Two novels and a play...

Over the weekend I read a play, finished reading one novel, and finished listening to another; hence a three review blog entry.

The Woman Between the Worlds by F. Gwynplaine MacIntyre  has been in my collection since 1994 when someone recommended it.  When I was selecting books for January reading, it sounded like a good choice to read with Dodger by Terry Pratchett...from the front cover:  "On the foggy streets of Victorian London an invisible woman emerges...desperate to escape her own world...and embrace ours."

MacIntyre's novel was a nice follow up to Dodger as it is historical science fiction not too far removed from Pratchett's historical fantasy; however, he gets a lower rating on the historical aspects. Like Pratchett, MacIntyre places people from history in his book, but MacIntrye plays a bit fast and loose with his history.  I question scenes with Bram Stoker, G. Bernard Shaw, and William Yeats.  It is a great read; there is much humor, he mentions H.G. Wells, and it was reminiscent of The Time Machine.  The ending leaves itself open for a sequel, but searches did not show any other novels by MacIntyre.

MacIntyre, F. Gwynplaine. The Woman Between Worlds. New York: Dell Trade Paperback. 1994.



I listened to The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom on CD with excellent narration by Orlagh Cassidy and Bahni Turpin.  I choose books on CD from the local public library shelf. I rarely make a request but choose from what is on the shelf.  The description tells of an Irish girl orphaned while on board ship on her way to the United States.  The ship owner/captain keeps her as passage payment and places her in the kitchen as a slave working along with his Black slaves.  I was focusing on this description which promised a different twist for a slave narrative when I noticed the author was born in Canada.  I try to read works by Canadian writers, so that was the clincher for this book.

It was a good read; had I not been listening, I would call it a page turner.  I was very impressed until I got to the happy ending.  Sorry...a happy ending does not work for this scenario. Although the author's note telling of how the story line just came to her as she wrote is intriguing, a happy ending does not fit for this book; hence, I label it chick lit.  I also realized as I attempted to review this novel there are drawbacks when attempting to discuss something you have heard rather than read...more of that in a later blog entry.

Grissom, Kathleen. The Kitchen House. Blackstone Audio Inc. 2010.



Finally...the play Virginia by Edna O'Brien jumped off the shelf and demanded to be read.  It took less than two hours to read it, but I was luxuriating over every word.  Just three characters...Virginia Woolf, her husband Leonard, and her lover Vita Sackville-West.  I saw the premier production of this play, and for just under two hours, I was back at Stratford, Ontario in the Avon Theatre.  It was 1980.  Maggie Smith as Virgina, Nicholas Pennell as Leonard, and Patricia Conolly as Vita.

I was too young to truly appreciate what I was experiencing, but I have always remembered the magic of that experience.  While reading I was there again, seeing them on that stage, remembering the lighting..the costumes...hearing their voices, seeing them...young, vibrant, alive.

Years later I had the opportunity to interview Nicholas Pennell.  He told of meeting a friend of Leonard's while performing the role in London.  The man said he found the performance very moving because Pennell played the part so well.  Pennell regarded it as one of the highest complements ever paid to him.

I just googled and found a review from The Montreal Gazette dated June 12, 1980.  Maureen Peterson wrote, "It is difficult to know to whom belongs the greatest credit, but that is how it should be with a theatrical work of art.  Just as 'the artist is androgynous' so the work of art is indivisible, and this premier production is, in every sense, a work of art.  See it with a friend.  It is too fine not to share."  And that describes not only the production I saw but also encompasses the play itself.  O'Brien takes isolated moments in a life and unites them to create an understanding of the woman alive on the page.

O'Brien, Edna. Virginia. San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. 1985.

     

Blast From My Past

Finished reading New American Review 11, a paperback magazine published in 1971 and edited by Theodore Solotaroff.  Where do I begin?  Just holding the book was comfortable...the pages are thick and the binding has remained perfect.  There is no ISBN number; there is a much shorter "SBN" number.  And I loved this note printed on the copyright page: "The editors invite submissions.  Manuscripts will not be returned unless accompanied by stamped self-addressed envelope."  AH...the good old pre-computer days!  I've come a long way from using the Underhill Manual our family owned and shared with love for many years.

The cover has a "psychedelic" inspired design with the words "Movement writing" repeated three times.  Most of the pieces definitely reflected what I would term a "movement" of the time - mostly anti-war.  There are eight short stories, five essays, a section labeled "The Writer's Situation:  III" in which several writers were asked to respond to specific questions, and many poems.  I read the anthology cover-to-cover but will comment on the pieces that stood out for me.

• Allen Ginsberg had two poems reprinted, and "Sonora Desert Edge" written in 1969 is filled with imagery only Ginsberg could create:

               --green duck neck sheen spectral as
                           moon machines
               Raven hopping curious black beaked
               Coyote's nose sensitive lifted to air
                                blinking eye sharp
               as the rose bellied Cardinal's ivory whistle (11-12)

• More than one piece mentions Cambodia and the riots at Kent State.  The essay, "The Day We Named Our Child We Had Fish For Dinner" by Michael Rossman is one of these and also mentions Reagan's actions towards students while governor of California.  I had forgotten how he reacted as a general in charge of the troops...turning colleges and universities into military held encampments. 

The short story "Don't Talk to Me About War" by Frances Starr juxtaposes the image of war with the sometimes painful, usually impersonal treatment of the terminally ill.  In the middle of this visceral description one paragraph describes a dog hit by a car, "The SPCA took him away and put him to sleep" (51).  There is no end punctuation in this story emphasizing the image of no end in sight for the dying patient: "The patients pulse is failing  Digitalis is given to stimulate the heart" (51) and so the story ends.  The life, such as it is, goes on.  We are able to show mercy to an animal but not a loved one...nothing has changed.

• My favorite piece is a poem, "Earnest Remarks, Not Literature" by Allen Wiggins, which begins:

         
         There is no way to improperly begin
          there is no way to begin... (54)
and ends:
          there is no way to keep words from affirming
          there is no way to begin kissing words
          there is no way to keep the sentence from
               beginning to form a kiss for its last word.  (55)  

Each line begins "there is no way" while the poem offers haunting images of life and a frequent return to the kiss as a symbol of love?  appreciation?  I believe Wiggins is still living and am trying to locate an address as I'd like to send him a letter.  I will use this poem with my college students the next time I teach; it is too beautiful not to share.

• "Nixon" is an essay by Nicholas von Hoffman who was a columnist for the Washington Post.  He writes of how Nixon had no plan for the war or anything else; von Hoffman argues that Nixon spent eight years learning how to be President without realizing he would need plans.  It would be interesting to find some later post-Watergate articles on Nixon by this same journalist...I just may do that.

Finally, three authors are praised by several of the contributors to this issue: Borges, Beckett, and Eliot.  Three authors I enjoy; three authors I will be revisiting.  Some of the Writer's Situation pieces are worth mentioning; however, as this posting has become lengthy, I'll save that commentary for a week when I have not finished reading a book.

It has been a good experience to take a look at my past not through memories but through the eyes of my contemporaries at that time.

Solotaroff, Theodore. ed. New American Review 11. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1971.

Homage to Charles Dickens

Just finished reading Dodger by Terry Pratchett and enjoyed it immensely.  Pratchett creates a mystery worthy of Dickens that includes Dickens, Disraeli, and other actual historical figures in the story line.

In his "Author's acknowledgements, embarrassments, and excuses with, at no extra cost, some bits of vocabulary and usage," Pratchett explains that aside from Charles Dickens and Benjamin Disraeli, Henry Mayhew, and Angela Burdett-Coutts were also important members of English society at that time.  He dedicated the novel to Mayhew and recommends his London Labour and the London Poor as an important primary resource that is also very readable. Pratchett apologizes for the character of Sir Robert Peel having a part in the novel as historically he came a bit later.  The young character of Joseph Bazalgette would, after the time of this novel, do much to change the "the face, and more importantly the smell, of London" (251).  Pratchett explains:  "This is a historical fantasy--and certainly not a historical novel--simply for the fun of it, and also too, if possible, to get people interested in that era so wonderfully cataloged by Henry Mayhew and his fellows" (254).

Did he get me interested?  Truthfully, I already was; however, I will be on the lookout for Mayhew's book.  Having read other historical novels focusing on the impact of the London sewer system on the health of the people at that time, I am interested in reading historical non-fiction on the subject.

Is this great literature? No, but is it a wonderful historical fantasy? Yes! And I feel it is more than that...beyond honoring Henry Mayhew, I believe Terry Pratchett has honored Charles Dickens.

Pratchett, Terry. Dodger.  EPub Edition:  Harper Collins. 2012

Weekly Update

Reading and listening my way through two novels and an anthology is rewarding; I find time to put aside a book and think about it before continuing to read. I appreciate the opportunity to treasure each book a bit more.

Dodger by Terry Pratchett - Less than 100 pages to go.  In addition to Charles Dickens, the novel has added Benjamin Disraeli as a character involved in the mystery of the young woman, born of English parents, and married to a German prince.  Politics is involved.  I suspect this mystery female character will become an actual historical person.

New American Review 11 - More than halfway through this anthology.  A poem by Alex Wiggins moved me and am trying to locate the author.  I believe he is living in San Francisco.  Another short story sadly is still relevant today.  Currently I'm reading an essay on Samuel Beckett.  My final report on this "paperback magazine" will include titles and authors I found memorable.

The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom is a better story than I expected.  References to the fever epidemic of 1793 in Philadelphia have added another layer to the quality.  It is not the typical story of a southern plantation.  The two narrators add to the first person point of view.

I expect to finish reading/listening to the two novels this week and will post again.

Two Different Worlds...

Just a check in today...reading two books right now...Dodger by Terry Pratchett and the magazine/anthology New American Review 11.  This is an interesting balancing act between two worlds.

Pratchett's novel is engaging with Charles Dickens as a character in his role as newspaper reporter.  Dickens' London is seen through the eyes of Dodger, and I'm thinking a re-read of Oliver Twist would be a good follow up.  Less than 100 pages into the book right now and fascinated by the storyline but have no idea where it is going.  One major difference from a novel by Charles Dickens - this one is less than 300 pages.

New American Review 11 was published in 1971 and reflects life in the United States at that time.  It is interesting to be reading "first hand" accounts of my life's history.  An essay I read yesterday discussed Reagan's actions as governor of California; I had completely forgotten the military state of mind he was using to "control the riots." 

Ironically, I've been watching some of the old Hawaii-Five 0 episodes (first season) on Netflix.  Ignoring all the local bad actors, I find myself laughing at the dated attitudes, etc.  I also wonder what the writers were originally trying to do with the character of Steve McGarrett.  The first few episodes he'd say things like, "Honey, bring me a coffee." His secretary would respond, "Sure thing."  That stopped within the first few weeks.  And he had a guitar in his office in a couple of episodes...once it was on his desk, and he strummed it while pondering the case.  The soft side of Steve McGarrett disappeared pretty quickly; however, the treatment of his secretary was still the sexist attitude of the times.  But the young people are all "pig-hating" cool talking hippie-types.  Hilarious.

An Unfinished Woman by Lillian Hellman

There are many books on my shelves that I've purchased over the years and never read.  I blame this book acquisition habit on a childhood frustrated by the books I could not find on the public library shelves.  When I started earning my own money...I started buying books. 

I became interested in Lillian Hellman after seeing the film Pentimento based on another of her memoirs, and after reading the book I started watching for any books by Hellman.  This one dates back to 1974 when I was 20 years old.  The young woman I was then would have had quite a different reaction to An Unfinished Woman.  I imagine I would have made connections with various trips mentioned in this memoir that were also mentioned in Pentimento.  Her friendship with Dorothy Parker is discussed as well.  Reading it now had much more of an impact on this "Unfinished Woman."

Hellman was 62 when she published An Unfinished Woman, and I identified with some things she discussed. But it was this statement that made me put the book down for a few minutes:

So the years that are good for many women were not good for me.  I didn't know that I wanted anybody, didn't even think about it much, but there, suddenly, was the wrong man, of course as could be expected, as usual. (180)

 Not sure about the "as could be expected, as usual" part, but I do know that "the years that are good for many women were not good for me."  Knowing that Hellman lived a very different lifestyle, I find it interesting that I feel the same way.  Other ways in which I identify with Hellman, I prefer to keep private.  But her closing sentence...that I will share:

All I mean is that I left too much of me unfinished because I wasted too much time.  However.  (244)
 

Hellman, Lillian. An Unfinished Woman A Memoir.  New York: Bantam Books. 1974.

                                                                                                                                   

 

To Thine Own Self Be True Redux

So...I started a blog last year; yes, I started it.  2013 is the year I will give it life.

2012 marked a year of change for me; I retired from full time teaching and read fewer books than the previous year.  How is that possible?!  "To Thine Own Self Be True" has been reborn as a place to write about my reading.  It may expand into other areas of my life but will start with reading.

My goal for 2012 was to read 85 books; I read 73.  For 2013 I have decided on 75 books averaging out to six per month plus three.  If I manage to read more, that will be delightful!

Being active on BookCrossing and an occasional visitor to LibraryThing, I have used challenges from both websites to encourage my reading - more on that later...to get me started for the new year, I pulled 6 books from the shelf that have been in my collection since I moved into my home in 1994:

• An Unfinished Woman by Lillian Hellman
• The Woman Between the Worlds by F. Gwynplaine MacIntyre
• The Shipping News by E. Annie Proulx
• Picked-up Pieces by John Updike
• A Voice From the Attic by Robertson Davies
• New American Review 11 

And I decided to start my reading year with An Unfinished Woman because that is what I am - an unfinished woman.  This memoir received the National Book Award, and I know there was controversy over some parts of it.  After I finish reading it, I may research what was questioned or challenged; however, this is a book I bought when I was 20 after seeing the film Pentimento and reading the book, another memoir by Hellman.  38 years later...I'm finally reading it.  The passage of years has not dimmed my appreciation for the author and her craft of story telling.

Of the other five books the last three are collections of essays and a "paperback" magazine.  I wanted some books that could be read in "smaller bites" for those moments when I do not have time to savor a novel.  I am also listening to The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom.

And now I'll return to my reading with the intention to make entries at least once a week.