Reading the 20th Century discussion

Great stuff, Susan. I voted for the novellas as I'd read the other choices by Zweig already, and have heard very good things about them.

I have read very little, so looking forward to reading them (I have read, "Chess," but that's all).

And let's face it, this sounds incredibly enticing...


...five startlingly tense tales - meditations on the fragility of love, the limits of obsession, the combustibility of secrets and betrayal...

#yesplease

Yes, indeed, Nigeyb. I am looking forward to all of our Buddy Reads so far. Especially to an Elizabeth Bowen which I have not read before. The good thing is that we have a real choice of short, easy to join in with, reads, and some more substantial ones for those of us who like a really long book!

Susan wrote: "Thanks, Nigeyb. That makes our updated Buddy Read list..."


Thanks Susan for your updated list of buddy reads (in message 50)

I notice you've left out Muriel Spark which is due to take place in Feb 2018

I think Stefan Zweig should actually be in March 2018 which makes the complete list of all forthcoming RTTC reads look like this...

December 2017

The People's Songs: The Story of Modern Britain in 50 Records by Stuart Maconie (Mod read)
Rain by W. Somerset Maugham (Buddy read)

January 2018

Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf (Group read)
The End of the Affair by Graham Greene (Mod read)
A World of Love by Elizabeth Bowen (Buddy read)

February 2018

A Far Cry from Kensington by Muriel Spark (Buddy read)
Virginia Woolf by Hermione Lee (Buddy read - starting w/c 29th January 2018 - reading four chapters per week of 40 chapters in total - so will last for 10 weeks (ending on Sun 15 April 2018))

March 2018

The Collected Novellas of Stefan Zweig by Stefan Zweig (Buddy read)

Is this correct?

Thanks

Oops, sorry about that! So many books already, but I certainly shouldn't have left out Muriel Spark.

Susan wrote: "Oops, sorry about that! So many books already, but I certainly shouldn't have left out Muriel Spark."

No worries Susan. Thanks for clarifying.

We do have so many exciting books to look forward to in the coming weeks and months.

I must admit that I am especially excited about reading more Muriel Spark, having thoroughly enjoyed the previous two books I read by her (Memento Mori & The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie).

I am excited by all of them and really looking forward to re-reading The End of the Affair and reading more Elizabeth Bowen.

I have only read one of Elizabeth Bowen's novels, so I am particularly looking forward to that one.

The End of The Affair-yep, happy to re-read that too.

Never read any Murial Spark or Elizabeth Bowen so tempted to join in with those.

We are aiming to tempt you, Roisin, so that's good. We still have Group reads and Mod reads unlisted for Feb and March, so lots of goodies to come.

Just a reminder that our December Buddy Read Rain will open tomorrow. However, from January, our Buddy Read threads will open mid-month, so we don't have every discussion starting at the same time and to help you plan your reading.

Susan wrote: "I think you and I had also spoken of The World Broke in Two: Virginia Woolf, T. S. Eliot, D. H. Lawrence, E. M. Forster and the Year that Changed Literature by Bill Goldstein as a possible future buddy read"

Susan, I've finally managed to get hold of this from the library. It's set during 1922, the year that Woolf starts writing Mrs Dalloway so I'd like to read it this month ahead of our January group read and wonder if you or anyone else is still interested in a buddy read? I appreciate it's late notice so would understand if there are no takers.
Excluding notes, the text is 294 pages, so not too long if you/anyone fancies slipping it into this month's reading. Sorry for being disorganised!

Roman Clodia wrote: "Susan wrote: "I think you and I had also spoken of The World Broke in Two: Virginia Woolf, T. S. Eliot, D. H. Lawrence, E. M. Forster and the Year that Changed Literature by Bill Go..."

I have this book but haven't really gotten into it yet.

RC, I have just been invited to a Buddy Read of Full Dark House:, which has been sitting on my kindle for years (literally) but, as you know, I did really want to read The World Broke in Two: Virginia Woolf, T. S. Eliot, D. H. Lawrence, E. M. Forster and the Year that Changed Literature. SO tempted. I am crazy busy at the moment, at work and with school stuff, but I will do my best to join in.

I do like the link to Mrs Dalloway too. I will set up a thread later, RC, although I suspect you might complete it before me.

Brilliant - I do hope you can fit it in. I read the introduction on the tube last night and it feels like an engrossing read. Thanks so much for setting up the discussion thread - and being so patient with me! I'm the first one to get it from the library so it's a lovely brand-new hardback, gorgeous and tactile 😊.

Roman Clodia wrote: "I'm the first one to get it from the library so it's a lovely brand-new hardback, gorgeous and tactile 😊."

Little pleasures eh RC? I love it when that happens.

It is definitely a book I want to read, RC. I will try to start it this week, but it might be next week before I get going :)

Susan and I were discussing a buddy read of Room at the Top by John Braine which I nominated for the Feb 2018 group read but which is highly unlikely to win. That said, I have no idea when exactly we'd try to fit it in. Anyway, I mention it in case anyone else is tempted to join in too....

Room at the Top - a novel by John Braine, first published in the UK in 1957, about the rise of an ambitious young man of humble origin, and the socio-economic struggles undergone in realising his social ambitions in post-war Britain.

A film adaptation was made in 1959, followed in 2012 by a TV film. The film version launched the new wave of Kitchen Sink drama.

It's a short book - just 240 pages - so a quick read. I am confident this will powerfully evoke the 1950s (e.g. the class structure, ongoing rationing etc).

The novel is set in a period when class boundaries were clearly defined and social mobility was difficult. In a time when the effects of World War 2 were still evident, it's hardly surprising that the luxuries afforded the wealthy were coveted, and spawned a generation of Angry Young Men who lashed out at a world stacked against them. However, though his desire for a better life drives Joe forwards and allows him to break into the insular society at the top it is at a significant cost to himself.

Room at the Top is one of the best known examples of social realism in literature, a style that flourished in Britain in the 1950s. The powerful picture of Dufton, Joe's hometown, is of a stale and stagnant place, whose inhabitants go mindlessly about their business.



John Minton's cover art from the first edition was restored and used on the new edition by Valancourt Books in 2013.

Definitely keen, Nigeyb. I am 'fitting in,' two extra buddy reads at the moment (!), but I am certainly very happy to join in. It could slot in nicely as an extra buddy read for either January, or February (when it would also fit in with the 1950's theme?). Just suggestions.

Susan wrote: "Room at the Top by John Braine could slot in nicely as an extra buddy read for either January, or February"

Thanks Susan - shall we say January?

That way Room at the Top would start mid-Jan and be a great lead in to the February group read about the 1950s

So January 2018's packed reading options would like this....


January 2018

Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf (Group read)
The End of the Affair by Graham Greene (Mod read)
A World of Love by Elizabeth Bowen (Buddy read)
Room at the Top by John Braine (Buddy read)

Going to be busy, but lots of fun. I am looking forward to the challenge, Nigeyb :)

The kind of can-do attitude that contributes to your legend Susan


The good thing is that it gives everyone here at RTTC plenty of choice.

I am still undecided about whether to have another crack at Mrs. Dalloway or A World of Love by Elizabeth Bowen having not enjoyed previous attempts.

However I feel positively enthused at the prospect of The End of the Affair and Room at the Top

Other members will have a very different perspective - so I hope there's something for everyone.

I am certainly ready to plunge into Mrs Dalloway again, as I am loving - adoring - The World Broke in Two.

Well, I’m already reading Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway, in order to participate in the discussions. But I’m realistic: there is no way I could copy with the readings schedule of my fellows readers in RTTC. Now I know why: Susan has a legend status in this matter...

Susan habitually reads between 225 and 290 books a year.


#legend

Just a reminder of all our books coming up in the New Year (not only Buddy Reads, but also group reads):

January:
Group read on London - Mrs Dalloway: Virginia Woolf
Mod-led read The End of the Affair: Graham Greene
15 Jan - Buddy Read: A World of Love: Elizabeth Bowen
15 Jan - Buddy Read: A Room at the Top: John Braine

Feb:
Group read on 1950's: Adrift in Soho: Colin Wilson
Mod Led Read A Fine Day for a Hanging: Carol Ann Lee
14 Feb - Buddy Read: A Far Cry From Kensington: Muriel Spark
1 Feb - Virginia Woolf: Hermione Lee (long biography, which we aim to read over 10 weeks)

March:
15 March - Buddy Read: The Collected Novellas of Stefan Sweig

There are a couple of interesting books due out later in the year concerned with suffrage:

Rise Up Women!: The Remarkable Lives of the Suffragettes Rise Up Women! Rise Up Women!: The Remarkable Lives of the Suffragettes

Out 8th Feb:

Between the death of Queen Victoria and the outbreak of the First World War, while the patriarchs of the Liberal and Tory parties vied for supremacy in parliament, the campaign for women's suffrage was fought with great flair and imagination in the public arena.

Led by Emmeline Pankhurst and her daughters Christabel and Sylvia, the suffragettes and their actions would come to define protest movements for generations to come. From their marches on Parliament and 10 Downing Street, to the selling of their paper, Votes for Women, through to the more militant activities of the Women's Social and Political Union, whose slogan 'Deeds Not Words!' resided over bombed pillar-boxes, acts of arson and the slashing of great works of art, the women who participated in the movement endured police brutality, assault, imprisonment and force-feeding, all in the relentless pursuit of one goal: the right to vote.

A hundred years on, Diane Atkinson celebrates the lives of the women who answered the call to 'Rise Up'; a richly diverse group that spanned the divides of class and country, women of all ages who were determined to fight for what had been so long denied. Actresses to mill-workers, teachers to doctors, seamstresses to scientists, clerks, boot-makers and sweated workers, Irish, Welsh, Scottish and English; a wealth of women's lives are brought together for the first time, in this meticulously researched, vividly rendered and truly defining biography of a movement.

Hearts And Minds: The Untold Story of the Great Pilgrimage and How Women Won the Vote
Hearts And Minds: The Untold Story of the Great Pilgrimage and How Women Won the Vote

Out 11th Jan

Set against the colourful background of the entire campaign for women to win the vote, Hearts and Minds tells the remarkable and inspiring story of the suffragists' march on London.

1913: the last long summer before the war. The country is gripped by suffragette fever. These impassioned crusaders have their admirers; some agree with their aims if not their forceful methods, while others are aghast at the thought of giving any female a vote.

Meanwhile, hundreds of women are stepping out on to the streets of Britain. They are the suffragists: non-militant campaigners for the vote, on an astonishing six-week protest march they call the Great Pilgrimage. Rich and poor, young and old, they defy convention, risking jobs, family relationships and even their lives to persuade the country to listen to them.

This is a story of ordinary people effecting extraordinary change. By turns dangerous, exhausting and exhilarating, the Great Pilgrimage transformed the personal and political lives of women in Britain for ever. Jane Robinson has drawn from diaries, letters and unpublished accounts to tell the inside story of the march, against the colourful background of the entire suffrage campaign.

Fresh and original, full of vivid detail and moments of high drama, Hearts and Minds is both funny and incredibly moving, important and wonderfully entertaining.

(Author Jane Robinson wrote Bluestockings: The Remarkable Story of the First Women to Fight for an Education and A Force To Be Reckoned With: A History of the Women's Institute, both of which I loved).

If anyone is interested in either of the above, it would be nice to choose one as a buddy read to celebrate the anniversary of women's suffrage this year?

The Balliols by Alec Waugh covers the suffragette movement quite a bit. A good story which I would definitely recommend.

I'd be very happy to read either of the books you mention, Susan. My preference would be slightly for Hearts and Minds though, because I haven't read much about the Suffragists, who played a vital role too - it seems that there is a lot more material available about the militant Suffragettes. I wonder if there is a book which combines both?

Judy wrote: "I'd be very happy to read either of the books you mention, Susan. My preference would be slightly for Hearts and Minds though, because I haven't read much about the Suffragists, who played a vital ..."

There may be, Judy. I personally would rather read something factual, rather than a novel. I don't feel I know enough about the subject and that was why my interest was piqued by the two new titles, coming out for the anniversary. Also, I really like Jane Robinson and my preference would be for her book too.

Susan, I agree that I'd also like to go for something factual, and Hearts and Minds sounds very interesting.

I have previously read Emmeline Pankhurst's autobiography, which was fascinating and quite an eye-opener, but I didn't really warm to her as an individual. Also interesting that her campaign was mainly focused on getting the vote for middle-class women, although she did feel they could also fight for better conditions for poorer women.

Judy wrote: "Susan, I agree that I'd also like to go for something factual, and Hearts and Minds sounds very interesting.

I have previously read Emmeline Pankhurst's autobiography, which was fascinating and q..."

I think Val would agree with you. I am really interested to discover more. I think I will read the Robinson book, but if members want to read another book about the subject then we could all chip into the discussion. Is there an anniversary date?

Susan, I believe it was Val who pointed this out about Pankhurst when we read the book in another group - the book was quite an eye-opener to me.

Susan wrote: "If members want to read another book about the subject then we could all chip into the discussion."

I like this idea, and it would solve the problem of having to wait for these new books to come into the library. I've somehow never read any non-fiction on suffrage so this would be an ideal opportunity.

So, just to recap. Our Buddy reads so far are:

January:
15 Jan - Buddy Read: A World of Love: Elizabeth Bowen
15 Jan - Buddy Read: A Room at the Top: John Braine

Feb:
14 Feb - Buddy Read: A Far Cry From Kensington: Muriel Spark
1 Feb - Virginia Woolf: Hermione Lee (long biography, which we aim to read over 10 weeks)

March:
15 March - Buddy Read: The Collected Novellas of Stefan Sweig

April:
15 April - Buddy Read: Hearts and Minds: The Untold Story of the Great Pilgrimage and How Women Won the Vote: Jane Robinson (or the book of your choice related to women gaining the vote in 1918).

There was no General Election in 1918 until December, so I was thinking that we just go with the general anniversary of 1918. How is that?

I would be interested to read Hearts and Minds, my library has it on order so hopefully it will be there for April. (I think you have a typo in your post, Susan, and we will be starting 15 April)?

Thanks for pointing that out, Pamela! Yes, that's right, 15 April.

The Act of Parliament was passed in February, the election was in December, after the war ended, so the whole of 1918 is valid as an anniversary. The only reason for moving it later than April might be that people can't get hold of the book by then.
I have asked my library to buy a copy. If they can't find the budget for it, I might buy the hardback copy instead of the kindle version and donate it to them after I have read it.

If people can't get the book (it is out January, so April gives everyone a few months) then an alternative title can be substituted. If anyone does want us to shift that particular Buddy Read by a couple of months, then I am happy to do so - let me know.

April sounds good to me - and if I can't get hold of the designated book, I'll go with a couple that are in my local library: Votes for Women which is by Virago and consists of primary sources, and The Suffragettes In Pictures. Looking forward to this.

Susan wrote: "January 2018:


15 Jan - Buddy Read: A World of Love by Elizabeth Bowen
15 Jan - Room at the Top by John Braine"

We are going to open up the two mid-Jan 2018 buddy reads on Saturday morning (13 Jan 2018), so we all have the weekend to post any initial thoughts and reactions.

A World of Love by Elizabeth Bowen

In a writing career that spanned the 1920s to the 1960s, Anglo-Irish author Elizabeth Bowen created a rich and nuanced body of work in which she enlarged the comedy of manners with her own stunning brand of emotional and psychological depth.

In A World of Love, an uneasy group of relations are living under one roof at Montefort, a decaying manor in the Irish countryside. When twenty-year-old Jane finds in the attic a packet of love letters written years ago by Guy, her mother’s one-time fiance who died in World War I, the discovery has explosive repercussions. It is not clear to whom the letters are addressed, and their appearance begins to lay bare the strange and unspoken connections between the adults now living in the house. Soon, a girl on the brink of womanhood, a mother haunted by love lost, and a ruined matchmaker with her own claim on the dead wage a battle that makes the ghostly Guy as real a presence in Montefort as any of the living.

* * * * * * * * * *



Room at the Top by John Braine

Room at the Top - a novel by John Braine, first published in the UK in 1957, about the rise of an ambitious young man of humble origin, and the socio-economic struggles undergone in realising his social ambitions in post-war Britain.

A film adaptation was made in 1959, followed in 2012 by a TV film. The film version launched the new wave of Kitchen Sink drama.

It's a short book - just 240 pages - so a quick read. I am confident this will powerfully evoke the 1950s (e.g. the class structure, ongoing rationing etc).

The novel is set in a period when class boundaries were clearly defined and social mobility was difficult. In a time when the effects of World War 2 were still evident, it's hardly surprising that the luxuries afforded the wealthy were coveted, and spawned a generation of Angry Young Men who lashed out at a world stacked against them. However, though his desire for a better life drives Joe forwards and allows him to break into the insular society at the top it is at a significant cost to himself.

Room at the Top is one of the best known examples of social realism in literature, a style that flourished in Britain in the 1950s. The powerful picture of Dufton, Joe's hometown, is of a stale and stagnant place, whose inhabitants go mindlessly about their business.

See you on Saturday 13 Jan 2018

Susan wrote: "So, just to recap. Our Buddy reads so far are:"


Now with added Rose Tremain....

January 2018

15 Jan - A World of Love by Elizabeth Bowen (Buddy read)
15 Jan - Room at the Top by John Braine (Buddy read)
19 Jan - Sacred Country by Rose Tremain (Buddy read)


February 2018

1 Feb - Virginia Woolf by Hermione Lee (Buddy read - starting w/c 29th January 2018 - reading four chapters per week of 40 chapters in total - so will last for 10 weeks (ending on Sun 15 April 2018))
14 Feb - A Far Cry from Kensington by Muriel Spark (Buddy read)

March 2018

15 March - The Collected Novellas of Stefan Zweig by Stefan Zweig (Buddy read)
15 March - The Human Factor by Graham Greene (Buddy read)

April 2018

15 April - Buddy Read: Hearts and Minds: The Untold Story of the Great Pilgrimage and How Women Won the Vote: Jane Robinson (or the book of your choice related to women gaining the vote in 1918).

We are also thinking of doing another Elizabeth Bowen novel The Heat of the Day, possibly in May.

Susan wrote: "We are also thinking of doing another Elizabeth Bowen novel The Heat of the Day, possibly in May."

That one's been on my TBR list for a couple of years now. I started it once but didn't get far and got distracted by something else and never got back to it. May would probably be a good time to get back to it so count me in.

OK, great, Lynaia. I will add it to our Buddy Read list.

Now with another Elizabeth Bowen....

January 2018

15 Jan - A World of Love by Elizabeth Bowen (Buddy read)
15 Jan - Room at the Top by John Braine (Buddy read)
19 Jan - Sacred Country by Rose Tremain (Buddy read)


February 2018

1 Feb - Virginia Woolf by Hermione Lee (Buddy read - starting w/c 29th January 2018 - reading four chapters per week of 40 chapters in total - so will last for 10 weeks (ending on Sun 15 April 2018))
14 Feb - A Far Cry from Kensington by Muriel Spark (Buddy read)

March 2018

15 March - The Collected Novellas of Stefan Zweig by Stefan Zweig (Buddy read)
15 March - The Human Factor by Graham Greene (Buddy read)

April 2018

15 April - Buddy Read: Hearts and Minds: The Untold Story of the Great Pilgrimage and How Women Won the Vote: Jane Robinson (or the book of your choice related to women gaining the vote in 1918).

May 2018

13 May - Buddy Read: The Heat of the Day by Elizabeth Bowen

As January draws to a close, don't forget that we have one more Buddy Read to come.

29 Jan - Virginia Woolf by Hermione Lee (Buddy read - starting w/c 29th January 2018 - reading four chapters per week of 40 chapters in total - so will last for 10 weeks (ending on Sun 15 April 2018))

https://www.lrb.co.uk/v19/n02/jacquel...

A review to whet the appetite!