Time has flown, and so have the pages on my beautiful black Penguin Classics paperback edition of The Pickwick Papers. It's entertaining, it's funny, it's full of valuable advice - and it was written by someone who was only 24 years old when he did it. Go Charles, you are the best.
I am not far from the very last chapter of the book which I've been carrying faithfully with me for the last couple of days in commuter trains, on my way to yoga, and also to the Turku archipelago where I spent three rainy nights last weekend. What better way to spend a late evening than hearing the rain pour into the sea outside, strapping on a flashlight to your forehead and immersing yourself in the adventures of Samuel Pickwick, who is on a quest to explore all the sorts of characters his home country has to offer. On the way, we meet some hilarious characters like the ancient Mrs Wardle, who, brandishing a huge ear-trumpet, pretends to be deaf, although she can very well hear the people she chooses to listen to.
By the way, today was the longest day of the year and there was a fantastic sunset just now as I travelled home from visiting friends in Leppävaara. Although it's still not very warm, summer has arrived to Finland.
Monday, June 21, 2010
Friday, June 11, 2010
The right sort of merriment
Oh come on, people. "No followers yet"? I've been planning this for ages!
Well, in case anybody is reading, today I have discovered it is actually possible to read Dickens, watch tv, walk around Johannesburg using Google Street View and surf for flights to Buenos Aires at the same time. Well, it's not, actually - but these are the things I've been doing for the past four hours of so. Oh, and had some sparkling wine. The summer vacations are finally here!
Today's quote, from page 84 of The Pickwick Papers:
...though the merriment was rather boisterous, still it came from the heart and not from the lips: and this is the right sort of merriment, after all.
And so, wishing the right sort of merriment to each and every one of you, this is Blogging Dickens saying good night!
Well, in case anybody is reading, today I have discovered it is actually possible to read Dickens, watch tv, walk around Johannesburg using Google Street View and surf for flights to Buenos Aires at the same time. Well, it's not, actually - but these are the things I've been doing for the past four hours of so. Oh, and had some sparkling wine. The summer vacations are finally here!
Today's quote, from page 84 of The Pickwick Papers:
...though the merriment was rather boisterous, still it came from the heart and not from the lips: and this is the right sort of merriment, after all.
And so, wishing the right sort of merriment to each and every one of you, this is Blogging Dickens saying good night!
Thursday, June 10, 2010
A vast deal of coolness
Day 2 of The Pickwick Papers! Hooray! This is going to be a great project. I haven't yet managed to read in a very long go, but anyway I'm on page 64 and the book is huge fun. Here's my favourite section until now (concerning chasing after hats):
There are very few moments in a man's existence, when he experiences so much ludicrous distress, or meets with so little charitable commiseration, as when he is in pursuit of his own hat. A vast deal of coolness, and a peculiar degree of judgement, are requisite in catching a hat. A man must not be precipitate, or he runs over it: he must not rush into the opposite extreme, or he loses it altogether. The best way is, to keep gently up with the object of pursuit, to be wary and cautious, to watch your opportunity well, get gradually before it, then make a rapid dive, seize it by the crown, and stick it firmly on your head: smiling pleasantly all the time, as if you thought it as good a joke as anybody else.
I'll go on reading now. Enjoy your evening, wherever you are!
There are very few moments in a man's existence, when he experiences so much ludicrous distress, or meets with so little charitable commiseration, as when he is in pursuit of his own hat. A vast deal of coolness, and a peculiar degree of judgement, are requisite in catching a hat. A man must not be precipitate, or he runs over it: he must not rush into the opposite extreme, or he loses it altogether. The best way is, to keep gently up with the object of pursuit, to be wary and cautious, to watch your opportunity well, get gradually before it, then make a rapid dive, seize it by the crown, and stick it firmly on your head: smiling pleasantly all the time, as if you thought it as good a joke as anybody else.
I'll go on reading now. Enjoy your evening, wherever you are!
Monday, June 7, 2010
Finished Brooklyn
I just finished Brooklyn. What a moving book. The story about a young Irish girl moving to New York and starting a life far away from home struck several chords on my family tree, but the difficult choice at the end - when Eilis is forced to move her life into a new perspective - was so truthfully told that I was swallowing lumps during the final scene. I often find that by far the most convincing scenes in fiction are the ones which invite you to read between the lines and feel for yourself what the characters are going through. Brooklyn's narrator is strangely neutral and at times even infuriatingly so, but this is what really gets the reader interested in what's bubbling under the surface.
I just paused the typing to think about the final scene again and let me just say once more that it was wonderfully told.
Right, so maybe some Dickens next - finally? Well, it's past midnight now so I'll need to go to bed. Today, I finally visited our local bakery for the first time and got our breakfast buns there. The bread was so delicious I'll definitely be paying more visits during the summer. The rest of the day was spent mostly eating, browsing through some music, shopping for fitness accessories and sweating at Hot Pilates.
I just paused the typing to think about the final scene again and let me just say once more that it was wonderfully told.
Right, so maybe some Dickens next - finally? Well, it's past midnight now so I'll need to go to bed. Today, I finally visited our local bakery for the first time and got our breakfast buns there. The bread was so delicious I'll definitely be paying more visits during the summer. The rest of the day was spent mostly eating, browsing through some music, shopping for fitness accessories and sweating at Hot Pilates.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Second post
Predictably, I began a new book today, but it's not written by Charles Dickens at all - it's Colm Toíbin's much-praised novel "Brooklyn", which was nominated for all sorts of awards last year and (after Part One) seems to be very well written, intelligent and interesting.
Hang on with me, Dickens lovers - the project will not take long to begin!
Hang on with me, Dickens lovers - the project will not take long to begin!
Monday, May 31, 2010
First post
Right, so this is it everyone! It's finally happening. I have now created a blog for my latest reading project, which you probably know nothing about - but now, through this blog, you won't be able to avoid it!
I am going to read all of Charles Dickens' novels in the order which they were published in, starting with The Pickwick Papers and ending with The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Lately, it has occured to me I might just as well share the project with everyone else on the web and blog about my experiences as I trudge through the books. Trudging is probably an appropriate verb in this case - let's face it, we're not talking about the light sort of novellas you take with you to the beach. We're talking about at least 10 000 pages of some of the most famous literature in the English language. I actually began counting the pages, checking them from my great-grandfather's complete collection (which I inherited via Damascus, where my grandmother took them to), but my calculator freaked out during the process. Anyway, you get the picture.
As a matter of fact, I have read some of these books during my childhood, and there's at least one I've reread years later, so that means this will be my third read for some of these novels. However, I have set strict rules for myself, and they say that I am not allowed tao skip over a book just because I've read it before. I also must follow the chronological order of the books and read them in the order that they were published, so you'll have to just post an angry comment if you realise I've missed a book or accidentally switched the order.
So anyway, here we are with the blog, which is meant to keep you all updated on the process (I can see you all waving your arms about in excitement and shouting "it's not going to be a boring summer, after all!") and, let's be frank, give me some motivation with the project. We can probably expect some lengthy discussions on the stories, but occasionally I might just drop a line or two to tell you how I'm getting on with it.
A couple of things before we begin: I will be talking about the plots, so if you are planning on reading some of these books and don't want to know all the twists and details, try to just erase your memory after reading them.
I've also decided it's totally fine to read other stuff besides Dickens this summer, so if I start going on about John Irving's latest, the Man Booker Prize longlist or, let's say, Lonely Planet New York City, I hope you'll stay tuned anyway!
Sometime in June, I will begin with Dickens' first novel, The Pickwick Papers. I hope you'll be reading!
PS. This is not a "race against time" thing and I haven't set a schedule to my reading. I estimate to have read all the novels by the year 2013 - you heard it first on Blogging Dickens!
I am going to read all of Charles Dickens' novels in the order which they were published in, starting with The Pickwick Papers and ending with The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Lately, it has occured to me I might just as well share the project with everyone else on the web and blog about my experiences as I trudge through the books. Trudging is probably an appropriate verb in this case - let's face it, we're not talking about the light sort of novellas you take with you to the beach. We're talking about at least 10 000 pages of some of the most famous literature in the English language. I actually began counting the pages, checking them from my great-grandfather's complete collection (which I inherited via Damascus, where my grandmother took them to), but my calculator freaked out during the process. Anyway, you get the picture.
As a matter of fact, I have read some of these books during my childhood, and there's at least one I've reread years later, so that means this will be my third read for some of these novels. However, I have set strict rules for myself, and they say that I am not allowed tao skip over a book just because I've read it before. I also must follow the chronological order of the books and read them in the order that they were published, so you'll have to just post an angry comment if you realise I've missed a book or accidentally switched the order.
So anyway, here we are with the blog, which is meant to keep you all updated on the process (I can see you all waving your arms about in excitement and shouting "it's not going to be a boring summer, after all!") and, let's be frank, give me some motivation with the project. We can probably expect some lengthy discussions on the stories, but occasionally I might just drop a line or two to tell you how I'm getting on with it.
A couple of things before we begin: I will be talking about the plots, so if you are planning on reading some of these books and don't want to know all the twists and details, try to just erase your memory after reading them.
I've also decided it's totally fine to read other stuff besides Dickens this summer, so if I start going on about John Irving's latest, the Man Booker Prize longlist or, let's say, Lonely Planet New York City, I hope you'll stay tuned anyway!
Sometime in June, I will begin with Dickens' first novel, The Pickwick Papers. I hope you'll be reading!
PS. This is not a "race against time" thing and I haven't set a schedule to my reading. I estimate to have read all the novels by the year 2013 - you heard it first on Blogging Dickens!
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