By
Nancy,
'A
combination of intellectual fireworks and magnetic readability' says
The Guardian
When
I was attending my creative writing course we were asked to bring in
our favourite book, read our favourite passage and of course say why
we loved it so much. One of my classmates came with this book and
the excerpt she read fascinated me so this is why I have suggested it
for us.
I
haven't read any reviews or book club questions for us, as I often
find too many spoilers. Thank you Sue for your patience in re
reading another story, I hope you find some new points and enjoy it
as much the second time around.
A
S Byatt won the Booker Prize and the Irish times/Aer Lingus
International Fiction Prize in 1990,
so
I'm looking forward to good things !!
Hello Nancy and Katie
ReplyDeleteHave you stopped going to the creative writing class, Nancy? What a good idea it was to ask you all to read an extract from your favourite book. What are your favourite books, ladies? I couldn't answer that question off the top of my head, but "Possession" would be right up there with the contenders. I'm really looking forward to reading it again, Nancy, so don't think I'm being patient. Much of it is set just up the coast from where we live.
The only problem is getting hold of a copy. The library has failed again, so I've ordered through Amazon but it might not be here until the end of the month. It's a big book. And we leave for another trip on 28th October, so I might be a little late posting. I apologise in advance.
How's Benjamin, Katie? And Franklin? Are you back at work yet? I can't imagine having the energy to do all you must be doing now. Good luck with everything.
And thanks again, Nancy, for choosing the book.
Love to you both
Sue
Hello,
ReplyDeleteWhat a great question Sue, I have been pondering it for a few days and have come up with my top three favourite books. It appears quite an eclectic selection, nevertheless , it is what it is !!!
My first favourite is Dracula by Bram Stoker, weird huh considering I really do not like horror stories. I've owned the "Psycho" DVD for six months now and still haven't the courage to watch it !!! haha. There was something that captivated me with the Dracula story and I was scared but too intrigued to stop reading.
My second choice is To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. There seems to be many books in this genre but this one I truly enjoyed for its wit and warmth.
Thirdly, this choice seems a little off beam for me as well , but it is Avenger by Frederick Forsyth. I became immersed in this story of intrigue that roamed the globe and the past and present from the conflict and atrocities in the Bosnian war to the tunnel rats in the Vietnam war to modern day USA. It was a great read.
So there is my top picks, thanks Sue for allowing me to reflect on lots of great books I have read. I do sometimes wonder though how much a sense of place and time plays in our enjoyment of certain stories and the stories that truly resonate with us. I wonder if I were to read my choices now how I would feel?
I remember a comment you made Katie in your re reading of "Geisha", of still enjoying the story but perhaps for different reasons. It is interesting, perhaps every 10 years or so we should re read our favourites just to see.
Sue, my creative writing class was only a short course of eight weeks, although I am hoping my tutor will run more of these, I enjoyed the writing very much, not so much the reading of my work.
I hope all is going well with you both and your families are well. It sounds as if you and Jay are enjoying a few excursions Sue, good on you hope you have fun. I trust Benjamin is the cutest baby in the world [we all think so ].
love to you both
Nancy
Hello Ladies
ReplyDeleteI’ve only just noticed this exotic, romantic background, which goes so well with the book cover of our current novel. If the pattern’s been there a long time, I apologise. Looks really good, Nancy. Thank you.
My copy of “Possession” has just arrived, but on Friday (the 18th, not the 28th) we leave for our second round of visiting friends in more southerly places in England. I’m fairly certain, then, that I will post late this month. However, I promise to read the entire thing this time; and I won’t flip to the end either.
My creative writing class runs at the same time as school terms here – we just enroll every term. I regard it as essential therapy. I’m losing words, so it’s good for me to use what I have left. I’m with you, though, Nancy: love the process of writing, but am intimidated, still, by reading it out.
I’m impressed with the breadth of your choice, Nancy, and feel very bad that I’ve read only “To Kill A Mockingbird”, which I loved. I’ll try to read the others, though I feel a little daunted by “Dracula”. Not good on horror. My own choices, as you wisely point out, are very much governed by the time and place in which they were read. Of course, some books are so powerful that they entirely transcend the time and place one is in. I read Malcolm Lowry’s “Under the Volcano” and was in Mexico even though I was continents away. It’s so long since I read it I haven’t put it in my top three, but as a result of this consideration feel motivated to read it again. And it’s years since I read Barbara Kingsolver’s “Poisonwood Bible”, set in the Congo, but again I can remember how much it affected me.
I can’t really separate the top three books, so I’ll put them in the order in which I think I read them. Graham Swift’s “Waterland” is from when I was making wedding arrangements. Set in the U.K., it looks at motivation for human behavior. Couldn’t have been more relevant. I think I was also abroad when I read Adam Thorpe’s “Ulverton” – essentially a novel about the history of nineteenth/twentieth century English rural life told through a variety of voices. Perhaps I was feeling homesick. It is very moving. More recently Marilyn Robinson’s “Gilead” narrated by a retired pastor in America had a great impact. Perhaps it was the narrator’s marvellous self-knowledge, his insights into other people in his life. Excellent book.
However, all these novels are deeply rooted in time and place, and all examine how we live. There should perhaps be a bit more variety here. It’s my dislike of books using fantasy, of worlds beyond our own, that’s limiting my choices. I should be a little more adventurous, get out of my comfort zone. But then, as you both know, I complain as soon as I’m asked to read something that for me is a little different.
It’s a good job I’m in a club with more adventurous readers.
How is Benjamin growing, Katie? This must be a terrific time – change, growth, recognition . . . is he making those babbling noises babies make when they’re practising speech sounds? I can’t remember what age babies are when they do that.
Take care ladies.
Much love
Sue
Hello to you both!
ReplyDeleteI’m terribly sorry as I too will be late with this novel! Unfortunately Benjamin has begun to rebel against nap time (my primary reading time). I’ve only just entered the 200s of this 500 page book. Other than our fights with napping, Benjamin has been nothing but a joy to us. Our little 7lb 2oz bambino is now 12lb 9oz and 3 inches longer! He “talks” all the time and is very animated. I unfortunately return to work on the 31st. I am very reluctant to go but I know I have to.
It’s very hard for me to pick ONE favorite book. So instead I will give favorite books based upon genre. Murder/mystery: Under Cover of Darkness by James Grippando
Historical fiction: The Queen’s Fool by Philippa Gregory (although I love just about anything involving the Tudors)
Shakespeare: Macbeth (of which I have several small portions memorized)
Classic: Villette by Charlotte Bronte (I think the biggest reason I love this novel is that it doesn’t follow the stereotypical happily ever after ending. My favorite sentence in the Afterword is: “A woman like Lucy does not get a man like Dr. John, and that is that.”)
Greek Drama: Medea by Euripides
Poem: The Lady of Shalott by Alfred, Lord Tennyson (yes I have actually read this poem and think it is beautiful despite its sorrowful end. I am very much enjoying its reference in Possession)
And then of course Trashy/smutty/beach read: The Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series by Laurell K. Hamilton. Certainly no timeless collection of literary brilliance but enjoyable when you just need something that doesn’t require much thought.
I honestly cannot remember if I ever read Dracula. But I do remember reading Frankenstein and enjoying that surprisingly a lot. Sue, so far I am greatly enjoying Possession. I loved the story of the Glass Coffin. I’m also enjoying the snippets of poems and other literary works throughout the novel.
I’m sorry for throwing so much at you both. I can talk about books incessantly. One of the reasons I fell in love with George House was because of the huge built in bookshelf in the family room. My hobby is reading. Every year I read one piece of classical literature (I am able to read multiple books simultaneously). Last year I finished the Iliad and the year before that Don Quixote.
Sue I hope your trip is enjoyable! Nancy, hope the kids are doing well at school and having an enjoyable year. Much love to your husbands. I hope to get this reading done as quickly as I can so we can discuss it!
Take care-
Katie
Hello Ladies
ReplyDeleteHow are you both? Getting cold here, so must be warming up nicely for you, Nancy.
Wonderful range of reading, Katie - very much enjoyed your great enthusiasm for such a variety of texts. Hope Benjamin is allowing you some time to read. How’s he doing? You will have returned to work by now. Hope it’s not too hectic. And we enjoyed our trips to the south of England, thank you: great hospitality from old friends in some lovely, colourful autumn weather.
I’ve had a great time reading “Possession”: terrific writing on every level – plot, characters (even if some were a little stereotypical they created humour), variety of styles and genres, settings – including the timelessness of Yorkshire (just voted third in the Lonely Planet’s list of areas in the world to visit). Loved some of the poetry, especially Christabel’s less fantastical stuff: “I like things clean about me/Starched and gophered frill/What is done exactly/Cannot be done ill” just about sums up some of life's days; as does: “This is our doom/To Drag a Long Life out/In a Dark Room”. On the other hand, the loveliness of life is there: “And his face took the brightness of her glance/As dusty heather takes the tumbling rays/Of the sun’s countenance and shines them back.” (Lots of heather here in Yorkshire.) “Mummy Possest” is a convincing dramatic monologue - its consideration of the position of women – indeed the book’s consideration of the position of women – is sensitively insightful –recalling, for me, witches in earlier times. The theme of possession is just wonderfully developed - as is the plot, which could be summarised as if the book were a bodice ripper. No doubt this contributed to the success of the film.
I should tell you that I have some Whitby jet earrings – tiny flat pieces of black encircled with silver. Nothing like the carved stuff mentioned, which costs an arm and a leg these days. My earrings were an extravagance, but we were in Whitby and you know how it is . . .
Going back to the idea of possession – I sympathise so much with Christabel and Maud’s reluctance to have the orderliness – the white bed – and hard won emotional and financial security encroached upon, indeed completely destroyed, by relationships with men. (I do note that Roland liked the idea of the white bed, too, but Roland was the financially dependent partner in his relationship with Val.) The need for equality within relationships, to be able to surrender without being possessed, is paramount. To a great extent, this seems to depend on both partners having equal financial as well as emotional power. Clearly, the approach characterised in Leonora’s life style does not necessarily lead to that.
Where do we think the relationship between George and Joan Bailey fits into this consideration of possession?
Ladies, Jay and I are undertaking a long trip this winter. We’re leaving for Oman late November, then visiting Malaysia, India and perhaps Brunei, where we used to work. Brunei’s in the process of implementing Shariah Law, so I’m a bit reluctant to visit in case I’m signalling approval. I won’t get back home until late January. (Jay’s not coming back until April!) So, I’ll send the introductory pieces to my book choices to you, Nancy, before I leave, and should be able to post whilst I’m travelling. One place has no Internet connection because it is so remote, but otherwise there shouldn’t be a problem.
And should I make some more reading suggestions? You made lots some time back, Katie, and may be too busy right now.
Thank you for a great read, Nancy. I look forward to hearing what you both have to say about the book.
Hello,
ReplyDeleteSince reading both of your favourite book choices I find my reading list just keeps getting longer and longer. I have just finished Ann Patchett's State Of Wonder, about the Amazon and I have a copy of the Poisonwood Bible from a book sale, I will get to it soon, when I've returned home from the Amazon that is.
Katie, I admire your extensive reading choices, so many wonderful books we need to find the time for. I have made a few unsuccessful attempts at Don Quixote, maybe another time will be right for me. Did you enjoy it?
Sue, how exciting your winter adventure sounds !!! It sounds like Jay has found the perfect solution for surviving the English winter season. We tropical people don't do well living in a freezer !!! haha
Now to Possession.
This wonderful story took me an age to read, mainly as I spent so much time with Google open beside me and became easily sidetracked reading bio's and poems and histories. Correcting my ignorance on what exactly a fen, a beck, a fosse, a wold, a mere and a moor are/were led me into much time spent on images and I was so gobsmaked by the beauty of Yorkshire. I can easily see why Lonely Planet voted this a must see area. Sue, you are blessed to live in such a place, have you explored many of the places mentioned in Possession ? Did you grow up in Yorkshire ? I have added it to my T T D B I D list [things to do before.......], maybe one day the Katuzans' caravan will pay you and Jay a visit !!!!!
I digress. I also enjoyed Christabel's simpler poems and found The Fairy Melusine too influenced by Ashes style. I have to be honest though for me, maybe a few too many poems. I found myself distracted trying to decipher meaning instead of enjoying the poems for their own sake.
Sometimes I found the story jumped around a little too much for me as well and I often felt rushed to return and find out what was going on with Maud and Roland and at times Randolph and Christobel. These are more my own quirks than any real criticism of a totally enjoyable book.
A S Byatt's skill as an author are unquestionable, and her knowledge of her subject so expansive I found with my limited knowledge of English literature I felt out of the club, so to speak, and surely missed many clues and cues.
There is so much I enjoyed about this novel. I thought Leonora was a gigantic colourful splash across Maud's well ordered white world. There were times Leonora made me uncomfortable, maybe I'm more like Maud, I certainly like my ducks all in a row !
I am looking forward to more discussions on the many layers of this story.
love Nancy
Hello Nancy and Katie
ReplyDeleteHow are you both? Benjamin must be pounds and inches bigger. Has he made recognisable words yet? And how are you coping as a working mother, Katie?
Nancy, Jay says you do not need to bring a caravan - you and Yves are only too welcome to our spare bedroom whenever you choose to visit. We recommend the summer, of course, which happily coincides with your winter and Jay's residence in the U.K.
I did grow up in Yorkshire, but I was about nine years old before the family owned a motor bike and sidecar and we went into the Dales and Moors. My brother has a static caravan in a gorgeous area as a weekend retreat. Occasionally, we retired people use it during the week: very, very beautiful. The same brother was a boy scout and spent boyhood weekends in places like Boggle Hole. As we know, everywhere has its own beauty. Still, on a good day in late August when the heather's out the Moors are spectacular - and there are some excellent pubs.
With reference to the story jumping around a bit, you don't have that trouble on a second reading! And I'm with you, Nancy - I like my ducks all in a row. A wonderful phrase that - I will use it in my writing class - acknowledging the source, of course.
One of the layers in the story seems to be the relationship between business and art - historically a fraught subject and particularly relevant today as Britain sells off its heritage. Do we think the business people were caricatures, or sympathetic people? Euan, Val, Cropper . . . So many characters. I don't know how the author kept track of them all. And what is the role of business in art? We wouldn't want to return to the days of having to find a rich patron - and yet we seem to have done just that in having to have grants for everything. Finding money for research into art history (or indeed anything that doesn't guarantee cheaper fuel bills or longer life) seems to be as difficult as its ever been.
I'm rambling - it's late and I'm waiting for Jay to return bringing his nephew and an as yet unknown friend as weekend guests. The unknown guest is vegetarian and doesn't eat garlic or onions, which rules out just about every vegetarian thing I cook. I was going to do an insipid macaroni cheese, but Jay raised the point that lots of Malaysian don't eat cheese. I think the plan is that they'll pick up a Chinese takeaway and we will discuss future meals whilst eating that.
I bet Maud never had these problems.
Take care of yourselves ladies
Sue
Hello,
ReplyDeleteHope all is well.
We are in the middle of an electrical storm at the moment, so I hope we don't lose power before I finish this comment.
Sue, you raise some interesting questions, firstly of George and Joan Bailey's relationship to the possession theme. I'm not sure, there is the desperate attempt to remain in possession of their ancestral home even if it means a penniless existence, when surely money from the sale would enhance Joan's life.
Is it the possession of history ?
Sir George seems willing to sell the letters, is this because he deems them unimportant to the family history?
He is obsessed with his woods and all the exotic trees in his possession. There are so many different paths to follow in this story, so many interesting characters.
This brings me to the next part of your question Sue, the business people in the story.
There was Cropper's obvious need to possess all of Ashes remains, I didn't like him very much.
I'm afraid it is my own bias when it comes to Ewan, not only am I sceptical of lawyers but, he is also part owner in a race horse and involved in gambling, sadly my own prejudices took hold and I tagged him as a swindler and untrustworthy. There you go , how's that for broad generalisations, not to mention grossly unfair.
It is interesting to note on the subject of business and art, Sue our recent stoush over the George Stubbs 1772 paintings. Nine million dollars later the UK is in 'possession' of two paintings of a dingo and a rather dubious looking kangaroo. There are so many quality artists left languishing because they fail to impress the power people. We really do not seem to have moved very far forward since the power people of old dictated the artists work.
Sue, thank you and Jay so much for the offer of a place to lay our heads in Yorkshire, one day we will be knocking on your door. Of course, you know if you feel like an adventure in Oz we would love to see you , that includes you and Franklin and Benjamin as well Katie. I would love to show Benjamin a real live Grandma Poss and Hush [ Sue, this is a reference to a loved Australian children's book by Mem Fox called Possum Magic]
Hope to hear from you soon Katie,
love Nancy
Hello to you both!
ReplyDeleteSorry for being so tardy! I should be better with our future books since I have a forty five minute commute (each way) for work on the train. That is how I get the bulk of my reading done. Benjamin and Franklin are both doing well. Leaving the baby every day for work is difficult but what can you do? And when I get stuck at work late, knowing he is at home without me makes it harder to be there. O well, right?
Nancy, I know this is a weak reason, but I didn’t much care for Don Quixote mostly because of the anticlimactic ending. Sue, all of your upcoming adventures sound super exciting! Have a lovely time.
Sue, you ask about the Baileys in relation to possession. I don’t think we see enough of their relationship to decide anything. But I think they might have that relationship equality that you talked about. With the first floor of the home made wheelchair accessible it seems that Joan is still able to contribute to the maintenance of their life. This would enable Joan and George to have a partner relationship and not a care-taker/patient relationship.
In terms of lovers, I feel the only character in danger of being “possessed” was LaMotte. Ash was a very dominant character whom I felt did want to possess LaMotte. Luckily for her, LaMotte was also a very strong-willed individual and therefore did not allow Ash to own her. As for Maud, Roland held no threat to her. He seemed to be a very weak individual. He may be able to become an equal partner to Maud once he chooses one of the jobs offered to him but it is my opinion that he could never possess her. If she had stayed with Ferguson, then Maud would indeed be in a possessive relationship. He was a rather forceful character.
In my research on this novel, it is felt that Maud and Roland “mirror” LaMotte and Ash. Do either of you agree with this view? The two certainly travel in the footsteps of the poets, chasing them all over the country side. Maud and Roland also become lovers as LaMotte and Ash did. Is this enough to say they mirror the poets? I certainly feel that Ash and LaMotte were equals in regards to their powerful personalities but I would say Roland was a weaker being than Maud.
Besides the romantic possession, what did we think about the possessive attitudes among the academia? Especially between Blackadder and Cropper over Ash and between Maud and Leonora over LaMotte? All of these individuals seemed to feel that they had the right to own these poets. However, possession is the wrong word to describe these relationships. I think maybe obsession is a better description. This is especially possible in Cropper’s case. The man is willing to defile a grave just to get a piece of Ash.
Again, I’m so terribly sorry for being so late!! I will be better with our next story.