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 Okay–here was an interesting article by Christopher Schoppa in the Washington Post.
Avid readers know all too well how easy it is to acquire books — it’s the letting go that’s the difficult part. … During the past 20 years, in which books have played a significant role in both my personal and professional lives, I’ve certainly had my fair share of them (and some might say several others’ shares) in my library. Many were read and saved for posterity, others eventually, but still reluctantly, sent back out into the world.
But there is also a category of titles that I’ve clung to for years, as they survived numerous purges, frequent library donations and countless changes of residence. I’ve yet to read them, but am absolutely certain I will. And should. When, I’m not sure, as I’m constantly distracted by the recent, just published and soon to be published works.
So, the question is his: “What tomes are waiting patiently on your shelves?“
This is a hard question. I have 257 unread books. Actually, I have a few more than that, as there are some I didn’t have a chance to catalog before I left, but those were new, mostly bought for the purposes of my collection rather than for immediate reading. I never purge my unread books either. I probably should, but I intend to give them all a fair shot eventually, even if it takes me a few years. Some of the ones that have been sitting around:
- Les Miserables, Victor Hugo
- The Silmarillion, JRR Tolkien
- Death of a Stranger, Anne Perry
- The Chronicles of Narnia, C.S. Lewis (I’ve read about half of these but have always meant to go back and read them all in an order)
- The Shelters of Stone, Jean M. Auel
- Marie Antoinette: The Journey, Antonia Fraser
- The Skystone, Jack Whyte
Those are probably the oldest that I have. The vast, vast majority of my unread books are from this year, so they haven’t been sitting around nearly as long. Typically, I haven’t brought any of these books with me to England. I do have some that I purchased in 2007 though, so I am getting to them slowly but surely. Should I be reading any of these books soon (or over Christmas break)?
What about you? Which books have been waiting patiently for you to read them?
 Since it looks like it will be a while before I can read and review The Fire, I thought I’d put up a post about it in case you hadn’t heard of it. I’m waiting to acquire The Eight from interlibrary loan so that I can better understand this book, its sequel, and can give it a more educated opinion. If you’re already interested or for more info, go ahead and check it out on Amazon . You can also wait for my review, which I hope to get up in a couple of weeks. I’m awaiting a few very exciting books in the mail, but I’ll put these first when The Eight comes in.
Alternatively, you could read The Eight , which is what I’m doing!
 After much deliberation, I decided to join the 24 hour Read-A-Thon, which is beginning this Saturday at 12 pm GMT! It looked like so much fun last time and I could clear out my schedule this weekend, so I’m all for it. I will admit that I am completely incapable of staying up for 24 hours, so I will probably be falling asleep into my book at some point, but I’m going to do my best to read as much as possible, and I’ll keep you all updated on my progress here at Medieval Bookworm.
Some of the books I’m thinking about reading:
- The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
- Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safron Foer
- The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever by Julia Quinn
- Hotel du Lac by Anita Brookner
- and anything else that is short and quick!
Not sure what the Read-a-Thon is? Well, it’s hosted by Dewey at The Hidden Side of a Leaf and you can check out the FAQs here. Thanks Dewey! You can sign up right here if you’re interested. You don’t have to read; you can also sign up to be a cheerleader.
 I can’t summarize this book effectively, so I’m just going to quote from the back:
“To this day, Americans think of themselves as a Puritan nation, but Vowell investigates what that means – and what it should mean. Who were these people who are considered the political and spiritual and moral ancestors of our nation? What was this great enterprise all about? What Vowell discovers is something far different from their uptight shoe-buckles-and-corn reputation. The people she finds are highly literate, deeply principled, and surprisingly feisty. Their story is filled with pamphlet feuds, witty courtroom dramas, and bloody vengeance.”
And so on. Let me say that this book is absolutely hilarious. I found myself laughing regularly throughout Vowell’s journey through Puritan history. She makes history that is normally dull and confusing (even for me, who loves history) into a riot of a book that I just wanted to keep reading. She also relates the past to the present and shows us a fair amount of horrifying examples where history repeats itself – or worse, when American presidents take out bits and pieces of Puritan speeches and ignore the important bits about being good to your fellow citizens. I’m not sure the book has potential for being read and understood a hundred years from now given the pop culture jokes, but it’s certainly amusing now.
Sarah Vowell does a brilliant job of showing us how history is relevant while keeping us entertained and informed. I’d wholeheartedly recommend this one. Buy it on Amazon.
 Today’s question: Early Reviewers- do you participate? How many books (approximately) have you received through the program? Have you liked them generally? What’s your favorite ER book? Do you participate in the discussion group on LT?
Yes, I participate, and I love the program. I’ve been in it since the beginning, June 2007 according to the Early Reviewers profile, but I didn’t get a book until October. I seem to get books every few months. I believe I have received seven, even though I only “officially” got six. They are Luminous Cities by Eduardo Garcia Aguilar, Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah, The Girl with No Shadow by Joanne Harris, The Venetian Mask by Rosalind Laker, Sweetsmoke by David Fuller, and Any Given Doomsday by Lori Handeland. I also received The Fire by Katherine Neville ostensibly through the program because the publisher had extra copies, but I haven’t finished it yet. Actually, thinking about it, I got Firefly Lane the same way. So far my luck seems to be about 50/50 as to the quality of the books. Of the six I’ve read, I enjoyed three and really disliked three. I don’t really anticipate getting any more books soon because I’m in the UK at the moment and the books we get over here are few and far between. Still trying though. So far my favorite is Sweetsmoke by David Fuller, by several miles.
I’m a member of the group and I participate sometimes. Usually, I ignore it because it’s mostly the same complaining about the algorithim and lack of books/abundance of books for others as well as confused questions by newbies who can’t find the list when it isn’t up yet. I’m just happy to have free books occasionally – it gets frustrating when I don’t get any for months, but that’s the way it works. I do try to participate in discussions of books I’ve received, though.
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And in other news, the final count is in – I managed to bring 40 books over here with me in two large suitcases and a backpack. I won’t be running out of books over here any time soon though because the city centre has four new and four used bookstores!
 Back in June, I read and really enjoyed The Firemaster’s Mistress. I’d picked it up in the UK about a year in advance of the US release, which was last month. In honor of the book’s arrival in the States, Christie agreed to answer some of the burning questions I had about the book. Be forewarned, question number four is a very big spoiler, although I bet it will answer one of your questions once you’ve finished. The rest of the interview is perfectly safe!
1. First of all, it’s clear that a lot of research went into The Firemaster’s Mistress. Would you mind telling us a little bit about how you went about learning so much about James I’s England?
ANSWER. How long have I got to answer this one? It’s something I often talk about at literary festivals and Reading Groups. Yes, I do a lot of research, and love it. I feel responsible for telling my readers the historical truth, as far as it can be known. But, secretly, I also feel that research gives me permission to be nosy, to go behind the scenes in fascinating places, and to ask impertinent questions that I’d be far too shy to ask otherwise. And it introduces me to amazing, generous people I’d never otherwise know.
I try to create a vivid, detailed film that I can run in my head, and describe, to give readers a feeling of what it was really like to be there. To build this film, I read research books written by historians and look at old documents from the period, like the two signed confessions of Guy Fawkes. I visit the places my characters would have known, to try to imagine what their eyes might have seen. I try on the clothes to learn what they feel like – and how they shape behaviour. (Try sitting down in a stiffened bodice and iron-hooped farthingale.) I go to museums to study the details of daily life – what their forks, drinking glasses, chamber pots, musical instruments, and nightclothes looked like. I learn what layers of wool and straw were under them when they slept, and I imagine the fleas that lived there. I read what my characters might have read. I’ve tried living for a few days without electric light, and, as a result, now understand all those slightly-implausible mistaken identities you find in Shakespeare’s plays. And I’ve used this lack of light in the plot of FIREMASTER’S MISTRESS.
Also, in my previous life in theatre, I spent four years working with the Royal Shakespeare Company at Stratford and in London, as resident choreographer and assistant director. All day, every day, I heard Shakespeare’s English being spoken, while I watched and helped actors explore ways to inhabit that world – there’s no way to improve on that as background for writing about the period.
If it’s still up on the Web, I have an article posted on the English TV Channel Four History Website, which goes into greater detail about how I researched the Gunpowder Plot, and how that unrolling detective story influenced my plot, including why I chose my writer of the anonymous Monteagle letter.
2. Do you think that an insider really revealed the Gunpowder Plot of 1605?
ANSWER. Yes. But no one can agree who it was. This uncertainty is a perfect example of one of the ‘cracks’ in known history into which I try to imagine my fictional stories.
3. Why did you choose to write about this time period in England?
ANSWER. By chance, at first. I fell in love with the craziness of a subject (the Tulip Madness and wild stock-market type dealing in flower bulbs, as if they were pork bellies or oil) which turned into my first 17th c. novel, THE LADY TREE. Then I fell in love with the period. The people feel more familiar to me than those of either the medieval or Victorian periods. They’re vigorous, mercantile, culturally diverse and had their own version of football louts and dot.com millionaires. I think that they would recognise us too, once they got past wondering why everyone seemed to beep, had pockets that played snatches of music, and walked around with one hand against their cheeks, talking to themselves.
Reality comes into it too. Publishers want a book a year, if possible. Even taking longer to write one, you don’t have time to keep learning new periods in the same detail.
And see what I said above about my time with the Royal Shakespeare Company. The period was already in my blood.
4. This is a spoiler question, but I must know: Why did you choose to have Kate end up with Boomer and not Francis?
ANSWER. Controversy! I love it! Readers are split about 50-50 over which man Kate should have married, and feel equally passionately about it. She makes a tough choice between different types of love, and readers seem to respond according to where they are in their own lives. For me, Francis will always be the delightful sexy hero you fall madly in love with, but he’s also a rolling stone. And a little self-centred. In real life, happily-ever-after, he would hurt Kate again. He’s not husband material for a woman like her who has been badly damaged by her life (including by him!) and needs for her heart and soul to heal. It may also be partly that Boomer looks a bit like my tall, sexy, silver-haired husband, but he LISTENS to her in a way that Francis never does. He’s only 48, and still in his male prime. He’s protective and masterful in a nice way, kind, and treats Kate as an intelligent equal. He’s happy for her to be her slightly unusual self. He’s a little dangerous, but not to her. What’s not to love? Anyway, who could resist a gift like Caledonian Meg? (But don’t worry. Francis meets his very-satisfactory match in the next book, THE PRINCIPESSA.)
5. What is your writing process like? Do you plan ahead, or do you allow the characters to go where they will?
ANSWER. This is not an answer for people who want things clear cut. I know where I’m starting. I have an idea of where I want to end up, though this may change over the nine months or so that it takes to get to a first draft. I sketch out a very rough road map of my intended journey. Then I do a lot of what I call ‘improvisation’ in the theatrical sense, putting the characters I’ve chosen into the situations I think they’ll find themselves in and finding out what they do. For example, I didn’t know which man Kate would choose until I got her to Powder Mote and put the three of them together. I’m willing to bin a great many words before I settle. My desk sees the ruthless murder of possibilities and lots of re-cycled paper!
I hate doing detailed synopses before starting a commission because I’ve had no time to explore with my characters. And the writing can then feel like paint-by-numbers. Without the ‘juice’. (I was delighted to learn that Stephen King feels the same way.)
On the other hand, you can never let your characters wander completely at will for long, or they can derail the book. Like actors, who have to make themselves heard in the back row even when whispering into someone’s ear, I have to keep a balance between free imagining and craft. I swing all the time between meditative dreaming and worrying about building tension.
Every character or world has its own logic. The sense of truth, even in fantasy, grows from following those internal rules. If I find myself headed in the wrong direction, I have to go back and redefine the rules that took me there. The writer is in charge!
6. Finally, do you read historical fiction yourself? Do you have any favorite authors or books of any genre that you’d like to share with us?
ANSWER. YES! And thrillers, and literary novels, and travel books, and books on magic, folklore and mythology, and poetry, and backs of cereal boxes… I could start giving lists of names (including Anya Seton, Rose Tremain, Philipa Gregory, James Lee Burke…) but it might be quickest for people to check the ‘Extra’ I’ve just written posted on my website (www. christiedickason.com). It answers this question directly and is called ‘The Ones That Got me Started’.
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Thanks so much for taking the time out to answer my questions, Christie! For those of you who don’t have this book yet and love historical fiction, I recommend you check it out on Amazon.
I am currently in my new room at the University of York. Well, it could be better; it feels just like a freshman dorm and I was hoping that graduate students would get a bit nicer housing. I’m just slightly off campus, so I’m not sure I feel safe walking about at night yet. Let’s not even mention the kitchen and the fact that there are one shower and one toilet for at least 10 people. And my fiance left an hour ago, which is not making me happy as I have yet to officially meet a single other student. I have said hello to a few people in the halls, but no one seems to be gathering in the common room or kitchen, so I feel a bit awkward introducing myself to someone randomly walking by. Tomorrow I am spending the entire day at an induction ceremony for my program, so I expect to meet some other medievalist types there and hopefully make some acquaintances that will turn into friends. In the meantime I have fifty pages of introductory reading before bed tonight.
I was intending to prepare a post full of photos for you all about York, since I do love it so much here and it’s full of history, but there were too many things that we needed to get for me that we didn’t expect, like a fan, a bunch of lightbulbs, and a power extension cable. As a result, we spent a ton of time running around the city and its outskirts the past day or so and I didn’t have a chance to wander with my camera. I hope to do that this week, so expect some pictures next Sunday.
As far as reading goes, I’m not doing much of that either. I’d like to finish Azincourt by Bernard Cornwell tonight and move on to Descartes’ Bones by Russell Shorto and/or The Fire by Katherine Neville, which are next on my review list. I did manage to acquire a couple of books this week; rather, today. They are Rebel by Bernard Cornwell and Quicksilver by Christie Dickason. Christie also wrote The Firemaster’s Mistress, which I reviewed here, and I’ll be interviewing her tomorrow right here on this blog, so drop by again and check it out. This week I’m hoping that The Heretic Queen by Michelle Moran arrives so I can get to it right away. I’m waiting for a couple of other review books as well from generous authors who don’t mind sending to the UK.
My plan for this week: getting back into the school groove, opening a bank account, acquiring a student card so I can enjoy super cheap bus fares, meeting people, and figuring out where the laundry machines are around here. I hope you all have great weeks and I’d like to see you back here soon!
 Jaywalker is a spectacular defense attorney. He manages to get nearly all of his clients acquitted, which is miraculous when a 50% rate is fantastic. He does, sometimes, engage in rather shady practices to get these clients acquitted; nothing illegal, but behavior that is not encouraged. As a result, he faces suspension for three years, but he is allowed to complete ten ongoing cases before the suspension. The first nine are easy, but the tenth case turns out to be far from that.
I’m not familiar with law type stuff. See, that word choice should demonstrate to you how unfamiliar I am with it. It’s never been one of my interests and the most I’ve been exposed to is the video game series Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney which is vastly unlike real courtroom events. Obviously, because it’s a video game and designed to be fun and entertaining, while I’m assuming most court cases and such are not. As I said, I wouldn’t know.
Anyway, my lack of background made this book quite educational for me. I knew cases took forever, but it was interesting to read about what was happening when, why it took so long, what the “normal” practice for attorneys is, etc. This book is fiction so I’m not taking it all as cold hard fact, but it’s closer than I’ve ever come before. It also didn’t assume that I knew anything and the narrator explained everything. I did find the book to be a little repetitive by the end. The facts of Samara’s case were stated so many times I could have recited them at any point in the past couple of days. Also how impossible it is for Jaywalker to win, there’s just no chance, she’s going to jail, and so on. It did seem like a lot of the same there, and constant build-up like that means the reader already knows what the ending will be. I’ll admit the rest of the ending was clever, though.
I’ll probably be reading the next book in this new series. For now, I’d recommend this as a legal thriller of sorts that is easily accessible, even by ignorant me. Buy this book on Amazon.
 This is the second book in the Thursday Next series of literary mysteries by Jasper Fforde. If you haven’t read the first one, The Eyre Affair , you will find spoilers in this review, so go check that out first – I recommend it!
After vanquishing Acheron Hades and giving Jane Eyre a better ending, Thursday Next is dealing with uncomfortable amounts of fame, but is very happy to be finally married to Landon, the love of her life, and expecting his child. She doesn’t anticipate further adventures, but what she wants is very different from what she gets when the Goliath Corporation kidnaps her husband and threatens her into returning to the world of books. Apprenticed to Miss Havisham of Great Expectations, Thursday must re-learn how to jump into dangerous texts in order to rescue her husband and the world.
I have to say, I didn’t love this book as much as the first one. It seemed to take forever for the story to get going and Thursday spent far too much time dodging publicity events rather than engaging in more interesting activities. Once it picked up and Thursday began entering books again, I started to enjoy it and predictably wanted more by the end, though I was bit perplexed by Thursday’s casual attitude towards Landon.
I love when she gets involved with literature that I’ve read, which she does here; it’s really why I’m reading these books in the first place. Fforde generally does a good job with the characters, making them entertaining but still like their book counterparts. The AU setting and time travelling doesn’t interest me all that much. It feels too much like science fiction. So if you enjoy science fiction, you’ll probably enjoy the beginning of this book a lot more than I did. I’ll be picking up the third in the series though, especially considering I already own Something Rotten, number four.
I’ll probably still recommend the series for those who enjoy light mystery with a little book love involved. Buy this book on Amazon.
What was the last book you bought?
The Scarlet Lion by Elizabeth Chadwick. I have read exactly one of Chadwick’s books before and I liked it enough that I am bowing to the will of the masses and purchasing more. Apparently she writes really good medieval historical fiction. I’ll check out this claim soon enough.
Name a book you have read MORE than once
There are many, many, many. Probably my most read adult book is Jane Eyre.
Has a book ever fundamentally changed the way you see life? If yes, what was it?
Not really. Actually, they probably have and I just can’t remember. I think sometimes reading a book shifts the world just a little bit, not enough to fundamentally change anything but enough to have an effect. The most recent was The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro.
How do you choose a book? eg. by cover design and summary, recommendations or reviews
I choose them based on recommendations mostly these days. I go by similar authors, ratings, awards, or books I have heard of and would like to evaluate for myself. I try to avoid reviews and summaries and love to go into books knowing absolutely nothing about the contents. I do sometimes read reviews, but generally the time between I pick up a book and when I actually read it is long enough for me to forget what the review said, except for a “good” or “bad”.
Do you prefer Fiction or Non-Fiction?
I prefer fiction but I like non-fiction too. It just takes me forever to read non-fiction. I’ve had two going for a couple of months and haven’t finished them yet, for example. Still working on it. I’ve probably read about 30-40 fiction novels in that time.
What’s more important in a novel – beautiful writing or a gripping plot?
Um, both? Plot is actually one of my least important considerations. I like it when the plot’s going, but I’m okay with a slow, nothing is actually happening plot too if the characters and atmosphere are good. So I guess I vote writing, but I think both.
Most loved/memorable character (character/book)
Well, this is a tough choice. The obvious favorites: Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy, Jane Eyre, Stevens (Remains of the Day), Eowyn (LotR). More obscure are Joscelin and Phedre from the Kushiel’s Legacy series.
Which book or books can be found on your nightstand at the moment?
I don’t have a nightstand at the moment actually. I haven’t decided what to read next. I think it may be Azincourt by Bernard Cornwell. I also have to read Descartes’ Bones by Russell Shorto and The Fire by Katherine Neville in the near future.
What was the last book you’ve read, and when was it?
I just finished The Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell. Such a funny book! And very relevant right now.
Have you ever given up on a book half way in?
I gave up on The Gunslinger by Stephen King at least twice. I finished it eventually, so maybe it doesn’t count for this question. I also gave up on The Game of Kings by Dorothy Dunnett, which I hope to pick up again once my Latin is better, the first book of Mervyn Peake’s Gormenghast trilogy, Wicked by Gregory Maguire, and I think that’s about it for fiction. In my entire library. I really don’t like those books.
Feel free to steal this meme, or better yet participate over on the Booking Through Thursday post.
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