The Project Gutenberg Project

Review: THE GREAT GATSBY - F. Scott Fitzgerald

noreply@blogger.com (lemonhead1) — Tue, 21 May 2013 15:17:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1925 Genre: American, classic Topics: Jazz Age, between the wars

Review by : Liz Inskip-Paulk (www.ravingreader.wordpress.com)

With all the recent hoopla about the recently released movie adaptation of “The Great Gatsby” and with the recommendation of a trusted fellow reader, I decided to pick up a copy of the book and see how it read. The last time I had poked my head into it was during the rush and crush of grad school, and as that was such a rushed read, I don’t think I got a real appreciation of it. So read it again this week (and then immediately read it one more time to enjoy the writing and imagery at a much more leisurely pace).

Wow. What a difference a few years makes. This more recent reading was a completely different experience for me and I realized that I had not the same appreciation before due to the speed of grad school reading requirements or because I am much more experienced in the world of books now. (Perhaps it’s both.)

This is one of the few books that I immediately picked up and read again once I had finished it. I wanted to read it a second time to notice all the recurring imagery that Fitzgerald had put in there, and also, having read a brief biography of Fitzgerald and Zelda (both troubled in their own ways), it’s clearly much more autobiographical than I had realized before.

I’m not going to go over the plot – there are other resources for that and besides, I’d like people to read the original text to get their own ideas. This is fabulously written and seems to perfectly capture the rich idle ennui of the wealthy young in the Jazz Age (a phrase, incidentally, that Fitzgerald is credited with originating). The characters in this story drink to get drunk, they chat with people they don’t know about things they don’t care about, and all this in an atmosphere of excess – money, time, drink…

Fitzgerald and wife Zelda spent some time as expats in Paris at the same time as Hemingway and those guys, and although Fitzgerald and Hemingway were good friends, Hemingway rather sneered at Fitzgerald’s “selling out” and writing commercial stories to pay the bills. (Oh, how superior you must be, Ernie.) They both had alcohol problems and marital challenges, and obviously influenced each other in how they wrote – very spare sentences (despite the excessive and overloaded world Fitzgerald portrays).

Gatsby’s world seems to have been bought on every level – one evening, the “premature moon, produced like the supper, no doubt, out of a caterer’s basket…” Everything can be bought, everything can be sold.

Written in 1925, it predated the Depression years and reflects the over-consumption and deep feeling of detachment and isolation felt by some people at that time. Fitzgerald’s characters have a sense of despair unspoken and Gatsby is frequently portrayed removed from all his guests by him not drinking, by the shallow chatter, and by the fact that most of his guests don’t even know the host.

Fitzgerald writes that Gatsby not only dispenses generous hospitality to people, but also “dispensed starlight to casual moths”. Light plays a huge role in this book – just think of the green light at the end of the dock – as does color (especially colors linked with the sun: yellow, gold, orange… Once you see this, you tend to recognize it more than otherwise. At least, I did.)

It’s a love story (of so many things) on some levels, but it’s not one that the typical person would want to replicate – it’s unrequited (or is it?), it’s complicated, it’s delayed by five years and a marriage to the wrong person (Daisy to Tom). And throughout the story, I would argue that there’s a light veiled theme of same-sex attraction between various combinations of characters (mainly male). Gatsby wants to go back to the past when he first met Daisy five years ago, although it’s not possible (and not healthy) to do so. And the “five years” pattern repeats itself quite a few times: Gatsby and his rich friend Dan Cody were together on the nautical adventure for five years, it’s been five years since Gatsby has last seen Daisy, and he’s been living on West Egg for five years… Fitzgerald is not known for his “sticking to the facts” (was “not scrupulous about real details” is how scholar Dr. Matthew Bruccoli* put it) and “was incapable of factual meticulousness” (i.e. he says that Nick Carraway was from the Mid-West: San Francisco! – but details schmetails.) So – was the five-year period there for a reason?

“Can’t repeat the past?... Why of course you can!” (Jay Gatsby)

This is really one of the best books that I have read this year, and I can’t believe that I didn’t really appreciate (or even like) this book on earlier readings. If this was a title forced on you in your younger educational days, I urge you to take another look at it. With the experience of years, it can be a completely different experience to read it again and I have loved reading it this time around.

Now I’m not sure about going to the movie – I can’t believe that it would do justice to such a rich storyline and characters. Highly recommended.

· I am sure this guy has never received any guff about his last name. Nope. Never.

Download The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald at Project Gutenberg.

Review: BURIED ALIVE: A TALE OF THESE DAYS – Arnold Bennett

noreply@blogger.com (lemonhead1) — Thu, 16 May 2013 14:29:00 +0000

Original Publication Date:1908
Genre: classic, satire Topics: mistaken identity, farce, art

Review by: Liz Inskip-Paulk (www.ravingreader.wordpress.com)

It's been a long while since I have leisurely browsed the library shelves, and so I happened to wander over to the B section just to see what was there on offer. I came across a few copies of Arnold Bennett's writing, and since I really enjoyed "The Wives' Tale" a while back, I saw this one and checked it out. It was an older book edition, it had yellowing pages and the font was perfect so if it ended up being a good story to boot, then it was win-win-win :-).

Bennett was a prolific writer and wrote everything from novels to self-help so there is a lot to choose from (on-line). The pickings at our library were slim, but not everyone is quite the fan of writers such as Bennett and I get that. I was not familiar with this title, but felt comfortable checking it out after reading the jacket, and so I settled down one rare rainy Saturday last weekend for a good read. It was pretty much a “perfect read for a perfect time” type of situation which ended up being…perfect! Ha.

Written as satire, Buried Alive is a shortish novel that focuses on Priam Farll, a world famous painter who is very shy and happiest out of the limelight. When Henry Leek, the painter’s valet, dies unexpectedly, Priam seizes the opportunity to change identities with his unknown (and now dead) assistant and retreat to a much valued quiet life. At first, it was just an impulsive lark to do so, but as time continues and events start to get more complicated, the story picks up speed.

World-famous as painter Priam Farll is, his face is not well known due to his reclusive life (although this lifestyle was becoming hard to maintain as more and more people wanted to meet him and his social requirements picked up). As he becomes more famous, more was expected of him, and so when Henry Leek, the butler dies in bed one day, it’s a decision of a moment for Priam to assume his identity (and his quieter life) – and thus Priam’s life changes for ever.

This is a quick read and a light-hearted novel focusing on the old standby of mistaken identity, dead bodies and turnkey moments in someone’s life. And yet, trite as that may sound, this was also a great read – it’s not a demanding narrative, but if you’re just looking for a solidly good read that’s hard to put down, then you’ll be happy with Buried Alive. It’s not deep; it’s not provocative; it’s not packed with lots of big words, but it is an enjoyable way to spend some time.

Download Buried Alive by Arnold Bennett at Project Gutenberg|

Review: THE THIRTY-NINE STEPS, by J. Buchan

noreply@blogger.com (Patty) — Mon, 13 May 2013 06:00:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1915

Genre: adventure, suspense

Topics: war, espionage, duty, man on the run

Review by : Patty @ A Tale of Three Cities

John Buchan is a well-known Scottish author who wrote The Thirty-nine Steps while recuperating from an illness. The title of the book came from a flight of 39 steps found in this nursing home...

It is considered one of the first "shockers" - combining personal and political drama -, but I actually watched Hitchcock's film adaptation by the same name first: though not one of his best and memorable, it was adventurous enough to let 1.5 hours pass by. As I came across the book, though, I wanted to see whether the plot there would be "flat" compared to the film, or whether it would be just as thrilling?

The novel describes the "man on the run", which would later become something of a standard in films noirs. We always identify with him and follow his adventures, and rejoice in his redemption in the end...

I said I liked Hitchcock's version, but next to the actual book, it simply pales in comparison: the book starts with a general overview of the political climate at the time - Europe is on the verge of war and various political alliances form and threaten others. It was very interesting to see (this is 1915) how well aware Buchan was of the little intrigues that were formed and how the would contribute to the deterioration of society, and I could even detect some early comments against the Jews that I could well imagine continued, increased and contributed to another war as well...

But this is just the setting of the story. Already from the beginning the plot does not resemble at all the film, and I find I like the book more: we get to know a little about Hannay first and become aware of his weaknesses and we understand better all that will ensue. The initial meeting with the victim that will trigger the rest of the plot is in the building where Hannay lives (it's a neighbour), and not in a theatre with a total stranger. All is more believable in the book, and more focused on the details that will explain the steps to follow.

I continue reading and I start getting upset with Hitchcock. He has managed to distort the plot in every possible manner. And while I understand that in a black & white film one cannot see much of nature, Buchan's novel is full of beautiful descriptions of the Scottish landscape that provide the background elements for the chase, the capture, the escape and all other action scenes with Hanney.

This is a story of a bored man (well-off, naturally and recently back from Rhodesia) who seizes the opportunity to do something for his country and thus come to realise the greatest interest one can have: the good of society in general. The United Kingdom's military secrets are in danger of being communicated to the enemies and that can have disastrous consequences with regard to its role and position in an eventual war. Given the time this novel is written, this was a well-received message for those directly involved with the war: we need to go beyond our petty, individual interests and see how and where we can help for the general good.

Of course, throughout all of his adventures, Hannay always emerges the winner: I would not have expected anything else, and although I did miss some negative spots in the story, I understand the need for such a hero. He never questions his involvement, he actually does more than his fair share, and in the end it will be him to confront the conspirators. The UK thus enters the 1st World War, with its military secrets intact and Hannay will enlist as a captain.

Despite dealing with war issues (not my favourity subject), I really enjoyed this book - especially after watching the movie adaptation and appreciating Buchan's penmanship. But also because of the humanity that can be found in all of us (Hannay encounters some beautiful people along the way), and the lack of the necessary love interest that had to be present in the movie - the novel wins!

Download The Thirty-nine Steps by J. Buchan at Project Gutenberg|Librivox|

Review: A DOLL'S HOUSE - Henrik Ibsen

noreply@blogger.com (lemonhead1) — Thu, 02 May 2013 18:06:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1879. Genre: Play. Topics: Women's rights, gender roles, Scandinavia, Victorian

Review by : Liz Inskip-Paulk (http://ravingreader.wordpress.com/)

Since we went to see some local community theater here in town the other day, I thought it might be fun to read another play (especially since my last reading of a play on-line was rather strange.) So – I dug up “The Doll’s House” by Norwegian Henrik Ibsen and published in the later nineteenth century.

I hadn’t really realized (or perhaps noticed), but reading a play forces the reader to add most of the details of what is happening in your head. There is solid dialogue to go on, naturally, but the background details – the rooms, the house, the characteristics of each person in the narrative – are vague so it’s rather like reading a blank slate. When I think about it, I suppose that same argument would hold for reading a novel, but it still seems that reading a play is a different and more imaginative experience.

And I don’t say this in a judging way at all – there are great plays as well as great books – but just a different experience to go through. Perhaps I hadn’t really paid attention to this as I don’t have a great deal of reading of plays as background. It was just interesting to note.

Back to the play itself: It’s the story of a middle class family and the wife who has a large unwieldy secret that she needs to keep secret from her controlling husband. (He was one of the more annoying characters that I have come across in a long time. Sorry, Torvald husband guy. You were.) As the play progresses and the audience/reader learns more about the reasons and motivation behind this big secret, Ibsen keeps you guessing what will happen until the Third Act when the beans are spilled. It’s a well written critique of women’s roles in the Victorian time in Norway and elsewhere, and this is really what the play is famous for, I believe. Ibsen’s lead female character, Nora, realizes that the only way that she will ever blossom and become who she wishes to be is to leave. Her awful husband, Torvald, is so controlling (and will always be) that she can not see an end – an epiphany that only arrives at the same time as the secret is revealed. (Trying not to give the game away here.)

I think this would be one of the earliest feminist plays, although Ibsen himself argued that he was not really writing about women’s suffrage (on various levels) when he penned this work, but more that he was writing a “description of humanity” and the importance of learning about the world and yourself freely. It’s obvious that this is a message that strikes with many people as this is one of the most performed plays in history. It’s a quiet play – no loud drama etc. – but it packs a punch in its understated way. I’d love to see this performed somewhere live.

After the slight disaster of my reading of Chekhov’s play (see here), this was a really good read and it was a surprise to me to read about women’s rights in this context. The wife compares her marriage as the husband treating her like a very silly doll, only concerned with looking pretty and raising her children (also ”silly” people in the eyes of moron husband). So she feels that she lives in a “Doll’s House” and thus the title of the work. Her only hope is to leave and to learn things for herself.

This was much better than I had thought it was going to be so I recommend it. (And definitely go to see the play if it’s available as I think would be really good to see.)

Download A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen at Project Gutenberg|Librivox|

Review: ROAST BEEF, MEDIUM by Edna Ferber

noreply@blogger.com (Patty) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 06:00:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1913

Genre: fiction, adventure

Topics: women, feminist, single mother, independence

Review by : Patty @ A Tale of Three Cities

Roast Beef, Medium by Edna Ferber is simply a great read: the compelling adventures of an independent woman, out to earn the respect she deserves, single-handedly winning over her male colleagues, while raising her son on her own. Simple, little story? Absolutely not - this is 1913...

While this book could well make the case for being a feminist one, I did not feel this: there is still a fine line between emerging feminist thoughts and nostalgia for the traditional roles in society expressed by Emma McChesney, our heroine. I would just say it's a novel way ahead of its time: Her "adventures" could well have taken place in modern times, which made me wonder: if these descriptions apply today and the problems are still in existence today, what was the situation back in 1913? How could Emma, any Emma, survive, when even today women can still fail facing such challenges?

I liked that the book is split in chapters focusing on a type of adventure. I believe it gets us to know all facets of Emma's life, from the purely professional to the purely personal and all in between.

Emma has been now working for 10 years as a salesperson (to be politically correct) at a firm selling petticoats. She married young, divorced not too long afterwards and has been left on her own ever since to struggle for herself and her son, Jock.

We follow her as she makes her way across the country (in those days, there was no wireless communication, so everything was carried out on a person-to-person basis...). Emma has done it all, seen it all - that's why she sticks with a roast beef, medium: once you have witnessed all of life's ups and downs, you get to appreciate life's staples, the standard values that, though unexciting, will serve you very well and provide a much-needed cushion from the world's troubles.

"it's all very well to trifle with the little side-dishes at first, but there comes a time when you've got to quit fooling with the minced chicken, and the imitation lamb chops of this world, and settle down to plain, everyday, roast beef, medium. That other stuff may tickle your palate for a while, but sooner or later it will turn on you, and ruin your moral digestion"

The simile is spot-on and I really appreciated the simplicity with which Ferber can make her point. How many times have I declined the flavour of the month in whichever domain, because I know I can rely to the tried-and-tested values that will remain true for the future?

Emma has to deal with her male competitors, who do not expect her to last long (funny, given she outwits them all...). She has a "mentor" in her boss, who is the first to see through her and realise the potential she has. From then, everyone else is an obstacle Emma can surely tackle, over and over again:

"now, a man would -""But I'm not a man", interrupted Emma McChesney. "I'm only doing a man's work and earning a man's salary and demanding to be treated with as much consideration as you'd show a man"

And yes, we're still in 1913, however much this could be said in 2013 as well (the realisation that the novel is 100 years old just hit me - not much progress in this respect, eh?)

There is a favourable disposition vis-a-vis Emma. However much she's shown to struggle through life's adventures, she always manages to save the day and her composure:

Long practice had made her perfect in the art.

Her only weakness is her son, but this is a tough love - she's not scared to let him know what the truth is:

Your mother is a working woman, Jock. You don't like that idea, do yo? But you don't mind spending the money that the working woman provides you with, do you?

And, of course, among everything else, there is always a suspicion of a love interest... Be it her fellow salespersons who want to just have a good time during their visits to all these remote towns, to her new boss, who could have honest intentions (the ending is not revealed, so the jury's out on this!). But, Ferber is very good at keeping our interest alive throughout the pages: she know she has a lonely heroine and she knows we want her to find someone, and at every chance she gets, she just loves to play with this idea:

"Great, ain't it?" said a voice in the darkness. (Nay, reader. A woman's voice)

Emma will rise up the corporate ladder and ensure the company's future by innovative products - a relatively believable ending, not too exciting but remarkable nevertheless. This book was a very nice discovery, truly recommended for an insight into the makings of independent women...

Download Roast Beef, medium by Edna Ferber at Project Gutenberg|Librivox|Girlebooks

Review: CHRISTINE by Alice Cholmondeley (pseudonym of Elizabeth von Arnim)

noreply@blogger.com (Iris on Books) — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 08:13:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1917

Genre: Epistolary Novel, Propaganda

Topics: World War I, Germany, Propaganda, Love

Review by Iris on Books:

Christine claims to be a collection of letters written by Christine Cholmondeley to her mother Alice during her stay in Germany in 1914, just before the war began. Christine stays in Berlin and its surroundings to train with renowned violin teacher Kloster, as she is a promising talent. Her letters portray her difficult entry into German society, provide a commentary on German people, and feature her personal dealings with a number of people including Kloster and her eventual love interest Bernd.

However, as the title of my post signals, these were not letters written by Christine to her mother, but instead a fictionalised account written by Elizabeth von Arnim, who made Christine and her mother up. I love Elizabeth von Arnim, and I have had all of the public domain titles of her works loaded on my ereader for years, supplemented when new ones became available. I was a little puzzled by the fact that this was published under a pseudonym, but did not really look into it. A week ago, I selected it as my next bedtime read without knowing much of the particulars about it. Thinking that anything by Von Arnim was bound to be good, so why not this one? Well, there is a reason for that pseudonym. And it is not necessarily one that will convince readers of Von Arnim’s other books.

By page 30, I was a little puzzled: was this Elizabeth von Arnim? Then what exactly was her aim in publishing these letters as if they were written by someone else? What was she trying to achieve? The answer came through wikipedia: Christine is Von Arnim's contribution to the British war effort, by writing a propaganda-like piece that was apparantly a minor part of an elaborate effort meant to sway the US opinion in favour of joining the war.

You need not read wikipedia to notice the othering that is going on in this story. (Of course, it might be that reading wikipedia sharpened my eye and made it stand out). While in Christine individuals from different classes of the German populations are highlighted, there is a general tendency to use these individuals as depictions of ”the state of mind” of the “German population” (as is mentioned in the preface, purportedly written by Alice Cholmondeley). There is an abundance of distinctions being drawn between Christine and her surroundings as she makes observations on how “they” (the Germans) think, act, and feel. The Germans are portrayed as children, conditioned to want greatness and bloodshed for their by their government, barbaric and uncivilised to some extent denoted by their undemocratic system. At some moments, Christine seems to distinguish between the government as the perpetrators and the people as its victims, but the lines become blurred as she then continues to lament the blood lust that is rife among the people (according to her).

It is really difficult to explain what happens in the text exactly. I think some examples might explain it better. Mind you, these examples can be found on almost every few pages. I am picking some out at random. Playing on British nationalism:

“Dear England. Dear, dear England. To find out how much one loves England all one has to do is to come to Germany.”

On the Germans:

“But you know, darling mother, it makes it easier for me to harden and look ahead with my chin in the air rather than over my shoulder back at you when I see, as I do see all day long, the extreme sentimentality of the Germans. It is very surprising. They’re the oddest mixture of what really is a brutal hardness, the kind of hardness that springs from real fundamental differences from ours in their attitude towards life, and a squashiness that leaves one with one’s mouth open. They can’t bear to let a single thing that has happened to them ever, however many years ago, drop away into oblivion and die decently in its own dust…”

An example of sympathy turned into othering:

“I could hardly not cry. These cheated people! Exploited and cheated, led carefully step by step from babyhood to a certain habit of mind necessary to their exploiters, with certain passions carefully developed and encouraged, certain ancient ideas, anachronisms every one of them, kept continually before their eyes,—why, if they did win in their murderous attack on nations who have done nothing to them, what are they going to get individually? Just wind; the empty wind of big words. They’ll be told, and they’ll read it in the newspapers, that now they’re great, the mightiest people in the world, the one best able to crush and grind other nations. But not a single happiness really will be added to the private life of a single citizen belonging to the vast class that pays the bill. For the rest of their lives this generation will be poorer and sadder, that’s all. Nobody will give them back the money they have sacrificed, or the ruined businesses, and nobody can give them back their dead sons. There’ll be troops of old miserable women everywhere, who were young and content before all the glory set in, and troops of dreary old men who once had children, and troops of cripples who used to look forward and hope. Yes, I too obeyed the Kaiser and went home and prayed; but what I prayed was that Germany should be beaten—so beaten, so punished for this tremendous crime, that she will be jerked by main force into line with modern life, dragged up to date, taught that the world is too grown up now to put up with the smashings and destructions of a greedy and brutal child. It is queer to think of the fear of God having to be kicked into anybody, but I believe with Prussians it’s the only way. They understand kicks. They respect brute strength exercised brutally. I can hear their roar of derision, if Christ were to come among them today with His gentle, “Little children, love one another.”

Read as propaganda, it is really rather a smart book: it takes an almost instantly sympathetic lead character, who is a promising child with what we are given to understand is a big talent, with no reason really to want to give her mother to understand falsehood about “the Germans”, and puts her into situations in which German people are less than sympathetic towards her, and then adds a final tragedy which the mother, in the preface, reveals so as to steer the sympathies of the reader. Moreover, besides the more blatant examples of othering, there are also more subtle ones. Christine, for example, wants and has to make her own way in life, earn her own keep, and in the story the women of Germany are mostly portrayed as servants or mothers. As such, she is instantly put apart from these women, but also examplifies (perhaps?) a broader respect for the abilities of women in Britain (which I think appears often as a trope of othering as an “us” that is more emancipated than “they” are).

The question is whether this book is still interesting to read for the contemporary reader, and I cannot give a satisfactory answer to that. It might be thought of as an interesting study into propaganda, though I think the reader would benefit from contrasting this story with other materials and/or more biographical information and context to this story. It is certainly something I wished for (are there any good Elizabeth von Arnim biographies out there?).

There is also the rather puzzling sensation of reading some ideas about “the Germans” in a book about World War I that I mostly associate with World War II (but this might be my Dutch background given that the Netherlands were neutral during World War I and thus we learn mostly about the first war in the context of the second). There is a certain shock to seeing all these observations about a people being drilled to feel and think certain things, to want bloodshed for the greatness of their nation, and the rallying nature of massive get-together around the Kaiser.. Of course, these were Von Arnim’s ideas about the German, but it was interesting to me that apparently these ideas existed in 1917, while I associate it with the picture of Germany painted in the context of the interbellum and World War II.

However, while these things might be of interest to the reader they did very little to make it an enjoyable read for me. As a fictional book, Christine mostly left me feeling apathetic. The othering got in the way of my enjoyment of the story. It is sad but true. I usually love Von Arnim’s style, gently humorous comfort reading with a sharp edge at times. Here, she is mostly a little too sentimental for my liking, and the sharp edge comes out much too stark on the side of prejudice, propaganda and nationalism. I admit that I was a little touched emotionally by the end of the book, and yet mostly I felt relieved that it was over, that I could put it behind me, and hopefully still read the other books by Elizabeth von Arnim that were not published under a pseudonym and without these ulterior motives, with joy.

To be fair: Christine can also be read in another light. As is noted over here, it might be interpreted as an hommage to Von Arnim's fourth daughter who died in Germany in 1916. I can see parts of that reflected in the story, and I think that, put in this light, the story becomes a little more "humane" and might also explain some of what I deemed too sentimental above; for Christine is constantly expressing so much love when writing to her mother that I quickly felt it might be a little too much to be realistic. I cannot help but keep to the opinion that this book did not exactly work for me, that I cannot read around the opinions about the Germans as they were expressed, because for me they obscure what might have been a more interesting narrative otherwise.

[I want to add that I do not think I necessarily begrudge Von Arnim for writing propaganda (though part of me wishes she hadn’t). It is more a matter of not being able to enjoy this “othering” in the contemporary context as a reader turning to Elizabeth von Arnim for enjoyment and not for a study in propaganda. I hope this makes sense and that I did not offend anyone.]

Download Christine by Alice Cholmondeley at Project Gutenberg|Girlebooks

*cross-posted to Iris on Books

SOME EXPERIENCES OF AN IRISH R.M. - E. O. Somerville and Martin Ross

noreply@blogger.com (lemonhead1) — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 20:43:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1899 Genre: Humor Topics: Humor, Ireland, Rural

Review by : Liz Inskip-Paulk (http://ravingreader.wordpress.com/)

A light-hearted humorous novel about an ex-British Army officer who becomes appointed to a rural country in Ireland as the Resident Magistrate*, this was quite a fun read. Published at the turn of the century, it’s a very horsey-centered book with tales of the inexperienced young outsider facing the events of a small rural community as the person in charge. (Rather Wodehousian in many ways, I thought.)

This is more a series of short stories all interlinked by common characters more than a straight novel, and reminded me in some ways of James Herriot in regard to “big-city outsider comes to unwelcoming but heart of gold village in the country” situation. It is packed with long descriptions of fox hunts, horse races and village happenings, some of which were rather exciting to read (despite my opposition to fox hunting and animal maltreatment). It was quite hard to read about the rather frequent whippings that the horses and donkeys endured and were obviously par for the course back then. It was true to its time though, even though that doesn’t make it any more acceptable.

The authors were really two women, one called Edith Somerville (the E. O. Somerville person) from England, and the other her cousin Violet Florence Martin (who wrote under Martin Ross) who was from Ireland. The two were second cousins and shared a great-grandfather between them. The name “Martin Ross” that Violet chose came from her surname and the name of the land that her family owned in West Ireland. Edith and Violet became close partners, and had critical and popular success with their early works which were a variation of the Victorian sensation novels. However, the commercial success of their lighter comical novels (starting with the Irish RM series) convinced them to leave serious novel writing and focus more on what the popular market wanted.

This book series was also made into a TV series which ran between 1983-1985 on TV in the UK. (I didn’t catch it so can’t vouch for its quality.)

Violet died quite early in 1915 of a brain tumor, and although Edith believed that she would and could never write again after her death, she was persuaded to do so by believing (as were the times) that Violet could communicate with her through spiritualism séances (a la Arthur Conan Doyle et al.) and continued to publish under both her own name and Violet.

· A Resident Magistrate (RM) was a title for magistrates in locations that were/are governed by the British. Personnel were usually well versed in law and well connected (as they were rather cushy jobs) and were brought into an area from outside to guide the more local lay magistrates. The “Resident” referred to the requirement that the magistrate had to live in the actual to which he (always he) was assigned.

Download Title by author at Project Gutenberg|Librivox|

Review: THE PEOPLE OF THE BLACK CIRCLE by Robert E Howard

noreply@blogger.com (Tasha B.) — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1934

Genre: fantasy

Topics: (pseudo)historical, magic, love, adventure

Review by heidenkind:

When the King of Vendyha is assassinated by the Black Seers of Yimsha, his sister Devi Yasmina is determined to seek vengeance. To that end, she wants to bribe Conan the Barbarian into hunting the seers down, but Conan ain't having none of that. Instead, he kidnaps the Devi like a boss and plans to use her as a hostage. But with a whole host of other people chasing after the Devi for their own ends, Conan's bound to get mixed up in her problems.

This book is pretty awesome. Basically I love everything about it: I love the cover, Conan, the story, the exotic setting, Yasmina, the over-the-top writing style, and the magic elements. But most of all I really love Conan. Eons back I watched maybe ten minutes' worth of Conan the Barbarian--the one with Arnold Schwarzenegger--and based on that movie I started The People of the Black Circle thinking Conan would be the stupidest, most uninteresting hero since Hercules. He isn't! He's actually really smart and dashing and very alpha-male-a-la-romancelandia. In fact, the whole book reminded me of a really kick-ass romance novel. Conan and Yasmina have some crazy chemistry going on; it's pretty hot. Here's my favorite passage from the book:

His wild blood had been stirred to its uttermost by all that had passed. He caught her to him in a grasp that would have made her wince at another time, and crushed her lips with his. She made no resistance; the Devi was drowned in the elemental woman. She closed her eyes and drank in his fierce, hot, lawless kisses with all the abandon of passionate thirst.

Haha! Okay, that's pretty pulpy. But I totally love it because I just knew that at some point there would be the crushing of lips and the lawless kisses.

Naturally I focus on the romance, but most of the story has to do with all the magicians out to get the Devi, and it is GREAT. There is so much delicious double-crossing and plotting going on. I sometimes get annoyed by stuff like that, but since it all focuses on the Devi, it enhances rather than distracts from the story. Also, Conan, who's very much removed from the court politics driving the plot, serves as a stabilizing force in the book. His needs and wants are pretty straight-forward and simple to understand, which was a much-needed balance to every other character.

So basically I was super-pleasantly surprised by The People of the Black Circle, and have subsequently downloaded ALL the Robert E. Howard books. I haven't been this excited about an author since I read The Man in Lower Ten by Mary Roberts Rinehart. If you like Edgar Rice Burroughs or romances with alpha heroes, I think you definitely want to read this one. It's really such a blast.

Download The People of the Black Circle by Robert E. Howard at Project Gutenberg|Librivox

Review: THIS SIDE OF PARADISE by F. Scott Fitzgerald

noreply@blogger.com (Patty) — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 06:00:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1920

Genre: fictional autobiography

Topics: coming of age, status, personal quest

Review by : Patty @ A Tale of Three Cities

Having read The Great Gatsby and fallen in love with Fitzgerlad's story-telling, I couldn't help but wonder whether this was a one-off experience.

I was so mesmerised by the techniques he used, that I wanted to have more of it - and so chose to read This side of Paradise, Fitzgerald's first novel, semi-autobiographical, and the book that shot him to fame.

Would I distinguish his brilliance already there? Would I feel the "lost generation" he so eloquently spoke about?

Fitzgerald was in his early 20s when his wrote this book, and used elements from his personal experience to draw the character of Amory Blaine: a well-off, spoilt-rotten mama's boy who grows into a sad, lonely young man, never meant to find happiness...

Having first read the Great Gatsby inevitably puts this book in a stricter, harsher light. The writer is not yet master of his skill, so the book reads really like a very, very long description - a diary of the main character and everything that happens around him. This is very analytical and, as it also happens to be autobiographical of Fitzgerald, it was interesting to witness first-hand his character - or lack thereof.

Because Amory is not someone who will have to strive to get ahead in life: he's from a well-off family, with a father semi-absent and a mother who's just enjoying her personal crises. I could sense the boredom oozing from every corner of the book and I felt really lucky I did not have such an upbringing: Blaine cannot escape his destiny. He's handsome, intelligent and lazy in terms of actually doing something:

"Amory wondered how people could fail to notice that he was a boy marked for glory, and when faces of the throng turned toward him and ambiguous eyes stared into his, he assumed the most romantic of expressions and walked on the air cushions that lie on the asphalts of fourteen"

I was almost ready to dismiss Amory, because I was slightly getting tired about all his "adventures" in prep school. I could understand his quest to fit in with all the other members of high society, but I was losing interest - fast. The drama boy was growing into a drama young man:

"I want to be admired"

But, as life proves over and over again, Amory will have to face difficulties in his life - he will eventually lose his great love to money (which, in the meantime, his family has lost), he will fail to find success in work, he will even try to "advocate" Socialism in the hope to profit from an eventual revolution. Slowly, however, he will realise what his true self is. He's lost everything that would matter in an earlier stage - status, love, money - but now he's come to terms with what really is of essence.

The book ends with an enigmatic claim Amory makes: he now knows himself

"but that is all --"

The dash at the end of that sentence, and not a full stop, is really what marks for me the turning point for Amory. He's hit bottom, he has accepted his true self, he can no longer hide - and he's now ready to move on...

I would not say I enjoyed This Side of Paradise as much as The Great Gatsby. While it's not a bad book, I found the inexperience of the pen failed to attract my attention. It is nevertheless a sincere portrayal of Fitzgerald, capturing his youth and his personal quests, and it made me appreciate Gatsby even more...

Download This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald at Project Gutenberg|Librivox|

Review: PARNASSUS ON WHEELS – Christopher Morley

noreply@blogger.com (lemonhead1) — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 14:11:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1922
Genre: American classic
Topics: American, books, gender role, early 20th century

Review by : Liz Inskip-Paulk (www.ravingreader.wordpress.com)

A fun novel about my favoritest of subjects – books and the love of them. Found somewhere on my travels around the interweb, this title popped up on list of fun classics to read. I am not familiar with either the author or the title, but the review looked good and I found it on Project Gutenberg. It’s a quick read, is rather a cross between a novel and novella, I think. Not quite long enough for one, not quite short enough for the other.

The basic plot line is of a sister and brother who both live on a farm in Massachusetts not too far from Boston. Set in the early twentieth century (I think), the siblings get on fine until the brother finds unexpected success as a best-selling author writing about the joys of living on the land. His sister is the one who bakes the bread, cleans and more or less runs the farm as the brother keeps going off on unexpected jaunts to “research” his books. This set up is annoying for the one who is forced to stay at home, and when one day, a mobile book shop – a “caravan of culture” -- shows up, things take a surprising turn. (The mobile bookshop is the “Parnassus on Wheels”, Parnassus being the name of the Greek mountain where the Muses would live).

As the sister ends up going on new adventures further afield and realizing that she has just as of a right of a happy life as selfish authorly bro, the reader can feel the blossoming of her character – of how much more she has to offer the world rather than be skilled at blacking the stove. Over the years, she reckons that she has baked about 15,000 loaves (an “anthology of bread” as she describes it in her bookish way), and so doesn’t feel that guilty about going off and leaving the bro to his own devices on the farm.

Going on this unexpected adventure frees up the sister: “That’s where I learned that life still held something fresh for me – something better than baking … biscuits for [my brother]…”

Of course, things don’t sit well and the story twists and turns – it’s all very reflective of the burgeoning feminist movement of the time and questioning of gender roles. Very up-to-date issues, really, especially when you consider that it was written by a man in the 1920’s and it’s from the woman’s perspective.

As I mentioned, it’s a quick read and yet it covers a lot of territory the most notable of which was the ongoing adoration of all things literary – books, words, authors, the act of reading… All very suitable subjects for a book nerd such as I am.

It’s also a hopeful and optimistic book for how life can change and looking forward to the future. As the female protagonist reports, “Summer was over, and we neither of us were young, but there were great things ahead of us.”

Good one.

Download Parnassus on Wheels by Christopher Morley at Project Gutenberg|Librivox|

Review: JUST WILLIAM – Richmal Crompton

noreply@blogger.com (lemonhead1) — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 13:08:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1922

Genre: Childhood literature

Topics: English, short story, humorous, 20th century

Review by: Liz Inskip-Paulk (www.ravingreader.wordpress.com)

If you grew up with Enid Blyton and tales of Mallory Towers and tuck shops and midnight feasts, then you might have read this series of childhood books. If not you, then perhaps your parents did (or even their parents).

William Brown is an 11-year old English school boy who dreams of pirates and robbers and owning a sweet shop and teaching a white rat to dance on command. His family dreams as well, but they dream of different things: William coming home clean and tidy from school, for example. This is how his father describes him one day:

“The human boy is given us as a discipline. I possess one. Though he is my own son, I find it difficult to describe the atmosphere of peace and relief that pervades the house when he is out of it.”

What is not said is that you need to be prepared for when William comes home because then you just don’t know what is going to come through the door… It might be an abandoned dog, it might be a bow and arrow, it might be the local neighborhood kids come to listen to his visiting auntie snore during her nap… You just never know.

William is not a bad person – he is just very enthusiastic about life and extremely honest about things. He reminded me of a puppy – how they just focus on something and then gambol towards it not thinking about consequences or anything. Crompton makes him extremely likable and really funny so this little gem-like collection of short stories was a joy to read.

What’s even better than there are loads of Just William books to wade through, some of which are on Project Gutenberg, so if you’re in the mood for a quick light-hearted read about a slightly naughty boy with a bit of Wodehouse-type humor, this series is for you.

Download Title by author at Project Gutenberg|Librivox|

Announcing New Contributors!

noreply@blogger.com (Tasha B.) — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 10:00:00 +0000

The Project Gutenberg Project has been live for little over a year, and in that time we've reviewed over 130 books in the public domain! Hopefully we've inspired you all to read a few classics and try out some forgotten books, as well. I (heidenkind here) would like to thank our contributors for doing such a great job and you, our readers, for supporting this blog. You all inspire me to explore and read and write every day.

Anyway, I'm excited to announce that PGP is expanding and we're adding two new contributors! Say hello to Liz from Just One More Page and Patty from A Tale of Three Cities. They've already posted a few reviews here, so please check them out and give them a warm welcome.

Here's to another great year at PGP!

VERA by Elizabeth von Arnim

noreply@blogger.com (Tasha B.) — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1921

Genre: satire/comedy

Topics: love, marriage, feminism, Gothic

By heidenkind

Ten signs you shouldn't marry that guy you're going to marry according to Elizabeth von Arnim:

He's old enough to be your father.
Your friends hate him. ALL your friends.
Your family also hates him; but even worse, he doesn't give a shit if they do or not.
When he talks politics, he bears an eerie resemblance to Dick Cheney.
His last wife died under mysterious circumstances.
The only thing that upsets him about this is it infringes on his schedule.
He has absolutely no imagination.
Or sense of humor.
He reminds you of a two-year-old, but requires even more attention.
His library consists entirely of expensive books he bought in bulk, keeps locked behind glass, has never read, and has no intention of ever reading.

Vera is often called a satire of Gothic romance in summaries of the novel, and it is--but not in a silly Airplane! sort of way, more in a here's-what-it-would-really-be-like-bitches sort of way. It's the story of Lucy, a young girl who meets Everard Wemyss literally hours after her father has died, leaving her an orphan. It goes without saying she's in a vulnerable state. Coincidentally, Wemyss himself has recently lost his wife, Vera, under mysterious circumstances. Was it suicide or an accident? No one really knows, but the two deaths pull Everard and Lucy together. It's almost like they're meant to be! But how long will Lucy survive once Everard takes her back to his ominous estate and the site of Vera's death?

What makes Vera different from other Gothic romances--such as, for example, Rebecca--is that Everard really is as awful as he seems. Worse, actually. The man has no redeeming qualities WHATSOEVER. He's a narcissistic, selfish bastard and an emotional vampire. Lucy's constant excuses for his controlling behavior and acceptance of his insults are MIND BOGGLING.

I know right now you're thinking Vera is probably depressing, but weirdly it's not. It is actually funny, if only because Arnim is so clever and takes such delight in making us hate Everard (fun fact: he is supposedly based on her second husband). You also can't help but laugh at Everard because he is so ridiculously awful.

I'm not sure I would recommend Vera to fans of Rebecca, because the purpose of the two books is completely different, despite the similarities in plot. I would definitely recommend it to people who enjoyed The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, found Twilight infuriating, or if the heroes of Gothic romances annoy you with their douchey-ness. It is a really good book.

Download Vera by Elizabeth von Arnim at GirleBooks|Librivox|Project Gutenberg

Review: THE SYMPOSIUM by Plato

noreply@blogger.com (Patty) — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 06:00:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 380 b.C.

Genre: philosophy

Topics: love, wisdom

Review by : Patty @ A Tale of Three Cities

The Symposium by Plato is an philosophical essay on the many aspects of love and an insight into the notion of platonic love. The title means something like "a get-together with drinks" which is what DOES NOT happen when several of the main characters meet to eat and be merry (they actually talk of the vice of drinking...oh Dionysus!), and where Socrates will eventually speak of his version of love.

We listen to the description of this feast organised in honour of Agathon through Socrates' companion there, Aristodemus, who recounts the story to Apollodorus, who recounts the story to us. Complicated, true, but once one gets over these levels of interaction, the story becomes simple enough for us to enjoy...

After a delectable dinner, Phaedrus, one of the participants in this feast, complains that while everyone has at some point made or heard of odes to the various gods, nothing has ever been said about the god of love. He suggests, therefore, that everyone makes the effort and praise this forgotten god.

There are plenty of speeches that follow, all different, which show how multi-faceted love can be: from the oldest feeling in the world, to a clear distinction between desire and "heavenly" love. This love, between an elder man and a boy (women at the point in time were considered just a little bit higher than animals - but that's another story), was in effect an business transaction, where sexual gratification was exchanged for knowledge and wisdom.

Aristophanes, one of the more-known comedy poets of the times takes the floor and comes up with an ode that truly spoke to me: he suggests that in the beginning of time there were twice the population on Earth - but Zeus got jealous (as always...) and cut everyone in half. Ever since that incident, people have been searching "for their other half", so that they become whole again... Not a bad interpretation dating from the 4th century b.C. I would even say I prefer this to any modern outlook on love!

When we come to Socrates, we hear that he's more interested in Love itself, not just the object of love. He won't be consumed with the practical interpretations that consume everyone else - he's interested in the highest of emotions and wants to find out more about this. To this end, he reveals that a wise woman, Diotima, has cleared matters for him. Major shock -- a woman who is wise and who consults Socrates! And he's not afraid to admit it! At this point, I'm simply astonished and amazed a) that Socrates was such a revolutionary and that b) Plato would not try to hide such "heretic" teachings. Indeed, says Socrates, love is a spirit that flows among us and leads to and derives from reproduction - be this human reproduction or reproduction of ideas, this notion of Beauty should be the central element in our lives .

The entertainment bit in this work comes in the form of Alciviades, totally drunk, who collapses in the middle of the feast, whining of never having managed to seduce Socrates - pity, given he has all the charismatic qualities everyone around him seeks. But no, Socrates is not interested in physical love -- and here is our introduction to Platonic love, a result (or not) of Socrates' teachings - he's more interested in the ethereal, in the pure form of love, not to be messed up with the "romancing" of everyday life - the highest level of pursuit is the pursuit of wisdom...

Download Symposium by Plato at Project Gutenberg|Librivox|

Review: ANTIGONE by Sophocles

noreply@blogger.com (Patty) — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 23:29:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 442 b.C.

Genre: Play, Tragedy

Topics: family, moral tales, women

Review by : Patty @ A Tale of Three Cities

A shortish play that forms part of the Theban plays, together with Oedipus Rex and Oedipus at Colonus, Antigone is a tragedy, as many of Sophocles' plays, but with a slight twist: here the main character is a woman, a woman defying the limitations of her gender at the time, a woman ready to accept the consequences of her actions.

Her father is dead, her brothers are dead, and Antigone is now left alone with her sister Ismene. But while Ismene is the typical fairy creature, Antigone is a boyish creature (she reminded me of Joan of Arc), wishing to go beyond the rights given to her gender. But her uncle Creon, who is now king, will not allow for this. She is to marry his son, Antigone's cousin, Haemon and do great things for Thebes.

Antigone, however, has different views. Her brothers died a vicious death, trying to kill each other for the throne of Thebes. Creon only buried one of the brothers, Eteocles, leaving the second to rot in the elements - something against the customs of the time.

While this is a compact play, there is a variety of themes across the story: should the family / moral values supersede those imposed by the establishment in the city? for whatever reasons, Creon has banned the citizens from covering Polynices and has even warned anyone with severe punishment. Still, Antigone cannot let this deter her from her sacred duty towards her family. Not only that, she's willing to accept her punishment and she will even go against her sister, who's trying to reason with her.

But therein comes the second theme: that of blind arrogance. Both Antigone and Creon believe their side of the story the correct is. The difference between them is that Creon becomes so consumed with his anger towards the "insubordination" of Antigone, that he orders his guards to keep a close leash on both sisters so that they... behave like women again!

But the biggest theme must be the curse of the house of Oedipus. All three of the tragedies are very detailed on the misfortunes that befall on the last remaining members of the family, Antigone and Ismene. They cannot escape: ever since the glorious victory of Oedipus and his marriage to Jocasta, disaster has remained in this house, "eating up" its members one by one. But the play also makes a case for love: Haemon tries to make Creon see reason and not bury Antigone alive and even hints at a possible suicide if Creon doesn't change his mind.

While by today's standards all this would be considered overwhelming and irrational, it is the purpose of this tragedy to show that humans have limited capabilities, their emotions can be destructive and only the fate dictated by the gods should be their guiding light. The only way to convey this message is to exaggerate and present all the horrible results if humans do not abide.
Even the end reads like a list of lessons learnt: pride can be damaging, wisdom is welcome, obedience to gods compulsory and most important of all: there is no purpose in violence...

Download Antigone by Sophocles at Project Gutenberg|Librivox|

Thoughts: THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA by Gaston Leroux

noreply@blogger.com (Tasha B.) — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1909 (French); 1911 (English)

Genre: gothic

Topics: opera, love, mystery

Review by heidenkind:

In the labyrinth under the Paris Opera, an impish yet dangerous "ghost" reigns. Sure, he's killed a few people, but all he wants is to be loved!

The Phantom of the Opera was a reread for me (or read-listen, since I downloaded the audiobook from Librivox. Read by my favorite narrator, Ralph Snelson, fyi). I first read it in high school and it's honestly one of my favorite novels. Erik has to be one of the greatest characters in fiction. Yes, it is BIG with the drama (it takes place in an opera, what do you expect?), and one of my friends on FaceBook called it pulpy, but I don't think it's pulpy--it's more sensationalistic. Like The Woman in White, only shorter and French.

Anyway, The Phantom was definitely due for a reread, as I'd forgotten a lot of things since I last read it. For example:

I totally forgot Raoul and Christine were childhood sweethearts. That was sweet. It kind of made me like Raoul for a few chapters, until...
I realized Raoul is actually a BAZILLION TIMES more annoying that I remembered him being. Uhg, he is SUCH a douche. Christine can't do anything without him going into a pity spiral and he cries at the drop of a hat. I honestly don't know how Christine can stand him. I guess being a vicomte and (I guessing) rich is a plus, but still. Not worth it.
Of course, her other choice is the Phantom, who let's face it is a bit of a psycho. I'd forgotten just how creepy Erik can be sometimes. His letters to the Opera managers (who are hilarious, by the way) read like something Jack the Ripper would write, and his default response to any difficulty seems to be either torture or killing. But when he's not being creepy, he's totally awesome! And then he just inspires pity, which is never a good basis for a relationship.
I love the framing in this novel. Usually framing annoys me, but in The Phantom of the Opera it really helps make this outlandish story somewhat plausible.
The Persian--I remember really liking him when I first read the book, but this time around I was kind of annoyed with how he took Raoul's side. Why you got to hate like that, Persian dude?
Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical adaptation of this book is really good. REALLY good. I bet you five bucks he read this book back to front as a kid so many times he knows it by heart. Of course, I still like the book better, because I like books, but still. Good job on that!
In high school, I remember being frustrated with the ending, but seeing it as inevitable and recognizing that Christine and the Phantom could have never been together. Now, I'm not so sure. It's really the worst ending ever because no one gets what they should have, and only douchey Raoul gets what he wants. You know that saying, if you love someone let them go? I guess we know who really loved Christine now, don't we?

Anyway, this is a good book. You should all read it!

Download The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux at Project Gutenberg|Librivox

Review: THE CARD by Arnold Bennett

noreply@blogger.com (lemonhead1) — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 18:48:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1910
Genre: Fiction, Humorous
Topics: English, town, social class, gender relations

Review by : Liz Inskip-Paulk (http://ravingreader.wordpress.com/)

Subtitle: A Story of an Adventure in the Five Towns.

This novel has a similar feel to the humor of Jane Austen – class-based, omniscient POV, wicked humor. Denry Machin, the protagonist, aims to be “The Card,” which is (in this context) another name for the man about town and sort of ‘Big Man on Campus” idea despite being a lower class and thus socially challenged...

Starting with his early days as a young student, he found himself to be clever and willing to take advantage of any situations which could help him, and it’s this willingness (and his slightly “flexible” ethical attitude) which moves him up the financial and social ladder of this industrial northern town. He’s not an evil man – just a bit ethically “gray” and very ambitious and quick to grasp the lay of a situation.

Machin, son of washerwoman and currently an apprentice clerk for a small local business, illicitly adds his name to the invitation list of guests to the upcoming ball of the new mayoress. This signals just the beginning of his climb up the local social ladder, and Bennett describes him thus:

“The thrill of being magnificent seized him, and he was drenched in a vast desire to be truly magnificent himself. He dreamt of magnificence and boot-brushes kept sticking out of this dream like black mud out of snow ..”

And when he is at this big ball, the social event of the season, he stands on an upper level, waiting for the ball to start:

"Then he went downstairs again, idly; gorgeously feigning that he spent six evenings a week in ascending and descending monumental staircases, appropriately clad. He was determined to be as sublime as anyone… There was a stir in the corridor, and the sublimest consented to be excited.”

Denry has high social aims and although not devious, somehow ends up climbing the social ladder through odd means and coincidences. He is exceedingly impulsive trying to impress people (and successfully for the most part). In one situation, Denys offers to buy a house from a local woman from whom he is collecting rents but he has no money to do this. By doing so, he puts himself into a financial crisis, and immediately knows that he has got carried away with things, but has no idea how to remove from this situation. However, he couldn’t help himself:

“But, as always when he did something crucial, spectacular, and effective, the deed had seemed to be done by a mysterious power within him, over which he had no control”

And yet somehow, it seemed to work out one way or another in Denry’s favor as the plot continues. This is a light-hearted read with little serious social commentary, and it doesn’t try to be anything else. It takes Denry from the modest clerkship of a local businessman to the vaulted expensive hotels of Switzerland in a way that is quite believable and also unpredictable.

As the other townspeople say in the novel, “What has Machin done now?” and it’s the same for the reader as you follow Denry’s meteoric rise. However, it’s not without incident and it’s not without mistakes, and yet somehow, Denry ends up landing on his feet.

If you’re after a fun read, then this would be a good fit. It’s quite short, it’s well written, and it’s humorous. Wiki says that there is a 1952 movie of this book (U.S. title The Promoter) with Petula Clark and Alec Guinness which could be quite fun to compare.

Download The Card by Arnold Bennett at Project Gutenberg|Librivox|

Review: THE STORY OF MY LIFE by Helen Keller

noreply@blogger.com (Tasha B.) — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1902

Genre: autobiography/memoir

Topics: women, education, hearing, blindness

Guest review by Liz Inskip-Paulk (http://ravingreader.wordpress.com/):

To ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELL
Who has taught the deaf to speak
and enabled the listening ear to hear speech
from the Atlantic to the Rockies,
I dedicate this Story of My Life.

This is the autobiography of the young Helen Keller, written when she was 22 and a student at all-female college Radcliffe. Although this is the writing of a young person (and with the weaknesses associated with that), this is a passionate reading experience that describes life for a woman who was hearing- and sight-impaired at the turn of the twentieth century in the U.S... It’s an amazing story of obstacles overcome at a time when even women who had few physical challenges were limited in scope with regard to education and career. The fact that Helen Keller did all these things with the physical obstacles that she had makes it even more admirable.

When Helen was 19 months old, she contracted “an acute congestion of the stomach and the brain” (perhaps scarlet fever or meningitis?) which led to her losing her vision and hearing. She had been able to see and hear before, but now she couldn’t, and this sudden isolation lead to Keller developing behavioral problems, and many in her family felt that she should be institutionalized.

When she was 6, her mother read Dickens’s travel writing called “American Notes”, and found out about the successful education of another blind/deaf young girl. Her parents sent her to Baltimore to see a famous doc there who had treated this other girl, and he then introduced her to Alexander Graham Bell (working w deaf children at the time and inventor of telephone). Through Bell, the family learned about a good school of the blind, and there, the family was put in touch with Anne Sullivan, who was also sight-impaired and who would become Helen’s governess and companion.

Proficient in a handful of different languages, well read, eloquent – this is all amazing because she was hearing-impaired and sight-impaired. Not to say that people who have those are stupid or inadequate, but saying that I can only imagine that learning esoteric subjects as Greek and maths must have been even more of a challenge if you can’t see what’s going on (the symbols, alphabet etc.) . (How to describe an algebraic formula, for example, using spelling in the palm of your hand??) I could both see and hear and had a formal education, and I still had problems with algebra and geometry…

Written in her second year at Radcliffe at age of 22, Keller’s writing reflects her youth and she has worries that are typical of most college students: finals and tests, how to sort out the never-ending new information that you learn every day, wishing to hang out with your friends instead of having to take the extra time to listen your text books being read out loud… There is absolutely no sense of self-pity although she is very honest about getting grumpy and frustrated every now and then (as one does).

Here is a quotation about how Keller feels going to college at Radcliffe:

Before me I saw a new world opening in beauty and light, and I felt within me the capacity to know all things. In the wonderland of Mind I should be as free as another. Its people, scenery, manners, joys, tragedies should be living, tangible interpreters of the real world.

However, she missed having time to reflect during her undergrad years: “One goes to college to learn, it seems, not to think... When one enters the portals of learning, one leaves the dearest pleasures – solitude, books, and imagination – outside with the whispering pines…” and it’s tough to concentrate on the information being taught as there is so much so fast (as it was being translated into manual language spelled into her hands by teacher Anne Sullivan). Keller writes that she “cannot make notes during the lectures because my hands are busy listening…” What a great description, don’t you think?

Her attitude is fabulous. For example, here is a quotation from her about her early college experience:

For, after all, everyone who wishes to gain true knowledge must climb the Hill Difficulty alone, and since there is no royal road to the summit, I must zigzag it in my own way. I slip back many times, I fall, I stand still, I run against the edge of hidden obstacles, I lose my temper and find it again and keep it better, I trudge on, I gain a little, I feel encouraged, I get more eager and climb higher and begin to see the widening horizon. Every struggle is a victory.

Books were extremely important to Keller as they helped her to learn what other people learned through sight and hearing. The first book she remembers making an impact was Little Lord Fauntleroy which was spelled out on her hand, one letter at a time. When she reads a good book, “My physical limitations are forgotten—my world lies upward, the length and the breadth and the sweep of the heavens are mine!”

Keller was the first deaf/blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree, and as she became older, became more politically involved campaigning for women’s suffrage, labor rights, socialism, birth control supporter and other causes. She played an instrumental role in founding the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Helen Keller International organization which funded research on blindness and awareness of that.

In 1964, Helen was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, one of the U.S. highest civilian honors, and in 2003, Alabama honored her (born in AL) on its state quarter.

As was the time, before her political opinions were known, much was made of her courage and intelligence in media; once it became known that she supported “radical” (for back then) left causes, then it seemed that people focused more on her disabilities and used them to discredit her. (The more things change… )

A good read about a fascinating experience faced head-on. It’s good to be reminded of how good life can be sometimes.

Random aside #1: Keller is credited with having introduced the Akita dog breed to the U.S. after a visit to Japan in 1937.
Random Aside #2: Alexander Graham Bell’s mother had been hearing-impaired and had learned to play the piano despite not being able to hear. His grandfather was also interested in elocution and speech correction. His father designed Visible Speech technique which helped hearing-impaired people communicate more easily. Born in Scotland, but his family moved to the US for health reasons where his father taught for a while at the Boston School for Deaf Mutes [sic]. His father was unable to accept the job for a long period of time, so the school offered the position to son Alexander, whose interest was piqued by voice transmission and thus was born in a roundabout way and in collaboration with Thomas Watson, the telephone.

So - now you know…

Download The Story of My Life by Helen Keller at Project Gutenberg|Librivox|UPenn Library|GirleBooks

Review: THE AGE OF INNOCENCE by Edith Wharton

noreply@blogger.com (Tasha B.) — Sun, 17 Mar 2013 07:20:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1920

Genre: general fiction

Topics: love, society, tragedy

Guest review by Ash (http://bookletsgo.wordpress.com/):

Blogging about certain books can be a challenge at times and I believe this is one of those times. Deemed as one of the best classics in English Literature, The Age of Innocence throws light on the late 1800′s upper-class society in America..particularly the New York society. I came across this book through a lot of sources but one that particularly struck me was a review by Danielle.

The novel opens with an Opera theater where all of the New York’s elite are watching a play. Newland Archer, the hero of this story is looking out for his fiance May Welland when he spots her seated beside her infamous cousin, Countess Ellen Olenski. Rumors are astrife that the Countess is in NY recouping from a disastrous marriage to a Polish Count. Even so, the New York society condemns her decision and shows it quite boldly. At first, Archer takes it upon himself to show his support to May and her family for sheltering the countess but he finds himself in love with Ellen Olenski who also finds herself returning the affections. And then May who is all the while docile and quiet, decides to prepone the wedding, and Archer finds himself married to May Welland. This doesn’t put a dent on Archer's affections until May makes a decision that changes the course of the story. Describing this plot any more wouldn’t do any justice for its a very difficult to blog on this particular title.

Archer is torn choosing between what society approves vs. what his heart desires. Although his first impression of May is that she meets the Society’s standards and his in every way, he gradually realizes that May and many women like her were groomed to be perfect, ignorant of any independent thoughts or opinions. Ellen is a complex character who seems to be a misfit both in NY and in Europe. She struggles the most trying to fit in with the NY society which scorns her every decision pushing her to the brink of moving back to Europe. For me, May was perhaps the most complex of all characters...She is first introduced as a docile well-bred lady and as a reader, you'll be taken in by it all. Watch out though, for she does have some tricks up her sleeve.

Edith Wharton comes from an upper-class family herself and so her insights into New York old society’s rules and customs are well highlighted in every chapter. Whereas Europe has more liberal code of behavior and independence in thought, NY society condemns any semblance of independent thought or action. So long as a man conducts his affairs in secret and silence, he is exempted from the scorn and rejection by the society whereas a woman is literally shunned. This is another point that is brought out by Ms. Wharton. And then there are the usual theatrics associated with the society when people meet at an Opera or a Ball or a dinner. The novel has many other characters painted to life who add spice to the otherwise quiet plot but its best to explore them through the book then through a blog. For those who don’t want to read the book, I recommend the film featuring Winona Ryder and Michelle Pfeiffer.

Download The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton at Project Gutenberg|Librivox|GirleBooks

Discovering Books On Librivox

noreply@blogger.com (Tasha B.) — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 10:00:00 +0000

A lot of people ask me how I find time to read so many old books (I would call them classics but most of them are just old). Honestly, 80% of the classics I "read," I actually listen to on audiobook, and the vast majority of those audiobooks I download from Librivox.

If you're not familiar, Librivox publishes audiobooks of works in the public domain you can download for free. I've written about why I find Librivox more browser-friendly than Project Gutenberg before, but I also use Librivox a lot because I find it really convenient to listen to snippets of books while I'm doing routine tasks around the house or driving on errands. Since I only read one or two books at a time, audiobooks are a great way for me to balance two novels at once.

The problem with Librivox is that the quality of the audiobooks can be hit-or-miss. It's 100% volunteer, so some readers are professional and others could use some practice. This can make people shy away from trying their audiobooks; but I stumble across awesome audiobooks on Librivox all the time, and if you follow some basic guidelines (developed by myself through experience) you can make better choices in downloading books.

1. Start with short stories. Librivox has tons of short story collections, and they're a great place to start out. After you listen to some short stories, you'll probably come across a narrator or two that you really like. When that happens...

2. Look up the narrator you like and download all their stuff. Most narrators stick to particular subjects or genres, so this is a great way to discover books you might not have heard of before.

3. Books with multiple narrators are generally to be avoided. I've done the multiple narrator thing, and it's tough, even when you're enjoying the book. Right now I'm at the point where I simply won't download a novel with more than one narrator. It's better to have an okay narrator reading an entire book than a mix of excellent, okay, and not-that-great narrators together for one book. The latter makes it really difficult to follow the thread of the story.

4. Always download the latest version of a book. Sometimes you'll search for a book and come up with multiple recordings for it. ALWAYS download the latest. Chances are someone decided to create a new version because they thought the previous one was an insult to their literary sensibilities.

5. To find new books: Browse the list of recently cataloged books or just randomly search for keywords. Librivox used to have a list of the most popular downloads, but I can't find that link now. You can also try to find recs online. I like to check out GoodReads groups dedicated to audiobooks.

6. To make your life easier: In iTunes, highlight all the tracks in your audiobook, right click, go to Get Info>Options, and select Equalizer Preset>Spoken Word, Media Kind>Audiobook, Remember position>Yes, and Skip when shuffling>yes.

Questions? Comments? Have you listened to any audiobooks from Librivox you really liked?

This post originally published on Truth, Beauty, Freedom, and Books.

Guest Post: BLACK BEAUTY by Anna Sewell

noreply@blogger.com (Tasha B.) — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 10:00:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1877

Genre: "autobiography"

Topics: animals, children, the golden rule

Review by Liz Inskip-Paulk (http://ravingreader.wordpress.com/):

A book of four distinct parts, this was Sewell’s first and only novel and was written in the final years of her life. Various sources report that more than 50 million copies have sold worldwide, but despite that and despite the fact that I was/am a huge animal-lover, I wasn’t that into horsey books and hadn’t ever read this one.

And this is a very horse-y book with a heavy message of treating horses (and thus, by extension, all animals) well. In return, they will treat you well. Absolutely nothing wrong or dated about that message.

So – this is the story of Black Beauty, a horse who is relating his life and adventures in very short chapters. It’s written rather simply with basic sentence structure and although it’s Victorian in age and spirit, I think young and fairly confident readers would do fine with it today. (It’s also good to keep in mind that Sewell did not write this as a “children’s book”, but more of a tool to bring attention to animal mistreatment.)

I quite enjoyed this read and was pulled into the story, although I do imagine that should I have read this when I was a child, I would have been haunted by the description of the death of Ginger, one of Black Beauty’s horse friends. I also would have felt awful reading how badly horses and other animals were treated by cab drivers in industrial London and by farmers who only work to the bottom line, and it would have been quite likely for tears to have been involved for this particular reader at some point.

Not a fabulous read, but not a bad one, by any means. I always enjoy a good animal-based book, and this had a happy ending which was a relief. (I was unfamiliar with the narrative arc of the story and so wasn’t sure whether to expect a fatal ending or not. Thank goodness it all ends up ok for Black Beauty, although I hope I didn’t give you a spoiler about that if you haven’t read it.) However, fair warning in that there are some hard-to-bear descriptions of animal cruelty earlier in the story.

So – pretty good and if I was a horse-mad child, I would have been interested in reading this during my childhood. I went through my Pullein-Thompson horse book stage and also read lots about fell ponies and mine ponies, but just not this one.

Warning to sensitive animal-lover readers: be aware – if you’re sensitive about animal treatment, this will not be an easy read, but it is historically accurate. Thank goodness times have changed for the most part.

Download Black Beauty by Anna Sewell at Project Gutenberg|GirleBooks|Librivox

Review: THE SECRET HOUSE by Edgar Wallace

noreply@blogger.com (Tasha B.) — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 11:00:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1917

Genre: mystery/thriller

Topics: blackmail

Review by heidenkind:

The Secret House might be the weirdest book I have ever read. And you know I reads me some weird books.

I'm not even going to attempt to give a summary of this book because if I did, it would be five hundred words and not make a lick of sense. Basically The Secret House is about a blackmailing scheme that this SUPER odd editor of a gossip magazine has going (he wears a veil and disappears into secret passages in his office), and his sectary, "the adventurer" Poltavo, who's cool with cashing in on that. As for the secret house, it would be more accurate to say it's a house OF secrets rather than a secret house. It's full of secret passages and has more elevators than an Otis factory.

There are several similarities between The Secret House and The Green Rust. One, it's a weird book. Two, it starts with the death of an old guy who just happens to be rich and wants to pass on his monies to a beautiful young woman who has to chose between two men: an honorable hero-type bloke and a super-sketchy foreigner. Unlike in The Green Rust, however, I didn't care at all about the hero-type guy, although there were a lot of statements by him and other characters that made me wonder if Edgar Wallace wasn't a bit of a feminist.

No, the only character I cared about in The Secret House was Count Poltavo (he became a count at some point, whatever, it happens), to the point where I pretty much convinced myself he was the hero of the book. I mean, I knew there was a 99% chance he was actually the villain, because he's Polish. And Poland is adjacent to Germany, so he's practically German and therefore most definitely a bad guy, per Wallace Logic. But I was really kind of hoping he wasn't the villain, because he was awesome. Wallace kept calling him an "adventurer," and there was definitely an Indian Jones-ish, take-no-prisoners, think-my-way-out-of-this-situation-because-I'm-super-clever-and-dashing sensibility to him. Except Wallace was using the term adventurer as an insult. AND THEN THE ENDING HAPPENED. LIKE OMG WTF? It was so ugly and horrible and I don't... I can't even... WTF?!@

Spoilers about the ending because I need to get it off my chest (highlight to read): Poltavo is captured by some stealery dudes and electrocuted to death. Like in a straight-up electric chair. Did you ever see Dead Man Walking? It was kind of like that. HORRIBLE. And then the men who killed him didn't see any retribution for it and everyone was like "Oh well."

Anyway. I might have said I liked The Secret House if it wasn't for the ending, but since the ending WAS so bad and I wish I could buy myself some brain bleach and write Wallace an angry letter, I don't recommend it.

Further Reading:

Download The Secret House by Edgar Wallace from Project Gutenberg|Librivox|Amazon

Guest Post: SEVENTEEN by Booth Tarkington

noreply@blogger.com (Tasha B.) — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 11:00:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1914

Genre: satire

Topics: love, teenagers, small towns

Review by Liz Inskip-Paulk (http://ravingreader.wordpress.com/):

Having seen Booth Tarkington’s name mentioned in various places over the interwebs, I thought I would delve into his work and see what it was like. Somehow in the Lucky Dip of choosing, I ended up with this volume (written in serial form in 1914), and it was a fun little jaunt into earlier times and the mind of a young man who is deeply in puppy love with a visiting girl up the street.

With an omniscient PoV to enable the reader to see all, Tarkington has done a good job of satirizing the importance of one’s First True Love when you’re young, and all the complicated situations that are fraught with disaster as one tries to navigate that. Your parents are awful. Your little sister is a continual embarrassment. Your friends are rivals and the world is out to humiliate you at every turn. Oh, how we probably all remember these days regardless of which gender we are…

William S. Baxter is almost 18 and lives with his parents in a small town in Iowa. He has a young sister who is uninhibited with regard to his “secret” crush and joyfully young in her approach to the world and to her elder brother. William is a typical teenager, it seems, for he regards the world around him guardedly and is very over-reactive to life and its trials. (How important things seemed back then when you’re in the midst of teenaged emotions!)

Tarkington has a good eye for teenaged angst, especially the more-innocent angst of the early 20th century: the glance that a girl (and the one you love) was loaded with meaning, your friends were everything to you, and your parents were just impediments to your social stature (although well meaning at the same time).

So William is in love with visiting Miss Pratt who has a small white dog that she carries everywhere and who speaks in baby talk all the time. Miss Pratt is also very pretty and fully aware of the social powers that she carries with the local pack of teenaged boys who cluster around her all the time. This pack of young men consists of William and his friends and the existence of Miss Pratt throws their small world into confusion: they are both rival and friend to each other…

Although this volume does not really have any deep meaning to it, it’s a fun and light-hearted satire of Young Love in Small town America during a more innocent time. (And – it must be said – it was also a lot funnier than I had anticipated.) It also reminded me of other “Prairie writers” such as Willa Cather, Sinclair Lewis et al. although not sure if they overlap time-wise and they are a trifle more serious, and his humor reminded me of Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer (although they were published much earlier).

Tarkington, however, was a writer of his times which means that there are some frequent cringe-inducing descriptions and dialogue of African-American help especially the Baxter family’s handyman called Genesis. It’s not surprising to read when one views in a historical context, but it still creates a jarring read to come across this so smoothly integrated into an otherwise really good book.

Outside that, I enjoyed the read. Tarkington had a great sense of humor that came through in his portrayal of Willie and his tormented love life that summer. Tarkington ended up being quite a prolific writer and was named by Publisher’s Weekly as “the most significant contemporary American author” in 1921. Additionally, he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize two times, once in 1919 for The Magnificent Ambersons and once in 1922 for Alice Adams, neither of which I have read but I think I own the earlier book. I’ll need to check the bookshelves….

Download Seventeen by Booth Tarkington at Project Gutenberg|Librivox

The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton

noreply@blogger.com (Iris on Books) — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 09:00:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1905

Genre: Fiction; Women's History

Topics: Spinsterhood, Relationships, Women, Social History

Review by : Iris on Books

There are qualities to The House of Mirth that reminded me of other books around the theme of single women at the turn of the century, such as Thank Heaven Fasting, Consequences, The Third Miss Symons. How do you survive as a girl who is unmarried, and yet brought up for the exact purpose of marriage and nothing else? How to navigate the world of social conventions, of dos and don’ts for women? And how to deal by the time you are relegated to the sidelines of society because you are considered of unmarriageable age or reputation?

Some might call these books bleak. Others might complain about the lack of power in these girls and the unlikeability of the main characters. For me, the themes, characterisation, the painful realism are what made me love Thank Heaven Fasting and Consequences. It is what made me raise my hopes for The House of Mirth to, perhaps, unrealistic heights. I had a more complicated relationship with Wharton’s novel, and with its main character Lily Bart than I had with the books by E.M. Delafield, although it far outranks The Third Miss Symons. Look, perhaps Delafield style just suits me a little better. Perhaps I treated The House of Mirth unfairly by constantly comparing it to the books I had previously read. It is not that I did not enjoy The House of Mirth, or that I did not absolutely love parts of it. By the end it had wholly convinced me. It is just that it would be unfair not to mention my complicated relationship with other parts of the book.

Lily Bart does not lack agency like some might complain Alex Clare and Monica Ingram lack it. She does not subdue to circumstances, or at least, she holds out a little longer. She makes a lot of choices, for herself,for what she believes are her own best interests. Perhaps this is where Lily became a complicated character to like for me. So often she makes decisions that you, as a reader, realise are not for her own good, that at times it becomes hard to believe in her naivety, and to not fall into the trap of condemning her like the society surrounding her might (but which is also always from hindsight, knowing more than Lily does because you have seen this type of story before). The story is written in a way that, for a long time, makes you question whether or not Wharton is condemning her as a “silly” girl, that shouldn’t have been allowed to make these decisions in the first place.. Of course, deep down there were challenges to that socially condemning narrative, and possibly the fact that it makes the reader uncomfortable to be – almost – pushed into the camp of society is what is meant to happen. The fact is: I did not always feel sympathetic towards Lily. And I wanted to feel more sympathetic towards her. Which for part of the story just left me feeling very very conflicted.

On top of that, I felt the story dragged a little in the middle part. In part, this might have been due to my own circumstances, as I had a very difficult time reading anything beyond 10 pages a night at the time when I read The House of Mirth. When I finally settled down and made myself read more than those 10 pages, I quickly fell into the pace of the story again. Nevertheless, I do think it was not all me. Some episodes of circumstances, of choices made that might have been better left undone, were a bit heavy on the details, might have been just a tad shorter to my taste.

But then the latter third of the story happened. And it shook me so deeply. I do not think I will be giving away much when I say that this is a tragic story. Because of that tragedy, being witness to the disintegration of Lily’s life out of prejudice, circumstance, unforgivingness.. my feelings of empathy suddenly leaped and made up for what I had felt was lacking through parts of the story. It cast The House of Mirth in a very different light for me. And whereas previously I feared having to come on here and proclaim to the online world that I knew I should have loved The House of Mirth, but couldn’t, I knew that I might face a much more difficult task: namely admitting that I couldn’t like parts of it, but that I irrevocably loved the ending, and that that ending made me reconsider much of what I felt had been lacking in some other parts. I can see how perhaps the very ending might turn others of (too melodramatic for some, perhaps?), but for me, the last third made the book.

I know, this post lacks any coherent exploration of themes, or any meaningful criticism. But I think Edith Wharton is famous enough, and probably discussed in many a high school, that I need not bother doing that (or perhaps I dare not? – I feel bad enough about saying that I felt some parts of the book dragged a little). If the themes in the first paragraph interest you, if fiction exploring the position of women at the beginning of the twentieth century is of interest to you, if you like books that critique social circumstances, I think you should probably read this. I won’t say you’ll definitely like it, because I know my own feelings about it are all over the place, but I definitely think it is worth a try.

* Cross-posted to Iris on Books.

Review: THE GREEN RUST by Edgar Wallace

noreply@blogger.com (Tasha B.) — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 11:00:00 +0000

Original Publication Date: 1919

Genre: science fiction

Topics: Germanic horde, WMDs

Review by heidenkind:

What is the green rust? I don't know. No one knows! It's the McGuffin, okay? It's a bad thing that will destroy THE WORLD, and the nasty Dr. Van Heerden is determined to unleash it... just as soon as he marries Oliva Cresswell. But will Oliva chose him or the mysterious Mr. Beale? Questions!

The Green Rust is the first book I've read by Edgar Wallace, who I take it was the James Patterson of his time (wrote tons of books, was worth millions of dollars). It was soooo pulpy, you guys. If Wallace can find a way to go for shock value, even if it makes no sense in the context of the story, he will do it. For example, the first few chapters run like this: Chapter one, an old billionaire struggles to share his final words, but dies just before he can get them out. But does he die? No, he was murrrrderrred! Chapter two: evil dude is evil and like five guys break into Oliva Cresswell's apartment, why? Who knows. But one of them shows her the green rust!

"What is the Green Rust—what can it do? she asked in bewilderment.
"I hope we shall never know," he said, and in his clear eyes was a hint of terror.

Dun dun dun! Chapter three: Oliva goes to work as normal, because that's what you do when your apartment has been broken into multiple times in one night and you've been shown the green rust, whatever it is--and is fired for no reason! Then three people accost her on the street and offer her jobs involving very little work and double her last salary. Wut?

And you know how Stephen King once said the road the hell is paved with adverbs? Well, if that's true I think Wallace might at the very least be in purgatory, because The Green Rust is flush with adverbs along the lines of, '"Gross!" Oliva exclaimed disgustedly.' Oh, she's disgusted? Wouldn't have guessed that one just from the dialog, thanks.

All that being said, though, I really enjoyed this novel. It's totally cheesy and predictable, but it's also super fun. It has the same sensibility as Scooby Doo or Flash Gordon. Yeah, maybe the writing isn't the best, but the characters are likable: Beale is such an appealing hero, even showing suggestions of being a feminist by referring to Oliva as a partner and saying he never thought of her as a victim. And Van Heerden is so over-the-top evil I couldn't help but warm up to him. Like a German Grumpy Cat (technically he's Dutch, by the way, but hey, close enough).

After Oliva escapes Van Heerden, the book became all about Beale finding the green rust and putting a stop to it, or something, and the story slowed down to a crawl because I didn't really care about the green rust. Other than that, though, I thoroughly enjoyed The Green Rust for what it was, which is over-the-top pulpy entertainment. Worth the read if that sort of thing appeals to you, I think.

Download The Green Rust by Edgar Wallace at Project Gutenberg|Librivox