Saturday, August 18, 2007

BooksPlease Reading List

This is the first challenge I've joined and I've really enjoyed looking up these authors. This is my preliminary list:

G K Chesterton, The Complete Father Brown
I've read some of Chesterton's books before, but none of the Father Brown books. There's a copy in my local library - in the Reserve Stock.

Walter Scott, Ivanhoe
I've never read any Scott and as I have a copy of Ivanhoe, I'll start with this. My copy is an old hardback book, one of a set of classic books published by Odhams Press that belonged to my father-in-law. I also fancy reading Scott's Waverley.

Somerset Maugham, Books and You & The Moon and Sixpence
I used to love watching Maugham's plays, when they used to show them on TV, but have never read anything by him. The library has copies of both of these. Books and You sounds intriguing from its title.

John Galsworthy, The Forsyte Saga
I'm surprised to find that I've never read any Galsworthy either, but as The Forsyte Saga was recently serialised on TV I know the story. I'll be interested to see how faithful the series was to the book. Sometimes, I don't like a film or TV dramatisation if I've read the book first, but it's usually ok the other way round.

Olivia Manning, The Balkan Trilogy
I know nothing about Manning's books. The on-line catalogue of my local library lists this one volume book comprising The Great Fortune ; The Spoilt City ; Friends and Heroes.

Italo Svevo, As a Man Grows Older
I know absolutely nothing about this author and have never heard of him before, so this may or may not be a good choice. The library has a copy of this.

D H Lawrence, Sons and Lovers
I have read Women in Love and The Virgin and the Gypsy, but not Sons and Lovers. I've had a battered secondhand copy of Sons and Lovers sitting in a bookcase for years, so now is the time to read it.

I don't know whether I'll manage all these but I'm looking forward to alternating them with other books I'd like to read.

5 comments:

Rebecca H. said...

That's a very good list -- I hope you enjoy participating in the challenge!

Imani said...

Yay for Sons and Lovers! I'll be reading that one too, so you'll have company.

darkorpheus said...

Ah, another Father Brown reader! Yay!

I had to read Ivanhoe during my uni days for class - Ivanhoe himself got on my nerves. He should have gone with Rebecca who loved him ;p

I will be reading Italo Svevo with you. Not sure if this is a trustworthy recommendation, but James Joyce was Svevo's English teacher when Joyce was living in Trieste. Svevo showed Joyce some of his writings, and Joyce encouraged him to continue writing and to try to get himself published.

Have fun!

Rebecca said...

I'll be interested in your thoughts on Chesterton, I don't even know anyone who has read him (me included). Enjoy!

Amanda Roper said...

I love love love love Galsworthy's Forsyte Saga....I hope you enjoy it as well!