AnitaKemp's first thread - Experiencing the British Classic Novels

Hello to anyone who drops by my very first thread. My reading goals are very undefined at this moment, but I have been reading many English Novels. I recently completed a course on the History of the English Novel and found that the books I was forced to read in high school are actually REALLY GREAT! My journey began with the following books:

1) Jane Eyre
2) Wuthering Heights
3) Middlemarch
4) Great Expectations
5) Persuasion
6) Northanger Abbey
7) To the Lighthouse
8) Mrs. Dalloway
9) The Portrait of a Lady
10) Howard's End
11) Heart of Darkness

I will work on this list later, but this is an introduction to what I have been reading. I would like to use this thread as a place to reflect on my reading and recognize my accomplishment of overcoming the predjudice of youth that I had against reading these wonderful stories.

I would like to thank Lyzard for her very informative tutoring sessions on Persuasion. If only she had been my English teacher. Alas, she is from Australia and I grew up in a small cow-town in Oklahoma in the heart of the USA. Her "welcome" to this group inspired me to start this first thread.

Welcome! I'm glad you joined us. That's definitely a good list. May I suggest The Moonstone followed by The Suspicions of Mr Whicher? The second is a nonfiction book on real-life inspiration for Victorian detective stories like those by Wilkie Collins.

Hi Dr. Neutron,
Thank you for the recommends. I love Sherlock Holmes so Wilkie Collins might be my cup of tea. I also love to read books about books so I think that I will like The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher. I was actually planning for my next book to come off my bookshelf full of books I have not read yet. I am considering Bleak House for my next book, but I fear that it may be beyond my reading capabilities. I loved Great Expectations. I found so much humor mixed in the story.
Have you read any of Dorothy Sayers work? She writes the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries. I just got a book with 4 of her mysteries.

Oh, yes. Sayer's a favorite!

Hi, Anita! Good to see you here. That's quite a reading list - I hope you enjoy your journey!

I'm reading Dickens this year and have been surprised (and pleased) by the amount of humour. I've completed, so far: Great Expectations, The Old Curiosity Shop, Little Dorrit and The Mystery of Edwin Drood. For most of these I've listened to audiobooks as well as read the print version as the reading aloud can guide me when I miss things. I think I'll go for A Tale of Two Cities next as there is a group read or tutored thread imminent and that helps too. I've got Bleak House on my list but it's a daunting length, isn't it?

Love this list! Something to really sink your teeth into.

Dear CDVicarage,
Thank you for the message. I sent you a friend request because we have quite a few books in common, and I would love to have a friend in the UK. I do have a question. Why are you reading a book about growing up in South Dakota 1920-1950? I grew up in Oklahoma and I can tell you that the back drop for my life was not very interesting --- South Dakota is even more isolated. My mother used to read to us when we were young and Dickens is wonderful when read aloud. I do love the audio books, but they aren't a substitute for reading. They are more of a supplement.

Your cat Kevin is very cute.

I have been 'reading' that book for a long time, it is an Early Review copy so I am obliged to review it. It is interesting in parts (at least, what I have read so far) but there's a bit too much of it!

My first audiobooks were ones that I had read in print first but now I listen to new books. I find it very useful for someone as 'dense' as Dickens as it means I have to listen to everything - no skipping in an audiobook - and I have a tendency to read very fast. See my 75 thread, http://www.librarything.com/topic/130729, if you are interested!

That's a great list, Anita. I can see why it converted you to classics! I look forward to hearing about your future reading.

I have mixed feelings about Dickens but do hope to try Bleak House before too long, ie, sometime this year or next year!

I just finished Sense and Sensibility. Here is my list of Summer Reading:

Aspects of the Novel
Bleak House
A Room with a View
The Complete Adventures of Peter Pan
Passage to India

It is difficult for me to make a list because it is like a commitment, and I am such a Sagitarrius that I change my mind all the time, but all these books are on my shelf and I have very good intentions. My mother always told me that "Good Intentions pave the road to Hell." If this is true, then I have been building that road like an ancient Roman.

I just finished Aspects of the Novel. I do wish that I could have been in the Cambridge classroom where E.M. Forster delivered those lectures. Some of the criticisms were very humorous. He made a point about Sir Walter Scott's handling (or man-handling) of the stories he wrote. I loved Waverley, but the level of suspension of belief was almost beyond me, and I am a fantasy fan. Scott's style with the extensive and long-winded foot notes is daunting if you are reading the book for the story alone. In fact, if you want to read a story, I would say that you should probably not read Waverley or most of Scott's works. To read Scott you must plan to go on a trip to a world that no longer exists. Scott will create it, and set the scene with precise historical details. I wanted to meet the Scottish highlanders who fought so bravely for Bonnie Prince Charlie.
In Aspects of the Novel I was given a new perspective on many of the books I have recently read (and many more that I want to read in the future). I highly recommend this little book to anyone who is an avid reader of Great Books, be they Classics or Modern because this book gives you a way to relate novels of any decade.

I have started reading Bleak House. I am also listening to an Audible.com audio version of Bleak House. I had seen a comment on this site that stated that Dickens is meant to be heard, not just read silently, and I must say that I agree. Dickens tends to start chapters with long strings of phrases that are like free association in psychotherapy. If you go through those long strings without taking a breath, they seem pretty useless, but if you give them the proper dramatic emphasis, you begin to follow Dickens' mind. From London to fog to ashes to mud. London sounds like it was a very unhealthy place to live (especially if you were poor). Stay tuned for more impressions of my reading.

I need to get a hold of Aspects of the Novel! It sounds like fun.

Questions after reading 6 chapters of Bleak House
1. Does John Jarndyce know Esther's identity? Why did he take her in? Why had he tried to persuade her God mother to send her to him 2 years prior to her death?
2. Is the boarder on the 2nd floor of Krook's shop the writer who copies letters in law hand for Mr. Kenge? Is his name Nemo?
3. Does Mr. Kenge ask Mr. Krook to copy letters that he wants to keep private because he knows that Mr. Krook can't read?
4. Why is Mr. Scimpole "a child"? Was he injured by an accident or a fever? Is he the boy who was promised a "rocking horse" upon the settlement of Jarndyce and Jardyce?
5. Was it really just an accident that Mr. Guppy came to tour Chesneywold?
6. What is the reason that Mr. Guppy recognizes the portrait of Lady Dedlock? Does Mr. Kenge have a copy of the portrait that he ordered secretly from the artist? Did Mr. Kenge learn of Esther's identity on the day that he visited Miss Barbary?
7. Is Mr. Jarndyce really a good person or is he pulling the strings of all the characters as if they were puppets?

These are some thoughts that I am turning over in my mind as I read. I do enjoy listening to the audio version of the book, but I find that the best way to really absorb what is happening is to read it and skim the end notes. There are just so many things I do not know about life in Victorian England.

I read another chapter of Bleak House last night. Mr Guppy has proposed to Esther, and I think that the reason Mr. Guppy recognized the the portrait of Lady Dedlock is because he was already in love with Esther who looks very much like Lady Dedlock. I could be wrong, but this is my guess.

A belated welcome to the group Anita!

I also enjoy reading and rereading older English novels so I will be following your thread with interest.

I hope you enjoy Bleak House, it's one of my favourite Dickens novels (no pressure though!)

Aspects of the Novel sounds really interesting - I'll have to look out for that.

Thank you for the welcome. I love the picture on your profile. You do seem to have the soul of the rose. Please be prepared to watch my thread for a long period of time. I am a slow reader, but I do live with the characters while I read. I am so afraid that Mr. Jarndyce is not the faithful guardian that he appears to be, but like Esther, I blind myself to the possibility and put (almost) complete trust in him.

I loved meeting Mrs. Jellyby and her untidy brood of children. It is amazing how Dickens manages to weave a sense of humor into the most pitiful situations.

Please throw in your comments at any time. I grew up in the US, so I really could use some British influence, but lacking that, I do get a great deal out of the end notes.

I have read to the end of Chapter 21 now, and many things are starting to come together. Last night I started asking myself which characters held the most pieces to the puzzle. At this point in the story, I think that this is my list:
1) Lady Dedlock
2) Mr. Guppy
3) Mr. Snagsby
4) Mr. Smallweed (if he pays any attention to Mr. Guppy or his Grandfather)
5) Mr. Krook

The next chapter will introduce Mr. Bucket, the detective. I can't wait to see how much he figures out. This book is a page-turner. I can't believe that I avoided reading it.

Last night I read the funniest chapter. The reverend Mr. Chadband and his wife visit Mr. and Mrs. Snagsby for the purpose of giving the truth (spelled "terewth for emphasis) to the homeless orphan Jo. The reason that the scene was so funny was that Mrs. Snagsby had come to the conclusion that the reason that Mr. Snagsby was kind to Jo was that Mr. Snagsby was in fact Jo's father. The misinterpretations and hysteria were so funny that my cats wanted to exile me for disturbing the peace. Mr. Snagsby is a very shy person by nature and he expresses himself most often by coughing in different tones, so he was very uncomfortable when the reverend selected him to be the audience member who he maintained eye contact with. Mrs. Snagsby, of course, thought that every word of the sermon was directly intended for Mr. Snagsby's ears. The way that the preacher spoke was also very amusing. Every statement built on the last statement. Here I must quote: "My friends," says he, 'what is this which we now behold as being spread before us? Refreshment. Do we need refreshment then, my friends? We do. And why do we need refreshment, my friends? Because we are but mortal, because we are but sinful, because we are but of the earch, because we are not of the air. Can we fly, my friends? We cannot. . ."

I come from Oklahoma which is a state in the heart of the US in a section known as the "Bible Belt". I have been to so many religious revivals and services where the preacher talked just like Mr. Chadband. For the life of me, I cannot imagine Mr. Chadband with a British accent. I keep reading him with a southern drawl. It is good to know that the Brits have evangelists too. Dickens nailed the mannerisms of speech of this breed of preacher, and I loved every minute of it.

I actually just watched this scene in the 2005 adaptation. What's really funny was seeing Catherine Tate in the middle of all of this.
It's true, Dickens had a real talent for dialogue - it was always entertaining.

Thanks for your comment. I don't know who Catherine Tate is, but I will try to see the 2005 adaptation. I am really enjoying this book. It is so easy to read. I don't know how people could wait for the next installment of the story when Dickens first published it as a serial.

I have become a big fan of Mr. Guppy. Last night I read Chapter 29, in which Mr. G. confronts Lady Dedlock with all his knowledge. He is going to be a wonderful lawyer. He really should be the kind of attorney who presents cases in open court. He is suitably ostentatious and so very clever at connecting the dots. I had noted that Mr. Guppy would be the most likely person to crack the case of Esther's identity, and Mr. Smallweed should be adding more information as the story continues.

Thanks again.

I have just finished Bleak House. I was so glad that Esther married Mr. Woodcourt. As usual, Dickens created the perfect ending. I have to admit that it seemed to take an awfully long time to reach the ending, but I was reminded that originally, Dickens' audience waited 2 years for the ending. They expected an ending to every story line. I really could have handled a bit more of a summary. All in all, I would recommend this book without reservation.

I have started reading E. M. Forster's A Room with a View. Sometimes, it is hard to believe that a man is able to discuss the feelings of women charaters in such great depth and with a true empathy for the circumstances in which women lived at his time. He understood that Lucy had to be (or at least appear) obedient to her chaperone, Miss Bartlett. It was nice that the character Mr. Bebbe understood that there was something strong and decisive in Lucy when she played the piano. I have just started Part II and I am so upset that Lucy has accepted the 3rd proposal of Mr. Vyse, but I have not gotten far enough into the story to know why she has jumped into matrimony without further exploring her feelings for Robert Emerson. I have to admit that I find myself reflecting on The Portrait of a Lady. I am dreading the thought that Lucy might end up in an unhappy marriage in the full knowledge that she had experienced real passion once in Italy.