tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post8117300409259390416..comments2023-05-02T12:33:58.182+01:00Comments on Perpetually In Transit: Rain, rain go away…Perpetuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01214396019726161983noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-35888457823035721992011-07-20T12:10:35.741+01:002011-07-20T12:10:35.741+01:00Just a PS to Fly to say you were quite right. A Tr...Just a PS to Fly to say you were quite right. A Traveller in Italy arrived today and the chapter on Assisi and Saint Francis is quite the best short account of both I have ever read. Thanks so much for the recommendation.Perpetuahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01214396019726161983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-70380032547074360222011-07-10T16:17:24.282+01:002011-07-10T16:17:24.282+01:00Let's hear it for 'The Book Thief'!
I...Let's hear it for 'The Book Thief'!<br /><br />I remember the Barbara Comyns books from my time as a librarian, Annie, but haven't read them in years. Another author to revisit, methinks. The Annie Proulx title is new to me - one for the library list, thanks.Perpetuahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01214396019726161983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-60049911830403302842011-07-10T15:06:14.451+01:002011-07-10T15:06:14.451+01:00Hello - one of my favourite subjects again! Books....Hello - one of my favourite subjects again! Books. Put another tick for 'The Book Thief'. I think my personal all time favourite is 'Our Spoons Came from Woolworths' - not least for it's wonderful title. I've read all Barbara Comyns works since I first read 'Spoons' and can recommend them all. <br />I've recently enjoyed 'The Shipping News' by Annie Proulx - very evocative and now I've finished it, I am really missing it - a sure sign of a good book for me! <br />Lots of good suggestions from your comments list - thank you!!<br />AxArtyZenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12628693178003940118noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-38107923923850960712011-07-10T09:41:20.418+01:002011-07-10T09:41:20.418+01:00Very glad to hear you're getting rain at last,...Very glad to hear you're getting rain at last, Rosie. I know I shouln't grumble, as it's been dire in western and central France and even here in Normandy it was seriously dry until a month ago. <br /><br />Wow, another fan of 'The Book Thief' I must definitely try it. A lot of the books we have here are charity shop bargains, and we see an English-language book stall at most vide-greniers here. I'm guessing people just have to be willing to try lots of new authors and not just wait for their favourites to turn up.Perpetuahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01214396019726161983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-9924084511049390382011-07-10T09:33:10.178+01:002011-07-10T09:33:10.178+01:00Tell me about it, Fly! I was doing it decades ago,...Tell me about it, Fly! I was doing it decades ago, back in my time as a librarian. I only realised the mix-up this time when I tried to find "A Traveller in Italy" on Amazon and couldn't. :-)Perpetuahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01214396019726161983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-81401521602488317242011-07-10T09:30:54.937+01:002011-07-10T09:30:54.937+01:00It is, Kathy, though I don't curl up quite as ...It is, Kathy, though I don't curl up quite as easily as I used to do! We don't have TV in France, so we read a lot in between our other activities and when those activities are curtailed by rain we read even more.Perpetuahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01214396019726161983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-9723314265239225762011-07-10T08:21:27.000+01:002011-07-10T08:21:27.000+01:00Here in Dordogneshire we are having our first prop...Here in Dordogneshire we are having our first proper rain for months and months. Such a relief.<br /><br />The Book Thief is my current book too! Loving it.<br /><br />We stock up on books at charity shops when we go back by car. Gather another armful each from the twice yearly english animal charity book sale and have you seen bookmooch.com? And I noticed a stall selling secondhand english books on the market on Saturday.Rosiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01944155516559194389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-14021570782472598882011-07-10T03:25:34.514+01:002011-07-10T03:25:34.514+01:00I always get H.V and J.B. mixed up....must be the ...I always get H.V and J.B. mixed up....must be the onset on senility...but it started years ago!the fly in the webhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04563871975125538755noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-65222056360167084722011-07-09T21:52:12.718+01:002011-07-09T21:52:12.718+01:00Oh, curling up with a book on a rainy day sounds s...Oh, curling up with a book on a rainy day sounds so cozy, Perpetua! And you've got some great ones to keep you company!Dr. Kathy McCoyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02903015507894951725noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-60358830123748301272011-07-09T21:28:14.971+01:002011-07-09T21:28:14.971+01:00Ray, I can remember many times when I didn't e...Ray, I can remember many times when I didn't even manage a page a day, never mind a chapter.<br /><br />It'as good to have a second recommendation for the same book and I'll make a point of getting hold of it from the library.<br /><br />I read a lot of Len Deighton and John Le Carre at one time, but my tastes have changed and I tend to prefer murderers (or at least detectives) to spies nowadays :-)Perpetuahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01214396019726161983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-86476417098394948702011-07-09T20:47:18.000+01:002011-07-09T20:47:18.000+01:00Hello Perpetua
Sorry about your rain but glad to ...Hello Perpetua <br />Sorry about your rain but glad to hear you are reading enough to compensate for those like me who read about one chapter a day.<br />I too can thoroughly reccommend "The Book Thief". It was the last book John bought me and I read it several times before Oxfaming it.<br />My tastes in reading seem to be out of sync with most female readers being mainly 'cold war' spy books so somewhat dated.<br />I love Len Deighton, Ted Albury,<br />and John Le |Carre in particular.<br />Hope you get some sun soon.Ray Barneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09209429097744326143noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-23006862343103148762011-07-09T20:47:15.664+01:002011-07-09T20:47:15.664+01:00Jane and Lance, I don't think a day goes by wi...Jane and Lance, I don't think a day goes by without my having done some reading, usually in bed. Bad weather just means I do some in the daytime as well :-)<br /><br />Many thanks for your recommendations. The Rose Tremain sounds good and I've read William Trevor and Elizabeth Taylor in the past, but not recently. As with Fly's suggestion, I foresee some revisiting ahead.Perpetuahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01214396019726161983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-91417702478803365512011-07-09T20:42:46.492+01:002011-07-09T20:42:46.492+01:00My sympathy about the thunderstorms, Fly. We had a...My sympathy about the thunderstorms, Fly. We had an afternoon like that on Thursday here and had to do the same thing.<br /><br />I well remember the H V Morton travel books from my time as a librarian and read some of them back then, though not 'A Traveller in Italy' (which I've now ordered secondhand from Amazon). His 'In the Footsteps of the Master' was superb.<br /><br />It's ages since I read Nicolas Freeling, so I foresee some revisiting of his books when I get back to the UK.Perpetuahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01214396019726161983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-66259260237631512652011-07-09T20:36:32.888+01:002011-07-09T20:36:32.888+01:00Hello Perpetua:
Happily, these days reading for us...Hello Perpetua:<br />Happily, these days reading for us is an every day activity come rain or come shine, but we do know what you mean about it feeling like a less guilty pleasure when the weather is inclement.<br /><br />Our rainy day reading suggestions would be: Rose Tremain 'Swimming Pool Season' [set in France], the Irish writer William Trevor and the somewhat overlooked Elizabeth Taylor.<br /><br />Happy days!Jane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-82774563564644087102011-07-09T19:55:28.580+01:002011-07-09T19:55:28.580+01:00Rainy afternoons here....computer turned off for f...Rainy afternoons here....computer turned off for fear of grilling yet another modem in the thunderstorms, so books are the order of the day.<br /><br />Your Assisi post made me hunt for J.B. Morton's 'A Traveller in Italy' which has a wonderful chapter on St. Francis...an old book but for me unbeaten as a guide.<br /><br />As to current reading I've gone back to Nicolas Freeling...his Van der Valk and Castaing books...I do get a bit tired of his Vera character in the latter, but there's so much that bears second and third readings.the fly in the webhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04563871975125538755noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-64512529858901105452011-07-09T18:30:54.807+01:002011-07-09T18:30:54.807+01:00You're very welcome to our rain by now, Ayak, ...You're very welcome to our rain by now, Ayak, though I won't be greedy and ask for much heat in return. To be fair, the forecast for next week is a bit better, though it's still likely to rain mid-week, just in time for the Fete Nationale on the 14th :-(<br /><br />Thanks for the Barbara Nadel recommendation. I love novels with different and authentic backgrounds, so she sounds very much like my kind of author.Perpetuahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01214396019726161983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-47774652818359759672011-07-09T18:26:30.470+01:002011-07-09T18:26:30.470+01:00I'm sorry to say I haven't even heard of T...I'm sorry to say I haven't even heard of The Book Thief, Broad, but it's now down on my library list for when I get back to the UK. The David Gilmour sounds very appealing, as I'm interested in history and love Italy. I already have the Graham Robb and must reread it myself before long.<br /><br />Enjoy your summer in the Lot and happy reading.Perpetuahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01214396019726161983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-53844089311571265152011-07-09T17:45:56.826+01:002011-07-09T17:45:56.826+01:00I'd gladly exchange some of your rain for our ...I'd gladly exchange some of your rain for our intense heat!<br /><br />I recommended books to someone else by an author called Barbara Nadel today. I had the pleasure of getting to know her when I lived in Cappadocia as she is a frequent visitor there. If you are familiar with the works of Ian Rankin (and Rebus) then you may like Barbara. She writes in a similar vein, but her stories are set in Istanbul and the main character is a detective with the Turkish police.Ayakhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16903896106779269050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3705825161954545710.post-48362336120876706782011-07-09T17:43:22.755+01:002011-07-09T17:43:22.755+01:00Have you read "The Book Thief"? It's...Have you read "The Book Thief"? It's one of my favoritest reads ever! It's about a young German girl during WWII and how she begins her love affair with books by stealing them -- all observed by the narrator, who is Death. I've also got one to read this summer that might interest you: "The Pursuit of Italy" by David Gilmour which tries to explain the complex historic issues around the unification of the country and why it is so difficult. And another you might like is "The Discovery of France" by Graham Robb -- I think I'll be reading much of it again this summer -- for the third time... Hope it stops raining for you -- it's quite enjoyable reading 'd'hors'!<br />Oh glad to see your remarks about "Pass the Polenta" and thanks for the link -- greatly appreciatedThe Broadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04976467218216864644noreply@blogger.com