Random books from rachelmarlene's library

Yes, the Swimming Pool Library is written in the same vein as The Line of Beauty, although my favorite book of his is The Folding Star, a rewriting of Thomas Mann's Death in Venice, I believe. It was nominated for the Booker Prize and ought to have won.

posted by hansel714 at 7:18 am (EST) on Oct 27, 2007

Hi, I stumbled upon your library because we share similar taste in books. I enjoyed browsing through your list.

posted by hansel714 at 3:59 am (EST) on Oct 22, 2007

Rachel, do let me know if you get a role with The Shakespeare Theatre. You would love staying in Washington. I have a season ticket and am seeing all but one of the eight plays, so who knows? I might get to see you perform.

I've been looking at that Nureyev bio, too, but haven't ordered it yet.

~Deborah

posted by Cariola at 9:45 pm (EST) on Oct 19, 2007

hello there, we have a fair number of books in common. you have superb taste in books. cheers, david

posted by hepp2 at 12:22 am (EST) on Oct 12, 2007

Hi, Rachel. Do you get a chance to act in any Early Modern plays? I try to get to as much theatre as possible, usually going to London once a year. I managed to get to two productions at the Globe this year, plus an new play at the National and a fine production of Pinter's Betrayal. Also caught a reader's theatre production of Elizabeth Cary's The Tragedy of Mariam. I live not too far from Washington, so I always have a season ticket to the Shakespeare Theatre's productions. I'm very excited that they are doing two Marlowe plays this season.

I always tell my students there is a fortune to be made in videoproducing these plays--it upsets me that so few are available for use in teaching. This semester I am teaching both Shakespeare and a topical course, Women in Early Modern English Drama. Just finished Titus Andronicus and started Richard III in one, finished The Taming of the Shrew and started Fletcher's The Woman's Prize, or The Tamer Tam'd in the other. I love introducing students to these plays!

I probably read less historical fiction set in my period of expertise, mainly because the liberties taken with history sometimes bother me. Recommendation: Have you read the unfortunately titled Passion by Jude Morgan? The subtitle tells you a bit more (and verifies that it's not a Danielle Steele novel): A Novel of the Romantic Poets and the Women Who Loved Them. It's one of the best historical novels I've read in years, told in the shifting voices of Mary Shelley, Augusta Leigh, Lady Caroline Lamb, and Fanny Brawne. You might especially enjoy it after finishing Imposture, since it deals with some of the same characters.

Happy reading!

~Deborah

Yep, you're right, my user name is from The Duchess of Malfi. My cat's name is Rafe (from the B-text Doctor Faustus and Shoemakers' Holiday.
posted by Cariola at 6:24 pm (EST) on Sep 11, 2007

Wow, we share a LOT of books! I was so surprised to see a few of them ([Arbella], [Unnatural Murder] on your list. Hope you don't mind if I add you to my list of interesting libraries.

Deborah
posted by Cariola at 2:51 pm (EST) on Sep 7, 2007

Hello Rachel -

I forgot to ask in my last comment. What have you been reading lately? Besides Musil, I've been reading Dickens's "The Pickwick Papers" and Anthony Powell's "A Dance to the Music of Time" series. I like to jump around a lot - lol.

Have you read any of Powell's work? I'm curious to learn more about him.

:) Melissa (PrintPlease)
posted by PrintPlease at 1:14 pm (EST) on Jun 22, 2007

Hi Rachel

I highly recommend "The Emperor's Children"!!! It is a very smart and well-written book.

Also, as I was reading, I noticed references throughout to Robert Musil's "The Man Without Qualities." I had bever read it, but I'm slowly working my way through it now. I highly recommend it as well. "Emperor's Children" pulls a lot from Musil's book. Claire Messud (the author) is a complete genius.

The national Jane Austen Society site is "http://www.jasna.org." You can also find out on there if there is a regional society near you.

:) Melissa (PrintPlease)
posted by PrintPlease at 12:53 pm (EST) on Jun 22, 2007

Wow, you are an awesome reader. I aspire to be like you. How did you like Master and Margarita? I sort of knew that cat, minus the tommygun.
posted by mrabelard at 11:24 pm (EST) on Jun 9, 2007

Hi. You are listed as sharing the most books with me. I figured, we must meet - lol :) I see you've read Elegant Madness (I loved that book!) and several Jane Austen works. Are you involved with the Jane Austen Society of North America?
posted by PrintPlease at 1:32 am (EST) on May 5, 2007

Thanks for the recommendations, Rachel.

I've added them to my reading list (which seems to be growing in an alarming fashion, since I've started to 'librarything')

Jane
posted by Clockpelter at 1:46 pm (EST) on Apr 26, 2007

Hello,

You have gone straight in to n° 1 on my 'weighted' list, owing, it seems, to our shared taste for Victorian literature, and Trollope in particular. We share a number of French books too.

Your historical biography section looks interesting - any particular recommendations for my 'to read' list?

Thanks to your profile I've discovered the Reading Globally - Fiction group, so I'm off to read the 'Where are you' thread which looks interesting.

Happy reading

Jane
posted by Clockpelter at 3:29 pm (EST) on Mar 12, 2007

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