Never too Late to Read Classics discussion

Our book for October is Tristana by Benito Pérez Galdós .

I'll be reading this one.

I've read the first five chapters and so far so good.

Glad to hear that, Rosemarie.

I can't find my copy, I'm sure I had one with a black cover... will look again later!

I finished it! It is a very moving story.

I hope you find it, Jazzy.

I found it! I can't start it yet, as I'm reading 10 books at the moment, but as soon as I finish another one I will!

Tristana is beginning to break out from her life with Don Lope.

I like the way she discovers her own talents and personality.

I enjoyed following the joys and sorrows of Tristana. She is definitely her own person! I found the ending (view spoiler)[quite funny for some reason - with Don Lope taking care of chickens and Tristana learning cake-making! And they get married! "Perhaps" they are happy! (hide spoiler)]

I enjoyed the ending as well. Even the artist became domesticated.
It was a good choice for this month.

I agree, it was a good choice.

I didn't plan to read this one as I hadn't heard of it before and had a fairly full plate. But I decided that I had time to squeeze this one in since:
1) It's short and won't take much time;
2) Kathy and Rosemarie seemed to like it;
3) I discovered this is a book by the author of Fortunata and Jacinta which I had heard of; this short novel is a better way to sample the author's writing than the epic length F & J.

Rosemarie wrote: "I've read the first five chapters and so far so good."

I agree. I am enjoying the depictions of the characters. The style is clear and the third person narration is fairly clever.

I'm glad you're getting a chance to read it, Brian. The book is full of surprises too and the ending doesn't disappoint.

FINISHED THE BOOK - SPOILERS
I did enjoy this book, Rosemarie. The following is basically my review fleshed out a bit to include a few SPOILERS for discussion:

I found this novel, written in 1892, to be an odd and quirky yet highly enjoyable one. It is refreshingly short, more of a novella and moves briskly. This story is simple in its basic concept, a study of a love triangle, but it is much more complex in its application. The three parts of this triangle are different from characters I’ve previously encountered in other such romances.
The female title character, Tristana, is a woman with aspirations for life beyond the limited choices normally given women, cited in the novel as wife, actress or prostitute. The novel traces her romantic life and her development in response to a crisis affecting both these aspirations and her attitude toward love. I felt some identify with her through the story, but felt distant from her at the end
Her lover Horatio may be the most typical character and, at times, seems almost too good to be true. He is the least explored of the three main characters. However, I did identify with his character through much of the story as he seemed the most rational, the character whose reactions most resembled what I would think would be mine, At the end section the novel stops looking at his point of view. His final life choice is not fully explained but, based on what we have learned about his desires for a family, it is an understandable action.
The father/lover character of aging lothario Don Lupe is perhaps the most interesting and complex character. One can hate what he does or has done, but the novel portrays many of his actions as oddly well-intentioned. I found myself visualizing him as ‘the most interesting man in the world.’ Toward the end, it is his perspective that gets featured more and more.
I thought the novel’s end was appropriate, if melancholic. While there is melancholy, the narration often adds slightly humorous and perceptive insights. I enjoyed these insights. The writing is very clear and readable, so I presume this was a good translation.
A solid 4 star read. While I still am unsure if I would tackle the more epic Fortunata and Jacinta, after this book I know the writing would not be a problem. Its just that I'm so very much enjoying these novella length books that the lengthier ones are getting less attractive.

I really liked the book. I was a little disappointed with the end though. However, after thinking over it for a while, I felt it couldn't have ended any other way.

Tristana gained security at the end of the book and it was good that they were able to have a comfortable life.

SPOILERS

Yes, Shania and Rosemarie, the ending is appropriate, comfortable but disappointing.
In my view, the ending was good for Horatio since he, presumably, got the family that Tristana did not want, but he desired. It was good for Don Lupe who got to care for Tristana, which was what he desired. For Tristana, she obtained comfort in the care of her father figure who she had come to appreciate,
The disappointment of the story, causing the melancholy, is that Tristana lost more than a leg in the surgery and we are sad for that loss. We want love to conquer but that ending went out the window when Tristana lost her desire to love Horatio or anyone romantically. But her loss of the ability to love a man was replaced by her love of God. Her religiousness filled the void. So the ending was fine for the 'new' Tristana, as the disappointment for readers is that she became 'new' at all.

Brian wrote: "SPOILERS

Yes, Shania and Rosemarie, the ending is appropriate, comfortable but disappointing.
In my view, the ending was good for Horatio since he, presumably, got the family that Tristana did no..."

Brian, thank you for expressing so well what I wanted to say. Tristana's loss of Horatio and her leg didn't bother me as much as her loss of her ability to love and loss of her spirit (zest for life and learning new things). Yes, her religiousness filling the void was something that broke my heart. She has so much potential and her not being the Tristana we knew (who wanted to go beyond the boundaries set by society then) was disappointing.