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Ooshie

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Posts posted by Ooshie

  1. I was looking for prices for some of my mothers books, Floio Society, and found you via google. I myself have a collection of the Fairy books, they are just so lovely to look at, and add colour to my shelves. I recenly moved so packed away for a bit, will have to find them and start to read and admire them again. I admit they are costly but they are soooo worth it for the enjoyment  they bring.

     

    You are right, sandysue, they are very lovely to look at.  I quite often manage to find a bargain on Amazon or eBay as well as buying some full price (or, more often, asking for them for presents!) and always love opening them up and enjoying the covers and illustrations as well as looking forward to reading them. :)

  2. I used to have all the Desmond Bagley books, I got into them in my teens and read them all several time. Sadly I lost custody of them in a divorce :D but thanks for reminding me about them, I will need to look out for them again!

  3. I lost about 10 lbs in April/May and have put a few back on so am still 7lb to the good and seem to have stabilised at that for now.  I would love to say it is because I found a diet that suited me and had been really good, but no - I was quite ill (off work for 3 weeks, still feeling really unwell for another 3 weeks after that) and that did the trick! :D 

     

    I have started going to the gym too, but I don't expect to lose any weight from it as no type of exercise has ever seemed to actually shift weight off me (by the same token, stopping exercise has never made me put on weight - I just seem to be immune to the effects!).  I am enjoying feeling more toned, though.

  4. Who was your favourite character?


    Like Janet, I thought that Liff Hyatt seemed kindhearted, and he probably counted as my favourite.  I actually had a bit of a soft spot for Lawyer Royall too, despite his trying to get into Charity's room early in the book; in those days marrying a girl carrying someone else's child would have been a really big deal, I think.

     

    Who was your least favourite character?


    Oh my, Dr Merkle for sure.  What a sleaze!  She was just an awful character.  According to Wikipedia, in some editions of the novel Charity just grabs the brooch and rushes out of the office rather than giving all her money to Dr Merkle.  I wish my edition had that version!


    Was there a particular part you enjoyed more than the rest?

     

    No, I enjoyed the whole book really.


    Was this the first book you've read in this genre/ by this author, has it encouraged you to read more?

     

    Edith Wharton is one of my favourite authors.  The first book by her I read was The House of Mirth (I collect Folio Society books, and bought it as part of my yearly membership one year) and I enjoyed it so much I went out and bought every paperback by her that W H Smith had!  Glancing along my bookshelves, I can see 14 of her books, some of which I have read quite a few times.


    Were there any parts/ideas you struggled with?

     

    It was quite a while since I had read the book last and had forgotten most of it, and like bobblybear found it hard to get my head around Lawyer Royall and his feelings towards Charity at first.  However, they weren't blood relations and he had never actually adopted her, so while trying to get into a young lady's bedroom (particularly one that he had brought up) certainly wasn't nice behaviour, I didn't think it was particularly scandalous.

    Overall, was reading the book an enjoyable experience?


    Yes, I enjoyed the story very much.

     

    How has Charity changed (come of age) throughout the novel?


    Well, she had fallen in love and had a physical relationship of course, she had discovered just how untrustworthy people can be, and she had had to take action for herself on quite a few occasions instead of the sheltered and pretty indolent life it seemed to me she led before.  But I'm not sure it had improved her character any!  I hope she was kind to Lawyer Royall in their married life but I can imagine her leading him a bit of a dance.

     

    What were Harley's intentions? Did he have feelings for Charity, or was he simply using her?
     

    I think he probably did have feelings for her, but in terms of the fact that he was engaged and made no effort to break that off, he did use her very shabbily.


    Were Royall's intentions purely honorable?


    I feel his intentions were more honorable than not; particularly his offering to force Harney to marry Charity after he learned of their relationship when he obviously had feelings for her himself.  When he married her, I guess they were both getting something they wanted - she, Lawyer Royall's protection and support for both herself and her child; and he, being able to marry someone he had asked to marry him before and had feelings for.


    How do you feel about the ending? Did Charity make the right decision?

     

    Practically speaking, yes, I definitely do; it was the only way her child could have a comfortable and respectable life with its mother.  Morally, I'm not so sure.  Marrying someone she didn't love and despised for his previous behaviour to get herself out of a tight spot doesn't seem terribly right; although, as I said above, I hope she was kind to Lawyer Royall after their marriage.  If she was, then hopefully it could be a positive outcome for them both (well, all three of them!)

  5. Was this the first book you've read in this genre/ by this author, has it encouraged you to read more?

     

    Well, it's the first book I've read by the author; not exactly sure what the genre is - classic fiction? It could hardly be called a romance for everything that happened. I would certainly give other books by Edith Wharton a try, but part of me felt I enjoyed it because it wasn't overlong.

     

    Edith Wharton wrote quite a lot of short stories as well (ghost stories as well as the more conventional subjects tackled by her novels), and I know there are a couple of collections available, if you wanted to try something else by her but didn't feel like tackling another novel.  She actually wrote one of my all time favourite short stories, The Other Two.

  6. I think that half the problem was that my fifty-something eyes could barely read by candlelight, and the eco-friendly wind-up lamps I had bought for emergencies were only bright for about 30 seconds after being wound up so they were no good for reading either!  I My preparations for next winter will definitely include getting one of the kindles that you can read with in the dark... 

  7. Sorry to be so late - it turned out that my mum couldn't find the book, so I had to order it.

     

    1. Who was your favourite character and why?

     

    I liked Ma and Pa best; it must have been such a worrying and hard life, but they seemed to get through it all with a good heart and make sure their children enjoyed life.

    2. Was there a particular part you enjoyed/disliked more than the rest?

     

    I liked the descriptions of night times with the girls cosy in their beds and enjoying ma and pa close by.

    3. Was this the first book you've read in this genre/by this author, has it encouraged you to read more?

     

    I have read quite a few 'wilderness' books, and usually enjoy them.  It is the first I have read by Laura Ingalls Wilder and would have happily read more if my mum still had them - I'm not quite sure I enjoyed it enough to buy them, so I might look in the library.


    4. Were there any parts/ideas you struggled with?

     

    To start with I found the book much more simply written than I had expected and found that a disappointment, but as the book went on I was able to imagine the life they were living and enjoyed it much more than I had thought at the start.


    5. Overall, was reading the book an enjoyable experience?

     

    Yes, as mentioned above at first it wasn't what I was expecting and thought I wasn't going to enjoy it, but that changed as as I read more.  It helped that I began 'reading it out loud to myself in my head' as if I was reading it to a child!

     

    6. What did you think of the certain jobs for certain days?

     

    This was quite common even when I was a child - in fact, for my elderly parents, Monday is still wash day even though they have an automatic washing machine and tumble drier and could do it any time they liked!

     

    7. Food plays a large role in the story. Was there any particular recipe or dish you would like to try? Or any that turned your  stomach?  And what did you think of the pig slaughtering?

     

    I would have loved to have tried some of the sweet maple syrup dishes, they sounded lovely!  Head cheese?  Oh, my :( that definitely turned my stomach.  I didn't have a problem reading about the pig slaughtering; I think a lot of us are very removed from the realities of the food we eat and would maybe sometimes make different choices if we could actually see the conditions animals are reared and slaughtered in nowadays.  My husband grew up with animals around that they slaughtered and ate, and I have a great respect for that - every bit was used, hooves etc.

     

    8. Without any television or radio, and with no neighbours living close by, the family had to rely on themselves for their entertainment. Music, games and storytelling play a huge role in their lives. Was there any particular form of entertainment shown in the book that appealed to you, and why? How do you think you would cope having to make your own entertainment in this way? Is it something you'd like to try?

     

    I loved the descriptions of storytelling and Pa playing his fiddle.  I guess we got the chance to try and make our own entertainment earlier in the year when we had no power for 5 days at one of the coldest times of the year - I would love to say we made the most of it, but I was too busy trying to keep warm and just spent most of the time desperate for my lights and heating to come back on!  I might love reading about the pioneers, but I obviously just don't have the pioneering spirit at all!

  8. So glad you enjoyed King Solomon's Carpet, Willoyd!  :)  Your list reminded me of The L Shaped Room too, I loved that trilogy and must try to get hold of it again - I think I read it in the 1970s.

  9. Hi Artemis, I hope you enjoy the forum - I live in rural Scotland and really felt I was missing out by not being anywhere near a book group I could join, and I love it here!  :)

  10. 9. In your opinion, did this book deserve the Man Booker Prize? Was it an enjoyable read? Will you be reading the sequel - Bring up the bodies?

     

    I am usually a bit (sometimes quite a lot) underwhelmed by Booker Prize winning books, but I loved Wolf Hall and thought it was a very deserving winner.  It is one of the most enjoyable books I have read - and I have just started the sequel today and am enjoying it just as much so far :)

     

     

    I see BBC2 is trailing a series called Life and Death in the Tudor Court, so I am looking forward to seeing that and hearing more about characters who have become known to me through Wolf Hall.

     

     

    And, thanks from me too, Maureen!  :)

  11. Hi Vicky, hope you enjoy the forum.  I'm a firm believer that there's no such thing as an embarrassingly rubbishy book, just books that are what you are in the mood for at the time!  :)

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