Dianne’s Comments (group member since Sep 18, 2021)

Dianne’s comments from the The Obscure Reading Group group.

Oh my goodness thank you so much, Cindy that really helps a great deal!

I enjoyed the magical realism that is found in other Latin American literature, and was amused that at this point in the book, there is not a lot that has happened with all of the digressions and sidebars. I think if you had to write the plot so far it might take one page. I think the characters are amusing and it's interesting how they all came together and aligned forces so readily. The plot to be turning in the book as far as whether and how they will survive, and if so, if they will do so as a continued unified force. The dog is also a standalone character - I wonder if it is supposed to symbolize something?

I'm in for comrade!

Thanks Ken! I may think about changing my vote given the standings. I was totally sidelined timewise from participating in the last read unfortunately so looking forward to joining this one.

I would like to nominate The Mandarins by Simone de Beauvoir. I have wanted to read this for ages!

I finished this first section and I have to say I'm not a fan. Everything seems disjointed to me and a bit bizarre - like the brief recounting of the child murder, and then brief notation that the wife had lost her senses and moving onto the next thing. I'm not finding the characters to be particularly lovable, particularly the narrator.

I have the Oxford Illustrated Dickens version, which is 118 pages and matches the contents Kathleen posted. :)

I took my two girls to Taylor this past May and .... I doubt it!

I'm in! Thanks Ken!

I had to pause for work but am willing to resume if anyone is still interested..,

I wonder if our protagonist is aware of how others perceive him, or if he would even care. Maybe he was so burned by his first love that he just closed off to people. It's interesting, he has achieved exactly what he wanted, but he is still... longing, lonely. I think underneath it all he does want real human connection.

I think one can easily be created anew ! it's like a totally different chapter with a new environment new people new ways to spend your time etc. Somehow the isolated sea vibe is reminding me of the Magus.

Book just arrived! Snuggling in with my lighted candle and tea and starting this tonight.

Reading schedule looks great. Thank you!

Just ordered my copy! Amazingly, I have never read Murdoch.

I'm just finishing chapter one, so way behind you guys (where are we supposed to be now?). I admire the translator, especially for the poem sections! It is reading like a religious tome or parable to me so far.

Thanks Darrin! I have wanted to read this for many years and I think it's perfectly suited for a group read.

Sounds great, I'm in!

Cherisa wrote: "Plateresca wrote: "What do you all make of Giacinto?

I've found an article that might be interesting to discuss, here are some excerpts (I do not necessarily agree with each and every word here):
..."

Why do you think they chose to continue to make their lives a prison after their father died? I could see a sense of duty while he was alive, but once he passed? It's odd to me that this entire novel revolves around the three women, but they really don't have much character at all, and it's those surrounding them that are really the core actors in the book.

Plateresca wrote: "What do you all make of Giacinto?

I've found an article that might be interesting to discuss, here are some excerpts (I do not necessarily agree with each and every word here):
“My husband is like..."

To me, this seems like a bit of a stretch - the author saying that her husband still looks youthful isn't saying he's in a state of arrested maturation, and it's hard to say where that conclusion was drawn from. As for the brothers, of course anyone that's stuck in addiction of any kind won't be able to progress, so I think that's a different story than what we see with Giacinto who has difficulty accepting responsibility, although honestly when he moves away, I think he rises to the challenge, to some extent, and he does have cognizance of his debt. At a minimum it seems that he is no longer incurring additional debt or causing additional harm once he moved away. I think he also ultimately opted to marry out of a sense of responsibility.