"You must read this," a friend had said, giving it to me, "I couldn't put it down."
So I did, despite not being able to pick it up. Or rather I didn't. The thing is I could only read it when tucked up in bed, propping it up against my knees. It was way too big to fit into my already over-flowing handbag or be secreted amongst my I'm-not-paying-to-put-it-in-the-hold luggage and come with on holidays and mini-breaks. And so it sat in the bedroom while others took the bus. Yes I did read other books over the year. Slighter volumes that travelled better. In the end I decided to just push on through and finish the book but it just wouldn't end. It went on and on. And when I did finally finish it....... I was a tad disappointed. Some of it was good, some of it was great, some of it was boring but to be honest I didn't really like any of the characters.
My new year's resolution was to actually read..... not watch..... something by Charles Dickens and as luck would have it, there was upon the shelf high up in the hallway, a copy of Great Expectations. I do hope it is with a happier heart that I can report upon the enjoyment I hope to find betwixt its yellowing pages.
Top tip: Nurse Jackie is back on Sky Atlantic....... top telly. If you don't have it put the boxset on your Christmas list.
I LOVE Dickens...A Tale of Two Cities is my all-time favourite book. Great Expectations is a grand tale...the best part is Dickens wrote all of his novels as serials, so they are designed to keep you engaged. Once you get used to the (slightly) archaic language YAH, I'm confident you will be hooked.
ReplyDelete...and ps...Franzen is a challenge. I read his first novel, Connections, and while I didn't love it, I felt it was an important piece of writing.
you chose right! great expectations is my favorite dickens.
ReplyDeleteI'm not fond of Franzen.
ReplyDeleteNow Dickens? Yeah! I adore Great Expectations.
No, I'm another non-fan of Franzen. But LOVE Nurse Jackie - superb!! I'm sure you'll love Dickens, you're already down with his lingo -"I do hope it is with a happier heart that I can report upon the enjoyment I hope to find betwixt its yellowing pages" - read on, fair maiden, in thy crinolene, by candlelight.....
ReplyDeletePS, as it were, - I've just read 'Moranthology' / Caitlin Moran - and loved it........
ReplyDeleteCan't get into either of them! And how Dickens is acquiring this "greatest English Victorian novelist tag" is lost on me. It's light, amusing social commentary, nothing more.
ReplyDeleteI started War and Peace, which was going great, but it's just too damn heavy so I gave up. The ONE book I would use a kindle for perhaps.
Re VTT above--I had a look in the bookshop at How To Be A Woman and really really liked it (and I'm a man!)
I love Dickens, but I have to read it a lot more slowly than I normally read a book. I have amassed a huge collections of books from charity shops of late and am stuggling to find time to read - I should just get off the laptop! xxxx
ReplyDeleteWell done for persevering. I used to plough through a book determined to reach the end but I've become less tolerant in my old age, it's back to the charity shop with them if they fail to captivate after a couple of chapters! x
ReplyDeleteI read The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen and, much like you, had to work at it but, by the end I realised I had really enjoyed it. I know what,you mean about the characters though - he doesn't seem to ever write them sympathetically.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean about "Freedom" slightly patchy, loved "The Corrections" and was a tad under-whelmed by the follow-up. However, it was a very well written book, an intelligent read and I am glad I read it!
ReplyDeleteGood thinking - I got totally addicted to stuff i could download on Netflix and had to cut myself off - just read five books in a week. The best were Shine Shine Shine and Gone Girl. I found Freedom very much in the vein of the latest trend in books where noone in the book is likeable. Am I right???
ReplyDeleteI am sure that Great Expectations will be a better read. I have yet to watch Nurse Jackie but think that I will start with this new series ..... after all, she has such a great name !!!! haha. Mind you, I watch far too much tele as it is. XXXX
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I never saw the appeal of Franzen, Silly me, I like to spend my time and stretch my mind with things that uplift my spirit. With that in mind I suggest your read A Christmas Carol if you want to read Dickens ;)
ReplyDeleteI suspect that the Dickens will be far easier going than Franzen.
ReplyDeleteI don't have time for reading and blogging so haven't read a book for years! I haven't watched Nurse Jackie but the other medical programme I love is Getting On, a new series started last week x
ReplyDeleteI'm betting on Great Expectations. It's my favorite Dickens, a savory pork pie of a novel.
ReplyDeleteI liked The Corrections, and Franzen's collection of essays: How to be Alone. Haven't attempted Freedom.
ReplyDeleteDavid Copperfield is my favorite Dickens novel.
I've heard that Nurse Jackie is good, but I'm a nurse and media portrayals of nurses make me twitchy.
I wish I had more time for reading, blogging has taken over all my spare time! And when I try to read in bed I fall asleep. Now the only time I actually read a book is on holiday. I love Nurse Jackie. Let me know when you're free for a coffee.
ReplyDeleteLove your post. Franzen is almost a chore to read, but I did get The Corrections, because I know characters like his.
ReplyDeleteI just read this article and thought it relevant to your laborious read. Although the author is obsessed with reading, he makes me feel more normal. Hope you have time to read it. Between books, tv and the internet, I'm maxed out!
http://tinyurl.com/8fvfunr
Since moving to a Kindle about a year ago - admittedly I also started a 50min train commute in both directions every week day at the same time too - my reading has soared and it is so convenient that whatever book you are reading or have to read next are in a slim little gadget that is easy to carry about and read anywhere
ReplyDeleteYou cannot spend a year reading a book!!!! You should just have given up and read something lovely instead! If I can't get going with a book, it's OUT!!
ReplyDeleteAli x