A-Z Wednesday: "Z"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

Well, here we are with one more trip through the alphabet completed. This week's letter is "Z." So I went to my shelves, and this is what I pulled out.

Zuleika Dobson
Written by Max Beerbohm
First published 1911

Description from Good Reads:

Max Beerbohm's sparklingly wicked satire concerns the unlikely events that occur when a femme fatale briefly enters the supremely privileged, all-male domain of Judas College, Oxford. A conjurer by profession, Zuleika Dobson can only love a man who is impervious to her considerable charms: a circumstance that proves fatal, as any number of love-smitten suitors are driven to suicide by the damsel's rejection. Laced with memorable one-liners ('Death cancels all engagements,' utters the first casualty) and inspired throughout by Beerbohm's rococo imagination, this lyrical evocation of Edwardian undergraduate life at Oxford has...a beauty unattainable by serious literature.

See the book's page at Wikipedia here.

See the book's text at Project Gutenberg here.

My Thoughts:

Beerbohm's classic satire (and his only novel), the story of the impossibly desirable Zuleika who drives all the undergraduates at all the colleges in Oxford to drown themselves for love of her, is not for everyone. I read it many years ago, and loved it at the time. Not sure I'd be quite so enthusiastic about it if I reread it today. But if you can manage to put up with the extremely arch humor, the book does have some very funny moments. Zuleika is something of a monster, but a sweet and comic monster; and the story paints a very interesting picture of Edwardian Oxford.

You can also expand your vocabulary, reading Beerbohm. Just giving the book a quick glance, I found several words I probably had to look up when I read it the first time (chevelure, gallimaufry, chrysoprases, dubiety). And now I'll have to look them up again.

A-Z Wednesday: "Y"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

This week's letter is "Y." So I went to my shelves, and this is what I pulled out.

Your Royal Hostage
Written by Antonia Fraser
First published 1987

Description from Amazon.com:

In her sixth appearance as observant sleuth, Jemima Shore notices details and files them away in her mind for use later on.... Just fired as investigative reporter for Megalith Television in London, Jemima covers the impending royal wedding for Television United States. Princess Amy of Cumberland, aged 22 and poor, will marry French Prince Ferdinand, aged 33 and rich; but a group of Animal Rights people plot to kidnap the princess in order to gain recognition for their cause. The plan goes awry, and Jemima saves the day. Stylishly presented...with a dash of satire.

And the cover of one of the paperback editions:


My Thoughts:

Antonia Fraser has written many fine nonfiction works, including massive biographies of Marie Antoinette, Mary Queen of Scots, King Charles II, and Oliver Cromwell. But, beginning in the 1970s, she also produced a great series of mystery novels featuring TV personality and amateur sleuth Jemima Shore. Jemima is not only beautiful, bright, and successful, she also manages to get herself involved in some wonderfully mysterious (and frequently dangerous) situations. I once read that Fraser (who was married and the mother of six children at the time) tried to make Jemima as different as possible from her own persona. Thus, Jemima Shore is unmarried and childless and has a very exciting and visible career - far removed from Fraser's own life as the aristocratic wife of Scottish MP Sir Hugh Fraser.

There have been, I believe, nine Jemima Shore novels (and one book of stories). Your Royal Hostage is number six, and probably not the most interesting of the lot; but they're all worth reading. My favorite is probably the first one, Quiet as a Nun, which first appeared in 1977, and has Jemima investigating the spooky goings-on in an ancient convent.

The books have also been adapted, twice, as TV series. The shows were done for British TV, but at least one of the series (with Patricia Hodge as Jemima) aired in the US on PBS. Don't know if they're available on DVD or video, but they're definitely worth watching if you get the chance.

A-Z Wednesday: "X"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

This week's letter is "X." And I have to admit, I couldn't find a single book on my shelves with a title beginning with X. So I'm using a book on one of my wish lists from a few years back.

X Marks the Spot: On Location with The X-Files
Written by Louisa Gradnitzer and Todd Pittson
Published 1999

Description from Amazon.com:

The X-Files was a pop culture phenomenon. When it first hit the airwaves, The X-Files was heralded for being radically different than anything else on television. The rainy, foggy "Wet Coast," which was home to the show, affected the look of the series – dark, haunting, mysterious – and its storylines – paranoid, conspiratorial, fantastic.

Written by the former location managers for The X-Files, X Marks the Spot documents the development of the popular television series into a critical and commercial success by peering behind-the-scenes to see just what made it so different.

Gradnitzer and Pittson reveal the role that sets and locations played in creating and maintaining the X-Files "look," and provide a glimpse into the problems and conventions that the production faced during its growth.

Also in the book are plot synopses from the series' first 5 years, explicit descriptions of locations where scenes were shot, and anecdotes from crew members about life on set and with the stars – stories about producing groundbreaking television.

A collector's item for fans of the show and an informing read for anyone interested in the production of a major television program, X Marks the Spot also includes numerous images from the television show itself, as well as never-before-seen backstage photos by former crew members. It's an essential insider's guide.

My Thoughts:

OK, this is just slightly embarrassing to reveal, but I was a huge X-Files fan back when it was on TV; and I still think it was a fun show. This book is lots of fun, too. And it does make you realize how much the show's distinctive look was a result of the weather in Vancouver and that Pacific Northwest region where the first few seasons were shot. So I suppose all us fans should be grateful to that "Wet Coast" area.

But while I love the style of those early episodes, I definitely couldn't live with all that rain, fog and mist – not to mention all those nasty, green-blooded extraterrestrials crawling all over the place!

A-Z Wednesday: "W"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

This week's letter is "W." So I went to my shelves, and this is what I pulled out.

Wish You Were Here
Written by Rita Mae Brown
and Sneaky Pie Brown
First published 1990

Publisher's Description:

Curiosity just might be the death of Mrs. Murphy--and her human companion, Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen. Small towns are like families: Everyone lives very close together . . . and everyone keeps secrets. Crozet, Virginia, is a typical small town--until its secrets explode into murder. Crozet's thirty-something post-mistress, Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen, has a tiger cat (Mrs. Murphy) and a Welsh Corgi (Tucker), a pending divorce, and a bad habit of reading postcards not addressed to her. When Crozet's citizens start turning up murdered, Harry remembers that each received a card with a tombstone on the front and the message "Wish you were here" on the back. Intent on protecting their human friend, Mrs. Murphy and Tucker begin to scent out clues. Meanwhile, Harry is conducting her own investigation, unaware her pets are one step ahead of her. If only Mrs. Murphy could alert her somehow, Harry could uncover the culprit before the murder occurs--and before Harry finds herself on the killer's mailing list.

See my review here.

See the book's page at Amazon.com here.

And a selection of covers of other editions:

A-Z Wednesday: "V"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

This week's letter is "V." So I went to my shelves, and this is what I pulled out.

Village School
Written by "Miss Read"
First published 1955

Publisher's Description:

The first novel in the beloved Fairacre series, Village School introduces the remarkable schoolmistress Miss Read and her lovable group of children, who, with a mixture of skinned knees and smiles, are just as likely to lose themselves as their mittens. This is the English village of Fairacre: a handful of thatch-roofed cottages, a church, the school, the promise of fair weather, friendly faces, and good cheer -- at least most of the time. Here everyone knows everyone else's business, and the villagers like each other anyway (even Miss Pringle, the irascible, gloomy cleaner of Fairacre School). With a wise heart and a discerning eye, Miss Read guides us through one crisp, glistening autumn in her village and introduces us to a cast of unforgettable characters and a world of drama, romance, and humor, all within a stone's throw of the school. By the time winter comes, you'll be nestled snugly into the warmth and wit of Fairacre and won't want to leave.

See the book's page at Amazon.com here.

And the cover of another edition:


There are dozens of “Miss Read” books, and I’ve only read the first three – Village School, Village Diary and Storm in the Village. These three have been published as one volume, Chronicles of Fairacre:


“Miss Read” is the pseudonym of Dora Jessie Saint (born 1913), an English schoolmistress who began her writing career as a journalist after World War II. Beginning with Village School in 1955, she wrote a series of novels centered on two fictional English villages, Fairacre and Thrush Green. The main character in the Fairacre books, also called “Miss Read,” is an unmarried teacher in the small village school. Through Miss Read’s eyes, we get to take part in all the comedy and drama of village life. The books are very appealing social comedies, filled with a gentle, bucolic humor. Dora Saint is often compared to Jane Austen and Barbara Pym, and there are similarities; but I think her humor is milder and her worldview a bit less acerbic.

I read the first three Fairacre books about twenty years ago, and thoroughly enjoyed them (especially Village School). Might be time for another visit.

A-Z Wednesday: "U"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

This week's letter is "U." So I went to my shelves, and this is what I pulled out.

The Uncommon Reader
Written by Alan Bennett
Published 2007

The cover of the first edition:



Description from Good Reads:

When her corgis stray into a mobile library parked near Buckingham Palace, the Queen feels duty-bound to borrow a book. Discovering the joy of reading widely (from J. R. Ackerley, Jean Genet, and Ivy Compton-Burnett to the classics) and intelligently, she finds that her view of the world changes dramatically. Abetted in her newfound obsession by Norman, a young man from the royal kitchens, the Queen comes to question the prescribed order of the world and loses patience with the routines of her role as monarch. Her new passion for reading initially alarms the palace staff and soon leads to surprising and very funny consequences for the country at large.

See the author's page at Wikipedia here.
See the book's page at Amazon.com here.

The cover of the first American edition:


A photo of the author:


And a photo of the queen herself looking very sunny in yellow (you know you love the hat):



This little book is wicked funny. I read it last year and couldn't stop laughing. I even made my husband read it and he has passed it on to his colleagues at work. Of course, I find Queen Elizabeth endlessly entertaining anyway, but Bennett's version of the old girl is hilarious and yet strangely respectful at the same time. If Bennett's QEII isn't the real QEII, then she should be!

A-Z Wednesday: "T"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

This week's letter is "T." So I went to my shelves, and this is what I pulled out.

This Side of Paradise
Written by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Published 1930

The cover of the first edition:


Description of the book (from Good Reads; I believe this is originally from Scribner's):

First published in 1920, This Side of Paradise marks the beginning of the career of one of the greatest writers of the first half of the twentieth century. In this remarkable achievement, F. Scott Fitzgerald displays his unparalleled wit and keen social insight in his portrayal of college life through the struggles and doubts of Amory Blaine, a self-proclaimed genius with a love of knowledge and a penchant for the romantic. As Amory journeys into adulthood and leaves the aristocratic egotism of his youth behind, he becomes painfully aware of his lost innocence and the new sense of responsibility and regret that has taken its place.

Clever and wonderfully written, This Side of Paradise is a fascinating novel about the changes of the Jazz Age and their effects on the individual. It is a complex portrait of a versatile mind in a restless generation that reveals rich ideas crucial to an understanding of the 1920s and timeless truths about the human need for (and fear of) change.

See the book's page at Wikipedia here.

See the author's page at Wikipedia here.

A selection of covers of different editions:


And a photo of Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald in their prime, during the Jazz Age (who's the prettiest?):

One of my all-time favorite novels, although it's been many years since I last read it. Of course, I don't think I've ever read anything by Fitzgerald that I didn't love.

A-Z Wednesday: "S"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

This week's letter is "S." So I went to my shelves, and this is what I pulled out.

Strong Poison
Written by Dorothy L. Sayers
Published 1930

A photo of one of the earliest editions:


Description from Amazon.com:

In the first of Dorothy L. Sayers's famous Harriet Vane mystery series, amateur sleuth Lord Peter Wimsey falls in love with mystery writer Harriet Vane as she stands in the dock of Old Bailey. Ms. Vane is on trial for the diabolically clever murder of her fiance. Not only does Wimsey believe in her innocence, he falls in love with her at first sight. . . .

What follows are the twin stories of Lord Peter's search to find the real killer and his romantic pursuit of Harriet. Both are charming. As always, Sayers has plotted her story brilliantly, with a satisfying mystery and a sly comic touch (a gentle poke at the spiritualist movement is particularly fun).

See the book's page at Wikipedia here.
See the author's page at Wikipedia here.

And a few covers from various other editions (click on image to enlarge):

One of my favorites of the Lord Peter Wimsey books, but then I love 'em all. I suppose there's not as much suspense here as in some of the others in the series, as we know from the outset that Harriet isn't going to end up on the gallows (she goes on to have a mystery series all her own). But it's still great fun, just like all the other Wimseys.

A-Z Wednesday: "R"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

This week's letter is "R." So I went to my shelves, and this is what I pulled out.

Rebecca
Written by Daphne Du Maurier
Published 1938

A photo of the first edition:


Description (from Fantastic Fiction):

Working as a lady's companion, the heroine of Rebecca learns her place. Life begins to look very bleak until, on a trip to the South of France, she meets Maxim de Winter, a handsome widower whose sudden proposal of marriage takes her by surprise. She accepts, but whisked from glamorous Monte Carlo to the ominous and brooding Manderley, the new Mrs de Winter finds Max a changed man. And the memory of his dead wife Rebecca is forever kept alive by the forbidding (housekeeper) Mrs. Danvers.

Not since Jane Eyre has a heroine faced such difficulty with the Other Woman. An international bestseller that has never gone out of print, Rebecca is the haunting story of a young girl consumed by love and the struggle to find her identity.

See the book's page at Wikipedia here.

And the author's page at Wikipedia here.

And a few different covers, including some foreign editions:

Rebecca is probably DuMaurier's most famous work, and one of the most widely-read Gothic romances. I read it for the first time when I was about thirteen, and loved it immediately. Since then, I've reread it many times, and always manage to fall under its spell. The 1940 Hitchcock film of the book, starring Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine, isn't too bad, either!

A-Z Wednesday: "Q"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

This week's letter is "Q." So I went to my shelves, and this is what I pulled out.

Quartet in Autumn
Written by Barbara Pym
Published 1977

Description from the publisher:

In 1977 England rediscovered one of her best living writers: Barbara Pym. Readers and critics alike acclaimed her new novel, Quartet in Autumn, as a major work by an important writer. Quartet in Autumn was the first new Barbara Pym novel to be published in sixteen years. After over a decade of being shunned by publishers as "out-of-date," Barbara Pym was once again a fashionable author.

Written at a time when the author had given up hope of ever being published again, Quartet in Autumn is the softly compelling story of human dignity in the midst of hopelessness. The novel presents us with Edwin, Norman, Letty, and Marcia, four elderly single people who work in the same office. Their work is their chief point of contact with each other and with society in general. The two women retire, an act that threatens the lives of all four.

Lovingly, poignantly, satirically - in the gentlest but sharpest way - Barbara Pym guides us through the lives of her four protagonists and shows us the facade they erect to defend themselves from the facelessness of the welfare state. Seemingly hopeless, their story is also optimistic, and even funny at times. Out of the tragic material of old age, Barbara Pym has made a beautifully constructed, almost musically perfect tale, told in revolving order from four points of view. It is the story of the subtle triumph of human dignity over the threats of solitude and death.

The book's page at Library Thing here.

The book's page at Wikipedia here.

And a few more covers, including some foreign editions:

I'm a huge Barbara Pym fan (I just might have mentioned that once or twice before), and Quartet in Autumn is possibly my favorite of her novels (it's hard to choose just one). It was short-listed for the Booker Prize, and helped establish Pym's reputation as a major 20th Century writer. I first read it during the 1980s and fell in love with all the quirky characters. I've reread it several times over the years, and although the subject matter sounds depressing and dull, it never fails to lift my spirits. Today, I'm much nearer in age to the protagonists than I was when I first read the book, and I'm wondering what my reaction would be now. I guess it's probably time for another visit.

Oh, and by the way, Barbara Pym just happens to have been born on June 2, 1913.

A-Z Wednesday: "O"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

This week's letter is "O." So I went to my shelves, and this is what I pulled out.

Orlando
Written by Virginia Woolf
First published by the Hogarth Press, 1928

The cover of the first edition.

Description from Good Reads:

In 1928, way before everyone else was talking about gender-bending . . . Virginia Woolf wrote her comic masterpiece, a fantastic, fanciful love letter disguised as a biography, to Vita Sackville-West. Orlando enters the book as an Elizabethan nobleman and leaves the book three centuries and one change of gender later as a liberated woman of the 1920s. Along the way this most rambunctious of Woolf's characters engages in sword fights, trades barbs with 18th century wits, has a baby, and drives a car. This is a deliriously written, breathless-making book and a classic.

See the book's page at Wikipedia.

The cover of my old Signet Classics edition (complete with coffee-cup stain):



The cover of a recent audio version of the book:


And a selection of various covers the book has sported over the years:


Orlando has been one of my favorite books since I first read it over forty years ago (I was such a precocious youngster!). Set in England and Constantinople, and spanning almost four centuries of wild and crazy adventures, it's a unique and fascinating literary experience.

A-Z Wednesday: "N"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

This week's letter is "N." So I went to my shelves, and this is what I pulled out.



No Fond Return of Love
Written by Barbara Pym
First published 1961

Description from the dust jacket:

Dulcie Mainwaring . . . is one of those "excellent women" who is always helping others and never looking out for herself – especially in the realms of love. She has a fondness for Ovaltine and a maxim to go with it: "Life's problems are often eased by hot milky drinks."

At a "learned conference" she meets a fellow researcher with an air of some refinement – Viola Dace – and the alluring, absentminded Professor Aylwin Forbes. Dulcie subsequently becomes Viola's landlady, as well as guardian and housekeeper for her own young niece Laurel. Then Laurel becomes the object of Aylwin's amorous designs, and Viola's early passion for Aylwin fades into a more mundane affair.

The novel climaxes in a delicate tangling of schemes and unfulfilled dreams when Dulcie and Viola take a trip to Eagle House in Taviscombe, on the seacoast in the West Country, to discover the hidden secrets of the Forbes clan and the role played in their destiny by a mysterious castle on the hill.

As in all of Pym's novels, the prose is honed to a wry, deadpan perfection. Life's little humiliations are finally put into their place, and the reader sees that things do fall out correctly; love is returned, and fondly, after all.

The book's page at Amazon.com.

The cover of my old paperback edition:


The cover of another, more recent edition:


English novelist Barbara Pym is probably my favorite "modern" writer, and No Fond Return of Love is one of her wittiest and most representative novels. If you haven't read Pym, you're denying yourself some really wonderful literary pleasure. I would always recommend beginning with the early works (especially Some Tame Gazelle, and Excellent Women), but every one of her books is a delight and you can jump in anywhere.

A-Z Wednesday: "M"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

This week's letter is "M." So I went to my shelves, and this is what I pulled out.

My Cousin Rachel
Written by Daphne DuMaurier
First published 1951

Description from Good Reads:

Orphaned at an early age, Philip Ashley is raised by his benevolent older cousin, Ambrose. Resolutely single, Ambrose delights in Philip as his heir, a man who will love his grand home as much as Ambrose loves it himself. But the cozy world the two construct is shattered when Ambrose sets off on a trip to Florence. There he falls in love and marries - and there he dies suddenly. In almost no time at all, the new widow - Philip's cousin Rachel - turns up in England. Despite himself, Philip is drawn to this beautiful, sophisticated, mysterious woman like a moth to the flame. And yet ... might she have had a hand in Ambrose's death?

The cover of a recent paperback edition:


A photo of the author as a very young woman:


And a still from the 1952 film based on the book:


I first read this one at about age fourteen – found a copy stored in my grandparents’ garage and promptly confiscated it as my own. I had recently seen the old movie on TV, starring Olivia de Havilland and Richard Burton. And as I had an enormous crush on the gorgeous Welshman at the time, the book instantly became one of my favorites. And while my passion for Richard has modified somewhat over the years, I still think the book is a great read. (Good movie, too.)

A-Z Wednesday: "L"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

This week's letter is "L." So I went to my shelves, and this is what I pulled out.

Lying Awake
Written by Mark Salzman
First published 2000

Description from Good Reads:

Sister John's cloistered life of peace and prayer has been electrified by ever more frequent visions of God's radiance, leading her toward a deep religious ecstasy. Her life and writings have become examples of devotion. Yet her visions are accompanied by shattering headaches that compel Sister John to seek medical help. When her doctor tells her an illness may be responsible for her gift, Sister John faces a wrenching choice: to risk her intimate glimpses of the divine in favor of a cure, or to continue her visions with the knowledge that they might be false-and might even cost her her life.

The book's page at Amazon.com.

And another cover (possibly the British edition?).

I read this gorgeous little novel a few years back and, even though I'm not really terribly religious, I absolutely fell in love with the book and Sister John. The book is beautifully written, and I honestly couldn't put it down until I'd finished. I've always intended to try something else by Mark Salzman, and thanks to A-Z Wednesday, I've given myself a good reminder now.

A-Z Wednesday: "K"

A-Z Wednesday is hosted by Vicki at Reading At The Beach. To join in, just visit her blog for the guidelines and leave your link in a comment.

This week's letter is "K." So I went to my shelves, and this is what I pulled out.

Katherine
Written by Anya Seton
First published 1954

Description from the publisher:

This classic romance novel tells the true story of the love affair that changed history – that of Katherine Swynford and John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, the ancestors of most of the British royal family. Set in the vibrant 14th century of Chaucer and the Black Death, the story features knights fighting in battle, serfs struggling in poverty, and the magnificent Plantagenets – Edward III, the Black Prince, and Richard II – who ruled despotically over a court rotten with intrigue. Within this era of danger and romance, John of Gaunt, the king's son, falls passionately in love with the already married Katherine. Their well-documented affair and love persist through decades of war, adultery, murder, loneliness, and redemption. This epic novel of conflict, cruelty, and untamable love has become a classic since its first publication in 1954.

The book's page at Amazon.com.

The Wikipedia article about the book.

The original cover from 1954:


And the cover of a more recent edition:


This is another book I haven't read yet, although I've skimmed through sections of it. Katherine (de Roet) Swynford is supposed to be an ancestress of mine, so I've always been interested in her, and the children she had with John of Gaunt. Those Plantagenets were so colorful, but so hard to keep track of!