Christmas reading

[altariel]

My Christmas reading seemed to consist chiefly of books about people going or being mad. I finally got to the end of The Golden Notebook, which seems to have taken YEARS to finish – not that I wasn’t enjoying it, just that the end never seemed to get any closer, in the manner of radioactive half-life or something. With eighty pages to go and departure from the house for Christmas imminent, I resorted to slicing the book down the spine to take the unread portion, rather than drag 500+ pages of read novel with me.

Lessing dispatched, I read Poppy Shakespeare, by Clare Allan, on loan from someone in my writing group. It explores the relationship between N., a long term patient at a mental institution and new arrival Poppy, who insists she is sane. A fast read, but very well done, particularly the form Poppy has to fill in to claim her MAD money. Extract and review.

Next up was one of my Christmas presents, Wish Her Safe at Home by Stephen Benatar, a curious and frankly disturbing first person account of a woman who inherits her aunt’s house in Bristol, moves into it from London, and promptly goes crackers. It was first published in 1982, and has just come back into print: apparently the author has been doing a great job promoting it in bookshops throughout the south-east (and in fact this is how it was sold to the friend who bought it me for Christmas). Fascinating introduction from John Carey about how he regrets not making the case for it as a Booker judge that year. Short review (which does Persephone Books a slight disservice, since they do reprint books written by men, if the subject matter matches their criteria).

When I got back home I reread Ballet Shoes, to see how much of the plot I had forgotten while watching the new TV adaptation, which turned out to be not much. I thoroughly enjoyed the adaptation – particularly Victoria Wood, Richard Griffiths, and Harriet Walter. (The Somerville romance between Doctor Jakes and Doctor Smith was discussed: "Is that true?" my viewing companion asked doubtfully. "It is now," I said.) Yasmin Paige was smashing as Petrova, and Emma Watson was not disastrous cast against type as talented young actress Pauline. (Miaow!) Poor Mrs Simpson, though, sacrificed to give Marc Warren Grief and therefore Character.

Now I am reading the pile of Phryne Fisher novels that I bought with my Amazon vouchers. This current one has anarchists in it. Anarchists! I hope they turn out to be good; they’re getting a bad press in the narrative at the moment from Bert and Cec.

I have David Thomson’s The People of the Sea part-read. A collection of Gaelic folk tales about seals (or, rather, his journeys collecting them), it is far too poetic not to take my time over it rather than crashing through. I have Germs, Guns, and Steel and Collapse by Jared Diamond out of the library, but frankly I’m wondering whether life is not too short.

Comments

[the-wild-iris.livejournal.com]

I resorted to slicing the book down the spine

I think I need a lie-down now.

[sensiblecat.livejournal.com]

I've read People of the Sea. Canongate publish some relatively unknown little gems. Have you ever tried any Margaret Elphinstone?

I think Collapse is a very good read. Much of it is quite narrative in feel. GG&S I confess I've never tackled.

And Ballet Shoes? Delightful, and so very in period. I'm glad they didn't try to update it. It wouldn't have worked.

[white_hart]

Yes, I was rather distressed at the cold-blooded killing off of Mrs Simpson. I thought they'd done it to give Sylvia a shot at Romance, because how can there be a happy ending if there are still single women around (apart from Nana, obviously)?

[gair.livejournal.com]

Hoorah for the lesbian doctors! (I was chiefly chuffed when I got my PhD because now gerald and I ARE the lesbian doctors out of Ballet Shoes). They are as true in the book as they are in the film, tell Mr: I too have just finished my re-read and they are pretty couply (they go on holiday together as a matter of course, when one of them is sick they both go away for her convalescence); also, the splendid butch monocle of joy appears to be canonical (at least in my illustrations).

We both hated the adaptation with the kind of fiery indignation we would usually reserve for JKR, though.

Ooh, and guess what I am reading? BUJOLD. She is UNBELIEVABLY BRILLIANT, I am profoundly in love with Miles (who is exactly like Blake, I am surprised it is not commented on more often), and I blame both you and gerald heartily for not making me read them sooner.

[narie.livejournal.com]

It's rather fitting that you should slice a Lessing book up, as in her Nobel acceptance speech she talks about doing just that.

[jhall1.livejournal.com]

I was wondering when someone would mention "Ballet Shoes". I have never read the book, but I greatly enjoyed the TV adaption.

[toft-froggy.livejournal.com]

I resorted to slicing the book down the spine to take the unread portion

*winces*. I see the necessity, but I get a truly physical reaction at the idea of the mutilation of books, which doesn't make sense really, because it's not like there aren't plenty more, but I will certainly never forgive my stepmother for cutting up Lord of the Rings on a hiking holiday and discarding bits as she went. I mean, what if you wanted to READ A BIT AGAIN!? *shudders*

I just started The Blue Hawk, and it is as great as I remember! And I'm totally going to look out some Phryne books, because they sound completely great. Anarchists!

[katlinel.livejournal.com]

Yay for your Christmas reading. It sounds good. I wonder if Benatar also gets his friends to stealth promote? He could get them to cover up copies of Dan Brown books with his book.

I have to start reading The Golden Notebook and get it done by Monday week, which is a bit of a problem as after my Jane Austen re-reads over Christmas, I am now on Streatfeild re-reads.

Despite reservations due to reading RT article in which producer/director of Ballet Shoes said they'd chucked in the romance so that adults would also be entertained watching it so it really was a programme for all the family (*sighs deeply*), I did enjoy it, and could even see why they'd made some of the changes, particularly in Petrova (I thought she was a lot more extroverted on screen). Poor Mrs Simpson, though, who made lots of nice food for Petrova to eat when she was recovering from influenza, to be subject to Women in Refrigerator syndrome. However, Sylvia and Mr were very sweet. I adored Victoria Wood as Nana and the two doctors were superb. I wished we'd had more of them on screen.

[avon7.livejournal.com]

Sylvia and Mr Simpson? Okay that goes on the long list of adaptions I'm never going to read. It is actually possible to be single and survive. Thre are very few books I can bear to see adapted, probably none if they, like Ballet Shoes, are books I've reread to the point of memorisation.

Phryne - I've just discovered her. I find her rather Mary-Sueish but they are quick easy fun reads.

[kerravonsen]

(is horrified at the cutting up of books)