The Year of Reading Proust discussion

Marieke wrote: "Thanks, Proustitute...I was thinking about this this evening after reading further in Proust's Overcoat: The True Story of One Man's Passion for All Things Proust on my train ride home. i was wonde..."

I have it, Marieke, and I am hoping to read in shortly. I'll keep you posted!

it's got PICTURES!

ETA: also, it's short. you can probably finish it within a day. i couldn't wait to read it, so i'm reading it on the train so it will take me a few days to finish it. although i think i decided to give up on one of my other books tonight. i'm just not enjoying it. :(

Proustitute wrote: "@Marieke and @Kris

There's a really great interview with Lorenza Foschini, author of Proust's Overcoat: The True Story of One Man's Passion for All Things Proust, in The Paris Review here."

Ooh - thank you!

Yes! What Kris said!

Also, I love Paris Review interviews.

I'll have to get these supplementary materials after I've read the collection. I really enjoyed Kristeva's Powers of Horror: An Essay on Abjection, so I'm looking forward to her Proust and the Sense of Time.

Proustitute wrote: "On this journey through the Recherche, I might want to read Eric Karpeles's Paintings in Proust: A Visual Companion to In Search of Lost Time alongside Proust.

Julia Kristeva's Proust and the Sens..."

Have any of you read Deleuze's Proust and Signs: The Complete Text?

If so, is it better to read AFTER completing all the volumes of ISOLT, or is a concurrent reading reasonable?

Proustitute wrote: "Jim, I think it's best to read after ISOLT. It's a wonderful book, but it may ruin ISOLT for you."

Thanks P! I'll schedule it for December 2013...

I've just ordered the Lydia Davis translation of Madame Bovary. I have the original but found my French wasn't quite up to tackling it without a translation alongside. Found myself having to consult the dictionary too frequently to get into the flow.

I thought it would be good to read prior to starting the Recherche; Flaubert was an important influence on Proust, right? In any case, it's daft that I haven't read this, so it's a good excuse...

i read Madame Bovary in college with one of the best professors i ever had and really enjoyed it. i would love to read the Lydia Davis translation and it would definitely be interesting to do that prior to reading ISOLT.

This sounds good to me as well.

Good idea, Proustitute. And glad to hear you're also interested, Marieke and Kris! I've opened a new thread in the preliminary readings forum.

Joshua wrote: "Good idea, Proustitute. And glad to hear you're also interested, Marieke and Kris! I've opened a new thread in the preliminary readings forum."

Great! I just bought the ebook of the translation.

You people really have turned into a very bad influence on me. i really can't say no to things like this.

Marieke wrote: "You people really have turned into a very bad influence on me. i really can't say no to things like this."

Group-readers Anonymous...

Kris wrote: "Marieke wrote: "You people really have turned into a very bad influence on me. i really can't say no to things like this."

Group-readers Anonymous..."

i'm an enabler, you're an enabler... ;)

Kris wrote: "Great! I just bought the ebook of the translation."

I'm a stubborn Luddite in my preference for paper. But that instant-buy thing makes me very envious of you digital types! I'm going to be waiting ages for my book to show up. And it'll have been worried over by Australian customs, who are a bunch of infernal philistines. They once mindlessly confiscated the first volume of an four-volume encyclopaedia I'd ordered ...

Joshua wrote: "I'm a stubborn Luddite in my preference for paper. But that instant-buy thing makes me very envious of you digital types! I'm going to be waiting ages for my book to show up. And it'll have been worried over by Australian customs, who are a bunch of infernal philistines. They once mindlessly confiscated the first volume of an four-volume encyclopaedia I'd ordered ..."

That's awful! Did you get it back from them?

i'm totally multi-format in my reading habits. i really want bundling to become a reality! i think i will check my public library for e-lending (for instant gratification) and then order the paper version. because this is a book i would like to keep. (i had to set rules about books that may be collected in my household because i had become way too loose in my book-buying habits and it was bothering the mister haha)

Marieke wrote: "i'm totally multi-format in my reading habits. i really want bundling to become a reality! i think i will check my public library for e-lending (for instant gratification) and then order the paper ..."

So do I! I also sometimes buy books in e-formats and then buy non-e versions when they are books I really love. I need to try to get my library under control....

@Kris

No, but I ordered volume 1 again separately...so I did get the complete set eventually :)

@Marieke

Yes, it can get out of hand, can't it! What is bundling - does that mean if you buy the paper version you also get the digital version? That would be handy. One thing paper books don't have is a 'find' function.

We are getting a little offtopic though, aren't we...none of this is really related to Proust!

it's kind of a losing battle...but i do think having categories of books that i have given myself permission to buy and keep helps me enjoy my books more. i feel liberated, with no guilt! :)

yes, Joshua (apologies, i think we simulposted), that's exactly what i mean by bundling. there are definitely advantages to reading on a device, but it doesn't decrease my love for a well-crafted book. pretty covers and good bindings and all. :)

I'm a member of a very small book club, in a very small town in Ireland but in the year and a half of our existence we have read Vol 1 of ISOTL, Madame Bovary and The Master and Margarita (also Gate of The Sun, The Leopard and several others). I wish everyone here could join us. We meet again on Thursday to discuss Gide's Strait Is the Gate.

Declan wrote: "I'm a member of a very small book club, in a very small town in Ireland but in the year and a half of our existence we have read Vol 1 of ISOTL, Madame Bovary and The Master and Margarita (also Gat..."

What time? Should we bring red or white?

Red for me please Jim! You could instantly increase the membership by 20%.

It's a long drive from Bordeaux, but if I leave Tuesday morning, take the chunnel, then the ferry to Dublin, I should arrive in time, barring traffic back-ups.

BTW, are the other members of your book club going to join us in 2013? It would probably be fun to discuss here in GR and in real life with your friends.

I will suggest it to them, although not everyone was as enthusiastic about Proust as the person who chose the book and I were. The sister of that woman has written this book Proust Writing Photography: Fixing the Fugitive in a la Recherche Due Temps Perdu which I haven't read yet, but might if I can get a loan of it.

We have a member in France who reads each of our book choices and then sends her thoughts by email!

I'm about to read Gate of the Sun and i really like red wine. i wish i was independently wealthy with my own airplane....

If only, Marieke, you'd be most welcome. Well in case you'd like to read along, I'll let you in on a secret: since none of the book club members are on GR (except my friend in France), and it's my turn to pick a book, I can exclusively reveal that my choice will be Love's Work.

Declan wrote: "If only Marieke, you'd be most welcome. Well in case you'd like to read along, I'll let you in on a secret: since none of the book club members are on GR (except my friend in France), and it's my t..."

So now i see i will need a special Declan shelf. ;)

I've read much of the French critical writing about Proust, and I would say that unless you're an academic, avoid it. It is obsessively - even intentionally - obscure, and doesn't give much insight into the work.

Curiously, it's the English-language writers who have done the best job. How Proust Can Change Your Life is quite interesting, even if it's not about the text itself. Patrick Alexander's Marcel Proust's Search for Lost Time is excellent. And Roger Shattuck’s Proust’s Way: A Field Guide to In Search of Lost Time is quite good as well.

Samuel Beckett's Proust is interesting for those who are interested in Beckett, but it doesn't really help understand Proust very much.

Two books that might be added to the bookshelf. They are both slim French paperbacks, but are very useful.

Le Bottin proustien : Qui est qui dans la Recherche ? is a dictionary-type book that lists the characters in La recherche:

http://www.amazon.fr/gp/product/27103...

Le Bottin des lieux proustiens lists the places mentioned in La recherche:

http://www.amazon.fr/gp/product/27103...

Together, they make valuable reference books. They're each about 150 pages long.

Another related book I found interesting is a 400-page manga version of La recherche:

http://www.amazon.fr/gp/product/23020...

It's a manga, and it's a compressed version of the story, but as a different approach to Proust, I found it delightful.

aww manga would be fun!

weren't Becket and Proust friends? and wrote letters? or am i mixing something up. if i'm correct, are any of those letters published?

Marieke wrote: "aww manga would be fun!

weren't Becket and Proust friends? and wrote letters? or am i mixing something up. if i'm correct, are any of those letters published?"

No, Beckett was James Joyce's "secretary" for a time. Beckett's first book was his Proust essay, but he never met Proust; he was long dead by the time Beckett got to Paris.

Oh, okay! That's where I got mixed up.

Proustitute wrote: "On this journey through the Recherche, I might want to read Eric Karpeles's Paintings in Proust: A Visual Companion to In Search of Lost Time alongside Proust.

Julia Kristeva's Proust and the Sens..."

I just received the Karpele and it is WONDERFUL. Thank you.

Kirk wrote: "I've read much of the French critical writing about Proust, and I would say that unless you're an academic, avoid it. It is obsessively - even intentionally - obscure, and doesn't give much insight..."


Is this any good?

http://www.amazon.fr/Proust-monde-sen...

I think it is around the house somewhere, although I could not find it this w/end. May be not worth looking for it..

Kalliope wrote: "Kirk wrote: "I've read much of the French critical writing about Proust, and I would say that unless you're an academic, avoid it. It is obsessively - even intentionally - obscure, and doesn't give..."

I've not read that. However, on the same page, I see this:

http://www.amazon.fr/Lecture-Proust-G...

which is quite good.

Kirk wrote: "Kalliope wrote: "Kirk wrote: "I've read much of the French critical writing about Proust, and I would say that unless you're an academic, avoid it. It is obsessively - even intentionally - obscure,..."

Thank you.. Hopefully that is the one I have.. I know I have a paperback study bought ages ago, I just have to fing it now (some books in storage).. Actually, it may be that one, because the subtitle of the other one (monde sensible)does not ring bells...

I have them too. I think I'm more likely to dip into them than to read the whole book cover to cover, though...

Proustitute wrote: "Liberty wrote: "I'd like to read some of Madame de Sévigné's letters. Has anyone read any of them?"

I just got my copy of the Penguin translation today. Should we attempt an auxiliary or preliminary reading group for her letters?

I'm interested.

Proustitute wrote: "Liberty wrote: "I'd like to read some of Madame de Sévigné's letters. Has anyone read any of them?"

I just got my copy of the Penguin translation today. Should we attempt an auxiliary or prelimina..."

I'm basing this response on absolutely nothing concrete, but my instinct tells me these letters might be good to read in conjunction with Proust next year, rather than beforehand...

Proustitute wrote: "@Jim

I agree, though was curious was Elizabeth thought on the matter as she was the one who brought the letters up to begin with.

Either preliminary or auxiliary would work here.

I think Flaub..."

I agree. Upon reflection, I was thinking the letters would be nice to read side-by-side, so to speak, with Proust's prose. My French isn't good enough to read yet, but I'm very tempted to pick up a copy of Du côté de chez Swann and see if I can fake my way through a paragraph here and there.

I was reading the introduction to Davis' Madame Bovary this morning and I was thinking how this preliminary read will enhance the passages about the Verdurin's salon in Swann's Way, given Flaubert's attitude towards the bourgeoisie.

I greatly enjoyed The World of Marcel Proust by André Maurois. Not a critical work of course, but a nice introduction to the Proustian milieu. Radio Proust is a good online resource -- some wonderful videos.

Has anyone read The Proust Project? Apologies if this has been covered already.

David wrote: "I greatly enjoyed The World of Marcel Proust by André Maurois. Not a critical work of course, but a nice introduction to the Proustian milieu. Radio Proust is a good online resource -- some wonderf..."

Mon dieu! La Radio Proust est magnifique! Merci pour le lien...

http://www.radioproust.org/

Proustitute wrote: "Many thanks to Joshua, who has also kindly offered to help co-moderate the group, we now have an auxiliary bookshelf based on the titles mentioned in this thread: http://www.goodreads.com/group/boo..."

Proustitute, you may have said this already, but I cannot find it.. Would you recommend reading the Shattuck before or along or after?

Has anyone read Proust Among the Stars by Malcolm Bowie?

To the experts.. Proustite, Kirk et al.

Is this any good?... I found it in the house...Recherche De Proust

David, I've begun it but haven't gone far. It looks great! I just finished Joshua Landy's Philosophy as Fiction. Wonderful book. Wonderful endnotes, as well.