Monthly Archives: August 2007
Library sale!
If you’ve read Hobgoblin’s post today, you’ll have an idea what mine is going to be about. Yes, we went to another library sale. How could we not when it’s huge and just a few miles up the road? I … Continue reading
Mind as palimpsest
I’m on to De Quincey’s third essay in my collection, “Suspiria de Profundis,” or “Sighs From the Depths.” This is such a rich essay that I find myself wanting to write a blog post about many sections from it — … Continue reading
Filed under Books, Nonfiction
A little too much patriarchy
I’m reading Naguib Mahfouz’s novel Palace Walk right now and enjoying it greatly; it’s a long, rich, satisfying read, about a family in Cairo after World War I (although I had to look up the date, which I couldn’t figure … Continue reading
The Crimson Petal and the White
Michel Faber’s The Crimson Petal and the White was such an enjoyable book; it’s about 900 pages long, but it felt much shorter. The pages flew by. The excitement and speed doesn’t come from an incredibly complex plot; rather, it … Continue reading
Kind of a miserable day
Today was one of those days when nothing goes right. First of all, this morning as I made some tiny-but-apparently-very-significant movement with my shoulders, my upper back muscles seized up, and now I can’t move my head very well. I’ve … Continue reading
Filed under Life
On the Knocking At the Gate in Macbeth
I have now read the second De Quincey essay in my collection; it’s called “On the Knocking At the Gate in Macbeth,” and it tries to explain why De Quincey finds the knocking that takes place after Duncan’s murder so … Continue reading
Filed under Books, Nonfiction
Book sale!
Awhile back I made the mistake of signing up to work during the first shift of my library’s book sale. I discovered today why it was a mistake — I had to keep busy straightening books and answering questions (or … Continue reading
A few random things
I have a few short things to write about this Friday evening. The first is this article about Percy Shelley from The New Yorker; it’s about a new book called Being Shelley by Ann Wroe. According to the article: Wroe … Continue reading
Confessions of an English Opium-Eater
I have just finished the title essay from a collection of Thomas De Quincey’s work, Confessions of an English Opium-Eater; the book has three longish-essays (the title one was 80 pages) and one short one. I’m planning on reading them … Continue reading
Filed under Books, Nonfiction
Muttboy
If you follow Hobgoblin’s blog, you’ll know that our dog Muttboy had surgery today to have a tumor removed from the skin of his chest. Well, he’s still at the vet’s office, but we’ve learned that he came through it … Continue reading
Filed under Life
On finishing Proust’s In Search of Lost Time
I want to write just a few words about finishing Proust’s In Search of Lost Time; I don’t feel up to writing a big long summing-up post that tries to say smart things about what it all means, but I … Continue reading
The perils of cycling
I’m used to bugs hitting and bouncing off my cycling jersey as I ride, and when that happens I’m just grateful they didn’t land on my face or — worse — in my mouth. I’ve gotten stung in the mouth … Continue reading
Filed under Cycling
On finishing Don Quixote
Most of this post will be about the second half of Don Quixote and the ending, so if you don’t want to hear about it, you might want to save this post for later. I loved the way the second … Continue reading
Becoming Jane
I have just returned from seeing Becoming Jane, and I’m glad I saw it because I was curious and also, mainly, because I wanted to have an opinion on it — so here it is: the movie is ridiculous. It’s … Continue reading
Filed under Movies
Accent
What American accent do you have? (Best version so far)Northern You have a Northern accent. That could either be the Chicago/Detroit/Cleveland/Buffalo accent (easily recognizable) or the Western New England accent that news networks go for. Click Here to Take This … Continue reading
Filed under Links
Finished!
I finished Don Quixote yesterday, and today I completed In Search of Lost Time. Woo-hoo! This opened up so much free time today that I ended up filling it by mopping my kitchen floor. This is quite a rare occurrence, … Continue reading
Second person?
I am enjoying Michel Faber’s The Crimson Petal and the White very much — thanks to all of you who recommended it! It’s quite long, 900 pages, but the pages fly by. Long books that fly by are their own … Continue reading
Outmoded authors
I have tried to stay away from reading challenges because, although I like the idea in principle, in practice I find myself not doing all the reading, pushing myself to do the reading, and then getting annoyed with myself when … Continue reading
Marriage, by Susan Ferrier
Susan Ferrier’s novel Marriage, published in 1818, is a good read and interesting in a number of ways, one of which is its Scottishness. Ferrier lived her whole life in Edinburgh, and her novel deals with the ideas Scottish and … Continue reading
