Call me Ishmael . . . .

That's right, on the recommendation of a friend who believes it's one of the best books ever written, I'm trudging my way through "Moby Dick." I'm about 200 pages in . . . and I can't say that I'm enthralled with the book, but lots of great books start slow. More to follow . . . maybe.

David Copperfield

It's been a while since we've heard anything from anyone, but we're going to give it another go with a new book: David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens. In his introduction to this book, Dickens notes that while parents love all their children, they often have a favorite, and "David Copperfield," is his favorite "child." David Copperfield is also recognized as the most autobiographical of any of Dicken's novels. This will be my second read through the book, which I love, and I hope other's will enjoy it too. We're going to start reading immediately, and we'll try to post comments as we go along. We'd love to hear your comments as well.

Here are a couple of quotes from the novel just to get you interested:

" . . . Ride on! Rough-shod if need be, smooth-shod if that will do, but ride on! Ride on over all obstacles, and win the race!"

"I hope that real love and truth are stronger in the end than any evil or misfortune in the world."

"Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show."


P.S. Jackie and I just finished reading the unabridged version of The Count of Monte Cristo (1400 pages) ... another very good read and we loved it!

Crossing to Safety

With the limited input from the few faithful readers, we have decided that we will give Wallace Stegner a chance and read "Crossing to Safety" as our next book. It's not too long, only about 300 pages, so let's try to have it finished by the end of February.

New Books for the New Year!?

Hi All:

Jackie and I made it through 4 of the 5 Dickens "Christmas" books and enjoyed each of them to varying degrees. While the Christmas Carol is certainly a classic and we enjoyed it thoroughly, we really liked Cricket on the Hearth (which turns out that it's nothing like the cartoon short movie), and the Battle of Life. Both have some interesting twists at the end of the books that you don't expect, and both have something valuable to teach. Cricket on the Hearth gives good advice on how to deal with difficulties in marriage (look inward, not outward, and look for the best in your chosen companion), while the Battle of Life teaches something about the joy that comes of self-sacrifice for the benefit of another. Hopefully, if you didn't read either of these, this might be sufficient encouragement to pick them up and plow through them...after all, they're really pretty short.

Now, on to the new year. We need to decide on the next book or books that we would like to read. I'll start with a couple of suggestions. I've heard good things about the following two Wallace Stegner books: (1) Angle of Repose; (2) Crossing to Safety. I hear they are both pretty quick reads. So there's my suggestions. What does everyone else want to read?

A Christmas Carol

I just finished reading it. Has anyone else read this one yet?


Okay, I'll post my comments, or at least some of them.

I have to say that my favorite part of the book was Dicken's description of Scrooge watching his nephew's family play Blind Man's Bluff. It was such an amusing, detailed and real description that I could almost imagine being there myself. I actually laughed out loud during some of it.

I admire how upon meeting the frightening ghost of Christmas future, Scrooge was brave and humble enough by that point to follow and learn the lessons the ghost had to teach him despite his fear. I think as Scrooge followed the ghost and listened in on conversations in the town about a man who had recently passed away, deep down he knew who they were talking about but hoped that it was not so. By that time he was so determined to change and avoid his fate he hoped the ghost would show him a new future.

I also thought it interesting that Dickens made the ghost of the future the most frightening of all. Are more people more afraid of what the future holds than the past or present? My guess is that they are. The past may be terrible for some, but it's over and done. I think the future can be daunting because fear really is just not knowing what is going to happen in the future.

A Start on A Christmas Carol

I have now read two pages of the book. I completely agree with Dickens when he says that the nail on a coffin would be much deader than a doornail, but who am I to change tradition? Although now that I think of it, the nail on a coffin is probably covered with all kinds of bacteria and maggots and such, so perhaps it isn't so dead after all. Sorry, I really am taking this seriously. Jackie, when do you find time to read?

Chimes revisited......Tintinnabulation....

I am making good headway...but struggling. Don't get me wrong its a good story; it just might be the 2am readings or kids bouncing around me or the 1800's English. But I am having a hard time gaining that wow factor.

I love the idiomatic expressions and the catchy phrases that stick in my mind like, "It's Tripe!". or the moiling Trotty who you get the feeling somethin lucullan is about to happen with Trotty Veck!

Tell me what you guys like so far and maybe that will help me get into it even more.