Thursday, May 1, 2014

Reading by bayonet point

I've just finished reading Gwen Raverat's wonderful memoir Period Piece (1952), which I acquired at the recent book sale and which I know some of you have already read. I may not be able to resist writing more about it and sharing some of my favorite quotes (which often made me snicker on the train in the morning), but for now there is one quote that evoked some thought in addition to the snicker. In discussing her Uncle Frank—who unquestionably lives up to his name—Raverat mentions some of his bon mots which have lived on.  

For example: "To a host, who told him that if he insisted on starting at once, he would have to wait an hour at the station: 'I would rather wait anywhere but here.'"


Gwen Raverat's Uncle Frank,
who lived up to his name

But the one that gave me pause was Uncle Frank's comment on a book he has found too dull to finish: "I have tried to read it by repeated charges at the point of the bayonet, but I have failed.'

Which made me think about the books I've attempted—if not exactly at the point of the bayonet, at least on the heels of repeated recommendations and avid praise—and have failed to finish. Three came to mind quickly, and I would bet that all three are much-beloved by at least some of you charming readers.

Now, as I make a concerted effort not to be negative in my discussions of books and writers here (especially since, in a good many cases, no one is reading them anyway, so snarky comments about them would be rather like beating a dead horse), I can't quite bring myself to tell you the three novels I have in mind, all of which are mentioned by name in my Overwhelming List. But I actually did once admit my dislike of the most famous—more or less a verified classic, a perennial bestseller, and the source of an equally classic and popular film adaptation—though my admission is buried deep in one of my early posts here...

The other two, however, are a source of some shame for me. Not one but both of them, if I'm not mistaken, have been designated by Nicola Beauman as novels she wishes Persephone could have reprinted (is this a hint, perhaps? are they in print from another publisher? hmmm...), and one at least is so perfectly right up my street, on the surface, that I find it somewhat astonishing that three attempts to read it have all failed—the last with a note in my database that begins "Life is just too short."  

No, no, I am too ashamed to admit which novels they are. But perhaps if you, kindly readers, were to share your own guilt-ridden failures to enjoy works you feel you "should" love? Perhaps that would help me come to terms with my own readerly shortcomings?

11 comments:

  1. I would love to know what your guilty secrets are. You'll have to share them eventually, you know, book bloggers have no secrets. My failure has always been Henry James but I refuse to feel guilty as lots of other people can't wade through his treacly sentences either. I've enjoyed some of his shorter books like Washington Square & Turn of the Screw but I've started Wings of the Dove several times & never got past the first chapter. Another failure for me is Benson's Mapp & Lucia. I bought the Folio boxset for only $9.95 because many friends had recommended it but I read the first book & just disliked all the characters & didn't find them funny at all. I will try the second book sometime as it may have just been the wrong book at the wrong time & everything about M&L should appeal to me... Now it's your turn!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lyn, we definitely have these in common. I got obsessed with Turn of the Screw in grad school, but after analyzing it endlessly got completely burned out on it. And I too attempted Mapp & Lucia and just found it too over-the-top and clever for its own good. I have to admit I don't feel very guilty about either of those though.

      My true confessions might be coming soon...

      Delete
  2. Oh how unkind! To lead us on like that....but lyn is right, it will all be revealed in due course so you might as well come clean straight away.

    To hasten the process I am happy to admit to not getting on with Barbara Pym, though on the face of everything leads me to expect that I should. I also have never managed to read to the end of an Anthony Powell novel (I say this with some shame since I believe that one of the movers and shakers of the Anthony Powell Society may now be reading you. I certainly pointed her in your direction).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You know, Cestina, I run very hot and cold on Pym. There was a period of time when I really loved her, but the last one of her novels I tried to read left me completely bored, and I've never gone back to her again. And I am genuinely ashamed to admit that although I have three of the four volumes of Dance to the Music of Time on my "to read" shelves, I have never so much as begun to read one of them.

      I think perhaps I will have to come clean about my guilty secrets soon.

      Delete
    2. I'm relieved about Powell, I've always felt very ashamed about that.

      I do like Benson but I think the only reason may be because I read Mapp and Lucia after seeing the brilliant BBC series with Prunella Scales, Geraldine McEwan and the utterly brilliant Nigel Hawthorne and so I visualised the characters very clearly.

      I then went on to read other E.F.Benson books. His family history is worth taking a look at....

      Delete
    3. I really should watch the Mapp & Lucia series, I think. Perhaps my view will be changed by that too. I've only just remembered that one of my unheralded book sale purchases was a copy of Benson's The Blotting Book, picked up more because it was a cute Hogarth edition than because I was excited about it. So I will have to give Benson another chance at some point, or else keep the book for mere decoration!

      Delete
  3. Anna Karenina is the one that leaves me gaping at people who think it's fabulous. But, Scott, being even cool over Pym - several of us may have to have an intervention,

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. And that wasn't even one of my confessions, Linda! Although I loved several of Pym's novels, I think she was damaged a bit for me when I tried to read her diaries, which I found completely unbearable. Please don't hate me for that! :-)

      Delete
    2. Her diaries are a conundrum. It would be nice if her friend Hazel Holt had explicated them and Pym for all of us. But, I have to love Barbara Pym for inventing her Pymianly light ironic touch. Kindly ironic viewpoints are hard to find.

      Delete
    3. Have you read Holt's biography of Pym, Linda? I wonder if she helped to give perspective on Pym as a young woman? I tried to excuse the diaries by noting how young she was, but then I picked up Joan Wyndham's diaries, started when she was only 16 or 17, and although they were raw and silly sometimes too, Wyndham came across as so infinitely more likable and SO much less self-absorbed than Pym. I have, however, as I said, loved many of her novels. Obviously, the diaries just really rubbed me the wrong way!

      Delete
    4. Yes, I have both of the Holt books. I wish she would write a biography of her own. She worked with Pym and knew her for years.

      Delete

NOTE: The comment function on Blogger is notoriously cranky. If you're having problems, try selecting "Name/URL" or "Anonymous" from the "Comment as" drop-down (be sure to "sign" your comment, though, so I know who dropped by). Some people also find it easier using a browser like Firefox or Chrome instead of Internet Explorer.

But it can still be a pain, and if you can't get any of that to work, please email me at furrowed.middlebrow@gmail.com. I do want to hear from you!