Sunday, April 27, 2014

BW18: House of Mirth by Edith Wharton






 

The 18th novel in Susan Wise Bauer's list of fiction reads from her book The Well-Educated Mind is The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton.  The story was published in 1905, serialized first in Scribner's Magazine.  She wrote over 40 books in 40 years and was the first woman awarded the Pulitzer prize for fiction.


Chapter One



SELDEN PAUSED in surprise. In the afternoon rush of the Grand Central Station his eyes had been refreshed by the sight of Miss Lily Bart. It was a Monday in early September, and he was returning to his work from a hurried dip into the country; but what was Miss Bart doing in town at that season? If she had appeared to be catching a train, he might have inferred that he had come on her in the act of transition between one and another of the country-houses which disputed her presence after the close of the Newport season; but her desultory air perplexed him. She stood apart from the crowd, letting it drift by her to the platform or the street, and wearing an air of irresolution which might, as he surmised, be the mask of a very definite purpose. It struck him at once that she was waiting for some one, but he hardly knew why the idea arrested him. There was nothing new about Lily Bart, yet he could never see her without a faint movement of interest: it was characteristic of her that she always roused speculation, that her simplest acts seemed the result of far-reaching intentions.

An impulse of curiosity made him turn out of his direct line to the door, and stroll past her. He knew that if she did not wish to be seen she would contrive to elude him; and it amused him to think of putting her skill to the test.

"Mr. Selden--what good luck!"

She came forward smiling,eager almost, in her resolve to intercept him. One or two persons, in brushing past them, lingered to look; for Miss Bart was a figure to arrest even the suburban traveller rushing to his last train.

Selden had never seen her more radiant. Her vivid head, relieved against the dull tints of the crowd, made her more conspicuous than in a ball-room, and under her dark hat and veil she regained the girlish smoothness, the purity of tint, that she was beginning to lose after eleven years of late hours and indefatigable dancing. Was it really eleven years, Selden found himself wondering, and had she indeed reached the nine-and-twentieth birthday with which her rivals credited her?

"What luck!" she repeated. "How nice of you to come to my rescue!"

He responded joyfully that to do so was his mission in life, and asked what form the rescue was to take.

"Oh, almost any--even to sitting on a bench and talking to me. One sits out a cotillion--why not sit out a train? It isn't a bit hotter here than in Mrs. Van Osburgh's conservatory--and some of the women are not a bit uglier." She broke off, laughing, to explain that she had come up to town from Tuxedo, on her way to the Gus Trenors' at Bellomont, and had missed the three-fifteen train to Rhinebeck. "And there isn't another till half-past five." She consulted the little jewelled watch among her laces. "Just two hours to wait. And I don't know what to do with myself. My maid came up this morning to do some shopping for me, and was to go on to Bellomont at one o'clock, and my aunt's house is closed, and I don't know a soul in town." She glanced plaintively about the station. "It is hotter than Mrs. Van Osburgh's, after all. If you can spare the time, do take me somewhere for a breath of air."

He declared himself entirely at her disposal: the adventure struck him as diverting. As a spectator, he had always enjoyed Lily Bart; and his course lay so far out of her orbit that it amused him to be drawn for a moment into the sudden intimacy which her proposal implied.

"Shall we go over to Sherry's for a cup of tea?"

She smiled assentingly, and then made a slight grimace. "So many people come up to town on a Monday--one is sure to meet a lot of bores. I'm as old as the hills, of course, and it ought not to make any difference; but if I'm old enough, you're not," she objected gaily. "I'm dying for tea--but isn't there a quieter place?"

He answered her smile, which rested on him vividly. Her discretions interested him almost as much as her imprudences: he was so sure that both were part of the same carefully-elaborated plan. In judging Miss Bart, he had always made use of the "argument from design."



Continue reading chapter one here.


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Sunday, April 20, 2014

BW17: Pick a random book

Fabric Book covers

Happy Easter!  With the end of lent, my book buying ban for the year is officially over.  Unofficially, the ban didn't work very well, nor did my books cooperate as they reproduced like rabbits.   I have a tendency to shop when I'm depressingly stressed because it makes me feel soooo much better.   After finishing the taxes and writing a humongous check to the IRS last week, I had the need to meander through the Barnes and Noble shelves without any certain book destination in mind.  It's an interesting exercise because you'll never quite know what book is going to call your name.  This one by Mike Shevdon, a new to me author,  jumped out at me and after reading the first page, had to get it.





Synopsis:  After a heart attack, Niall Petersen is revived on the London Underground by an old lady who tells him he’s not entirely human. The old lady turns out to be much older than she appears, and explains that he has inherited the bloodlines of the Feyre, creatures of myth and folklore.

Now one of those creatures is hunting him and he must find a way for him and his daughter to survive. To succeed he must discover the secret of the two knives, one blunt, one sharp, the six horse-shoes, and why there are Sixty-One Nails.

I also tried out an interesting experiment in the science fiction/fantasy section by counting over 3 sections and down 2 shelves to the 15th book in the section.  There I found Anne Bishop's Written in Red and was instantly captivated.  




Synopsis:  As a cassandra sangue, or blood prophet, Meg Corbyn can see the future when her skin is cut—a gift that feels more like a curse. Meg’s Controller keeps her enslaved so he can have full access to her visions. But when she escapes, the only safe place Meg can hide is at the Lakeside Courtyard—a business district operated by the Others. 

Shape-shifter Simon Wolfgard is reluctant to hire the stranger who inquires about the Human Liaison job. First, he senses she’s keeping a secret, and second, she doesn’t smell like human prey. Yet a stronger instinct propels him to give Meg the job. And when he learns the truth about Meg and that she’s wanted by the government, he’ll have to decide if she’s worth the fight between humans and the Others that will surely follow. 


So, my challenge to you this week is go to the library or book store and pick a book based on its cover or its position on the shelf.  To choose a book based on its position on the shelf, decide in advance -  the genre, two numbers between 1 and 5,  and then a 3rd number between 1 and 30. Using those numbers, count over that certain number of sections in the aisle, go down that number of shelves and count to the 3rd number and that's the book you'll get.  Have fun!


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Sunday, April 13, 2014

BW16: Book News

Efteling in Netherlands

I'm elbow deep in tax land this weekend and would much rather be having fun at Efteling in the Netherlands.  I just discovered the park during my armchair travels and have added it to my list of dreams places to go.  Another dream place on my list is Ireland since many of my great great's originated from there.  I think we still have cousins long removed in Cork County somewhere.  I don't know why it is, but when I think of Ireland, poetry comes to mind.  Which brings me to Seamus Heaney, 1995 Nobel Prize winner and Irish poet who passed away last year, and would have been 75 years old today. 

He shares his birthday with Irish playwright Samuel Beckett as well as Thomas Jefferson and Eudora Welty.

From my meanderings around the blogosphere:

Poetry that Moves Men to Tears ~ 100 poems including one from Heaney as well.

Future Legends of Russian Literature at the London Book Fair.

During the Los Angeles Festival of Books this weekend, the 2013 Innovator's Award went to John Green and the 2013 Book Prize Winner in fiction is Ruth Ozeki for A Tale for the Time Being.

Kurt Vonnegut died 7 years ago and Brainpickings highlights a 1974 interview on limitations of the brain and why the universe exists.   Plus they found a 1926 recording of Dorothy Parker reading Inscriptions for the Ceiling of the Bedroom.

Happy reading! 


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Please link to your specific book review post and not your general blog link. In the Your Name field, type in your name and the name of the book in parenthesis. In the Your URL field leave a link to your specific post. If you don't have a blog, tell us about the books you are reading in the comment section of this post. 


Sunday, April 6, 2014

BW15: Armchair traveling through 15th Century England



Are you ready to dive into the 15th Century (1401-1500) with me and Sir Thomas Malory.  I was perusing my shelves the other day and ran across an old copy of Le Morte D'Arthur inherited from my late mother-in-law.  I love the front cover which states it is  'the Heroic and Lusty epic of King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table.'  The pages are quite yellow and the print is very small, so much so that I think I'll let it continue to languish in its glory on the shelves and download a version to read on my ipad.   I also found a wonderful site  ~ Arthurian Legends ~ with fine art drawings created in the 40's by belgian artist Francoise Taylor, plus links to many informative arthurian websites.

Since I'm also armchair traveling over to England this month, I've discovered a wealth of historical fiction at historicalnovels.info and the always informative Goodreads list of 15th Century popular literature.   

And my backpack is overflowing with a wide variety of books set in England from Elizabeth Chadwick's historical The Greatest Knight to Margaret Frazer's 15th century first book in her Dame Frevisse's series - The Novice's Tale to Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway,  Jacqueline Winspeare's A Lesson in Secrets and Suzanna Clark's Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrel.  I may just end up settling down in a cozy cottage on the heath for a month or two or three.  *grin*   We'll see. 

Join me in reading a book set in the 15th Century and/or England.

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Please link to your specific book review post and not your general blog link. In the Your Name field, type in your name and the name of the book in parenthesis. In the Your URL field leave a link to your specific post. If you don't have a blog, tell us about the books you are reading in the comment section of this post.