Vintage Tales discussion

This is the thread where we'll discuss all things related to our current group read Quo Vadis (1896), by the great Polish author Henryk Sienkiewicz, a winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature. An historical novel of early Christianity set in first-century Rome, it's generally considered the author's masterpiece. Our read/discussion will run through the month of September; but as always, this thread will remain open for later comments.

I'll be joining in this read, but won't start until tomorrow. Right now, I'm still reading a "short" story which, though it is "short fiction" in the technical sense, is relatively long at 62 pages. :-)

I've started this today; I'm reading it in the 1955 printing by Dodd, Mead and Co. as part of their "Great Illustrated Classics" imprint, which uses the translation done by Jeremiah Curtin around the time of the novel's first publication. (The Great Illustrated Classics was a much-appreciated imprint from my childhood and youth, which I was introduced to through the public library; so though this is a first read of this particular book for me, it also has a pleasant touch of nostalgia!)

The author's last name (according to the Introduction to this edition) is pronounced as "Shen-kyay-vich." Born in 1846 in the area of present-day Poland which was then part of the Russian Empire (the Prussian and Austro-Hungarian empires ruled over the rest of it), he was from a family of impoverished Polish nobility, and grew up to be a devout Catholic and a staunch Polish nationalist. Quo Vadis is his best known novel in the English speaking world, and has been filmed several times (though I haven't personally seen any of the adaptations).

I read this a couple of years ago and really enjoyed it.

I've now read into Chapter 13. It took me a little time to get into the story (we experience it at first through the eyes of Petronius and Vinicius, whom I don't find the most appealing of viewpoint characters), but once we got into Lygia's story, I quickly got engaged with the plot. Another thing I found irritating at first was the plethora of untranslated Latin words (names of rooms in Roman houses, titles of household functionaries, etc.), but by now I've gotten used to this.

Petronius, Acte, Poppaea, and Aulus and his wife (and, of course, Nero) were all actual persons, although Lygia and Vinicius are fictional. (However, the Lygians, or Lugii, were an actual tribe living in what is today southern and Central Poland.) Petronius died in 65 or 66 A.D. (Wikipedia gives different dates in different places) and Nero in 68, so the events of the book, or at least of its beginning, take place before the former dates. The title of the novel is Latin for "Where are you going?"

I haven't been able to acquire this book so far, sadly. My library only offers the DVD. And my favorite used bookstore had it in the past but they don't have it now. I was hoping to not buy it new. I have a gift card at a bigger bookstore and will try that next.

Gia, ask the folks at your library about interlibrary loan. I'd try that option before buying the book!

Oh! That's a GREAT idea! Thank you sooo much, Werner, I will do that today!

Glad I could help out, Gia!

Werner, you sure did:) Thank you again!

You're welcome. :-)

Hi Werner, I ordered my book through the interlibrary loan, as you recommended :) I don't know when it will arrive but it's on the way! I'll be a little bit behind, but that's not uncommon for me; I tend to be a late bloomer anyway, lol!

Sounds good, Gia! This thread will stay open for comments indefinitely, so any thoughts that you share will be welcome anytime.

Perfect! :)

So far, I've finished Chapter 38. I'm finding this a rewarding, immersive read, and hope others are too!

Milwaukee magazine has a fascinating article on the first American translator of this book, Jeremiah Curtin. It can be read online here: https://www.milwaukeemag.com/Behindth... .

As of yesterday, I've started on Chapter 56. (So I probably won't finish the book today, but should do so in a few days.) The tension is getting pretty intense at this point!

https://www.britannica.com/biography/... provides a helpful historical background for Nero's reign. (It should be noted that while his convenient alibi for the burning of Rome --he was 35 miles away when the fire started-- demonstrates that he didn't personally start the fire, that's a straw-man argument, since no one in antiquity or modern times ever alleged that he did. There's circumstantial evidence that he ordered it, though!)

My book arrived at my library and I picked it up today and started reading finally! Thank you, Werner, for all the historical helps related to this book and the times. I'm going to look at all that closer when I get a chance. On page 1 I was completely into the story and I'm enjoying reading all about Petronius :) Right now I'm on page 21.

Glad to hear you've got the book and have started to read it, Gia. Hope you continue to enjoy it as much as I am!

I'm definitely enjoying this book! Yesterday I started reading it in a hurry, not because I am behind, but because the inter-library loan allows me to borrow it for just two weeks. And this is a big book! Anyway I started reading it in a hurry but now I am naturally reading it that way because the book is carrying me along at its quick pace, lol! I think I enjoy reading about Petronius so much because I know so little about the Romans and ancient Roman times, and because Petronius is so witty, even though he does not always do very nice things. Right now I am on page 269.

Gia wrote: "I'm definitely enjoying this book! Yesterday I started reading it in a hurry, not because I am behind, but because the inter-library loan allows me to borrow it for just two weeks. And this is a big book!"

Gia, if you need to, you can probably renew the book. Most lending libraries will be willing to do that.

Okay, good to know. Thank you for all your help:)

No problem, Gia! :-)

I finished the book this morning, and I'm profoundly impressed by the author's achievement here! It will be the weekend before I have time to write a review (and I'll link to it here); but my rating will definitely be five stars.

Werner, Congratulations on finishing! 5 stars for me, too, although I'm still reading:) I look forward to reading your review! Right now I'm on page 394 and I'm experiencing Chilon as a sort of comic relief character at the moment. Chapter 40 was so intense and left me cold. But after Chapter 41 I was bawling and I took a day's break from the book to savor that chapter. Now I'm into Chapter 56 and reeling from everything I've just read in the chapters just prior, and I'm still not yet through that whole terrible scene yet. This book has got my full attention. Of course, I have no idea how this book ends and I'm so curious about that.

Thanks, Gia. I can totally relate to everything you're feeling right now!

Oh, thank you for saying that, Werner! Good to know I'm not alone in my experience while reading this amazing book:)

I finished the book late last night! I feel accomplished that I finished this as it was a very difficult read all throughout the end. I read every word and I did not read ahead. I'm going to need to let this sit before I comment any more.

I'm back now with a few more comments:) When I started reading this book I knew next to nothing about ancient Rome right before the Fall. I'm so glad I read this book!! And I would never have read it without this group. This story has stuck with me and the story of the early Christians, God bless them! I still think about the all characters. I gave this book 5 stars.

Gia, reading about how rewarding this book was for you makes me even gladder that I suggested it!

Werner, hooray! :) And after all this time, this book's story is still with me. Looking forward to next year's group read, when that time comes! Happy Thanksgiving to you!

Happy Thanksgiving to you too, Gia, and to all the others in the group who celebrate it!

Gia wrote: "Werner, hooray! :) And after all this time, this book's story is still with me. Looking forward to next year's group read, when that time comes! Happy Thanksgiving to you!"

I loved this one too! I read it over two years ago and its story is still very much with me. I plan to do a re-read sometime.

Katherine, it's really an amazing thing about some books. I will probably do a re-read, as well, on down the road.