I'm really glad you said that. I am reading The Tale of Genji, and enjoying it, but it's going to take me awhile to finish, and that's OK with me. Genji is an interesting character. I find it quite fascinating to think of this long ago, well-bred Japanese widow writing the first novel ever, and what a book it is!
Last edited by qimissung; 02-08-2012 at 12:40 AM.
"The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its' own reason for existing." ~ Albert Einstein
"Remember, no matter where you go, there you are." Buckaroo Bonzai "Some people say I done alright for a girl." Melanie Safka
I don't think Forsyte Saga was mentioned. And that's a very long read. There's also Thakeray's Vanity Fair, an old favourite of mine. And I didn't see David Cooperfield on the Dickens list. All very pleasant passtimes.
How about something gothic in the shape of the Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peake. That is a read that will stay with you for the rest of your life and has some of the best characters committed to paper.
"Mere flim-flam stories, and nothing but shams and lies." - Sancho Panza, in Don Quixote, pt. 1, bk. 3, ch. 11 (1605)
Hi rootinghogOriginally Posted by rootinghog
Thanks for your comments. I understand what you mean about these longer books not necessarily being do-able in a month. I guess I'll see how I get on. In any books, long or short, there are differences in their density. So, for example, it took me a long(ish) time to read Tess of the D-Urbervilles last year, which is about 350 pages long but very dense, but probably the same amount of time to read 1Q84 which is significantly longer but a bit more lightweight. So I suspect certain books will be more difficult to absorb (say Infinite Jest, Ulysses) than others (The Old Curiosity Shop, for example, or even The Tale of Genji). I do get a lot of reading time, however, thanks to my commute which gives me about 1hr 40 minutes reading time each day.
Genji, well, what an excellent read. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I've read a fair amount of Japanese literature so I have a bit of a grounding though I doubt it prepared me that well for the cultural differences. That being said, it is well rooted in romance and there's a sadness about it, a sense of things becoming less bright, less 'shining'. I think the translation will have an impact on your reading experience. I picked the Seidensticker translation after reading examples from each of the three main translations and deciding which one 'flowed' best for me (I don't know if it's the most accurate, but for me it was the most readable). I think that helps. It had good notes too, regarding the origins of the poetics which appear throughout the book. Overall it was an excellent read. One to recommend.
Not sure what I'm moving on to next. The book club is reading Midnight's Children so that's a distinct possibility, though for some reason I really, really want to read The Magic Mountain so we'll see. Firstly, however, I'm going to read some of the short stuff
So, mammoth read progress so far:
1. The Tale of Genji - 1169 pages
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Independent People, which was recommended by the people in the forum when I made a post about Scandinavian authors. It was a good piece, no doubt, but way too long for me XD I barely finished one-tenth of the book. I will definitely try to finish it this year, though.
Not only Les Miserables, but Hunchback of Notre Dame. I hate the fact that Victor Hugo's stories just HAS to be so long. Urgh! He's a really good writer but seriously, I want shorter versions which are still literary! T.T
Congratulations on finishing the first mammoth!That just may inspire me to pick up Genji later this year. And thanks for Seidensticker recommendation-- I'd tried Royall Tyler's, which is said to be "accurate to a fault" (with a burdensome amount of footnotes and additional materials). For my part, I now feel motivated to spend my year communing with the unknown monsters on my bookshelves-- Mason & Dixon, Something Happened, From Here to Eternity, Doctor Zhivago, Winter's Tale, Petersburg, Demons, Bleak House, Genji... but I'll certainly drop in for discussions of Don Quixote, Infinite Jest, Gravity's Rainbow, and Ulysses, which make up some of my all-time favorites.
Also: I wouldn't worry about the fact that you weren't too fond of Broom of the System-- as someone who has read (and adores) Infinite Jest, The Pale King, and most of DFW's non-fiction, I will admit that I couldn't finish that novel, as I found the tone of self-conscious show-offiness pretty insufferable. He cast that off early in his career, though, and IJ is a serious and mature (and very fun) work, although it does require patience and dedication. I look forward to discussing it with everyone!
February update:
1. The Tale of Genji - 1169 pages
2. Midnight's Children - 647 pages
Phew!
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Okay, you have inspired me! I've had Les Miserables and Tom Jones on my shelves for a couple years now. Time to start in on them...
So, I'm struggling to decide what to read for March. Part of me would like to read Middlemarch, as it's nearly the middle of March and it seems appropriate, but mainly I don't want to read something that long because, well, I'm just too tempted to read Spring Snow by Mishima and Hopscotch by Julio Cortazar and they're both pretty long books if not long enough to meet my mammoth challenge.
Hmm. Maybe I'll read The Old Curiosity Shop. Or The Poisonwood Bible. Any Poisonwood Biblers out there who'd like to join me?
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My challenge is to ready the 100 Books You Must Read Before You Die. I've started . . . not going from 1 to 100, but picking out what fits my mood at the time. I've heard Ulysses is quite the beast. I don't know if I have that mood or not!!
Tried to read that one twice... Third time might be the charm.
Is April too late for you, Fifth?
~
"It is not that I am mad; it is only that my head is different from yours.”
~
April sounds good to me Scher. I'll hang on to it until then.
Still not sure what to read in March
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I'm starting Gravity's Rainbow on Monday, if you're still interested in doing a group reading.
A Suitable Boy. Simply loved it.April sounds good to me Scher. I'll hang on to it until then.
Still not sure what to read in March
I am getting a copy of Poinsonwood ready for April!
~
"It is not that I am mad; it is only that my head is different from yours.”
~
I am reading Tom Jones at the moment and have 300 pages left to go.Okay, you have inspired me! I've had Les Miserables and Tom Jones on my shelves for a couple years now. Time to start in on them...
I had been meaning to read this book for a long time as well.
Tom Jones is written in the picaresque style and was a big influence on Dickens's earlier novels.
As for Le Mis, it's Hugo's masterpiece and should be required reading for everyone.
Get stuck into those weighty tomes and you will be surprised how quickly you can make a dent on them.
Fifth Element, how about Proust's 'Remembrance of Things Past' ?
Over 3,000 pages of 'action packed' reading!
Of all the books I have read, finishing the final volume of this work has afforded me the most feeling of accomplishment. I even have pictures of myself with the books:
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