Read Merrily: August 2004

Friday, August 27, 2004

The Secret History.

During my last three years at school, and for my year at Drama School, i was part of quite an odd set of friends; 5 were boys and then there was me, all the boys were gay, i wasn't, they were a year ahead of me, we worked in the school theatre and ran a variety of out of school productions as well, operating as a completely independent unit at the local theatre. I enjoyed it very much, we had an identity i felt very happy with and two of them waited for a year for me and we went to Drama School together (that WAS a mistake.)

What i didn't know, for some of the time, and what was kept secret, was the interpersonal relations between us. Mostly, no one was "out" as being gay, i was hugely attached to one and occasionally i would get horribly used by him while he worked out his feelings. Another, who i adored platonically and still speak with occasionally, was madly in love with him in secret, the one i loved was madly in love with another (complete tart) who used anyone he felt like, another regularly slept with both of the first two, and occasionally the second but was madly in love with another person all together, while equally pretending to be straight and occasionally faking suicides. Oh yes, and another one, who apparently decided he was gay several years later, was always trying to get me to go out with him. We were such a remote set, given a weird status by the staff who trusted us with big budgets and the reputation of the school drama department, that they knew few other people. I had MY school friends of course, because i was at a different school, but they were pretty much insular. If i'm honest, it was probably this enormous melee of sexuality going on around me that rather took up my time and development at that time. Just as i finally removed myself from it, my friend was killed, and the rest as they say, is history.

I've no idea at all, whether lots of people have these strange friendships at those times, but its certainly the reason why this book spoke so strongly to me. Its about an odd combination of people, all studying greek at an American College, insular and misunderstood and the powerful mind games that go on between people who lead or follow naturally. Its about horror, breakdown and personalities that if you think about it, you could probably apply generally to groups of people you have known. Its about secrets and group politics, control, luck and bad luck. Its amazing.

It reminded me a lot of Rebecca in its darkness and helplessness, it reminded me of Catcher of the Rye in its tone and its "dissoluteness" and The Great Gatsby in its despair and ruin. It reminded me of my friends and myself because its about how peoples dreams come to nothing when events overtake them. Its not a depressing book although its a tale of life at its headiest and its worst and although its not a a life i have experienced, it spoke to me in a way little else ever has. It ended with a sequence so astonishingly like something that i once wrote, and which remains the first page of the novel i one day want to write, that i positively shook when i finished. I wish i had written it.

3:55 AM 0 comments

Saturday, August 14, 2004

Katherine.

This is one of the books from this venture that i feel really grateful to have found. Its completely my thing, real history written in "living history" form (to coin a phrase!) beautifully detailed and thoroughly believeable.

Its the story of Katherine, mistress of John of Gaunt, set in the feudal days of the 150 or so years before Henry VIII. The descriptions of life and courtly behaviour are as vivid as those in my favourite Philippa Gregory books and the historical period was completely new to me so i loved it. It certainly made me pull the Alison Weir Geneology off the shelf to read through the real life characters i was discovering and its definitely made me want to look back further into English History - so far i've not really gone further back that The Princes in the Tower. The historical setting extended to French and Spanish wars too which was fascinating as that is another bit of history that was surgically numbed for me during A Levels.

I've no idea whether Anya Setons other novels were historical ones but if they were then i shall be hunting for those too. Definitely one for my personal top 10 of the year.

2:20 PM 0 comments

Wednesday, August 04, 2004

Two legs good, lying down better - Animal Farm

Well, i've got to 40!!!! Nothing like employing the Stubbs method of reading a few quick short books to up the total a bit ;~) I've managed two since Sunday which has made me feel a bit more purposeful :~)

I enjoyed Animal Farm; i suppose it was mostly 1984 in a different format but thought provoking and weirdly believable even so. Sometimes i think that the time for that sort of "cynical expose" of government type is past because we all "know", but then i remember that my last NEB student had never heard of the Cold War or the Berlin Wall and think that perhaps we can forget as a culture far too quickly. Plus who is to say what is applicable now without us noticing it every day? I suppose as a home educator i hope i have a reasonable awareness of thinking beyond what i am told to think, but i don't have a high opinion of my political savvy really, so its worth reading cynicism from time to time to remind me.

Animal Farm was a book i never had to read at school. I wonder if you need to have seen a bit more of life to have a chance of appreciating it? Or if that was not true when i was at school when the Second World War and the Cold War were recent history, then is it true now. Those two things seem to have become "ancient history" very suddenly over the last 15 years. Perhaps because more of the veterans and more of the after effects have died or been removed. I don't know.

Good to have read anyway. Now its time for Katherine.

7:28 AM 0 comments

Sunday, August 01, 2004

Lol! That was like, really easy!!!!!!

Made it very speedily through The Princess Diaries - liked that a lot for a teen-lit type thing. The club you can join in the back is for 12-16 year olds but i was trying to remember when i first started reading "Sweet Valley High" type books (I had about 2 of them!) I'm sure i was younger that 12 - it was hardly explicit (talk of tongues once or twice but mainly nothing different to you might get in a later Harry Potter really.) Definitely one for the shelf in what is going to be a very girly household in a few years. There are several more in the series and i probably will read them - it was quite appealing giggliness really (plus i can just lend them to Poppy in my onward quest to corrupt someone elses daughter before my own!) - but i suppose i had better save them till later - maybe hospital books if i have to stay in a few days. Still i laughed outloud quite a few times really.

Had a bizarre conversation with my mum at the weekend who doesn't really recall ever buying me any new books to read or giving any thought to it- funny really given that i simply can't wait for the world of book sharing to open up between me and my girls. I do know that quite a few of my books (including the SVH ones!) came from a period when my dad edited a Book Review mag and parcels of books used to arrive every day. Happy days!

Going to read Animal Farm now and then Katherine i think. At least i will have broken 40 then. I can't believe its taken me over half the year to read 19 books (well from this list anyway) - shocking!!!! I usually read farm ore than that. But i suppose they have at least been "good" ones - i'm going to be hard pressed to do the 100, although i must admit i feel uninclined by Ulysses - why would anyone want to read graphic descriptions of someone pooping?

4:54 PM 0 comments

Accidentally bought some new books!

Nothing on my Big Read shelf really appealed, so while i was in town i was forced to get some new ones; fortunately there was a good 3 for 2 offer on so i don't have to feel too guilty. Plus at least two are nice a short and will get me up to 40!!!

I got

Katherine - Historical novel, so hopefully i will enjoy.
Animal Farm - 1984 was good so i ought to like.
Night Watch - never read any Terry Pratchett and it looks like its potentially an expensive hobby if i do like it! lol!
The Grapes of Wrath - i read Of Mice and men at school and had a childhood fave called The Red Pony that i did like. I think i bought that on holiday when it was the only book not in Dutch in the shop! We shall have to see with this one.
The Princess Diaries - started that while waiting for intolerably slow hairdresser; has made me laugh outloud twice already!
The Secret History - i'm feeling oddly curious about that one. Then i guess its back to the classics!!!!

5:57 AM 0 comments

Oh dear, that took a while!!!!

Finally made it through Great Expectations - I started to think my OWN great expectations might have arrived by the time i managed it! lol! Still in my defence i have read 4 other books and been away a lot during that time, and a lot of my time has been focused on kid activities really, so its mostly just got put aside.

I'm glad i made it. I found the first half hard going, mainly because those were the bits we actually did read at A Level and i suppose i felt a bit negative during that time. The middle of it started to get much better, in fact it was really quite funny at times, particularly the Pocket Family and the second half was a good yarn if not exactly gripping stuff.

I seem to remember that it was written as a serial for a paper and it had that feel but far from being just a story it did manage to be a worthwhile insight into a "fall from grace" type character study. I preferred the original ending to the "keep the punters happy" one - i almost cried. But given anything normal makes me cry then i guess the fact that i didn't actually cry means i wasn't completely taken by it.

I wouldn't read it again but i WOULD read more Dickens now and i do feel glad i have laid the "A Level Ghost" to rest.

1:53 AM 0 comments

An attempt to get through everything i haven't already read in the BBC Big Read Top 100 during this year (hmmmm... maybe a little longer than 2004 actually... didn't bargain on the pregnancy and baby!!!!!)

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