What Are You Reading? (9)

At the very end of The Fatal Shore. My second read. (First read 31 years ago.)

Just started The Left Hand of Darkness this morning.

Just finished the first volume of War & Peace, just another 700 odd pages to go...

Black Beauty by Anna Sewell (1877). FS 2018. Illustrated by Annette Hamley-Jenkins.

Just finished The Meaning Of Hitler by Sebastian Haffner.

Currently reading Cloudstreet.

Currently reading:
The Goodness Paradox: The Strange Relationship Between Virtue and Violence in Human Evolution - by Richard Wrangham
The God That Failed - published in 1950, containing essays by six writers/intellectuals about their conversion to, disgust with, and renouncement of communism

Lined up next are Milkman, by Anna Burns, and How to be an Antiracist, by Ibram Kendi. After those, I intend to re-read The Handmaid's Tale (finally, an FS volume!) before moving on to The Testaments and then watching the TV series. I read it way back when it was initially published, but that was too long ago.

I'm working my way through a box of original second world war newspapers, it's an enlightening change from books on the subject.

My 3rd reading of Under the Greenwood Tree by Thomas Hardy (1872). FS 1989. Excellently illustrated by Peter Reddick.

An Eye for An Eye - Trollope FS 1993 and Medieval People - Eileen Power FS 1999 (3rd print 2001).

Travels with my Aunt. Graham Greene. FS.
Just started reading it and thoroughly enjoying it.

Just finished The Illustrated Man - Ray Bradbury (Folio Society).

And 200 pages into The Illustrator - Heller, Wiedeman (Taschen). This is a beautiful book btw. It contains a “survey of the 100 best illustrators from around the world” as judged by the authors. A feast for the eyes.

Folio Society references in The Illustrator

1. Igor Karash - illustrator of War & Peace (2014) and The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories - p. 338
2. Victo Ngai - illustrator of The Kama Sutra of Vatsyayana (2018) - p. 458
3. Yuko Shimizu - illustrator of Japanese Tales (2018) - p. 554

Finally finished War & Peace after 28 days! Onto Anna Karenina tomorrow.

>13 wongie:

I finished War and Peace last year and am only about half way through Anna Karenina now. The latter draws on so much more than the former. Story-wise, I definitely prefer War and Peace. I'll be curious to see your thoughts between the two as you progress through the latter.

I'm reading Alice Munro's Selected Stories by Vintage Classics.
This woman never ceases to impress. I've read three collections of hers, yet no story features in the selected stories - Dear Life and Too Much Happiness, I believe, would not feature since the Vintage edition was printed before them.

I plan to read every thing she has ever written.

Afterwards maybe I will read A Gentleman in Moscow.

>14 treereader: treereader: In the middle of rereading Anna Karenina as well. I'm also coming down on the side of War & Peace as far as the story goes!
>15 Kainzow: Kainzow: A Gentleman in Moscow is a gem! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

>15 Kainzow: I can highly recommend A Gentleman in Moscow. A wonderful book. I would like to read more by Amor Towles but I need to lower my TBR pile first.

>15 Kainzow:
I believe I've read all of Munro (if you come from S.W.Ontario you have to) and I envy you your first reading. This late in the day collections may be the most practical way to go, but at least 2 of her early books, Lives of Girls and Women, and Who Do You Think You Are, contain linked stories. The individual stories stand perfectly well on their own, but you do gain something by reading them in sequence.

The FS edition of John Keegan's The Mask of Command. Dear Mole: More Keegan please.

>15 Kainzow: >16 malc79: >17 emgcat: if you enjoyed A Gentleman in Moscow, I highly recommend reading Towles’ first book, Rules of Civility. I liked that even better than Gentleman, and everyone I’ve recommended it to has loved it.

The Comedians by Graham Greene (FS)
History of Western Philosophy and Theology by John Frame
The Code Book by Simon Singh (re-read)
Moby-Dick (first time reading)

>21 davelin: I’ll be interested to hear your thoughts on Moby Dick - despite all the digressions and tangents I found myself enjoying it so much more than when I first tried to read it fifteen years ago.

>20 jsg1976: Thank you for the recommendation. I'll look out for it and just readjust the TBR pile, as it is a constant state of flux anyway!

>22 vmb443: Will do. Just a few chapters in but finding it so far a delightful read. The humor present is not what I expected, for example when Ishmael proclaims something along the lines that he would prefer to share a bed "with to a sober cannibal than a drunk Christian"!

David Copperfield by Charles Dickens (1850). FS 1983. Illustrated by Charles Keeping.

>25 Michael_Henchard:
Enjoy.A great read.

FS edition of The Alchemist, first reading. Not exactly blown away so far...

>26 LesMiserables:

Thanks. I am enjoying it so far, only a few chapters in. I have rather neglected Dickens to be honest, much to my shame..

Dracula, with a glass of very red wine.

>29 cronshaw: sounds perfect
im reading The Call of Cthulhu LE.

Dr.Sleep. CD. Before .. sleep ..

>30 stumc: "im reading The Call of Cthulhu LE."

I'm assuming with a glass of very green absinthe.

>32 Niurn: that would be great! but not on a school night!

Rereading Barchester Towers by Anthony Trollope (1857). FS 2014 edn, illustrated by Bill Bragg.

I'm on a winning streak right now.

I just finished Milkman, by Anna Burns, which I thought was superb. And less than an hour ago I finished For Whom the Bell Tolls, on audio during the commute. For an author with a reputation for terseness, it was surprisingly verbose, but also very, very good. It made me want to buy the FS two-volume edition of The Spanish Civil War, to learn more. And I'm working my way through Scale: The Universal Laws of Life, Growth, and Death in Organisms, Cities, and Companies, by Geoffrey West. It's not a beach book, but quite interesting so far, though it is undoubtedly slow going.

Next up: The Handmaid's Tale (FS edition), to be followed by The Testaments.

The Master of Ballantrae: A Winter's Tale by Robert Louis Stevenson (1889). FS 2006, illustrated by Grahame Baker Smith.

Parade's End

Of Human Bondage - W. Somerset Maugham

The protagonist’s relationship with Mildred drove me spare but otherwise a masterpiece. Perhaps that part’s a masterpiece too, evoking such a strong reaction from me. Almost finished...

>39 stopsurfing: "Perhaps that part’s a masterpiece too, evoking such a strong reaction..."

I would say so. Mildred is one of those characters who never leave you!

Much of Maugham's fiction was thinly-disguised auto-biography. Why make up horror stories when you can write about real life!

I'm currently reading All the Light You Cannot See.

>39 stopsurfing:
Guess you have the Folio edition.
I read it when I was still 19/20, before going to uni. For me, it's more than just a book for me, the kind you never forget.
If it wasn't so big, I'd have given it a reread.

>41 Kainzow: All the Light You Cannot See is an excellent choice - and one I’d like to see done by FS

Strange Cults and Secret Societies of Modern London by Elliot O'Donnell. published by Kessinger

it was originally published in 1935, and whilst not a classic its a quick atmospheric read at this time of year.

i have a rule to read one Folio, then one paperback i already own, i then get rid of the paperback to make more space for FS editions. this is one of those books.

>40 StevieBby: >41 Kainzow: yes, it was the FS edition, nicely done as usual but alas, too big to take on my daily commute. It was a reread for me - as I said, I was struck by ‘the horror’ more this time round. Perhaps I can’t relate to self-immolating obsession quite so much now as in my 20s, by and large a healthy thing I guess :)
All in all a 5-star book, maybe time to revisit a shorter masterpiece by Maugham; The Razor’s Edge. Folio hasn’t done that one yet, has it?

FS Live and Let Die.

It’s deep and thought provoking literature of the highest order. Sometimes I just have to set it down and look out the window to reflect upon the nature of my existence.

As we are full swing in election mode I thought I'd get in the mood with Bob Woodward's Fear and am currently following up with The Death of Truth - Michiko Kakutani, both of which reads are guaranteed to make one wish to not look out of one's window and reflect upon the nature of one's existence.

>45 Mr.Fox:
:-) !!

Wuthering Heights .. a wonderful easy read ! I love that it doesn`t have much of that victorian archaic slang .. very easy to understand for a norwegian ! I am really looking forward to it every time i pick up that book. Fantastic ! :)

The Story of the Treasure Seekers by E. Nesbit (1899). FS 1993, illustrated by C.Walter Hodges.

>49 Michael_Henchard:
What is it like? I haven't read this series?

>50 emgcat:

I am really enjoying it, three-quarters way through. My only previous Nesbit is The Railway Children, which I found to be a bit dis-jointed, but this present book is much more to my liking. As is the nature with children's literature it is very simple, but quite clever, and only subtly moralistic. It evokes a very nostalgic time. I recommend it to you..

3rd reading of A Pair of Blue Eyes by Thomas Hardy (1873). FS 1992, illustrated by Peter Reddick.

>51 Michael_Henchard:
Thank you. I will hunt out a set. Maybe I'll just add it to my Xmas Wishlist!

>52 Michael_Henchard:
That's an interesting one in a number of ways, including what it shows of the Victorian attitude to earlier forms of Christianity. Puts in context the actions of the vicar's mother at Reculver.

I have started Oliver Twist (Dickens IV) after finishing In Patagonia. My first Dickens!

>54 Jayked:

Excuse my extreme ignorance, but what are "the actions of the vicar's mother at Reculver"?

>56 Michael_Henchard: She "improved" the early medieval church there by razing it to the ground. There's a photograph of the site on p142 of the FS Anglo-Saxons, and a more generous one in the Penguin edition.
Hardy's stint as an architect for church improvements came later in the 19th century. Given his sympathy for old and dying rural customs, he presumably didn't share the common view that early Christian buildings should be modermised out of existence.

>57 Jayked:

Ah, I'm with you now 😁. The opening chapters are very autobiographical. As also were those in A Laodicean as regards his architectural days. His novels are absolutely peppered with this aspect of his life, and one of the delights of reading Hardy is that you can visit nearly every church, country house and pub described in them even today, so little (thankfully) has Dorset changed. APoBE was set in Cornwall however, as I'm sure you know. Glad to have a fellow Hardy admirer on this board ! Thank you for your comments..

Burial Rites

This is an interesting link/infographic of what "supposedly" famous people/writers like to read https://webwriterspotlight.com/what-famous-writers-are-reading-infographic

I bet a lot of you have some of these books already?

Stillness is the Key

>60 Comatoes:

I tried looking at the shelves before observing whose they supposedly might be, and found myself nodding in familiarity and regard chiefly to the choices of Putin and Bowie.

>60 Comatoes:

Hemingway and Thatcher.

We are all Completely beside Ourselves

The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle - Tobias Smollett - John Day Co., 1929 (no FS edition)

>65 DanielOC: Any good? I just bought the LEC edition.

>66 kdweber: Just starting off, Clinker and Random had me laughing out loud and this seems like more of the same.

A Confederacy of Dunces , not the FS edition.

The Tiger in the Smoke - 2019 Summer Sale purchase.

Last Witnesses: An Oral History of the Children of World War II by Svetlana Alexievich (2019). Translated by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky.

Just finished Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny (1967). Enjoyed it very much, would be an excellent addition to FS SFF programme.

Edit: a bit off topic but if you read A Song of Ice and Fire or watched Game of Thrones you may have noticed that one of the main religions was centred around the "Lord of Light (R'hllor)". This must a reference to Roger Zelazny's book. For more context read this in memoriam written by George R. R. Martin.

>70 dlphcoracl: Let me know what you think of Last Witnesses - I've had it on my "I should really get around to this some time soon" list for a while now.

>73 coynedj:

It is an astonishing book but it cannot and should not be read straight through cover to cover. What Svetlana Alexievich has done is to create a different approach to taking and recording oral histories and this is why she was awarded the Nobel Prize. In her work and her books the cumulative sum of these numerous histories and hundreds of interviews is greater than a handful of individual accounts. By piecing together, i..e., editing, splicing, selectively including or omitting, the histories she obtained in creating this book she gives the reader a documentary look into an aspect of World War II that has been underreported and overlooked. In this case, there are (for me) several revelations:

1. The hardship endured by the Russian people, especially in the first two years after Germany's surprise invasion of Russia, is unimaginable. The casualties amongst the civilian population, the cruelty they endured, and the hunger and poverty have not been fully appreciated in the West. People were reduced to eating dirt, grass, garbage scraps (a luxury) to stay alive. The number of villages burnt to the ground resulting in mass homelessness during the peak of the Russian winter only exacerbated a bad situation.

2. The disruption and dislocation of normal family structure was widespread. Adult men and teenage boys immediately left home to fight with the partisans or support the Red Army at the front and most of them died. Millions of very young children - ages 5 to 14 - were orphaned and found themselves wandering the streets aimlessly or hiding in forests and foraging as best they can. Russian adults who spotted these children almost invariably took them into their homes despite not having food for themselves. In effect, millions of orphaned Russian children became the communal property of the adult Russian population.

3. The brutality of the war created a type of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) in the children who witnessed these atrocities and survived. The people Alexievich interviewed were usually between 40 to 50 years old when she conducted this work in the early 1980's yet they remember these events with laser focus and it still results in hallucinations, fears, insecurity, etc., decades after WW II ended.

I am certain you will find your own revelations and take away your own conclusions from these brief (almost all are between 1 to 3 pages long) oral histories and reminiscences but you will certainly not think of war in any sphere, e.g., Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, civil war and strife in Africa, in the same manner after reading this book.

>21 davelin: I have completed in the last month and a half -

The Comedians by Graham Greene
The Code Book by Simon Singh (re-read)
Pleasures of Reading in an Age of Distraction by Alan Jacobs (re-read)
The Holiness of God by RC Sproul (re-read)

Currently working through -
Howl's Moving Castle (almost done)
Moby-Dick (little bit of slow progress)
The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins (started off slow but quickly picking up steam)

Currently reading Christus Vincit by +Athanasius Schneider.

Fascism: A Warning - Madelaine Albright

Currently reading - The Moving Toyshop,
Edmund Crispin

I’ve started Howl’s Moving Castle.

The New York Trilogy

The Last Man - Mary Shelley

And how are you finding The Last Man? It does look astonishingly prescient.

Rosemary's Baby

My book club is reading The Secrets We Kept which has given me a great opportunity to concurrently read my new FS Doctor Zhivago LE.

In the early stages of Gene Wolfe's The Book of the New Sun. Kind of jumped into this without reading many reviews as to avoid spoilers. Hasn't really grabbed me yet.

Yesterday I finished Flights, by Olga Tokarczuk. Quite good in my opinion, but not a simple linear narrative by any means. Now it's time for the FS edition of The Handmaid's Tale (2nd reading), to be followed by The Testaments and then the television series.

I'm only about 20 pages in, but I'm enjoying it so far.

Just finished another story by Olga Tokarczuk, Drive Your Plow over the Bones of the Dead , much more than murder mystery.

This morning I read The Blue Hour by Isabel Simler, When You Are Brave by Pat Z Miller, Arthur's Reading Race by Marc Brown, and Franklin's Bad Day by Paulette Bourgeois and Brenda Clark. These books are part of the ReadAloud curriculum for kindergartners.

>88 olepuppy: - I have that other Tokarczuk book on my list for after the Atwood sequence. I hope you liked it!

>85 adriano77: I found Neil Gaiman’s intro very helpful for understanding what was going on. No big spoilers just helps with not having to figure out quite as much.

Just finished in quick succession Burial Rites and We are all completely beside Ourselves. Both self confessed feminist novels.

Fair enough, but they are so forced.

Time for something more balanced.

>89 coynedj:
I liked it plenty, thank you. I picked up Flights at a local library this afternoon and took it to Cracker Barrel for meatloaf and mashed taters.
The narrator's voice is similar to that of the protagonist in Drive Your Plow, but no more spoilers!

Just finished Smith. Loved it, and the FS version is beautiful.

Loved and highly recommend Sigrid Undset's Catherine of Siena. Just finished this this evening. What a beautiful biography.

Far from the Madding Crowd. My first FS book. The woodcuts are captivating. Wish they were a little bigger. A very enjoyable reading experience.

A Traveller in Time, by Alison Uttley: FS edition, illustrated by Omar Rayyan.

Blow-up and Other Stories by Julio Cortazar.

Winter: A Folio Anthology. Delightful.

>75 davelin: In the last couple of weeks I was able to complete three of the books I purchased from Folio recently -

Howl's Moving Castle
Fahrenheit 451
I Am Legend

I am currently reading True Grit (Folio edition), a little more than half way through and loving it so far.

I also just finished the FS Farenheit 451. One of the many classics I’d never read. I thought Sam Weber’s illustrations were perfect for the story.

>100 jsg1976: Indeed although I thought the illustration for Clarissa made her look much younger than I had in my mind from reading the text.

>101 davelin:

Great book. Interesting poll. This tome didn't make it onto the BBC Big Read 200 https://www.bbc.co.uk/arts/bigread/index.shtml

But there you go...

British readers vs Foreign critics

I have finished a slew of annual Christmas reads...

A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens
Old Christmas, by Washington Irving
A Child's Christmas in Wales, Dylan Thomas

As well as some fun classics, all from FS....

Wuthering Heights, by Emily Bronte
Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte
Never Let Me Go, by Kazuo Ishiguro
Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson

And a bunch of other goodies and now have started....

Mr. Midshipman Hornblower, by C.S. Forester, which I am thoroughly enjoying. I am now wishing I had bought all the Master & Commander series!

>103 Lady19thC:
Two of my perennial Christmas favourites there in Dickens and Stevenson, but Kidnapped rather than Treasure Island.

Started and tearing through the pages of Schindler's Ark.

I'm currently reading Pedro Paramo by Juan Rulfo. Damn, it's such a great read. Doesn't even feel like a book at all, more like an experience. Something magical.

>105 LesMiserables: Ah, loved that book. Was fortunate enough to get myself a fine copy on eBay.

I’ve started Moby-Dick. Not sure how long this will take me to finish!

Finished The Book of the New Sun just in time to hit my reading goal for 2019. Quite liked it, highs, lows and all. Glad I went into it almost totally cold as it was a nice moment when I realized it wasn't the standard fantasy type of genre I had presumed.

Surprised it hasn't been made into a television series or something.

Haroun and the Sea Stories by Salman Rushdie

Finished Schindlers Ark and jst started One flew over the cuckoos nest.

Hornblower and the Atropos

Just finished A Christmas Carol and started The Leopard

>112 jsg1976: Enjoy the Leopard. One of my favorites.

Iron Curtain - bleak reading in this present moment.

>112 jsg1976:
Which reminds me, I'll have to read A Christmas Carol before the year end.

Reading some FS children's books, at the moment. Just finished Finn Family Moomintroll, just delightful. I hadn't read it since childhood. Now on to Tom's Midnight Garden. Another beautiful edition.

...and reading A Christmas Carol√

Moving on to Twelfth Night

Just started In Patagonia and trying to finish two shorter, non FS, books before the 1st.

I am slowly reading Flights while reading other books. I found that it is satisfying at a few pages at a time.

Hornblower and the Atropos has been a rollicking good read for the last lazy weekend of the year; now on to The Happy Return and the rest of set 2, which will be followed by Maigret set 2 and then I think Gormenghast, which will take me well into the year.

>122 insomniator:

I enjoyed reading AS, but in only a cheap one volume unabridged pb.

The First Men in the Moon by HG Wells. About a third in and loving it!

Nonfiction- Secondhand Time: The Last of the Soviets. Fiction- Pilgermann by Russell Hoban. Both engaging reads.

Just finished the wonderful and highly recommended God and Stephen Hawking by John C. Lennox.

Reading The Essential Socrates by Paul Strathern.

Just finished the magus by John Fowles - gripped from the opening passage and completely unputdownable. Although not literally: I did put it down to snooze, go to work, shit, cook a disappointingly small chicken and practise my clarinet.

In fact, I loved it so much I promptly purchased leather bound, and signed editions, of the collector and the french lieutenants woman (Franklin’s library).

Here’s hoping FS don’t suddenly decide to publish his works and spin me into an illustration-craving dysphoria.

Reading Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson again.

>128 Twas_Brillig:

Interesting - but slightly too much information.

Do we really need to know the size of your chicken?

>128 Twas_Brillig:
I loved The Collector by Fowles.
I remember being interested in The Magus, but the 656 pages somewhat put me off at the time. But if it's a page turner, that shouldn't really matter.

Howl's Moving Castle. Enjoying it so far and barely 1/4th through!

just opened The Pearl Manuscript (which i bought last year in the sale) and am reading the translation of Gawain and the Green Knight, which starts on New Years Day so is very evocative and atmospheric at this time of year.

>130 boldface:
I shall now refer to you as our Dr. Johnson. 😀

Coming around to the last of the Parade's End books now. I hear it's not meant to be as good as the other three, which were excellent.

>130 boldface:
It was the kind that if I showed you the photo of it you’d go: “oooh that is a small chicken”

>131 Kainzow:
I read it in less time than my current book which is 200 pages long. Imagine master & margarita without all the long boring passages about Jesus. My advice, do not read anything about it online and see if you like the first chapter.

>134 LesMiserables:

Alas, he was more good-looking than I am.

>137 boldface:
Because laddie, like the honorable doctor, you don't eat nearly enough oats. 😉

Currently reading through Anna Karenina. I am ashamed to admit, my first Russian novel, but we all have to start somewhere I suppose!
I can't really get behind the title character though, maybe it will improve as we go on....

Reading The Letters of John F Kennedy by Martin Sandler, re-read during Christmas, The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway and A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, which is quite a triumph for me as I work too many hours, getting up early and coming home post 10pm six days a week, but now with 2020 I am going to be effective with time management when reading

>134 LesMiserables:

I figuratively could not stop reading Twas_Brillig's adventures in shitting clarinet-shaped chickens.

I literally only skimmed post >128 Twas_Brillig:.

Just finished "The Mayor of Casterbridge" followed by Camus's "The Stranger". Beginning "The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie".

Finished True Grit, the fourth out of my five Christmas collection purchases, about to start on Phantom of the Opera.

>139 DancingSpleen:

Completely unsympathetic character, IMO. Vronsky too.

Dostoyevsky deserves a look, by the way.

Just finished:

The Testaments, Margaret Atwood - a bit disappointing after reading The Handmaid's Tale. Much of the power of the original book is in what is not said, but in The Testaments there is little that is not said. It's a much more straightforward narrative, with few surprises (I guessed the key reveals very early on).

The Triumph of Christianity: How a Forbidden Religion Swept the World, Bart Ehrman - interesting, but as with another Ehrman book I've read, it seems that I learned less than I had hoped for. Maybe it's just me.

Started:

How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them, Jason Stanley - a touchy subject in the U.S. these days, fascism. The early chapters are well written and informative.

Red Plenty, Francis Spufford - only 80 pages into it, but it is superb so far. I know it's only January 3, but this could be on my favorites-of-2020 list if it keeps up the early pace. It does what works of fiction do best - it gives you insight into an unfamiliar world.

The Killer Inside Me, Jim Thompson. A little Faulkner, a little Erle Stanley Gardner with a touch of 50 shades thrown in.

Racehoss by Albert Race Sample

>146 rkramden: The Killer Inside Me, Jim Thompson. Never read that, but it shows up now and then. Will have to someday ..

-

- oh, and the Hobbit for me, love the prose - naturally (my first read in the english language) !

I started reading Master and Commander after finding a used Folio copy for $15.

"The Talented Mr Ripley" by Highsmith

Just finished I Shall Bear Witness (FS Edition) , first volume of the Diaries of Victor Klempeler and will begin volume 2 today. Quite depressing stuff.

Just finished The Dark is Rising sequence. I was halfway through the second book when my water broke at 29 weeks last spring, and it’s taken til recently to decide to start the sequence up again. Absolutely loved them and think the FS editions are gorgeous ( thankfully since I paid a silly amount for The Dark is Rising!).

Just finished Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport.

>153 LesMiserables: One of the best books I read all last year.

>154 Sorion:
It needs the Nigerian goatskin treatment. 😁

Finished "The Talented Mr. Ripley". Wow was the ending interesting. Moving on to "Pick-Up" by Charles Willeford. These are part of the LOA "American Noir of the 1950s" collection. These are unique in that they are written from the perspective of the criminal.

>156 rkramden:

How are you finding the LOA?

I like them. Have been buying them for years. The pages are a little thin but they read well. At times I would prefer a single book of for example "Moby Dick" instead of three or four novels in one book but at least I have all the literature in a decent looking collection. Just wish they included foreign authors.

Just started The Book of Laughter and Forgetting by Milan Kundera.
Grips you from the start.

About to finish the last few Records of We...

>158 rkramden:

I love this picture:

Very nice...on many fronts

>161 ironjaw:
But what about all those sun faded spines!
Libraries need to be dark.

>152 RRCBS: Agreed about the Folio editions of The Dark is Rising sequence. I'd initially been quite ambivalent about Laura Carlin's illustrations but by the end I loved them. This is one series from Folio that I can't see me ever parting with.

The same can be said for the Maigret sets, the second of which I have just finished. They are perfect examples of what Folio does well.

And now on to Titus Groan.

>164 HuxleyTheCat: yes I love the Maigrets. The Folios with that type of cloth are my all time favourites.

>163 wcarter:

That’s why install all black blinds that not only shield your books from UV but can keep the sunlight out when you’re enjoying your Chivas Regal on the rocks while admiring Napoleon crossing the alps painting above the fireplace

I finished Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Illustrated Edition) and Born a Crime last week. I'm now moving on to The Ocean at the End of the Lane and Every Tool's a Hammer.

Before I only read one book at a time, but reading a fiction and a non fiction book in parallel is quite nice and I will try to continue with that.

c_schelle, do the Potter illustrated editions contain the full unabridged text? The page counts I've seen for those suggest to me that they must've done some cutting, but I've been unable to confirm.

>166 ironjaw: I'd substitute a Norman Ackroyd etching for your J-L David, and a glass of Nikka from the Barrel for the Chivas. A roaring fire would be nice too and wood smoke be damned.

ETA - Thinking about that image, I was considering what music would be playing. In that past (i.e. here: https://www.librarything.com/topic/129079) I had opined that I didn't like listening to music when reading, and that certainly was true, but I have recently discovered my perfect reading accompaniment: Alistair Dixon conducting the Chapelle du Roi in the Complete Works of Thomas Tallis.

>168 St._Troy: I didn't notice any abrigements. I think the lower page count is due to the larger size of the illustrated edition.

In preparation for a trip to the British Museum's Troy Exhibition on Friday I'm re-reading my Schliemann.

Just finished The Courage to be disliked.

Also just finished the unabridged Livy, The History of Rome books 1-5.

The former is in the form of a Platonic dialogue and unpacks Adlerian Individual Psychology.

The latter: edge of your seat history; should be prescribed reading in schools.

May I plug Kenneth Clark's Civilisation available on YouTube. Simply outstanding. Watching not reading.

>169 HuxleyTheCat:

What an interesting selection, Fiona. I must listen to that piece when I get home tonight. I have too pondered with the idea of whether to listen to music while reading or submerse myself in the silent solitude if reading, yet still remain undecided

>173 LesMiserables:

Couldn't agree more. I watched the series while reading the FS edition last year. Then followed it up with The Ascent of Man

>169 HuxleyTheCat: Thanks also from me for the hint. I too have never been a fan of combining music and reading, but I think with Thomas Tallis you may be on to something. Will give it a try this evening as I begin the examination of my sale haul :-)

>171 gmacaree: Then follow up with tickets to Moscow to see the actual treasure of Troy (absolutely magnificent!) at the Pushkin Museum :)

>177 elladan0891: The British Museum is slightly more convenient for me than Moscow but I would very much like to poke my head in someday.

>174 ironjaw: It's a bit lengthy, Faisel, the complete set running to 10 CDs worth. I have all my music on a Brennan jukebox now, output to my hi-fi, so I just press play at the beginning of CD one track one and away it goes.
>176 Levin40: Please let us know what you think. I find I can enjoy it without it intruding too much and disturbing my concentration on reading, then all of a sudden there will be a voice soaring above the other harmonies which I just have to listen to, albeit briefly. Fortunately Spem in Alium, and the Lamentations of Jeremiah, are tracks one hundred and something, as I would just have to stop reading and give my full attention to those.

If anyone isn't familiar with it, the Spem in Alium is a motet written for 40 voices - essentially a 40 part harmony - and is the most extraordinary piece of music. Listening to it on a decent pair of headphones is a positively mind-bending experience.

>169 HuxleyTheCat:

More thanks, Fiona - I've just spent a few hours streaming this splendid set. I ripped my CDs a couple of years back, but there was only one Tallis album among them (the Tallis Singers, SiA, but no Jeremiah). I - almost - regret the time and cost of the ripping, as the streaming is so good.

>179 HuxleyTheCat:

Fiona. I must say I’m quite intrigued by the Brennan jukebox. It resembles the Bang and Olufsen BeoSound 5 system for which you can buy a CD ripper but this one seems more interactive.

I have switched back from digital back to vinyl and this seems to be somewhat of a trend. I have a nice collection of vinyl but need to upgrade the turntable.

The Tallis Scholars may indeed be compatible with a good read. I heard them in concert in a cathedral and it was sublime.

I don't drink so I need to find a proper entry.

>182 Forthwith: "I don't drink so I need to find a proper entry." Coffee, tea, water, Bud Light...?

>181 ironjaw: The Brennan is a bit of a niche product aimed squarely at those of us (usually of a certain age) who had amassed a substantial CD collection before streaming was born. In my case that was about a thousand CDs, which I had already invested in, and, as I only find a tiny percentage of 'popular' music from this century appealing, I had been looking for something that would allow me to utilise my collection while getting rid of the many feet of shelves it occupied so that they could more usefully be occupied by books. I'd tried ripping onto my PC at least three times and didn't find software which was particularly user-friendly for classical before I came across the Brennan. It's not cheap (but not in B&O territory either) and it's a bit Heath Robinson (effectively it's a raspberry pi attached to a hard drive) but it hits the sweet spot for my purposes. Ripping was quick and easy, the UI works very well and is constantly being developed by Martin Brennan, while the format is FLAC, so lossless. It also acts as an internet radio source, and the soundtracks from Youtube videos can be bookmarked and incorporated into one's catalogue. Although it certainly won't be for everyone and there really is little point if one has few CDs, I love mine so far.

>180 affle: I'm glad to have steered you towards a little enjoyment Alan.

>183 HuxleyTheCat: Anything but our tap water, anything

>183 HuxleyTheCat:

I still believe in the CD (and all of the high-resolution formats, too!) and empathize with your classical CD ripping woes. I've been utilizing the illustrious dbPowerAmp for many years but with its four potential sources for metadata, each chock full of separate naming convention inconsistencies, it takes a ton of time and effort to straighten everything out. I've been avoiding ripping a 200+ CD box of Bach for far too long because of the trouble.

I’m a CD person. I’m finishing streaming a bit hard to be honest. I did try to rip my CDs a decade ago and had a nice curated collection in iTunes before it Apple changed it and made it all too difficult to navigate and browse. I don’t use it anymore and have been trying to figure out the paid versions of iTunes Music but it’s just not working with the classical music.

Just finished "Journey to the Centre of the Earth" (Folio, with an excellent introduction by Michael Crichton and a note on the translation). I will be seeking out Folio's other Vernes!

Titus Groan. Loving my Folio edition!

>188 HuxleyTheCat: A great edition and a good read, though Titus Alone was a little disappointing.

Surely your`e joking mr. feynman (my introduction to my FS books on physics) - i like it. It also makes me a littlebit .. sad, is sad the word even ? Everything seem too serious today, which makes it a refreshing read (this far) ..

Just finished Diversity of Life and Fahrenheit 451 and I'm halfway through The Wind in the Willows at the moment. This last one isn't what I remember at all from childhood.

>190 Pellias: I thought it was great all the way. Enjoy!

>192 elladan0891: Will do ! :)

Reading day by day, the Folio Book of Days, and the Butler Lives of the Saints 4v unabridged.

The Classical World. So far, a decent survey

Portrait of a Lady. When Henry gets on a roll there are some amazing passages. I read them over a few times and then chase down someone in the household and read it aloud to them. Aren’t they fortunate.

>195 gmacaree: I hope to get to that soon. The FS presentation is quietly distinguished.

I am nearly through Flights by Olga Tokarczuk. I know that it is far too soon but this could make a classic FS publication and could offer a fine opportunity for an illustrator.

Also I'm slowly making my way through Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe. It reads like artful journalism.

I just finished reading The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, which was fabulous and I wish they would print more of the Oz books since I have never read them and have only watched the Return to Oz movie a few times.

Now doing a reread of The Phantom of the Opera with my new FS edition I received as a birthday present from my husband. I remember I could not get into Phantom the first time around, liked it a bit more the 2nd reading, which was about 5 or 6 years ago. Today I can hardly put my book down and am beginning to wonder if it has anything to do with the translations or the fact that with time you just see certain books and subjects differently. Or maybe even both!

The British Oak by Archie Miles

Such an interesting read. So many things I did not know about the English and Sessile Oaks. After reading The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben, this is becoming a really enjoyable topic.

I’m reading 100 Ideas that Changed the World by Jheni Osman with my niece. It’s really good. She picked it up in the library and browsing through the contents it covers great ideas on science, astronomy, engineering, etc. in short chapters. I think it looks so far as a great way to update your science understanding of the world and where we are now. It really is that good.

Another book I’m reading is Penguin’s The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan. It’s really hard to get into not being much familiar with such kind of work but I’m reading it the text through and then will do my due diligence and further study.

Interestingly enough, I received an email newsletter from Waterstones about a list on “21st Century Classics: Non-Fiction” and also “ 21st Century Classics: Fiction” that looks quite interesting.

https://www.waterstones.com/blog/21st-century-classics-non-fiction?utm_source=ws...

>200 ironjaw: I read one of the books deemed 21st century classics: When Breath Becomes Air. I am (was) of the same age which made it more pointed and the book being well written helps a lot. It made an impact, if only for the sobering reminder that you have to take life not for granted. It helped me refocuse my priorities and I shed a few tears towards the end which is healthy too.

>197 Forthwith: I am reading Drive your Plow over the Bones of the Dead, also by Olga Tokarczuk, and am really enjoying it. Picked up from the library, and then bought once I realised that it was very readable, as although I was initially reading it as strangely translated, I realised that it was probably the unusual "voice" of the narrator. It can, however, be read as a straightforward narrative.
I understand that Flights is more challenging, so shall be interested in your impressions, as reader reviews are mixed.
>200 ironjaw: I have read three of the Waterstones 21st century classics: The Bookseller Of Kabul, The Year of Magical Thinking and Educated. All good reads, which fulfil Waterstones aim "to stand as a literary and cultural testament to the vibrancy and range of modern non-fiction writing", but none would be my favourites from the last 20 years. For example with memoirs, I read both Educated and The Salt Path last year, and I rated The Salt Path higher.
All a matter of taste, but fascinating, and I always enjoy a good list :)

>200 ironjaw: I have read 3 on that list and the one that really stands out is Roy Jenkins biography of Churchill. The others I read were A Short History of Nearly Everything and The God Delusion.

Well, I've read six of the Waterstones fiction and six of the non-fiction, surprising since I usually have read few of the books on such lists. Several of the fiction books are on my TBR list - I guess I need to get working on the non-fiction as well! Of the ones I've read, the standouts are Thinking: Fast and Slow, and Cloud Atlas.

>202 CarltonC: - Tokarczuk's Flights is superb, and I didn't find it particularly challenging. I agree with Forthwith - it would make an excellent FS selection. Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead is also on my TBR list, but it is much nearer the top of the list - I anticipate getting to it soon.

FS edition of Maturin's Melmoth the Wanderer.

>202 CarltonC: I just completed Flights and found it an easy and agreeable read. It is like finding a pleasant literary traveling companion to places and time. Besides the double occupancy saves money.

>204 coynedj: >206 Forthwith: Thanks for the positive feedback. I will add it to my TBR list.

The Fifth Risk - Michael Lewis (and nearly finished Titus Groan).

The Life of Thomas More. I find Akroyd very readable

>208 HuxleyTheCat: - I'm kind of scared to read The Fifth Risk. What do you think of it?

And Titus Groan is just tremendous, isn't it? The same goes for Gormenghast, though Titus Alone is a lesser volume in my opinion.

>210 coynedj: I'm just over half way through and I have a few random thoughts from a UK-based perspective:

The first chapter concerning the Dept of Energy is seriously unsettling.
The general dismissal of 'experts' by President Trump is also seriously unsettling (especially given recent events here in the UK).
As a public servant myself I empathise with the frustration described over the ideology of 'private good, public bad' and 'we don't know what you do but we don't want to pay for it' which is getting worse in the UK but I think is embryonic here compared to the US.
The description of the Trump 'transition' tallies exactly with other books I've read, such as Woodward's Fear.
You are the second person today who has said to me almost exactly the same thing about being scared to read this book. Personally I think everyone should read it, particularly if they have a vote in the US election, or even just pay taxes, as it will give you a far better understanding of just what your money pays for.

Yes, indeed, I'm loving Titus Groan. I'll be finished tomorrow though and I'm not sure whether to plough straight into Gormenghast or take a detour on the high seas with Aubrey and Maturin first.

Don Quixote

>211 HuxleyTheCat: If you both wish to continue to discuss Michael Lewis’s new book I would STRONGLY encourage you to do so privately. It will almost assuredly lead to very unpleasant discussions on our otherwise peaceful forum.

Just finished Love and War in the Apennines (I can’t believe the story ends the way it did - really turned my whole perception of the book negative) and Pompeii (very much enjoyed it), both in FS versions. Now reading A Bell for Adano in the Franklin Library version, which I am tearing through.

Just finished ‘All the Light We Cannot See’. Would have probably loved it if it were the first book I had read in this genre (WWII historical fiction), but it wasn’t and it came across as formulaic and somehow flat.
Just started The Princess Bride - FS version

>213 Sorion: Well, there's a first: the first time in over three decades as a professional librarian that I have been warned off discussing or answering a direct question about a book, something which I do multiple times a day, every day and which is as natural and automatic to me as breathing. And is this book something with profoundly offensive content such as Mein Kampf, or with perfectly reasonable content but a profoundly offensive way of delivering it, such as the God Delusion? No, this is a book from a highly respected global publishing house and which has been lauded in the Daily Telegraph, a heavyweight news source whose political leanings are diametrically opposed to my own. Still, it's 2020 and we live in interesting times, and sadly the times are such that a serious individual like Madeleine Albright sees fit to write Fascism: A Warning.

Having now finished The Fifth Risk, I can add to my comments above. Lewis doesn't thrash 'the message', the content speaks for itself. If any of that content is not true then I am sure a few lawyers will make a great deal of money, however, I'm pretty certain that Penguin Random House will have done due diligence. The vast majority of the two hundred and fifty four pages are devoted to portraits of the work of some interesting, driven and brilliant people, people who are motivated by something other than money. Through its pages I have learned much about nuclear waste, weather forecasting and maritime search and rescue.

Here's a free tip from a librarian, read things which you think you may disagree with, it's good for you and expands the mind. Oh, and if you are a citizen of the US, be very proud of the people described in The Fifth Risk; one day you may well owe one of them your life.

>216 HuxleyTheCat:

Well, there's a first: the first time in over three decades as a professional librarian that I have been warned off discussing or answering a direct question about a book...

I'm not sure that's what happened. >213 Sorion: said If you both wish to continue to discuss Michael Lewis’s new book I would STRONGLY encourage you to do so privately. It will almost assuredly lead to very unpleasant discussions on our otherwise peaceful forum.

I read that as ... Look, this might cause a rumpus on this thread, perhaps there are more appropriate places to do this.
Exactly like... I suggest you don't skate around the department store, as a mishap may occur.

All the best to both of you.

>217 LesMiserables: Exactly like... I suggest you don't skate around the department store, as a mishap may occur.

Not quite exactly, surely? That to me sounds like pure self-indulgence with hardly any likely effect other than to alarm some folks, damage stock and at worst result in injuries: discussing books on the other hand is more or less the kind of thing we all come here for. If we do it as responsible adults there's no peril of a "rumpus", and in the meantime there is the usual benefit of having our attention drawn to books that haven't otherwise come to our notice.

>216 HuxleyTheCat: as >217 LesMiserables: said there was no attempt to warn you off discussing a book just a polite request to take this particular topic private. In this time in the world there is a complete inability on both sides to discuss it in a civil manner. Even on our humble forum here we have seen hard feelings develop over political issues in recent months and speaking for myself and possibly others I use this place partially as an escape from those things and the accompanying anger on both sides that have invaded every other aspect of public discourse.

In the spirit of that I will refrain from commenting on the rest of your reply and wish you a lovely day/night!

Finished two re-reads - The Wind in the Willows, which has me yearning for summer, and Lord of the Flies, which isn't half as good as I remember.

Next up - either Catch-22 or Jane Eyre. May flip a coin to decide.

Anyone have positive words for either of these choices?

>218 terebinth:

What >219 Sorion: has just said. Theoretically you may be right but these days were just not seeing that.

>220 adriano77:

I really loved Wind in the Willows: quite the enchiridion.

I haven't read Catch-22 but Jane Eyre is very good, Dickensian even.

>221 LesMiserables:

Ah well. I'll just confess to finding the implied message of "please don't talk about this in public, because if you continue some of us will become intemperate or abusive" at least as dismaying, indeed vexatious, as any abuse or intemperateness that might otherwise follow.

>223 terebinth:

To be honest my friend, there was not a hint of a threat in >213 Sorion:'s post. Funny how folk see things differently.

Education of Henry Adams. LEC

>219 Sorion: Thank you for your response. Yes, your request was polite, however, in a public forum for the discussion of books I believe that such a request was inappropriate. If anyone pays me the compliment of asking my opinion on anything to do with books or literature on this forum I will continue to give my honest response to them, on the forum, for that is its purpose.

I have searched the FS site for The Fifth Risk and I cannot find it anywhere. Is there a special search string I should be using?

My bad. Looked it up and the book was released in 2018. Doesn’t look like a book the FS would ever publish. Sorry for bringing it up.

>218 terebinth:, >226 HuxleyTheCat:

Well said. I don't mean to heap more criticism on the complaint, I can easily believe it was made in good faith and with best intentions. Just noting:

Folio's catalogue includes plenty of outright political texts and thousands more that are prone to politicisation; there have been many political discussions in this group and even more political remarks; the "what are you reading" threads have included plenty of non-FS titles, including political/politicisable ones.

In short, the idea that this group could or should avoid mention of politics would be ludicrous not just on the basis of regard we ought to have for our adult status and interests, but also on purely technical grounds.

On topic:

as usual, reading way too many books in parallel--but as it happens, none FS. However, I did buy a secondhand FS yesterday, The Tudor Ventures--mostly, I admit, for its handsome, vaguely Art Deco-ish binding design. It's one of the 1970s Folios, with modest but very attractive interior, creamy paper and clear typesetting.

Just finished my commute book, Robert Bresson's aphoristic musings and notes to himself on the subject of cinema, or as he says, cinematography: Notes on the cinematographer.

I'm finishing the last, seventh volume in Gerhard Roth's "The archive of silence", Eine Reise in das Innere von Wien, a collection of essays on Vienna's past and present as reflected in some of its institutions and monuments...

...and have started on An unkindness of ghosts and the second installment in Paul Cornell's "Shadow Police" series, The severed streets.

I'm also reading about half a dozen books relating to the topic of the rise of the far right in the 21st century--subject of a thread in the group Reading Globally through March and possibly longer.

Just so I know the rules, as a relative newcomer, are you suggesting that anything one is reading would be considered in good taste and should be discussed simply because it is a book and one is reading it?

Like if I was reading “Stupid Liberals: Weird and Wacky Tales from the Left Wing” which I never would by the way, and commented how unbelievable it is that Obama was elected twice, that would be ok because we are adults, and it is a book and I was reading it? To me that would be in very poor taste and inappropriate for this audience. Now maybe on the Breitbart comments I would feel comfortable doing so (actually not even there, but to make a point) but here I would consider it a lack of class. I therefore, out of respect for the rest of the members would avoid doing so. At the risk of missing an opportunity to “expand their minds” so it seems.

>231 rkramden:
That all sounds like common sense to me. The problem comes up when someone engages with a book that the FS has published, and which is currently deemed to be divisive topic.

As Sorion says, society seems incapable of gentle conversation. It's all immediate ad hominem and anger.

I would argue that one particular combination of ideologies is responsible for this, but that's neither here nor there. It still end in a dust up of tragic disproportion.

A good example of the above is poor old Ayn Rand who has been castigated as something in excess of a monster on here.

Any book could be analyzed to project a political ideology if one were so inclined. Even if they must resort to “micropolitics”. For example I am reading Don Quixote. Now one minute I think Miguel is leaning one way. Then it seems he is making fun of folks that lean that way. Turn the page and he is doing just the opposite. Decided it was intentional and not submit to his antics. Surely would not try and flesh it out on here. One could also talk about “Portrait of a Lady” without needing to proclaim which one of Lord Warburton’s ideological contradictions holds the most merit.
Seems like I remember an old saying about religion and politics. Heard tell there are references from the 19th century, despite claims of it being a recent phenomenon.

Never read Ayn. I have the impression, only from her reputation, that the ideology and or philosophy is a little “up front” if you will. I personally avoid that type of writing, regardless of the nature of said ideology or philosophy.
For example, Dostoevsky preaches. Tolstoy tells a story with the same elements but allows the reader to reach their own conclusions. I prefer the Tolstoy approach.

Interesting. I never found that with Dostoyevsky.

well perhaps I have been a little hard on him. Read “The Brothers” not long ago and was left with that impression. Certainly have not finished reading him. Was thinking “The Idiot” next read.

Read TBK not so long ago. I think he is deft at offering you different realities.

I am sure that is so. May have began with some preconceived notions.

>230 rkramden: & 231 Thanks for your posts, which are welcome and useful. You ask about the 'rules'. These are set by the LT administrators, and are typical of boards on public forums i.e. keep it polite, attack the message not the messenger, no spam. Contravention of those will generally see perpetrators suspended or removed; I only recall that having happened a few times and it was clear that the person(s) involved was deliberately trolling (and is potentially mentally unstable). As far as FSD specifically is concerned, threads tend to go off in all directions which will either annoy or delight depending upon one's own preference, and there certainly isn't any 'rule' that this particular thread should relate only to FS books. Should you start a thread which is specifically not Folio-related then it's useful to prefix it with OT (Off topic).

I would address your position in >231 rkramden: by suggesting that it goes to the root of one of the key issues of this time in history - how to establish the veracity of information. It's years since I last did any academic study but, in the various courses I undertook, I was expected to reference correctly and the citations would have been expected to have related to books with some legitimate form of credential or articles from peer-reviewed academic journals. To restate concerning The Fifth Risk, it is published by an established global publishing house with a good reputation, and was one of the 'Books of the Year' in the most heavyweight right-leaning newspaper in the UK. If one ignores all the snapshot hype which publishers use to grab attention, the book itself can be distilled to an explanation of a few sentences: "And he DJ Patil, the then Chief Data Scientist of the United States Office of Science and Technology Policy came to see there was nothing arbitrary or capricious about the Trump administration's attitude toward public data. Under each act of data suppression usually lay a narrow commercial interest... ...There was a rift in American life that was now coursing through American government. It wasn't between Democrats and Republicans. It was between the people who were in it for the mission, and the people who were in it for the money."

To diverge slightly in order to expand the point about reading beyond one's own comfort zone of preferences, at the most basic level one could say 'know your enemy' (the basis of my reading of the Telegraph - although I have to admit that the travel section is stellar) but, more seriously, groupthink is problematic in many areas of society. I'll give an example. One of the biggest perceived cock-ups made by the UK in recent years was participation in the Iraq War. The investigation resulted in the leviathan Chilcott Report which has, in turn, prompted root to branch shakeups in the MOD and FCO in order to counter the groupthink which led to poor decision-making. There is a good brief summary here: https://www.civilserviceworld.com/articles/feature/%E2%80%98chilcot-rocket-fuel%....

It is perfectly possible to have passionate discussion on these boards without contravening the 'rules'. Steve (LesMiserables) and I have very different world views and we have been in frequent public conflict here for over a decade. Sometimes I want to bang my head against the wall after I read what he's written, but I absolutely respect that he holds his views sincerely, we have a cordial relationship in the non-public area of LT and if ever I met him I'd buy him a pint and/or a fish supper. I am personally passionate about education in order to give people the tools to be able to sift evidence and reach an informed position on any given subject. There are some very bright people indeed here and those people have a spectrum of differing viewpoints which are worth hearing and engaging with.

Well not sure if you were suggesting that one book had more legitimacy than another because of some methodology that was not applied but it matters not. At first I was enjoying the site as it appeared to be a place where people accepted the restraints required to keep a public discourse not only civil but polite, perhaps even inspiring. But it has quickly, and not just from this discussion, become apparent such is not the case. Alas I did learn quite a bit in a short time and for that I am thankful. Unfortunately for me it is not worth it to tolerate the occasional politically charged comments and derisions. It doesn’t seem like it would be that difficult to discuss a shared passion for books without including those elements that obviously are politically distasteful and sensitive to one side or the other. But obviously some just cannot resist. How unfortunate. This is the point at which visiting LT becomes much less enjoyable. I sincerely apologize for contributing to making it so for others. It appears I could not resist either. May I blame it on a much too strong pot of tea at a much too late time of the evening?
Inevitably fading away,
He of the poorly considered username,
Rkramden.

>231 rkramden: I therefore, out of respect for the rest of the members would avoid doing so. At the risk of missing an opportunity to “expand their minds” so it seems

Puh. Yes. Lovely and thanks man ! ;) - much appreciated ! haha ..

A fish supper from >239 HuxleyTheCat: for you then Steve. But only one pint so it seems "(a pint)", which might be the sensible thing to do, if once you two ever got to the wine no one knows what could be happening in vino veritas and all of that jazz .. might end up in some heavy metal rather than some new age vibes after some time ..

You are fine people both of you, almost (almost) as fine as me. So long and thanks for all the fish !

>240 rkramden:
If you don't like this thread, just ignore or block it, while continuing to participate in other threads.

>239 HuxleyTheCat:
I have mer les miserables (Steve) several times, and although we have not shared a pint and a fish supper, we have shared a coffee and cake on amiable terms despite being on the opposite sides of the religious and political divide.
We all have our good (and bad) points.
Now lets get back to the topic.

>241 Pellias: Cheers Oyvind! Yes, definitely only one pint and we’ll stick to beer as whisky could well be a bone of contention seeing as I’ve changed my favourite tipple from Scotch to Japanese (and a blend at that!). The selection of cod or haddock has potential for disagreement... Music? I’m partial to some eighties Gaelic plod rock.

I’ve finished Titus Groan and am currently sailing The Wine-Dark Sea.

>231 rkramden:

Like if I was reading “Stupid Liberals: Weird and Wacky Tales from the Left Wing” which I never would by the way, and commented how unbelievable it is that Obama was elected twice, that would be ok because we are adults, and it is a book and I was reading it? To me that would be in very poor taste and inappropriate for this audience. Now maybe on the Breitbart comments I would feel comfortable doing so (actually not even there, but to make a point) but here I would consider it a lack of class. I therefore, out of respect for the rest of the members would avoid doing so. At the risk of missing an opportunity to “expand their minds” so it seems.

There are many "here"s on LT, with different habits (if not rules--the LT TOS apply everywhere). Your hypothetical would be run-of-the-mill in the group Pro & Con, for example, as even some "saintly" posters in the FS Devotees know and have taken advantage of (no "stupid liberals" tho', all highly intelligent Trump supporters to the man).

On the other end of permissiveness there is The Green Dragon, which explicitly forbids discussing politics and religion. It's one of the largest and most popular groups on LT.

>242 wcarter: has the best advice.

I've been away from this site for a bit and never knew what a firestorm I created by asking "what do you think of it?" about a book that another member was reading. I've asked that many times before - it's one of the ways I find good books to read. I trust this community to concentrate on books that are worthy of one's attention and avoid unworthy ones, of which there are legion regarding politics, religion, and just about any other topic that has ever been written about. I wasn't about to engage in a discussion of the book, as I haven't read it. That's what led to my question.

I don't intend to engage in political discussions here, though maybe I get riled up on occasion. I try not to. But I also don't intend to self-censor in fear of offending someone through the mere mention of a certain book. If someone is reading a book which I find of interest, I'll ask about it, and if someone asks about a book I'm reading, I'll answer.

By the way - I've just finished Bad Blood, the story of the Theranos scandal here in the U.S., and found it fascinating. I'm midway through I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life. I haven't come upon a grander view of life quite yet, but there's still time.

>245 LolaWalser: Hmm .. let`s make a bonfire i`m freezing, was that`s the thought? :) I`m sure you could join in on that fish dish too Lola. You and Steve should definitively meet up, because most of the drama on this fora more often than not circles around the opposites of the two of you.

As a philosopher would be curious about, if two people make the complete opposite, are that because there are similarities or because of the definite opposites? What`s the similarities between saint`s, "saint`s" and or martyr`s or "martyr`s" anyway = Can`t they both end up as saints? .. or "saint`s" .. who defines what, and i`m not saying one of you is the other, i just read your neg about "saintly" posters which is clearly addressed.

.. and if this is the advice of which you were mentioning from Dr. Carter Now lets get back to the topic then why lit a dying flame. I will stop eating candy on sunday`s, but only after i eat this chocolate first ..

Not that you care, but i do love you (if you would let me, time will heal i guess - i am here though, for life most probably) and also Steve, but he knows that, and i`m no saint (which by saying it makes it a saintly virtue by itself)

You people (of the world in general) that talk of politics and blabla, and you state that you are adults, oh yes, that`s good, but goodness in all that maturity and or smartness, there are some definite childish temper going on, be it right or left or up or down

Now, end me! Only that way can i be canonized :)

>242 wcarter: Has the best advice, most definite! ;o)

Not a Folio book, reading Marry Out (SF edition). I was never hugely into memoirs, but since getting into the SF editions, I find I’m devouring them! The next up will (hopefully) be a reread of Trollope’s Barchester series, however I’ve been anxiously waiting to receive my new FS Warden (to replace my 80s copy).

I would second (or third) the recommendation of the The Fifth Risk to anyone that lives & especially votes in the United States.

Just finished The Shadow King, historical fiction from the Italian invasion of Ethiopia. Well worth the time.

>249 kcshankd:
Visiting the US this week and just picked up The Fifth Risk an hour ago and will begin reading tonight.

Just finished The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern and just loved it. Only her second novel. She also wrote the Night Circus, which I now must read.

Finished The Remains of the Day (FS edition). While I'm awaiting my FS edition of The Screwtape Letters to arrive in the mail (first read it probably 25 years ago when I became a believer), I will probably start on The Alice Network (non-FS of course).

Reading The Madness of Crowds by Douglas Murray.

Reading I. Compton-Burnett - currently Daughters & Sons - and James Branch Cabell (just finished Figures of Earth): also re-reading Adelaide Mary Champneys only a year or so after discovering her existence. I've ordered Jeremiah Moss' Vanishing New York: How a Great City Lost Its Soul after reading his essay in the current n+1 on what's become of East Village since he took up residence there. Its manner and execution reminded me of Charles Lamb, which is high praise.

As usual for me, not many Folio candidates there, though something of Compton-Burnett might just be a possibility? When I bought the 19-volume collected edition of her novels (Victor Gollancz, 1972), limited to 500 copies and presented on good paper in real cloth bindings housed in four cloth-bound slipcases, the eBay seller referred to it as having been distributed by the FS, but I've never come across any evidence in support of that claim.

Just finished Dune. Wow. A majestic production from FS. So much richer an experience than when I read it aged 15. And the Sam Weber illustrations added so much...

Also just read The World of Herodotus. This book was a completely unexpected triumph - I realised what a debt Donald Kagan owes to Aubrey de Selincourt after finishing. What a great introduction to the Archaic Period.

The Fifth Risk has moved to near the top of my TBR pile following this thread. I used to work in the City of London and read Liar’s Poker 25 years ago. Michael Lewis has always seemed to me to be a serious inquirer into contemporary life whose observations are always worth considering. Check out his podcast if you’re so inclined...

>255 terebinth:

It does seem odd that the FS managed not to publish something by ICB in 60+ years.

>255 terebinth: I’ve been eyeing these books. Are the bindings sewn?

>258 RRCBS:

Yes. I'm not sure even many trade hardbacks were glued back in '72, but production standards on this set are much better than were usual at the time - nice deep red thready cloth, top edges dyed red, headbands and ribbon markers, printed letterpress I think as many books still were, and on very good watermarked paper. No details given in the books beyond that they were printed by the Camelot Press of London and Southampton. I had only read a couple of Compton-Burnett novels when the eBay offer came along at what seemed exceptional terms, as I recall a little over £200 with Hilary Spurling's two-volume Life, Violet Powell's Compendium, and a reprint of the excluded first novel Dolores all thrown in. If you care for the writing the set would still be excellent value at a considerably higher price.

Thanks! I just ordered a set with 14 volumes and no slipcases for about 200 pounds...very much an impulse buy after already spending too much lately. No worrying about receiving some with bent corners since they will be shipped with slipcases!

Not sure that talking about politics is the right thing to do (even when reading political books). The poster who objected has left the site. As there always seems to be a large majority with the same political viewpoint, surely this means that the site becomes more of an echo chamber?

Apologies, I hadn’t realised that you were asked your opinion of the book. I have now seen this message

A few on the go..

The Crucible
Minority Report
King Lear
Madness of Crowds
One flew over the cuckoo's nest

>260 RRCBS:

I'm a little puzzled, the books will be shipped in the slipcases they haven't got? ;) Still, yes, that sounds good, as long as you can live with an incomplete or unmatched set: I could, but quite a few members here would be tormented by such a thing. As far as I know the edition was only offered for sale in complete sets of 19 volumes, all with the same limitation number written inside - mine is 125.

>261 DMulvee: As there always seems to be a large majority with the same political viewpoint, surely this means that the site becomes more of an echo chamber?

I don't think that's been a problem here, we've members of pretty much every political hue. This isn't at all a promising forum for political argument. I for one hope that we can draw one another's attention to books of interest, even of a controversial nature, and anybody out of sympathy with their viewpoints will at most just say as much, with any reasons they care to give, before moving on. A few of the Folio Society's own titles have been more than a little controversial one way or another.

>256 plasticjock: Thanks for the thumbs up for The World of Herodotus, which I have in my TBR pile, but have been choosing fiction recently, with plenty of Pratchett rereads.

>261 DMulvee: Don't worry I have not left the site. The only thing that would force me off here is my wife and our checking account.

Just finished The Light of All That Falls the third and final book in the Licanious series. For you fantasy fans out there this is the finest fantasy series written in the last ten years and I urge you to read it . Each book better than the last. An absolute triumph.

Back to reading the FS miniature edition of The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym finally. Also finishing up Status Anxiety by Alain De Botton and Zero to One by Peter Thiel.

>266 Sorion: It looks like the Licanious series seems to be compared to The Wheel of Time series which is a series I quickly got tired and ultimately stopped reading sometime around the 6th book or so. Would you say there a more suitable comparison, or would you say that the fanbase of those two series would overlap quite a bit?

>266 Sorion: I'll start with saying I hated the Wheel of Time series and put it down. I didn't even make it completely through the first two books. I think the fanbase will overlap strongly with Brandon Sanderson's Stormlight Archive series. I think this is better though. By a few hairs. This series feels very much like the author working out his own thoughts on life in the form of a fantasy series.

>268 Sorion: Thank you very much for the info. I loved the first two book of the Stormlight Archive series but the third left me feeling very pessimistic for the rest of the series (a rumored to be ten books).

>268 Sorion:
WOT was great for teenage me. Just unreadable to me now.

Just started the Aeneid (FS LE w/Fagles translation). Never read the Aeneid before, but am two books in and loving it. Having compared one passage to the Dryden translation, I’m glad I started with the Fagles - in my opinion, the modern translation is easier for someone new to the book and with less grounding in Roman mythology. Also, the LE is illustrated with reproductions of frescos from Pompeii, which I am hoping to get to see in person in a couple months.

OT: Does anyone know if there are any letterpress versions of the Fagles Iliad/Odyssey? I’ve got the FS 1/4 leather ones, but would be interested to know if there are any other fine press versions of that translation.

Madonna in a Fur Coat by Sabahattin Ali

Finished The Alice Network by Kate Quinn and Recursion by Blake Crouch. Will probably start on The Screwtape Letters or The Wind in the Willows soon.

Reading Catch-22.

The most amusing book I can remember reading in years. I'm laughing out loud at least once every few pages. Hope it continues this way 'til the end.

Just finished 'The Education of Henry Adams.' I can see why it was at one point #1 on the Modern Library top 100 non-fiction books of the century list.

A Confederacy of Dunces (FS edition). A third of the way in and loving the book. Not crazy about the design, but the book is still a pleasure to read and I’m happy I have a nice copy of it. Then again I’m a sucker for most of what FS releases in fiction these days.

The Brothers Karamazov*. Up and down so far... sometimes utterly brilliant (amongst the greatest of all-time level) and at others, a slog in dire need of a proper editor. I imagine by the end I will be high on the book, but it's still up in the air right now.

*Constance Garnett translation, which I find better than P&V.

I just finished The Fifth Risk. I found it well written and undoubtedly unnerving, but too short. It felt like the first 200 pages of a 500 page book - it could have gone into much more depth.

I'm now reading:
Blueprint: The Evolutionary Origins of a Good Society, by Nicholas Christakis. I needed some optimism, after The Fifth Risk.
The Life of Samuel Johnson, by James Boswell, Folio Society 1990 reprint of the 1968 original. Now that I'm a retired man of leisure, I'm reading the books I promised I would.

Shakespeare's Henry IV. My acquisition of parts 1 and 2 leave me 50 percent of the way to a full letterpress histories set.

The Bride of Lammermoor
Sir Walter Scott FS 1985

Just finished:
The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (FS new edition)
Titanic; First Accounts, by Lawrence Beesley, et al

Now reading:
Selected Poems & Songs, by Robert Burns (FS)
The Galdrabok; An Icelandic Book of Magic

Finished Last Exit to Brooklyn by Hurbert Selby Jr. - one of those books I often see mentioned but had no idea of the contents - I thought it was great. Described as “not a suitable book for aunt Edna,” it may not be traditional FS, but they could (and have IMO) done worse!

The Penguin Modern Classic contains a glowing introduction by Irvine Welsh, an afterword by the author and a foreword telling the story of the books obscenity trials - interestingly Sir Basil Blackwell, the Oxford bookseller and publisher, supported the Prosecution while Anthony Burgess spoke in the book’s defence.

Incidentally, talking of modern classics, it’s been a long time since I read any William Burroughs, but I still remember his sublime English… why no FS?

>279 gmacaree: congratulations!

Did you get the Henry IVs that sold for about £200 each on eBay a week or two ago by any chance?

As for me, I am about 75% into FS Moby-Dick. That puts me at the tail (or should that be "fluke"?) end of the notorious 500 page treatise on the whaling industry. It's been a bit of a slog...

>283 ubiquitousuk: Guilty. There was a brief bit of panic when DHL inexplicably delivered them to the wrong address, but all's well that ends well.

As for Moby-Dick, I'm sorry it's a slog for you. I fly through it these days, will be on my ninth reading sometime soon ...

>283 ubiquitousuk:

If you focus on the fact that he's doing a little double talk. I.E. also talking about the sometimes remorseless nature of the universe and not just the whaling industry. Then it goes a lot faster

Moby Dick was the first serious book I read after finishing high school, back when I wanted to start my journey into reading.

I need to read it again. I finished the book, but lost interest halfway through.

Just finished a re-read after 10 years or so of A Confederacy of Dunces - not the FS edition- I just can't get the illustrations.

I gave Say Nothing a read. It was a gripping long form of journalism based on the "troubles" in Northern Ireland.

>288 Forthwith:

Glad to hear it--that's the book my book club is going to read next.

Reading I Am Legend this evening as part of my personal pandemic preparedness plan.

Just finished Anansi Boys.

Highly enjoyable and very funny.

It features some classic Gaiman themes in that it involves ordinary people being sucked into bizarre, supranatural goings-on whilst also being a story about gods and a story about stories.

I'm also very impressed by Folio's edition. Like many of you, I was unsure about it based on the website images but, in the flesh, it's a very fine thing. The varied textures of the slipcase are a striking first impression, for one.

:-)

Finished Ubik by Philip K. Dick - sorry, did not grab me so much - I think mainly because I had no idea what was happening - the main characters narrating the story did not know what was happening either!
Shame, because looking back it is possible to see some important themes relevant to today’s world - like how large corporations are capable of controlling or shaping our thoughts.
There is a telling quote on the front of the Gollancz pb I read: “For everyone lost in the endlessly multiplicating realities of the modern world, remember: Philip K. Dick got there first.” (Terry Gilliam)

>292 StevieBby: I recently finished Ubik (in the same edition you have) and had much the same reaction. I also found the science fiction world-building to bit a bit awkward. The best sci-fi writers conjure fantastical futures while making them seem completely natural. I felt like Ubik was begging me to believe in a world that it couldn't sell as authentic. A pretty stark contrast to Neuromancer, which I also recently finished, where the world practically seeps off of the pages.

For my part, I finished my Moby-Dick odyssey without drowning and have moved on to reading Hag-Seed. This is my second entry in the Hogarth Shakespeare series (the previous being Macbeth) and I like them both. Nesbo's Macbeth stuck closer to the original source material, but did a great job of locating the plot in a modern setting. Atwood seems to have taken a slightly looser interpretation of The Tempest (not too loose, though). I'll reserve full judgement for when I finished the novel.

Recently finished The Owl Service, FS edition. At first I didn’t like the ending, but after having let it sink in, I think it’s interesting and different. Not quite what I had expected, but thoroughly enjoyed it. On to Ghosting by Jennie Erdal (SF edition)

Wind in the Willows
Winnie the pooh
The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership

Stig of the Dump FS

>292 StevieBby:
>293 ubiquitousuk:

Also just finished Ubik. The FS edition. For those who have it you should take a peek inside the slipcase. Never seen anything like that before in a FS edition.

Just started Flashman, none FS obviously. My goodness it would upset some people these days, but it's very funny. Like Wodehouse if all his characters were nasty sociopaths.

Looking forward to starting the Hornblower FS series now I have all 3 sets. I want to read them in original publishing order rather than the chronological order FS went with.

I finally made it to the riots in Charles Dickens’ Barnaby Rudge (FS 1995 reissue with Charles Keeping illustrations), which is about 400 pages in. However, I’m thoroughly enjoying this book because the minor characters are so eccentric and Chester’s villainy is so unique - I went on a tour of his origins and learned about Chesterfield and found it fascinating to think about how Dickens develops this character after reading (and I’m sure discussing) the philosophy. Is this really one of Dickens’ least-loved works?

It's high time I read Dickens again.

Maigret and the Calame Report from FS Maigret set 1.

Swallows and Amazons from the Jonathan Cape set 1 distributed through Folio.

Mani FS edition

Age of Innocence, by Edith Wharton

>302 HuxleyTheCat:

As a great Ransome devotee, I nevertheless have reservations about Swallows and Amazons. In fact it's easily my least favourite of the twelve. I feel that Ransome, so overly anxious to get his dream book right, becomes self-concious in the process and occasionally makes the fatal mistake (in my opinion) of addressing his readers directly. In other words, he tries too hard. Thankfully, he soon got over this, so that in most of the later books you're not conscious of "the author" at all.

A fair way into Gene Wolfe's The Urth of the New Sun.

I had read The Book of the New Sun a few months ago but was curious about the updated conclusion. I did feel the main books stood well enough on their own though.

A previous thread here about the series mentioned this later book felt significantly different from the rest. Thus far I can't say I've noticed that. Seems quite consistent.

>305 boldface: Hello the shed! It's many (many) years since I last read it but I recall the story well from seeing the film/tv special at Christmas. I've got a few things lined up for the next weeks and months, including completing the Gormenghast trilogy, a complete re-read of His Dark Materials and the two Books of Dust, The Mirror and the Light and Dune, so, if I can't get back into Ransome's prose I have plenty of alternatives. The LEC Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire is also sitting staring at me, and once I have got into a routine of work (I am fortunate that I can work just as easily from home as the office), exercise and spending some time in the garden, I intend to start reading a little of that every day as well: it's no use at the moment, as I find my concentration wandering too much for anything particularly heavy, hence Ransome.

I acquired this set when I swapped some items at Ardis, and I notice that Robert had the second set as well at the time.

Riddley Walker LE. A slow read because of the Riddleyspeak but I'm making progress. A very English book. I've seen part of a Punch and Judy show in Hyde Park, London and read the LEC edition of Punch and Judy but as an American I just don't connect to it. I'm about 3/4 of the way through the Riddley Walker. I'm glad I picked it up in the last half price sale.

LEC version of the Decameron. First one of my LECs I’ve actually read.

>309 jsg1976: 1930 or 1940 special edition?

>310 kdweber: The 1930 edition. Having never read it before, I decided to go with the modern translation and forgo the Kredel woodcuts

Just finished the Folio Edition of 'The Singing Sands' by Josephine Tey. The first of her books that I have read. Now reading 'Life Of Davy Crockett' by Davy Crockett (so to speak) - Easton Press.

>312 uncledaveh:

Brings back memories of a record my uncle used to play when I was knee-high to a grasshopper:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txcRQedoEyY

>313 boldface: Thanks boldface. My life-long interest in Crockett began with those Walt Disney programs (Fess Parker) which first aired in 1954-1955. This is actually a Life Of Crockett re-read for me of a newly published 1869 facsimile by Easton Press.

Macbeth
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich

I Robot - Isaac Asimov (FS and reread)
The White Album - Joan Didion

Melmoth the Wanderer by Charles Maturin (FS edition)

‘Vinyl Cafe Turns the Page’ by Stuart McLean. Actually I began reading McLean’s books in chronological order starting last month. This is the final book published in his lifetime prior to his passing in early 2017.

The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England (FS), bought in the New Year's sale.

Nearly finished with FS A History of Venice by John Julius Norwich. Starting The Decameron, Modern Library ed. Nearly finished with current issue of the Paris Review.

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay: I enjoyed this a lot - it is funny and intelligent, with a strong human element - not difficult to relate to, although I have no fascination for American comic books or (amateur) magic. Good choice FS, I doubt I would have read this otherwise.

Prompted by wcarter's review I re-read Scoop and thoroughly enjoyed it. From the pencilled price on the inside I see that I paid £4.99 for it in 2010 from eBay. A bargain.

I can't help myself. Starting FS The Plague, received today in good shape from a faraway used bookshop.

Walden. The ultimate guide to self-isolation. :)

World of Odysseus by Moses Finley. Looking back to a time just before the collapse of Bronze Age civilisation...

>325 plasticjock:
Maybe in a decade or so we'll be reading the "World of Trump" by Hillary Clinton. Looking back to a time just before the collapse of the American Age and Civilisation...

>326 wcarter: Haha, yes! I was thinking of similar parallels 😄

On the nonfiction side:

I've just finished Maoism: A Global History, by Julia Lovell. Very informative, it demonstrates just how destructive an ideology can be.
I've begun the second volume of the FS edition of James Boswell's Life of Samuel Johnson.

On the fiction side:

I'm almost done with the FS edition (purchased in the most recent sale) of Evelyn Waugh's Black Mischief. It's quite fun if taken in smaller snatches - the snark is great with this one. I daresay it might have trouble finding a publisher if it had been written in these times.
Once I finish the Waugh, I have two short books lined up - Fat City by Leonard Gardner, and Young Man With a Horn, by Dorothy Baker.

And my "breakfast book", which I read while at the table, is The Celebrated Letters of John B. Keane. Very entertaining so far.

The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson. Great read so far, as with all of his books.

He keeps mentioning Mass Observation, which I had never heard of before, except as the title of a FS book that didn’t grab me enough to look into at the time. But now that I know what it is, and having read Warwick’s post in the folio archives series (https://www.librarything.com/topic/300704), I might have to check it out once I start buying books again.

Just finished Ken Kesey's OFOTCN which was a great read. Looking to read Atwood's Cat's Eyes next.

Runciman's First Crusade. Been a few years. After this I'm going to revisit To The Lighthouse, which I didn't do well with the first time around.

> 330

Ken Kesey

>331 gmacaree:

I've had a similar struggle with "To the Lighthouse" . Let us know if you become more enlightened!

Walden is such a good suggestion. I’m reading slaughterhouse 5, I’ve never read it before so now I am.

Just started the FS edition of Vita Sackville-West's St. Joan of Arc.

Earth Abides on Kindle. I would live to see an FS edition of this.

Finished Walden, by Henry David Thoreau. Rather perfect timing on so many levels, including living 15 minutes away from Walden Pond and the book ending at the coming of spring.

Also finished Charms, Amulets, Talismans & Spells, by Marion Green, a small but informative book.

Now reading My Cousin Rachel, FS edition, by Daphne du Maurier.

>336 Lady19thC:
Finished Walden, by Henry David Thoreau. Rather perfect timing on so many levels, including living 15 minutes away from Walden Pond and the book ending at the coming of spring.

Ah nice. Great book. Have they managed to keep those hallowed acres unadulterated or has it been concreted over with fast food franchises?

>337 LesMiserables:
There is woods, a path to walk around the entire pond, many parts are still quite rough, people canoe and fish in it, we swim in it during the summer. Or you can. I haven't in almost 3 decades. A limited amount of people are allowed in at a time. There are always discussions about preserving it better. I like reading it because the descriptions fit the wildlife in my yard and neighbourhood perfectly, so it is nice to know the majority of birds and wildlife are still here, plus some new lovely ones, like Baltimore Orioles, Mockingbirds, Tanagers, thanks to the tree species people plant in their yards. It is still quite lovely! You can see pics of the reserve online.

>331 gmacaree: I also read Runciman’s First Crusade some (20) years ago, but never got round to reading the later volumes (although I have the FS three volume set). However, I enjoyed Dan Jone’s Crusaders: An Epic History of the Wars for the Holy Land (touchstones not working) earlier this year, which is a less detailed and broader book, covering the reconquista of Spain and expansion of the Teutonic Knights and others into the pagan Baltic states, as well as the far better known crusades to the Levant. Albeit although successful both in conveying the broad sweep of the crusades and specific events and personages, it still felt like a bit of a slog.

Currently reading By Steppe, Desert, and Ocean: The Birth of Eurasia by Barry Cunliffe and Bookshops by Jorge Carrion, both of which I am enjoying.

>338 Lady19thC: - Orioles were common in western New York when I grew up there, but I haven't seen a one in several visits in recent years. It's good to hear that they're still to be found.

>339 CarltonC: I received By Steppe, Desert, and Ocean for Christmas, to go with my copies of Cunliffe's On the Ocean and Europe Between the Oceans. I haven't read it yet - I trust it continues the excellence of those other volumes.

Half way through "The Mirror and the Light". Enjoying it, although some parts do drag. I read "Wolf Hall"on a kindle and that was preferable to the heft of the current 900 or so pages in the physical volume.

THE FUTURE IS FASTER THAN YOU THINK.

I loved this book especially considering the state of things at the moment.
This book got me excited about the future, esp considering the authors previous 2 books were so accurate.
Read or listen on audible for a ray of hope,,, a big giant ray!

Almost done with The Underground Railroad.
Beloved being one of my favourites, this book is beyond superb in my eyes.

I've just devoured Nan Shepherd's The Living Mountain. Absolutely breathtaking.

(Re)Reading Pratchett's Discworld series.

I wanted to check where I had gaps in my collection plus he is guaranteed to raise a smile in difficult times.

Just finished Moving Pictures.

Where are Gaspode and Laddie when we need them?

I had mentioned The Celebrated Letters of John B. Keane (a collection of five epistolary novellas) a bit ago, saying that it was"very entertaining so far". Now that I'm halfway through it, I must say that it goes far beyond "very entertaining". It's wonderful - I haven't enjoyed a book so much in some time. The Folio Society would do well to bring out an edition.

Just finishing the stories that make up the last Hornblower book...will really miss them! Has inspired me to reread my O’Brian set once I make it through a bit more of my TBR pile!

>340 coynedj: By Steppe, Desert, and Ocean is excellent and I especially appreciate the liberal use of well annotated and apposite maps. I have not read Cunliffe's On the Ocean and Europe Between the Oceans, but will be adding them to my list of purchases. (I have read and enjoyed his Celts and Britain BC).

Have just finished Travels with my Aunt (FS), which was entertaining, but nothing more, feeling rather dated (published 1969) and the gentle humour benefits from contemporary expectations.
Now reading Rogue Male (1939), which although also of its time, is entertaining and the FS edition is beautifully illustrated.

How to Read a Book by Mortimer Adler.

>349 LesMiserables: Nice! I keep a copy of this at all times. One of the finest books on learning written in the last 120 years.

Picked up Joan Didion's We Tell Ourselves Stories in Order to Live (a collection of non-fiction) on recommendation from a friend. Fairly hefty book and I suppose I'll start tonight.

Anyone have an opinion of her stuff?

Reading the FS edition of Greene's The Elegant Universe.

This is my first post on Library thing, btw. I'm quite the noob.

>352 ArchStanton:
Welcome to FSD and a never ending increase in your book buying budget!
Make sure you check out all the information on the FSD wiki -
https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/Groups:Folio_Society_Devotees

Chernow's Hamilton. A fascinating, brilliant man

Christabel in Coleridge's Selected Poems (1963) 7 Endymion in Keat's Collected Poems (2001)

Both are rather lovely editions. The print on the Coleridge edition is so crisp looks crisp, and the illustrations in the Keats are lovely.

>351 adriano77: You will have seen that We Tell Ourselves Stories in Order to Live is a collection of Didion’s books of essays, of which I have read Slouching towards Bethlehem and am currently reading The White Album from time to time. I am British and she is an American writing in the sixties and seventies, so I needed some cultural background for some of the essays, but I think that she is brilliant, and I really like her style, so I hope that you enjoy!
Have just finished The Argonauts by Maggie Nelson (excellent, if provocative to some) and wondering what I will pick up next.

Boswell in Search of a Wife, deluxe edition, Heinemann, 1957. A pleasure to read is this fine edition - quarter vellum and dark blue cloth, uncut laid paper and (naturally, for the period) letterpress.
"Corsica" Boswell pursues several high-born young ladies, interspersed with more direct action with low-born ladies. He is completely and utterly smitten by each in turn. He applies to his best friend to advise when he is madly in love with more than one at the same time. On one of his jaunts to visit the love of his life in Ireland, he realises his perfect match is, in fact, his travelling companion, his cousin Margaret. When not laid up with the clap, he pursues the day job: a legal career in Edinburgh.

The Golden Bough, 3rd edition, 1911, reprinted 1936: 11 volumes, Index, and Supplement (Macmillan).
Frazer sets out to find the real origins of the mysterious King of the Wood, who lives and pursues his priestly duties in a sequestered religious sanctuary near Rome. The essential qualification for the job is that he be a runaway slave. He keeps the job for life but must eventually be replaced by another runaway slave who will murder him and reign in his stead, until, in due time, he in turn is overcome by the same fate. In order to do this investigation full justice Frazer launches into a complete history of magic and religious practice worldwide, taking eleven volumes and a supplement, and some of the most circuitous digressions in literary history, before he can reach his conclusions.

Just finished the FS Longitude. Delightful little book. Now on to The Dutch House by Ann Patchett.

Just started 'The Four Just Men' by Edgar Wallace from the Folio Locked-Room Mysteries set.

Reading The Rings of Saturn after seeing it mentioned here. A fascinating book , very hard to categorise but really enjoying it. Making me search for more of his works.

Two Years Eight Months & Twenty-Eight Nights by Salman Rushdie

Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

I just finished the Suntop edition of The Road and nearly done with The Great Plague from the FS and starting The Plague on audio by Albert Camus.

A cheerful fellow I am, I am.

Getting out and about (in my imagination) with Theroux’s The Great Railway Bazaar (FS 2013). Some great descriptions, rather spoiled when Theroux’s personality shows through.

Dr Wortle's School, Anthony Trollope, FS 1988.

Anna Karenina, FS edition.

One of the greatest books of all-time. Tolstoy rarely disappoints.

Finished reading Phantom of the Opera for family book club. Just in time to see the BBC COVID-19 broadcast. Happy to report that the odor from the FS edition is now completely gone.

The Coloured Lands by G. K. Chesterton

Memoirs From Beyond the Tomb recent FS edition.

Another reader of The Plague (non FS) by Albert Camus, here.
What a great and relevant book these days...

The Thornwillow Press Death on the Nile

Currently reading 'The ABC Murders' by Agatha Christie

Read FS Foucault’s Pendulum over a few weeks recently - after a difficult start I really enjoyed it, it actually had some wise things to say about those who like conspiracy theories at the end too. Lots of new words for me in the first chapter, would have made for a very daunting book if the whole book had been like that, but it wasn’t, though it continued to show me how much I didn’t know throughout.
Then read Brisingr (Eragon series) for some easy-reading fantasy/adventure enjoyment and have just started the FS Collectibles version of ‘Down and Out in Paris and London’. I‘m loving the ribbon marker, every hardcover should have them in my view!

I am currently 90% through reading my Letterpress copy of Henry V. Having spent more than a year tracking this one down, and since it's among my favourites, I'm deriving a particular pleasure from the experience.

One of my current confinement projects is reading 'A La Recherche du Temps Perdu'. I'd long wanted to read it, in the original Marcel rather than in translation, but had always been deterred by its vast length, knowing it would take me very many months to read it. Self-isolation finally afforded me the impetus to begin. I read significantly more slowly in French than in English, the more so when the syntax is as involved as that of Proust, whose prose reminds me of Henry James, so my progress is snail-like. However, I'm happy to say that Marcel, like Henry, is worth the time and effort, at least for the first of the seven volumes! Not only is his language sublime (even to someone who isn't a native francophone), but the content itself, the protagonist's memories, experiences and preoccupations are fascinating, intriguing, at times surprisingly funny. It's strangely addictive, like a feast of favourite foods served in a way I've not quite tasted before; certainly worth eating when hungry, albeit slowly in my case.

FS Moby Dick.

>376 cronshaw:

Have you come across Julian Barnes wonderful evocation of La Belle Epoque, The man in the red coat? It's done by following the lives of a handful of its luminaries, including the eponymous M. Pozzi, and young master Proust floats across the pages very occasionally. Well worth a go if you need some normal pace reading without leaving that Parisian world, and the hardback edition is a cut above normal trade standards.

The Magus, Easton Press

Memoirs from Beyond the Tomb - Chateaubriand FS 2016

The abridgement, right?

Cleopatra, by Stacy Schiff. FS edition

>378 affle: I haven't come across it but it looks as though it'd be right up my rue. I'll keep an eye out, thanks.

>380 DanielOC: I love that book, and am really pleased with the selection. I'm not a completist in personal memoirs, essays or letters, one must know that you have not seen all the author's work if only the published works.

I devoured Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury, FS edition.
Then enjoyed a fun reread of The Little Witch, by Otfried Preussler, which was excellent timing as Walpurgis Night is almost upon us.

Now reading Lieutenant Hornblower, by C.S. Forester, the 2nd of the Hornblower series, FS edition. Adventures on the high seas is a perfect choice on cloudy Sundays!

>385 Lady19thC: I really like Sam Weber’s illustrations to Fahrenheit 451, which complement the book for me.

Currently reading A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail, which would make a nice addition to the two Bill Bryson that FS have already published.

>381 LesMiserables: Yes, the FS is a an abridged translation by Robert Baldick first published by Knopf in 1961.

Just finished The Long Deep Grudge, and was pleasantly surprised at how well written it was for what could be a dry topic - the rise and fall of International Harvester and the US Labor movement. Worth the time.

Reached page 432 of Gulag Archipelago by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn - the 2005 FS version.

Feeling rather dumb as it never struck me before that this is an abridgement of the three volume original - given the FS book is still a hefty one, and the material is not exactly light-hearted, I probably felt an abridgement was welcome... now it seems a travesty!

The Iliad (FS 1975) - My renewed interest in the Trojan War was inspired by my recent reading of Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida due to be performed here in Seattle starting in March (cancelled, sigh). Instead, I ordered the Royal Shakespeare Company DVD of their 2018 performance which was absolutely fantastic not least because the production design was inspired by Mad Max !? It totally worked. I followed this up with a "modern take" - The Song of Achilles - which was very good, though I could do without the explicit stuffs.

I just got called out in a Zoom meeting by a co-worker who knows about my passion for literature when he asked: "Long time no see - what ancient book are you reading now?" Uh...you got me. According to the introduction this is considered to be about 800 BC.

Note that this edition is not in verse, which is a bonus for me. I have a short attention span to translated verse.

>390 BionicJim: Who did the translation for the 1975 edition?

EDIT: “ Translated by E.V. Rieu”. Just found the ‘all-books’ list on the group wiki. Very useful.

I finished Amsterdam, A History Of The World’s Most Liberal City by Russell Shorto. A very insightful and engaging book which I was able to finish on the third attempt.

And The City And The Stars by Arthur C. Clarke. My first read by him and was not disappointed. Science Fiction with a few good questions asked about the future of humanity. I will pick up in Rendezvous with Rama next, I have both in the Masters of SF Works paperback.

I just finished reading FS Moby-Dick. It was a fantastic read and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I'm planning on reading FS Voyage of the HMS Beagle and FS Chinese Fairy Tales & Fantasies next.

I'm all over the place ... 1/2 way thru EP's DLE of Dickens Oliver Twist ... also 1/2 way thru the third book in FS's Hitchhikers Guide series ... and 1/2 way thru FS's first book of Game of Thrones. and just started FS's Freud's Interpreting Dreams as well as EP's Dostoyevsky's The Brothers Karamazov ... Why '1/2 way' seems to be a running theme ... maybe I'm just not a 'finisher'

lol

And why I can't just be satisfied with just one at a time ... I assume ... I'm trying to finish as much as I can pre end of world :)

Gotta say ... this probably doesn't get verbalized often on these forums ... but I absolutely love libraryThing ... especially during these times.

To see so many people reading and exercising their brains is inspiring and fun. In these times when so many just sit and look at their phone/tablet/laptop/tv all day ... it's reassuring to know there are many people who still use their brains to do critical thinking/reading ... as well as allowing their brain to have to work a little bit to picture the imaginary worlds described in the beautiful books we are all reading.

Hope everyone is staying safe and healthy and enjoying their quiet time reading!

>394 thisGuy33:

Try logging your book completions in a spreadsheet. The desire to watch the count increase may overwhelm your desire to read everything all at once.

>395 treereader: ... I actually thought about starting to keep a small journal after completing a book. So next time I read thru them ... I can compare my notes/thoughts/impressions from the first read thru.

Wonder it this is something others have done and what some of their results were ... any surprise thoughts/feelings?

>396 thisGuy33:

This little Foilio Society journals they send out with orders from time to time might be a nice spot to record that much detail.

>394 thisGuy33: thisGuy33

Reading many books at a time has never worked for me. Too much context switching. At some point when I started reading War and Peace I focused on that book alone and found the experience totally immersive. From that point onwards I read no more than two books at a time and it has resulted in me completing all the books that I start reading. Also I found the experience so much better. I'm currently biased towards hefty books since I try to convince myself that when I'm through with the book the world will be at peace again. :-)

I just finished reading Heart of Darkness (in the most recent Folio edition). The edition itself was nice, but I found the novella a bit tedious. Marlow talks in prolix, half-complete, metaphor-laden sentences. This breathes a lot of life into the character, but made for a real slog when reading. I also found the pacing of the novel a bit uneven. Overall, it wasn't a terrible experience, but I wouldn't rank it among my all time favourites.

Next onto "A Journal of the Terror", with thanks to Mr. wcarter for the enablement.

I have just finished The Pre-Raphaelite Tragedy which is a curious group biography of the Pre-Raphaelites published in 1942, so dated, but enjoyably chatty and anecdotal.
I would say that you need pre-existing knowledge of the painters’ works, as although there are some colour reproductions provided in the FS edition, they are insufficient and not placed where required by the text. I thought that the black and white illustrations, mainly photos of the painters with friends and family, were useful.
I purchased in last summer’s sale and would recommend it if you are interested in this era.

>400 CarltonC: reading it in conjunction with the Abbeville Press's survey, which I picked up in the New Year Sale, was fun

>401 gmacaree:. Started The Five when reading this, and interesting to read about the same time period in London from privileged art-historical and social historical deprived backgrounds. Both “Polly” Nichols and William Morris attending the Bloody Sunday march to Trafalgar Square in November 1887.

I am well through the FS Stasiland: Stories From Behind the Berlin Wall and the tired phrase - it is hard to put down - pops up in my reaction. The book is anything but tired. The writer is like meeting a fine new friend for dinner. The photographs add to the personal approach about a distressful subject. This could be too difficult to get through with another author.

Finished Little Gods, which I thought was going to be 'Midnight's Children' for Tiananmen Square but wasn't quite - still quite good & very well done.

Now trying to get a baseball fix in Future Value and a taste of home in Thomas Hart Benton.

>403 Forthwith:

Thanks for sharing this.

The Triumph of the Cross by Fra Girolamo Savonarola

Just finished Count Belisarius (FS). I found it ok but not great. The story was interesting, but a lot of it was descriptions of battles with little insight into the main characters. Maybe I just wasn’t in the mood for this type of book.

Recently finished:
Young Man With a Horn, by Dorothy Baker - very good. I'm a fan of jazz music, so it resonated with me more than it might with others who are not.
The Celebrated Letters of John B. Keane - I said when I was halfway through it that it was wonderful. I have not changed my opinion - wonderful indeed.
What It Is Like to Go to War - Karl Marlantes - war is still a significant part of our world, so it is good to understand it. This book looks at war mostly from the soldier's perspective (the author fought in Vietnam as a member of the Marine Corps), but does go beyond that. Well worth reading.

Still working on:
The Life of Samuel Johnson, by James Boswell. Not a beach read, I must say. FS edition.

Just starting:
The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements, by Eric Hoffer. True Believers abound in this world, much like war as mentioned above.
The House of Government, by Yuri Slezkine. As if one thousand-page book wasn't enough - time to dive into another, before even finishing the first!

Just finished The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoevsky - remarkable book. Now starting: The Machine Stops and Other Stories (Abinger Edition) by E.M Forster, published by Andre Deutsch Ltd, 1997.

>409 dlphcoracl: ... what version of Brothers Karamazov did you read?

>409 dlphcoracl:

I'm glad you enjoyed it - definitely worthy of a top 100 nod, and perhaps much higher than that.

Fun parlor game: Which brother are you most like and WHY? ;)

Moby-Dick, again. Then I'll do some Li Po and Qin Guan to get me in the mood for Outlaws of the Marsh

Reading Ideas - A History by Peter Watson. I picked up all four volumes of this in an Oxfam shop while on a visit to the UK last year. I have finished 3 of these and now half way through the 4th. A very enjoyable and interesting read. Well written and not too scholarly.

>410 thisGuy33:

First, a bit of background. Several months ago I read Crime and Punishment, starting with the P&V translation. It read so poorly (important sections were simply not comprehensible) that I abandoned it about 1/3 through, switching to the Constance Garnett translation which proved to be far superior.

I did the opposite this time with The Brothers Karamazov. I began reading with the Constance Garnett translation but found it to be too "polite" and polished. About 1/3 of the way through the read I switched to the P&V translation which proved to be far superior for this particular book. Why? The modernization of the language away from Victorian English AND the ability of P&V to better convey the rhythms of each character's language gave me a much better feel for the intensity and the passions of the various characters. Their emotions, fears, uncertainties came through much better and clearer in P&V and there was no difference or advantage regarding the comprehensibility of either translation.

Bottom line: I am learning that one cannot have a strict adherence to one particular translator. Certain approaches will work for one novel and not work for another, even from the same author.

>411 EclecticIndulgence:

Which Karamazov brother was I most like? Unquestionably, Ivan. I am brutally logical, rational and science-based in my thinking and approach to life, almost to a fault. I instantly saw much of myself within Ivan.

>414 dlphcoracl: I'll have to try the P&V Karamazov. When I read the LEC version last year ('33, Garnett) it was such a slog that it took me months to finish, an experience I didn't have with Garnett's Crime and Punishment.

>414 dlphcoracl: I have all of the P&V Dostoevsky novels and prefer them to Constance Garnett, but have never really loved C&P in either translation. Recently acquired the new FS version with the McDuff translation, looking forward to trying it.

>416 gmacaree:

Precisely the experience i have had with these two novels and these two translations. What I have learned from this is that there is not a "one style fits all" translator. Going forward, before I attempt to read another very long and complex novel in translation, e.g., Les Miserables, War and Peace, Dante's Divine Comedy, etc., I will start by reading the first chapter in one translation, then read the 2nd chapter in the other (next) translation and determine which one appeals to me and enhances my reading experience. If necessary, I will repeat this for Chapters 3 and 4 until I arrive at a clear-cut preference and decision.

I think you will greatly enjoy a reread of The Brothers Karamazov in the P&V translation and fully appreciate its passion and nuances. Constance Garnett's elegant, smoothed-over English translation is totally wrong for this particular novel.

>417 RRCBS:

Very interesting. Thank you for passing along this info. Please tell me ASAP as you begin your read of The Idiot if you prefer it to either (or both) the Constance Garnett and P&V translations because this book is quite high on my TBR list and I hope to begin reading it very shortly.

>419 dlphcoracl: Sleep deprivation brain, sorry! I mean t C&P, will edit post!

>414 dlphcoracl: That is fascinating and had never occurred to me. Thanks for sharing your hard-won conclusions: if I’m feeling up to it I’ll tackle a large Dostoevsky novel (is there another kind?) sometime soon...

Thanks for the very interesting discussion on Dostoevsky. I read and enjoyed Brothers K and C&P many years ago, long enough that I don’t recall the translator(s). I then tried The Idiot but bogged down half way through. Perhaps I should try again with a different translation.

>411 EclecticIndulgence:
Alyosha, probably because of my faith.

Thoroughly enjoying Cleopatra" by Stacey Schiff. Vivid descriptions, fascinating characters and fabulous settings. Her description of Cleopatra and Julius Caesar journeying up the Nile is beautifully done.

Little book: No Longer at Ease by Chinua Achebe

The FS version of The Day of the Jackal. Really enjoying the book, and the FS presentation, so far.

I read A Journal of the Terror after Warwick Carter's Folio Archives post and enjoyed it very much. It's one of the most moving books I ever read.

Now I'm reading the Folio edition of Metamorphosis and Other Stories. Kafka can be a bit of a mixed bag and I was worried at first when reading his "Contemplation" because it was pretty much the incoherent ramblings of an obviously slightly insane individual. But "Metamorphosis" and "In the Penal Colony" are classic Kafka at his best. Will Self's introduction is probably the only piece of writing more incomprehensible than Kafka's.

>426 jsg1976: - That's one that I regret not buying when it was available.

The Vampyre and Other Macabre Tales Folio Society 2012.

The Wisdom of the Desert Fathers, by Thomas Merton.

>426 jsg1976: I just happen to be reading that very same book. Started out reading ‘Down and Out in Paris and London’ which is very good and the Signature Shakespeare Hamlet, but these have been temporarily put aside for the gripping ‘Day of the Jackal’ - first time for me...

>431 stopsurfing: that’s funny - I had also just finished some Shakespeare (the FS Anthony and Cleopatra (non-letterpress)) before starting The Day of the Jackal, which I tore through. Great story, and I really loved the illustrations and the way they were integrated into the book. I’ve got a copy of The Odessa File that was my grandfather’s back at my mother’s house, and now I’m very much looking forward to being able to retrieve and read it (once I can go safely visit my mother again).

Now on to The Ladies of a Grace Adieu and Other Stories, by Susanna Clarke

>432 jsg1976: Great story, and I really loved the illustrations and the way they were integrated into the book.

Yes, and the one-piece paper binding with the illustration works so well, just gorgeous!

Finishing up the Folio edition of "Beloved." Been on my TBR list for too long. Will need a change of pace when I'm done. Maybe another Pratchett (you all did this to me). I'm thinking "Guards, Guards."

>434 Redshirt: Guards! Guards! is an excellent choice, as the City Watch series are probably my favourite storyline, with Vimes developing as a character.

Currently reading The Story of a New Name, which would be a good money spinner for the FS, if they could get the rights.
Also Troy: Myth and Reality, having been to the British Museum exhibition earlier this year.

The Last Word by Auberon Waugh

De Profundis by Oscar Wilde

The Noise of Time by Julian Barnes. Thoroughly enjoying it. Have been reading Ronald Welch’s Carey novels, but took a break. Those are also very good, though obviously very different from Barnes.

The Great Escape, Folio edition

Ghost Stories and Other Horrid Tales - FS 1997

Just started Hornblower: The Commodore and also Naomi Oreskes - Merchants of Doubt.

Now that Folio is done with Hornblower, time for some Sharpe! With Bernard Cornwell contributing several Folio introductions (including the Hornblowers) my hopes have been raised.

I saw Naomi Oreskes in conversation with NicK Stern in one of yesterdays virtual sessions from the Hay Festival, and was so impressed I immediately downloaded Merchants of Doubt and The Collapse of Western Civilisation: the View from the Future.

Edited: typo

The Sorrow and the Beauty by Peter Englund.

An unusual and fascinating perspective on WW I that avoids the usual military analysis, political background, etc. Englund examines and traces the lives 20 ordinary people from a wide variety of backgrounds and countries, makes extensive use of their diaries and related material, and follows their paths and lives in the chronological order of the war as the events of WW I unfold. It is a unique look at the devastating effects of global warfare in the lives of people who were formerly civilians and how they are enmeshed and entrapped into it.

https://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/11/books/the-beauty-and-the-sorrow-by-peter-engl...

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/nov/11/beauty-sorrow-peter-englund-review

obviously not a folio, but I'm currently reading The Devil Rides Out by Dennis Wheatley

The Mirror and the Light, by Hilary Mantel

Because of the quarantine, I was able to rapidly go through Something Wicked This Way Comes, The Shining, The Exorcist, and Ghost Stories and Other Horrid Tales, all FS. Well, I was in a dark mood :) Now that the NASA launch is scheduled for next Wednesday, I am taking a (short) break from FS to read The Future of Humanity by Michio Kaku.

Charles Dickens by Pen and Pencil by Frederic G. Kitton (Sabin and Dexter, 1890).

>444 jsg1976:

I'm building up to The Mirror and the Light--just finished Wolf Hall and I'm now reading Bring Up the Bodies.

Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee

Re-reading (mostly re-reads, this year) A People's Tragedy

The Golem by Meyrink.

>450 kermaier:
Ah, I remember reading that during my first year at uni.

>441 HuxleyTheCat:

Agreed 100% re the Sharpe novels. I was just thinking yesterday that FS could produce beautiful editions to complement the Hornblower collection.

Back on topic, I’m reading the FS edition of Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow.

Got a few books on the go at the mo...

De profundis by Oscar Wilde
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
The Dominican Life by FD Joret OP
How I raised myself from failure to Success in Selling by Frank Bettger

What did you think of something Wicked This Way Comes? My friend suggested I read that book.

>454 tkearns: ... I would also like to hear some quick thoughts. I have read a lot of reviews ... so many mixed. Lot's of people say it's not Rays best writing ... 'lots of rambling' ... 'a slow/long read'.

As for the look of the book that FS produced ... i think visually it's very nice looking and was on the edge of picking it up multiple times. Kinda wish I had.

>453 LesMiserables:

Also Mere Christianity by CS Lewis on Audio.

>454 tkearns: >455 thisGuy33: I came to Something Wicked This Way Comes late, when I was 45, as I don’t like horror at all and my short review was “A dark novel with a bright ending. Such beautiful, perhaps overblown, language, it feels dated, but in an appropriate way that enhances the sense of another time, long ago, which is also familiar”. Bradbury stays in my mind for his imagination and language, not plot or characters, more a short story writer.

I prefer Dandelion Wine and The Martian Chronicles, just waiting for FS to do an edition of Dandelion Wine!

Currently reading Germany: Memories of a Nation, which I listened to the podcasts for in 2014 when the exhibition was at the British Museum.

I just finished Voyage of HMS Beagle. Taking a break with some light reading. Started FS edition of "Anne of Avonlea" and FS edition of "Earth: An Intimate History". Also having major "HMS Beagle" hangover. "“Finishing a good book is like leaving a good friend.” :-(

Just finished crime and punishment for the first time, as wonderful as everyone says. However, I do rather feel the authorities are now out to get me - I have a perfectly clear conscious your honour I swear!

As I lay dying - Faulkner (folio edition)

>460 Charon49:
I need to reread this one day.
I didn't like this at all.

Invitation to a beheading - Vladimir Nabokov

Vile Bodies. Not finding it great at all.

>441 HuxleyTheCat: I’ve been considering the three volume EP Sharpe set. Would you recommend the first three? I find often online reviews are not helpful and I appreciate feedback from this group. I guess I could wait for an FS set, but unsure.

On topic, I just started a reread of Julian Barnes’ The Sense of an Ending. Really enjoy his books, it’s my third for this year.

>463 adriano77: adriano77 why? is it the writing or the subject?

>465 bookish_elf:

I went in expecting it to be funny. It isn't really.

Just got done with Adam Bede by George Eliot.

Now reading The Odd Women by George Gissing. It's my first Gissing, so i am really hoping that it's good.

I wish Folio would have done some Gissing.

Agreed-I'd love some FS Gissing, too.

I loved it. It does build up slowly but if you stick with it, its as much a boy coming of age story as a horror story. It kind of leaves you thinking the whole thing might be a dream or a distorted memory of childhood told by someone much older remembering a childhood event.

Plain or Ringlets - Surtees FS 1953

>466 adriano77: adriano77: Thats sad. I have Black Mischief. I haven't read it yet. Lets see how that turns out.

>462 EdmundRodriguez: Marvelous book. Under appreciated, imo. Have you read Bend Sinister?

On topic: just finished EP edition of Madea, followed by EP edition of Russ’s The Female Man. Now reading FS edition of In Search of Schrödinger's Cat.

The narrative from different characters can become a bit chaotic and maybe a bit of style over substance but I’m hoping I will like it more once I’ve finished as this is my first read of it.

Perhaps i have too many on the go, but couldn't resist opening Evelyn Waugh: A Life Revisited by Philip Eade

Hide My Eyes by Margery Allingham. Well written, amusing, intermittently chilling, not unduly dated (1958), and a nice reference to Bunyan which I came across today, make this a very entertaining read, lounging as I am in my garden in the spring sunshine.

Once and Future King. Erudite and slightly absurdist. Thoroughly enjoying it.

Lord of the Flies at the moment (read it at school in the 90`s, and probably not alone). I also watched a couple of `Lost` episodes just for the sake of some passive relaxing and found out `hey, i just read that!`

>477 Pellias: ... i too (was supposed) to read LOTF :) ... in school in the late 80's. I'm currently awaiting my box of loot from FS which contains a copy of lord of the flies ... excited to read a book i was supposed to read so long ago!

Did you enjoy it the second go around?

I do enjoy it. It is not exiting because i more or less know the story already. First time in english though. As mentioned. It is in fact `Lost` before .. well, Lost .. I read it, and watched the 90`s film, so i remember the most vital parts. At school i remember we discussed the allegories in the book, like the burning tree. Therefore it is a book easily to be read more times (which is why it should be in any library). Also, it`s interesting to see how FS have `set` this edition (not to discuss it for those that have not read it, just mentioning it), color of choice, frontis, nothing is random as often is with Folio books.

It has been reprinted four times by FS, which about says it all

>479 Pellias: ... well now I am even more excited to read this! Didn't think there was anything rather 'special' about the FS version ... just looked like a nice version for a good price. But your comment of 'nothing is random as often is with Folio books' makes me more intrigued then i initially was.

Just finished A Journal of the Plague Year, which could have used a stronger editor (it jumps around and Defoe repeats himself continously). It's quite interesting given our current pandemic, but not something that I would say would crack many top 100 lists.

That being said, recommended in this time on the planet, for some great perspective.

Just started Rendezvous with Rama and enjoying it so far. The folio edition is much more impressive in person than on the website and feels great to hold with the full cloth binding.

I finished reading Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (in the LEC edition) and am now reading Kenilworth by Sir Walter Scott (also LEC). I'm enjoying Kenilworth a lot, it's kind of like Game of Thrones but without the distraction of fantasy elements and with the promise of concluding in finite time.

>483 ubiquitousuk: how did you find Leagues? I am torn between acquiring the LEC or waiting ( possibly for years!) to find a copy of the FS volume with its newer translation.

Starting Deacon King Kong by James McBride today.

Polybius again. I've absorbed a great deal of ancient history over the last five years so hopefully I'll be better able to keep my bearings this time.

Bend Sinister is on the list to read at some point this year. I enjoyed Invitation to a beheading.

I've just finished Memoirs From Beyond the Tomb FS edition. I took this one slow as I was trying to really savor it. This was by far my favorite book that I've read purchased from the FS. I bought it on a whim during the last sale knowing nothing about it and it has become one of my all time favorite books and one I would not want to be without.

Moving on and now just starting the Landmark Thucydides.

FS We

>489 kcshankd: how you liking 'We' so far? I wanted to pick that one up a while ago!

>490 thisGuy33:

I'm only just starting, but 1) it seems remarkable for 1920 and 2) I can now join the chorus that think Huxley must have based Brave New World off it.

I'm trying my first Icelandic Saga, from Vol I of the FS edition. I was told by a a native Icelander to start with 'Njal's Saga', which happens to be the longest saga, i believe. If anyone is also interested in reading it, would love to hear some opinions afterwards.

>484 RRCBS: I enjoyed it a lot! It's not the kind of story I was expecting (it was more of a string of connected mini-adventures than one long narrative arc), but has that spirit of adventure that the Victorians seemed to do best.

I was aware of the flaws in the translation, but it's one of those things where if you don't know what the alternative looks like then you never recognise that you're missing anything. Whatever its issues, the LEC's translation is eminently readable and has that 19th century flair. In the end, it will boil down to a personal assessment of what's more valuable: a god translation with some flaws in an exceptional package (LEC) versus a "merely good" production with a better translation (Folio). What I will say is that the LEC's rag paper is a dream come true and, in my opinion, worth the cost of admission on its own.

In case it's helpful, I have a video and blog post about the book:

https://youtu.be/Y0MplHDFoCw

https://ubiquitousbooks.wordpress.com/2020/05/17/twenty-thousand-leagues-under-t...

For those unaware, you can read about the translation issues we're talking about here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twenty_Thousand_Leagues_Under_the_Sea#English_tran...

I've today finished Boswell's Life of Samuel Johnson, FS edition, all 1,174 pages of it plus 18 pages of "Miscellaneous Anecdotes" in the appendix. I am glad to have read it; I will never read it again.

Needing something of a different nature, I'm beginning Isaac Asimov's Currents of Space. I'm also still working on The House of Government; I'm a good 200 pages into it, and find it excellent so far.

I'm also reading Francine Prose's short book Gluttony, part of the Seven Deadly Sins series published by the New York Public Library and the Oxford University Press. I have six of the seven books - I only lack Pride, which is an interesting thing to say.

I just finished rereading The Hobbit, a book I have not read since I was in the 7th grade. I got through it in two sittings, and I'm glad I read it again. I enjoyed the recent trilogy of movies a lot when they came out, but after reading the book again I'm left with a quiet awe at how badly they mangled the plot in order to force it to be in tone with LOTR. A Princess Bride reread is next!

>495 DubiouslyDarling:

Has anyone read the first edition facsimile Hobbit with the extra chapter? If so, does it provide any additional value in your eyes?

>496 EclecticIndulgence: I have not, and its the first I'm hearing of it. A quick research though let's me know that many revisions were made with the second edition to fit with LOTR, which I was not aware of until this moment. It would be fun to compare the two versions.

>495 DubiouslyDarling: ... every time I reread the princess bride ... it makes life whole again. Such an amazingly fun read ... never gets old!

I have a 1974 paperback of The Princess Bride with colored text. Does the Folio edition replicate this is or is it all black text?

>499 Chemren: I just skimmed my FS copy and the only color I saw was from the illustrations. What text was colored in your copy?
>498 thisGuy33: That's how I felt about first reading it, I only lament it does sour my enjoyment of the movie. I don't feel like they did Buttercup justice.

Going to start Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison, figuring now is a good time to read this book that has been sitting on my shelf for many years.

>500 DubiouslyDarling: The abridgment notes and grandfather parts are in red. The story read by the grandfather is in black. From what I gather, after those first printings, they switched to italics instead of colored text. I always liked the colored text and was hoping it would be reproduced in the Folio edition.

>496 EclecticIndulgence:

The first edition of The Hobbit does not have an extra chapter. However, some passages were altered or rewritten later, in the light of Tolkien's re-appraisal of the significance of the Ring as he was writing The Lord of the Rings. The most significant changes were made to chapter 5, Riddles in the Dark, where Bilbo first encounters Gollum and his Precious.

Casino Royale -folio society edition - which rattles along at a decent pace.

Also Ulysses - my third attempt. It's like Everest. Why am I reading it? Because it's there!

I recently finished Kindred by Octavia Butler and now I’m working on the first volume of the Farseer trilogy.

>505 Mr.Fox: what did you think of Kindred? I’ve just read quotes by octopus Butler, but she seems like an interesting author...