The Readers Review: Literature from 1714 to 1910 discussion

It is now time to open the floor for nominations of titles for our next group read that is scheduled to begin on November 7th (shortly after the conclusion of our Scary Short Story read).

Please add your suggested titles and authors to this thread. Nominations will close on October 3rd. You may nominate up to three titles. Remember that your nomination should generally fall within the group time period. If there is significant deviation in this, feedback from other group members and the moderators' decisions may be invoked. Also, it would be an added bonus if your suggested title is available on-line for those readers who may not be able to find a copy.

On October 3rd, I will compile the list, utilize the random number generator to create the final list for the poll to be posted on October 4th. Voting on the poll would be held October 4-11. This will give people about three weeks to find the book and get started. To recapitulate--

(1) Nominations of up to three books each--September 26th through October 3rd;
(2) Poll including 6-8 selections posted on October 4th through October 11th;
(3) Group Read No. 2 commences on November 7th.

Don't forget to give some thought to themes and other interesting topics we can explore in the context of each of your nominations.

Have fun, and I am very much looking forward to your nominations! Cheers!

Is it required that we have a theme along with the titles?

Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov

Dickens, Our Mutual Friend

Byron, Don Juan

Historybuff93 wrote: "Is it required that we have a theme along with the titles?"

No, you do not need to have a theme accompanying your nomination. It was just an idea to keep in mind as you consider your selections.

Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad

Moby-Dick or, The Whale - Herman Melville

Kim - Rudyard Kipling

Note: All of the books listed are available online at The Gutenburg Project.

The War of the Worlds, H.G. Wells

The Lady of the Lake, Sir Walter Scott

The House of Mirth, Edith Wharton

Old Goriot, Balzac

Dead Souls, Gogol

Brothers Karamazov, Dostoevsky

Old Goriot, Balzac

Dead Souls, Gogol

Brothers Karamazov, Dostoevsky

I will nominate--

1. Idylls of the King by Alfred, Lord Tennyson; and

2. Lorna Doone by R.D. Blackmore

I will post my third nominee after some additional reflection. Cheers!

1. Idylls of the King (I love it.)

2. Don Juan (been wanting to read it.)

3. Heart of Darkness (Conrad is one of my first loves.)

Ami wrote: "Bel-Ami by Guy de Maupassant, I'll third The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky and would also like to suggest [book:Gogol Nikolai : ..."

I'll go with any of those Ami. Or any Russian novel. Or any novel which is not English for that matter (which includes American ones).

I'd go for either Bel-Ami (never read Maupassant except for his short stories) or Dead Souls, which I had coincidently ordered yesterday.

It seems there is a lot of interest in doing a French, Russian or American novel, so I've selected one of each, and here they are in chronological order which would seem a logical progression, especially since the realism of Balzac is believed to have influenced Dostoevsky.
1. Le Pere Goriot by Balzac


2. The Idiot by Dostoevsky


3.The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton

I'd like to nominate:

1. Oblomov, Ivan Goncharov

2. Therese Raquin, Emile Zola

3. The House of the Seven Gables, Nathaniel Hawthorne

The list gets betterer and betterer!!! What a happy winter we are going to have!:D.

Theodor Fontane : Effi Briest
http://manybooks.net/authors/fontanet...

Gustave Flaubert : Sentimental Education

Sheridan Le Fanu : Uncle Silas
http://www.feedbooks.com/author/231

MadgeUK wrote: "The list gets betterer and betterer!!! What a happy winter we are going to have!:D."
Don't forget the world has a northern and southern hemisphere, half the world is approaching summer. What a happy season we are going to have! :D

Sorry Jan - I did forget that!! Yes, Happy Season!

Kathy wrote: "Theodor Fontane : Effi Briest
http://manybooks.net/authors/fontanet...

Gustave Flaubert : Sentimental Education

Sheridan Le Fanu : Uncle Silas
http://www.feedbooks.com/author/231"

Kathy, those are two of my top favorite novels ever. Both of them. And they are both ones that few people read.

Joanna wrote: "Kathy, those are two of my top favorite novels ever. Both of them. And they are both ones that few people read. "

And I've never read them! That's why I'm nominating them - there's no time for re-reading when there are so many books I haven't even read once.

Kathy wrote: "And I've never read them! That's why I'm nominating them - there's no time for re-reading when there are so many books I haven't even read once. "

Gosh -- if I never re-read until I had cleared all my TBR shelves and lists, I would not be able to take part in very many discussions here on GR that concentrate on earlier works (this group, Victorians, and the Western Canon). Almost everything we've read here I've read at least once before in my life, often in college, but I find them worth re-reading for the discussions. Otherwise, I would be a lonely GR'er.

Everyman wrote: "Gosh -- if I never re-read until I ..."

Well, you must have more time than I do. I've only just started on GR and am trying to juggle the question of first-time reading or re-reading. One of my reasons for joining is to give me an incentive to read things I haven't tackled before.

Kathy wrote: "Well, you must have more time than I do. I"

Probably not. It's just that I had a very heavy dose of the classics in college, and then for the next fifteen years or so, when I was still single and so had no wife or children to occupy my time, had no TV or computer to distract me, and didn't spend much time socializing, I did very little but work and read. I worked my way through the majority of the major authors up to about 1940. So there are not that many books we read in my groups here that I didn't read at some point many years ago. But I don't remember details well enough to discuss them intelligently without re-reading.
So if I didn't re-read, I couldn't discuss.

These days I actually have very limited time for reading because of some fairly significant eye problems that limit me to about fifteen minute blocks of reading at a time. Plus I have four young grandchildren that my wife and I care for while their parents are at work. They are a delight, but not much interested in playing quietly indoors while Grandpa reads!

Could everyone check to make sure their nominations are added to the group bookshelf? Thanks.

I'm guessing that would be in the "To Read" section?

Historybuff93 wrote: "I'm guessing that would be in the "To Read" section?"

Yes HB. I should have said that. Thanks for clarifying.

Jan wrote: "Don't forget the world has a northern and southern hemisphere, half the world is approaching su..."

You guys in Oz do everything backwards and upside-down.

Rochelle wrote: "Jan wrote: "Don't forget the world has a northern and southern hemisphere, half the world is approaching su..."

You guys in Oz do everything backwards and upside-down."

But think how clever they are to be able to spend their whole lives hanging upside down and still be as successful as they are.

Didn't think of that. But how about wearing shorts in the winter and down jackets in the summer?

Rochelle wrote: "Didn't think of that. But how about wearing shorts in the winter and down jackets in the summer?"

Just shows how tough they are. You try that for a year and see how well YOU survive.

Almost forgot what we're here for.

Kate--
Just reading a few lines from The Lady of the Lake makes me queasy: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12... :P

Jan wrote: "Don't forget the world has a northern and southern hemisphere, half the world is approaching su..."

You have Christmas in the summer? Where do you put the snow?

Rochelle wrote: "Almost forgot what we're here for.

Kate--
Just reading a few lines from The Lady of the Lake makes me queasy: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12... :P"

Really? The stag hunt? But the stag wins. Of course the hunter's horse isn't so lucky... :P

* Alice in Wonderland (Carroll)
* Under the Greenwood Tree (Hardy)
* The Awakening (Kate Chopin)

Kate wrote:
Kate--
Just reading a few lines from The Lady of the Lake makes me queasy: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12... :P"

Re..."

Not the subject, the language.

Kate wrote: "Could everyone check to make sure their nominations are added to the group bookshelf? Thanks."

Thanks for the reminder. Neither Brothers Karamazov nor Don Juan had made it onto the bookshelf, but I added both.

I didn't add them to any of the supplemental shelves since I don't know quite how you would characterize them. But they're now on the To-read list.

Rochelle wrote: "Kate wrote:
Kate--
Just reading a few lines from The Lady of the Lake makes me queasy: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12... :P"

Re..."

Not the subject, the language."

My impression is that Scott is rarely read nowadays and does not enjoy as high a reputation as before (correct me if I'm wrong). Is it because of the language?

The only Scott that I've read is Ivanhoe.

Sandybanks wrote: "My impression is that Scott is rarely read nowadays and does not enjoy as high a reputation as before (correct me if I'm wrong). Is it because of the language?

The only Scott that I've read is Ivanhoe. "

You're right, he is little read. It's a shame. But I think it's not only the language, but the historical period and location in northern England/Scotland not being very interesting to most people, and very little humor in the books.

I enjoy his stories somewhat, though not as much as Hardy or Trollope, but he certainly doesn't have, at least for me, the depth of Dickens, Austen, Thackeray, etc.

He's sort of like Cooper in this country -- doesn't get much respect.

Everyman wrote: "Sandybanks wrote: "My impression is that Scott is rarely read nowadays and does not enjoy as high a reputation as before (correct me if I'm wrong). Is it because of the language?

The only Scott th..."

I tried to read The Last of the Mohicans and never got anywhere with it.

Perhaps another reason why they're unpopular today is because they're historical fiction. Conan Doyle also wrote some of them, but they're not read anymore, while his Sherlock Holmes is still going strong.

Sandybanks wrote:Perhaps another reason why they're unpopular today is because they're historical fiction.
..."

No, I think they were both writers with little depth, and Cooper's writing, especially, was clunky and artificial. You can include Longfellow in that bunch too.

By the shore of Gitche Gumee,
By the shining Big-Sea-Water,
At the doorway of his wigwam,
In the pleasant Summer morning,
Hiawatha stood and waited.
All the air was full of freshness,
All the earth was bright and joyous,
And before him, through the sunshine,
Westward toward the neighboring forest
Passed in golden swarms the Ahmo,
Passed the bees, the honey-makers,
Burning, singing In the sunshine.

Rochelle wrote: "Jan wrote: "Don't forget the world has a northern and southern hemisphere, half the world is approaching su..."

You have Christmas in the summer? Where do you put the snow?"
Here in Perth we never have snow, but my favourite sport is ice-skating. It can be hot for Christmas, so we usually plan to have cold meat and salads...turkey, ham, potato salad, etc. Then for dessert we have fruit salad, icecream and pavlova.
Some families still do the hot dinner, while others have a picnic. Many people go to the beach first thing for a quick dip. But we still dream of a white Christmas and send cards with snowmen on them. Santa gets very hot in his suit!

Rochelle wrote: "You can include Longfellow in that bunch too.
"

Hey. I like Longfellow! I even like the song of Hiawatha. In many ways he's like an American Kipling without the jingoism, but in the way his poetry really scans beautifully and never makes you stumble. You can read it for an hour without a single break in the rhythm. It becomes like native drumming, mesmerizing. It's an art I appreciate. A lot harder to do than it looks.

Jan wrote: "But we still dream of a white Christmas"

Aren't the beaches white sand? Probably look a lot whiter than snow in New York City does!

Jan wrote: "Rochelle wrote: "Jan wrote: "Don't forget the world has a northern and southern hemisphere, half the world is approaching su..."

You have Christmas in the summer? Where do you put the snow?"
Here ..."

Pavlova! The yummiest Aussie dessert ever. ; )

If you'd like to check out our beautiful Perth beaches, just type in ... google earth Perth ...and you'll be able to see just how white they are! In other parts of Australia, the beaches are a little more golden, but we have the whitest sand. Perth is also the place where chef Bert Sachse gave the name "pavlova" to the dessert he created in honour of the visiting ballerina.

What's in the dessert?

Jan wrote: "Perth is also the place where chef Bert Sachse gave the name "pavlova" to the dessert he created in honour of the visiting ballerina.
"

You had better go, then, and correct the Wikipedia entry which gives the credit primarily to New Zealand.

And the article I read said the origin could be either country. I've always thought the Maori had made it from mixing white sand and white clay. :)

Rochelle wrote: "And the article I read said the origin could be either country. I've always thought the Maori had made it from mixing white sand and white clay. :)"

Wouldn't that be a little tough on the teeth? Just asking...

Everyman wrote: "Jan wrote: "Perth is also the place where chef Bert Sachse gave the name "pavlova" to the dessert he created in honour of the visiting ballerina.
"

You had better go, then, and correct the Wikiped..."
Yes, it's a very misleading article in Wikipedia. Fact is, a New Zealand researcher wrote a book on the topic, showing that meringue cakes with cream were around (probably in many countries) before the dessert was so named. A NZ recipe book from 1929 lists a 'Festival Cake' made of two layers filled with fruit and nuts. The book concludes, however, that the first dessert named after the ballerina was the one decorated with strawberries and cream in Perth in 1935. Research note 6 at the bottom of the Wikipedia article gives this information from the book.