Georgette Heyer on Kindle

I just saw a notice that in celebration of Heyer's birthday her books are being offered for Kindle users: Every single title for $1.99 for one week.  Since I'm a newbie to Heyer I can't recommend the best ones, but if you read the comments on my previous post, you'll find quite a few suggestions.  Enjoy!

Update: This deal is no longer available, but there is one free title for Kindle as of today (7/31/14) called The Black Moth. It is interesting to me that Heyer's books are so expensive. There must be quite a demand for them. I see that with Amazon Unlimited (which I don't have), you can read many Heyer titles for free. Here are a few I saw that are only $2.99: Bath Tangle and April Lady. Unfortunately, the one I've heard the most rave reviews about Civil Contract is almost ten dollars.

(In case you are interested, The Black Moth has been put into audio form by Julie at Forgotten Classics.)


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Worthwhile Movie #5 - A Green Journey

Earlier this year I raved about the book, A Green Journey.   Months later I was startled to discover that the book had been made into a film.  (I watched it via instant streaming on Netflix.)

Anyway, I liked the book a lot and felt sure the movie couldn’t match up.  It did and it didn’t.  First of all the film was surprisingly faithful to the book.  The actors did an excellent job of capturing the personalities of the book’s characters.  And, miracle of miracles, the faith of the protagonists was not watered down.

But, the romantic elements in the book (which I would never have classified as a romance novel) were exaggerated in the film.  However, the acting was better than your average “Hallmark” film so all was not lost.  Angela Lansbury is convincing as Agatha McGee and her co-star, Denholm Elliott is quite good, as well.

Do I need to add that you should read the book before watching the movie?  Without the background the book gives, the movie seems sketchy.  Telescoped events take a minute on film that take a whole chapter in the book.  The element I missed most was Agatha’s friend, Lillian, who is a very funny part of the book, but only a small player in the movie.

This made-for-TV movie was originally called “The Love She Sought”.  Lansbury also brought two other books to film that you might enjoy: Mrs. ‘Arris Goes to Paris and The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax. (The first is available on VHS only, and the second one I watched on TV.)

Acquisitions from PaperBackSwap

I can still hardly believe the lovely books I'm able to get through PaperBackSwap.

Sabbaths by Wendell Berry
The One Year Book of Poetry
New Living Translation of the Bible
Brave Men by Pyle
Ernie's America - by Pyle
Home Country by Pyle

Berry's titles take a long time to receive, but they are worth the wait.  I acquired the Ernie Pyle titles without being on any waiting list at all.   My favorite poetry book got lost in our last international move so I was thrilled to find it available at PBS in "like new" condition.  Almost all of these are hardbacks in great condition so I'm pleased to add them to my library.

London War Notes by Mollie Panter-Downes

Most books you read about World War II are written in retrospect. The authors have sifted through documents, books and articles to come up with their conclusions about the war. They report on decisive military strategies, what went wrong at a particular battle, or who the real heroes were. London War Notes is completely different in that it was written during the war as events were taking place. Mollie Panter-Downes was already a newspaper columnist for The New Yorker magazine, but when the war began she was asked to write bi-weekly articles specifically about Londoners’ reactions to the war.

What I liked about this book was its candid expression of peoples’ hopes, fears, and disappointments. It’s astounding to read their expectations of total obliteration by the Germans. They knew “it” was coming, but were never sure when or how it would happen.

However upset they might be by current events, the British were devoted to Prime Minister Winston Churchill. They loved him for not sugar-coating the hard news. They only waffled on their affections when he gave them vague platitudes or when he appointed wishy-washy cabinet members. For the most part, they felt they could go through anything if “Winnie” was behind them.

What I didn’t like about this book was that events and emotions were so understated that the book was almost boring. It took me weeks to get through it even though I love reading and love WWII history. Also, because War Notes was written during the war to people who were aware of current events, Panter-Downes doesn’t explain much. It is assumed you know what “Britain’s great disappointment” was on such and such a day. (Occasionally the editor of this book will add a footnote of the events leading up to a specific entry, but only rarely.) I kept wishing for a WWII timeline to connect the dots.

All in all, this was a worthwhile read because it gave an honest, raw view of the war from the people’s , rather than a historian’s perspective. I enjoyed Panter-Downes' excellent writing as well:

At St. Giles, a bomb had fallen slap on the sandbags protecting a stained-glass window, blowing a hole in the wall and toppling Milton off his plinth inside... To observers here, it sometimes seems that more than Milton has been toppled off his plinth. All that is best in the good life of civilized effort appears to be slowly and painfully keeling over in the chaos of man's inhumanity to man. (Aug 30, 1940)

Quote On Books by Charles Dickens

"My father had left a small collection of books in a little room upstairs, to which I had access (for it adjoined my own) and which nobody else in the house ever troubled. From that blessed little room, Roderick Random, Peregrine Pickle, Humphrey Clinker, Tom Jones, the Vicar of Wakefield, Don Quixote, Gil Blas, and Robinson Crusoe, came out, a glorious host, to keep me company. They kept alive my fancy, and my hope of something beyond that place and time..."

(From p. 58 of David Copperfield by Charles Dickens)

Cape Cod Stories by Joseph Crosby Lincoln

Author Joseph Crosby Lincoln came across my radar about a year ago so I jumped at the chance to download a free copy of Cape Cod Stories on my new Kindle. What a lovely surprise.

Lincoln was born in Cape Cod, Massachusetts in 1870 to a family of seamen and his books reflect his heritage. The stories in this particular book are told from the point of view of elderly Barzilla Wingate and his old friend, Cap’n Jonadab Wixon. Most center around the old hotel they run and the tourists who stay there.

The chapters are written in informal, folksy language, much of it with allusions to ships and sailing. Their tone had me chuckling all the way through the book.

Maudina was like her name, pretty, but sort of soft and mushy. She had big blue eyes and a baby face, and her principal cargo was poetry. She had a deckload of it, and she’d heave it overboard every time the wind changed.

He run up to the piazza like a clipper coming into port.

We got there after a spell and set down on the big piazza with our souls full of gratitude and our boots full of sand.

[Referring to a dangerous boat trip in a cutting February wind] I expected every minute to land in the hereafter, and it got so that the prospect looked kind of inviting, if only to get somewhere where ‘twas warm.

Two of the stories in the middle of the book did not ring true. Instead of staying on sure New England soil, Lincoln placed these stories in the islands near Malaysia and Singapore. The themes of these stories were pretty far-fetched and made the islanders look like idiots. There were also some unfortunate, though rare, derogatory terms for African-Americans. I was glad when the stories returned to their original style and subjects for the second half of the book.

For humorous, light reading, Joseph C. Lincoln is my new favorite. Delightful!

What Do You Think of Georgette Heyer?

My blog friend Julie loves Georgette Heyer. And Michael Dirda in his Classics for Pleasure says she's a hidden gem in the literary world. I don't really like romance novels, but based on their raves I obtained one of her books, Talisman Ring. It is basically a romance with a mystery thrown in. The witty diaologue saved the book, because the rest of it was just "okay". I was interested to see that Ardent Reader is less than enthusiastic about Heyer too. Any other opinions? Did I pick the wrong book?

While we are on the subject of Miss Heyer, Abe Books just came out with an article saying she outsells even J.K. Rowling. Read it if you'd like to know more about this lesser known author.

I wrote another post about her that includes a few links to Kindle titles here.