter how far
To fight for the right without question or pause
To be willing to march into Hell for that heavenly cause
And I know if I'll only be true to this glorious quest
That my heart will lie peaceful and calm when I'm laid to my rest
And the world will be better for this: that one man, scorned and covered in scars
Still strove with his last ounce of courage to reach the unreachable star.
1...2...3... *bawls eyes out*!
Your Book Activity Today ~ Thread 13
in General Book Discussions
Posted
Over the past two days I've read about half of And Another Thing... by Eoin Colfer, being Part Six of Three of Douglas Adams's Increasingly Inaccurately Named Trilogy of Five. Loving it so far, and I'm a die-hard fan so Colfer can count himself safe.