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The Book Club Online is the oldest book club on the Internet, begun in 1996, open to everyone. We offer cordial discussions of one book a month, 24/7 and enjoy the company of readers from all over the world. Everyone is welcome.
November Book Club Online
Beginning on Nov. 1
Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier
| (http://seniorlearn.org/bookclubs/remarkablecreatures/remarkablecover2.jpg) | In Remarkable Creatures, Tracy Chevalier brings to our attention, two historical figures, telling their tale in two distinct voices. Mary Anning is the young one, the uneducated girl with the uncanny gift of finding fossils, (the origin of the tongue-twister "She Sells Sea Shells on the Sea Shore.")
It is the older woman whose voice dominates the novel, another historical character, a middle-class spinster sent away by a married brother to live more cheaply in England's coastal village of Lyme Regis. To Jane Austen's readers, she will sound familiar.
Both women played a key role in understanding the earth with their discoveries, though not without controversy, at a time when there was no place for women in science. This is the story of their friendship which allowed them to stand together and prevail as they challenged the thinking of the day. |
| DISCUSSION SCHEDULE: | | November 1-8 Chapters 1-3 | (http://seniorlearn.org/bookclubs/remarkablecreatures/ammonite.jpg) |
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Related Links:
Video ~ Tracy Chevalier on Writing Remarkable Creatures (http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=CiJEbfYNh9E&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DCiJEbfYNh9E);
DLs: AdoAnnie (ADOANNIE35@YAHOO.COM ), BarbStAubrey (augere@ix.netcom.com), Marcie (marciei@aol.com ), JoanP (jonkie@verizon.net)
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Oh this should be interesting - a blend of fact and fiction based on two historical women, living in the same fishing village of Lyme Regis during Jane Austen's time! There are records that Jane visited here, even danced in the Lyme Regis Assembly Room! This is really a happy coincidence - as we are currently reading her Persuasion, where her character Anne Elliot spent some time as well.
Jane writes to her sister of the Lyme Regis Assembly Rooms:
"Lyme has a small Assembly-Room, Card-Room and Billiard-Table all conveniently ranged under one roof ; and had the Library been joined to it, all the amusements which the place can furnish would have been comprised in one building. The situation for this edifice is happily chosen, as it commands a charming marine view as far as the Isle of Portland, eight leagues off, and the interior is compact and well arranged. Magnificence is not essential to enjoyment: often more happiness is found in a cottage than in a palace; and the rooms at Lyme frequently exhibit as cheerful countenance as are to be seen at Bath or Brighton."
Please plan on joining us along with young Mary Anning and Elizabeth Philpot when we will spend November at the beach! Welcome everyone!
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I've only started the book and already I come away with realizing how young women during the time of the George's can create a full life when they are considered socially past the age of marriage.
Jane Austin writes how elegance, manners and status defined by wealth hold a story and lives together where as, in this book by Tracy Chevalier we learn how curiosity, knowledge and practiced skills give meaning to the lives of those who are not destined for a weekend stay at a country house or a tastefully decorated pied-à-terre in Bath.
The miles of beach at Lyme Regis on the west coast of Britain are filled with all sorts of wonders and I cannot wait till we get together and share what it is all about. I found my copy on Amazon for a penny plus shipping however, Chevalier is popular so I would think the library would have a copy of two.
I wonder if the three unmarried Philpot sisters were able to eke out of their monthly stipends some elderberry wine to offer their guests?
Let's meet over, popular at the time, a glass of elderberry wine and talk about our upcoming trip to Lyme Regis scheduled for November 1.
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I've always loved the ocean and collecting shells. I don't know much about fossils though, so I look forward to learning more and talking with all of you about these women's roles in science and in challenging the thinking of their time.
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Well, I have read JoanP's post and BarbStAubrey's and was kind of bowled over! We have visited Lyme Regis! I have two fossils displayed on my bookshelves from there. I have a photo or two of the area. One of my fossils marked:
Fossil Amonite -An extinct form of marine Cephalopod similar to the Nautilus--Aprox.160-180 million years old.The Ammonites were so named
after the shape of the Rams Horn on the God of Ammon.
People once thought they were coiled up snakes turned to stone by magic.
This is the fossil on the left.
and the second is marked:
ORTHOCEEAS-ATLAS MOUNTAINS OF MOROCCO-DEVONIAN AGE
APROX. 370 MIL YRS OLD
This is the Black on the right!
(http://seniorlearn.org/bookclubs/remarkablecreatures/annfossil2.jpg)
We did not walk on the beach there, just at Chessill Beach which is down the way from Lyme. I wonder if anyone here knows that what the English call a beach is not always sand and Chessill consisted of thousands of small rocks. Hurts your bottom to sit on it but many people were laying out on their towels, sunbathing!
I can't wait to start this book! Finally some women are going to be recognized for their discoveries of ancient fossils.
I left a post somewhere about women who weren't recognized for their work and discoveries. Thank goodness we have a Women's Hall of Fame in upstate New York. There are I believe 6 more women being honored for their expertise in many genres in October. Here's link: http://www.greatwomen.org (ftp://http://www.greatwomen.org)
We had a Dominican nun here at Dominican College in Columbus, OH, who helped write the recipe for making retreaded tires during WW11. Never have seen much about that.
At the Hall of Fame, there is a lady chemist who helped develop the Smallpox vaccination but only the men on her team were given recognition.
My daughter and I visited the Women's Hall of Fame about 25 years ago and were so impressed by the accomplishments that were exhibited there.
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Thanks for the help, JoanP., with the picture. It looks much better right side up. :D
I also hope that all who sign in, will read Joan's link. That's a real gem!
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I have never read any of Tracy Chevalier's books, but am excited to participate. I am finishing up Pride & Prejudice and am beginning Persuasion with Oct.'s discussion, along with Pearl S. Buck's "Sons"........so save me a spot for Nov.!
Ciao for now~
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You got it Bellamarie - a nice group of stories this fall aren't they - from pre-Communism China to pre-Victoria England.
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YES
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Sounds interesting. AFter I get home, will look for the book.
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Steph, kidsal, Bellamarie - happy to hear you will be joining us! Welcome!
Do you call fictionalized biography "historical fiction"? I'm not sure. This will be interesting on several different levels.
Marcie, I love to collect shells too - maybe we're picking up fossils. Do you bring them home? What do you do with all those shells? I know this sounds silly - but are fossils just old, old shells?
Annie, what brought you to Lyme Regis and nearby Chessil Beach? I suppose you had to wear shoes to walk the stoney beach - Who identified your finds for you? I'll bet we could go over there and do some serious fossil-seeking - if you left any behind for us, that is!
Do you watch the PBS program - Doc Martin? The village of Port Isaac in Cornwall looks so inviting. I wondered far it is from Lyme-Regis...not far - a two hour drive. Can you see them on this map? - Port Isaac is A and Lyme Regis is B-
Google map between Port Isaac, Cornwall (A) and Lyme-Regis (B) (https://maps.google.com/maps?oe=UTF-8&ie=UTF-8&gl=us&daddr=Lyme+Regis,+Dorset,+UK&saddr=Port+Isaac,+Cornwall,+UK&panel=1&f=d&fb=1&dirflg=d&geocode=KfFT_KQEdmtIMW6jlMX-1RQT%3BKXfxq-2qgG1IMTynMGU-imB2&ei=4OVKUrCjJLj54AOS1YDoAg&ved=0CC8Q-A8wAA)
or
(https://www.google.com/maps/vt/data=VLHX1wd2Cgu8wR6jwyh-km8JBWAkEzU4,2N2KAQk-Qtz_R9rc7zJLEyU_TOkLyavKFSursh7pwLpLmvxMTmPbD0b50u96ajAyGaCTpmi8gzpFppEvVSS-aD8TtUdD54p-r1Uii4nYcyIVznWGvlXSm5-GCJzkN9sKNeOkdE3VBfLsa4Qwl1xNBo1S9GyS4TDXs2hHDSGI3yT5FLFozhj_6EhO79SiL1e3KOBn9y1wxmzHhcZi-haxXcCurZhRq_4Tp0xUU9430yjZMcu5Yyq8U3SgunsYMR90-XNCr7PXovKOmZM_Tgr2aGOlEGf0xOL-Imk&h=256&w=256)
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Joan,
We spent 2 weeks in England back in the '90's, 1 week in London, and the other in a B&B in Dorset. The owners not only fed us, but took us anywhere we wanted go and also planned much sightseeing on the way. That's how we got to Chessil Beach and Lyme Regis. We bought our fossils at the Lyme Fossil Shop.
Yes, we wore shoes on the beach, wouldn't you? ;) ;)
I looked at your map and it sounds doable. We could stay in that same B&B and have the husband take us wherever we want to go. This man was also a historian and he knew much about every place we went. Very entertaining. As it turns out, there are offers like this almost any place you tour. I have friends who went to Ireland and hired a driver to get them where they wanted to visit. Of course, its not free! And you pay for the driver's hotel/motel every night. But if you get the right guy, you come home with lots of history in your mind and can reminisce about your trip forever.
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JoanP, I had never thought about seashells being fossils. Good question! There is an informative discussion about that exact question in a "Fossil Forum" at http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/topic/1180-seashells-and-fossils/
I still have the "ordinary" sea shells (sand dollars, etc) that I collected as a child on beaches in the San Francisco bay area. Most of those beaches don't have sea shells anymore. I also have a basket of some shells that people have given me as gifts. I also have a large framed poster of a Georgia O'Keefe shell painting. See http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_qVUoD9EHNdY/SYtPhAqN4XI/AAAAAAAAFR8/yG84Vxzxkfk/s400/georgia-okeeffe-seashell-painting-1938.jpg
Even though my shells aren't fossils, I like their connection to nature and the ocean.
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I ordered my book from Amazon .99 plus shipping. My ddh and I visited Lyme Regis a number of years back. I need to look up my travel log & see where we stayed & what we saw. I remember trying to walk the beach, but a cold north wind sent me scurrying back to the car.
Sally
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Salan, Do you remember the Lyme Fossil Shop? Did you buy any fossils? We had such a beautiful day there, lots of sun and puffy clouds and somewhere during our ride, our guide pointed out Jane Austen's little village of Alton and the museum of Austen memorabilia which had been Chawton Cottage after 1809 and where she did all her writing. The cottage was replaced with the museum in 1889, according to a book we used to choose some of the places that we visited. She didn't live very far from Lyme Regis.
Wow, JoanP, Now that we are speaking of England, I could use a 4th trip there! Well, not in my plans right now.
How about in September of 2014? or June? That can be best month for England! Actually, we arrived in late June and left in July. We had only one day of rain and it was light rain and we were being chauffeured to our B&B that day.
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Sally - so glad you are joining us! Your book was a real bargain...lucky you. And you have also visited - and walked the same beach (well, almost) as Mary Anning! Had you ever heard of her before? Was her name prominent - or at least mentioned in Lyme Regis? I wonder if there are still Anning's living there. (We'll have to look them up when we visit, Annie.)
I'd never heard of her before, though of course familiar with the tongue twister..."she sells seashells..." Didn't know "she" had a name!
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Marcie...thanks for the link explaining the difference between fossils and the seashells I've been picking up.
"For one of those seashells to become a fossil it must undergo a process of being buried, and its original material being replaced by mineralisation/petrification etc
The seashells you find on a beach are almost always modern (bar a few exceptions when offshore deposits, or cliff exposures have washed them onto the beach) sometimes it is easy to find out whether your shells are a fossil, obviously if you find some that have rock attatched or they are surrounded by rock (the matrix) if you are still unsure whether your shells are fossils or not, you can consult a paleontologist at a museum or uni, or you can find information from a local library about the modern seashells from the area and compare the ones you found, if you cant find a modern one it may infact be a fossil...."
It seems I haven't been shelling on the right beaches...too sandy, not rocky enough.
I 'm trying to picture your house with that bold Georgia O'Keefe on your wall - another side of California Marcie revealed!
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I wonder if all the shells and snail shells we dig up are fossils or simply shells buried in our limestone loaded soil. We are on the edge of the Edward's Plateau where ancient rivers gushed and the sea level from the Gulf met them banging into the Edward's Plateau - not as many now - they were so prolific I never thought to save any - with almost 50 years of gardening and tilling there are very few shells popping up as compared to the 1960s when we moved into what was a new house.
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Today I read all of these posts on Tracy Chevalier's book, Remarkable Creatures. I will be reading here again after Nov. 1 to see what everyone has to say. I already have a copy of the book, but don't know if I'll join the discussion...I'm not very good at keeping to reading one book and will probably slip behind.
This evening while reading some of the book blogs that I follow, I came upon a mention of a YouTube video of Tracy Chevalier where she discusses her writing of this book and shows you where she writes. I thought you all might find it interesting.
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=CiJEbfYNh9E&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DCiJEbfYNh9E (http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=CiJEbfYNh9E&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DCiJEbfYNh9E)
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what a great bit of sharing - love the youtube video thanks.
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Lady Winchester...I too loved the video...the author in the cosy little room in the back of the house, the walls painted to match the book, her own fossil collection... Thank you! I hope you can look in from time to time. We'd love to hear from you!
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WinchesterLady,I just watched your link and truly enjoyed seeing our author. I wanted to pause it when she showed her fossil collection to see better! So I am returning to watch it again! Thanks for sharing your find.
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I would like to join the discussion. Booktopia have been constantly emailing me, trying to get me to buy more books. I've bought quite a few poetry books, because they're read over and over, but I've been trying to be strong re other kinds. Running out of space!
But I love reading about fossils and it's so long since I was in a discussion. I miss it. I need the
distraction too.
How fortunate that Booktopia have a 'no shipping charge offer' and a paperback copy for $14.95.
It must be fate. I love paperbacks, I'm not sure why. Of course if there's no shipping charge, it would be remiss of me not to add another book, or maybe 2, wouldn't it?
I must watch that utube video.
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Welcome, Octavia! Happy that you will be joining us in November! Yes, do watch the video. We'll move a link to the heading at the top of each page so you won't have to hunt for it.
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Went to the library today and got the book. I am looking forward to November's discussion. Thank you WinchesterLady for the link!
After viewing the video of TC I thought how she says she changes the small little room so it will give her the feel of the novel she is writing. I am such a person who hates change, that I can not imagine redoing a room for each new novel, although I loved seeing her room and getting the feel for the novel. When she said she looks at the pictures on the wall when describing the characters and the place Maryann lived, I was a bit confused. If she is inventing these characters for her novel, where would she get pictures of the people? Is she using people she knows to be her characters in the book? Oh my, I hope I don't sound horribly ridiculous in asking this.
Ciao for now~
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Bellamarie, Confused? Mary Anning and her friend, Elizabeth Philpot and their amazing finds are the subject of this Historical Fiction. Maybe reading the links below will help you become unconfused and enjoying the book.
Here is Wikipedia's description of that:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_fiction
And another:
http://www.k12.hi.us/~gfujimur/eschool/historical_fiction/characteristics.htm
And there's always "Goodreads" opinion.
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/465433-what-is-historical-fiction
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Got my copy of the book. My granddaughter and I will be in London in late May 2014.. part of her graduation present..
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A trip of a lifetime, Steph! What an adventure! Will it be just the two of you?
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I have my book, and have just put it down, very reluctantly, because of sore eyes, and the stray cat Trev asking querulously, if he was getting tea tonight. It doesn't take long for a stray cat to go from grateful thanks, to 'am I having that again?'
I was thinking of taking my laptop down to Brisbane so I could follow the discussion, but it's a big laptop, quite heavy, and my joints are damaged.
Already, there's the odd person I'd like to give a good shaking.
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Oh Octavia - how maddening - are you gone for only a few days the first part of November - we seldom share page by page and within the week's chapters there is often carry over - It may not be quite as satisfying but when you can post why not post all your thoughts even if repeating some pages we had discussed since a fresh pair of eyes makes it a joy for all of us.
Feeling bad is a nuisance to put it mildly and I hope reading the story will help to get your mind someplace other than how low you are feeling.
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Google Earth show photos of fossils and cliffs between Lyme Regis and Charmouth. Steep cliffs
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I return on the 4th of November, so I'll be back on line on the 5th November. It won't take long to catch up, but as I said, it's like missing the first day of school.
I've just booked my tickets online, and all the time I was on hold, I was reading the book. I couldn't put it down.
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Octavia, just take your book...leave heavy laptop at home! We all need a break from the Internet now and then - the pause that refreshes. When you return you'll be rarin' to go! I hope you found a good caretaker for that demanding kitty! :D
Kidsal - those cliffs full of fossils have my attention these days. I understood that they date from the Jurassic Era...but had no idea what that meant. I've looked it up and now know the Jurassic Era was 206 to 144 Million Years Ago. I still can't imagine such numbers!
Lyme Regis is located in West Dorset...I found this:
"The spectacular Jurassic Coast in Dorset and East Devon is England's first natural World Heritage Site. One fo the natural wonders of the world. You'd think there'd be a law about picking up these ancient fossils and walking off with them. Can you put a $ sign on their worth? Thousands walk the beach at Lyme Regis...a wonder there is anything left to pick up. I guess you need to carry a little hammer with you when you go.
I wondered where Jurassic rock can be found in my neighborhood...found this "little" map (green markings=Jurassic rock):
(http://www.paleoportal.org/media/boilerplate/0/17039_period_per_map_9_image.jpg)"
Geologic activity since the Jurassic has covered up or removed many of these rocks around North America. Exposures of Jurassic rocks in the U.S. can be found in the Cascade Mountains, Sierra Nevada, Rocky Mountains, Texas, and states east of the Appalachian Mountains. Jurassic outcrops are rare in Mexico, but do occur in scattered areas in all four regions of the country. Jurassic rocks are also found in several Canadian provinces, particularly in the western part of the country.
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I will leave the laptop behind Joan, I'm going to travel light. My joints are going to be tested enough, trekking around that huge, damn hospital!
I've lately read At The Loch Of The Green Corrie and Greig says 'these reddish sandstones date from over a billion years after the Lewisian Gneiss they sit on. The Laurentia continent that included Assynt drifted over the Earth's mantle from the South Pole to the Equator .
The Jurassic period left partial fossils of dinosaur in Skye, no distance from here. The drift continued to roughly where N. America is now.'
He's in Western Scotland, where the poet Norman MacCaig spent a lot of his time.
He later writes that England and Scotland met, consolidated, and split from N. America and moved to the East as the Atlantic Ocean opened up.
He says 'the ground I sit on(Assynt) this morning, has rafted across much of the globe, and this small part of Scotland is probably the most travelled landmass on our planet'
When people talk in billions of years, my head spins, and I start to feel so tiny and insignificant, I can't seem to ground myself anymore. I'm just a blink of an eyelid, not even that.
Somewhere I read the no. of people alive today, as compared to the total that has gone before us, and how our being alive right now, is the greatest miracle we could ever have.
I feel it, and for a while I feel blessed, then I get caught up again in the minutiae of my daily life :)
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I read remarkable creatures when someone first mentioned it here, and loved it. And the coincidence of reading it right after Persuasion is too much! I'd love to join.
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That's great, JoanK! Happy to hear you're on the way. A remarkable coincidence that we are gathering in Lyme Regis right after Anne Elliot was there. I'd love to try to affix a date to the time Mary Anning was selling seashells on that seashore and Anne was walking the beach, collecting - who knows what.
The Philpot girls moved to Lyme in 1805...I believe Mary Anning was 12 years old at this time. Can you figure what year Anne Elliot of Persuasion was said to be in Lyme?
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I believe 1814. I'll double check. That would make Mary Anning 21.
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1814 is right.
Here is the only contact I have been able to find. Mary Anning's father was a cabinet maker, whom evidently the Austen's dealt with. Jane Austen wrote:
"I have written to Mr Pyne on the subject of the broken Lid: it was valued by Anning here we were told at five shillings and as that appeared to us beyond he value of all the furniture in the room together We have referred ourselves to the Owner"
It is a shame that social class differences would have kept these two remarkable women from knowing each other.
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Got the book. air conditioning fixed, tile floor laid and completed. Now a oven door wont close.. I am cursed.. Oh well. I have the book and will forge on.
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hello there
able to find a copy of the book at the N. Fort Myers library; book caught my eye as thought it was about animals, but looking thru the book looks like an interesting read....am not the best as far as contributing to discussions, but count me in as to reading along
Deb
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The Book Club Online is the oldest book club on the Internet, begun in 1996, open to everyone. We offer cordial discussions of one book a month, 24/7 and enjoy the company of readers from all over the world. Everyone is welcome.
November Book Club Online
Beginning on Nov. 1
Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier
| (http://seniorlearn.org/bookclubs/remarkablecreatures/remarkablecover2.jpg) | In Remarkable Creatures, Tracy Chevalier brings to our attention, two historical figures, telling their tale in two distinct voices. Mary Anning is the young one, the uneducated girl with the uncanny gift of finding fossils, (the origin of the tongue-twister "She Sells Sea Shells on the Sea Shore.")
It is the older woman whose voice dominates the novel, another historical character, a middle-class spinster sent away by a married brother to live more cheaply in England's coastal village of Lyme Regis. To Jane Austen's readers, she will sound familiar.
Both women played a key role in understanding the earth with their discoveries, though not without controversy, at a time when there was no place for women in science. This is the story of their friendship which allowed them to stand together and prevail as they challenged the thinking of the day. |
| DISCUSSION SCHEDULE: | | November 1-8 Chapters 1-3 | (http://seniorlearn.org/bookclubs/remarkablecreatures/ammonite.jpg) |
|
Related Links:
Video ~ Tracy Chevalier on Writing Remarkable Creatures (http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=CiJEbfYNh9E&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DCiJEbfYNh9E);
DLs: AdoAnnie (ADOANNIE35@YAHOO.COM ), BarbStAubrey (augere@ix.netcom.com), Marcie (marciei@aol.com ), JoanP (jonkie@verizon.net)
This is great! So glad to hear that you both have the book in hand...ready to "forge" on :D You need to get that oven door fixed, Steph - Thanksgiving is coming...
Deb, this is the first fall we didn't come down to N. Fort Meyers for the annual softball tournament there. We used to stay right on the river - I'll try to spell it - Caloosahatchee? Is that right?
There seems to be something for every interest in Tracy Chevalier's book - women's struggle for recognition of their work in what had been considered a man's field. Had you ever heard of Mary Anning? And then there's the connection between Jane Austen's Persuasion heroines and Elizabeth Philpot and her sisters who settle in Lyme Regis. Even is you are not acquainted with Mary Anning and Anne Elliot, there is much to like in Chevalier's book.
Welcome! Looking forward to hearing from you both next week.
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OH this is going to be a good discussion - Steph it is amazing isn't it when they finally get to work how our life can be less stressed - good luck with the oven door.
Booked you will be fine - no stress as we share - we are only sharing our curiosity and what we see and feel as we read - the story will have us all over the place between the fact it took place in another century with all those social differences and the exposure that for some of us will be new to ancient fossils never mind how the characters react to each other - so just pop in with any of your thoughts - it is amazing how we each aid with our reactions what others over look - so have fun with this and we will look forward to your posts. So glad, really, so happy you will be joining us.
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Hey, Deb, glad to have you.
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Deb, that's wonderful that you'll be joining the discussion. The title of the book is interesting.... doesn't specify what "creatures."
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I had lunch with Ella today and she is going to look for this book also. She hopes to join us.
Welcome Deb and Steph! This should be an interesting discussion about the past and its strange history. Can't wait to get started. See you all on Nov. 1st.
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Deb,, hi fellow floridian. I live in Clermont, so further north, but still we are in the same state.
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Thank you Annie, for the links you posted, to help me understand Historical fiction. I guess I learned something new today, to file away for future use.
by Charlie ....This is an excellent question. I went to the historical novel society for an answer. This is how they determine 'historical'
"To be deemed historical a novel must have been written at least fifty years after the events described, or have been written by someone who was not alive at the time of those events (who therefore approaches them only by research).
That seems to be the line most literary persons are drawing between contemporary and historical.
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/465433-what-is-historical-fiction
I am going to begin reading chapters 1 - 3 today, so I will be ready on Nov 1. I have never heard of TC, before this discussion, so did a little research to familiarize me with her. I always love to know a little bit about the author, when reading their book. She seems like a very simple woman, who loves to research for her novels, and get her hands dirty while doing it, LITERALLY! My kind of person.
Ciao for now~
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I too have started the book and am enjoying it a lot. But then, I read for pleasure, so sometimes in the discussion groups, I tend to get impatient with research..
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That's okay, Steph. Just stay with the story - skip the research! ;)
Have you read Chevalier's "Girl with a Pearl Earring,"?
(http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51G3biFXWqL._SY344_PJlook-inside-v2,TopRight,1,0_SH20_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg)
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JoanP., I have not read Girl with a Pearl Earring, but while researching TC, I found this:
Chevalier brings the real artist Vermeer, and a fictional muse to life in a jewel of a novel. 17th Century Holland, a coming of age story, and a lyrical essay on how to look at a painting. Vermeer's portrait, called the 'Dutch Mona Lisa'.
I read how TC sees a story in this painting. Sounds interesting. I almost picked it up at the library, when I got Remarkable Creatures. It's becoming a habit for me to read more than one book at a time. lolol
Steph, don't worry about research. We get plenty of info from members who share, along the way. I am too curious for my own good. :o
Ciao for now~
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I was excited when "pearl earring" came out, and hurried to read it. I was disappointed, feeling in the end there wasn't much point to it. But I really like "remarkable creatures." Maybe because it tells an historical story that I didn't know.
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I have also started Creatures.
Sally
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hello there
been reading the book was a bit worried as didn't really enjoy author's book ?girl with the pearl earring....think some seaside sounds and smells would be nice asset to reading the book, imagine the hours she put in looking for fossils....the author in one interview said she was taking her 7 year old grandchild to the museum and in the area of fossil display saw the name Mary A. and was intrigued by a woman's name and hence the book we are reading...the same interview says she is writing this present time a book about the underground railway (takes her about 2 years to get a book written)....for the 'creatures' book she said she spent time out looking for fossils, but wrapped in her gortex etc, not musty woolens as the dress of the book's time
Steph: sorry to disappoint you but really am one of those 'snowbirds' though I hate that term, in Texas we were called 'winter texans'....but am coming to love your state am reading 'Spanish Pathways in Florida' by Ann L. Henderson and Gary R. Mormino, (editors) and it really makes one aware of how much earlier this area was colonized.....and love it here, 10 minute ride to downtown Fort Myers and near the country as well (best of both worlds)
JoanP: my spelling is as yours but love the fact that many names reflect history other than just English, in my home province of Ontario so many names reflect Lord Simcoe (governor late 1700s-early 1800s) pickings and his imagination seemed to extend as far as family and friends, even named one set of townships after a friend's dogs, Tiny, Tay and Flo
looking forward to the first when we start the book
bookad
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Hadn't thought of the sounds and smells as the beachcombers did their combing. Will try to keep them in mind while reading.
For those who read Girl with Pearl - let's compare to find what Ms. Chevalier did differently with Vermeer and Mary Anning's character - as we get into the story...
Can't wait to get started too, Deb! Won't be long now!
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I liked Pearl Earring.. and love this one.. She writes with such a flow.. Anyway, be careful about the smells of the ocean.. I grew up on one and have lived on several oceans, rivers,lakes over the years. There are places in the world where when the tide changes, life becomes quite smelly. Anyone go to
Charleston on the south side,, They call it plum duff, but it is smelly mud, no matter what.
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Okay, so I boarded my plane from Bath (Persuasion) leaving Captain Wentworth and Anne happily together, and am now landing in Lyme Regis (Remarkable Creatures), with Mary Anning and Elizabeth. Why do I feel like Captain Wentworth, Anne, Louisa, Mr. Elliot, Mary, Charles and the rest of the Persuasion group are walking along the cliffs of Cobb? It's actually a nice feel, leaving one book, that introduced me to an area, where the new book is taking place. Just have to make sure I don't get the characters mixed up. lol ::)
Steph, I know what you mean about the smells of the ocean. I have visited a few places, where I thought I would wake up and eat my breakfast on the terrace, only to find the smell was too offensive to appreciate the beautiful colorful sail boats drifting by, and the seagulls on the sandy beach.
Ciao for now~
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I'm reading "creatures" too, and the walking on the beach searching for treasures is taking me right back to my childhood. Didn't you all love to do that?
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Maybe you have to be walking at low tide to mind the smells. I've always loved the salty sea breezes - and smells. :D
Yes, JoanK, I still pick up those shells and treasure them during vacation days at the shore. But then, when it's time to go home, I have to be selective - and carry most of them back to the beach - for someone else to pick up! I ususally take a few home - to decorate the garden, my mantle, the back porch...
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well fortunately for these ladies they do not need to monitor their radio as to the pollution index or if the water is suitable for swimming in] that particular day
-they don't have to worry about large tankers going down and the ocean drift sending oily water and birds and sea animals covered with oil to their beaches....
-I imagine they may have had 'red tides' hopefully not to the magnitude of today's .....3 years ago experienced a red tide off boca chica beach (the Rio river runs thru this beach and the beach continues down thru Mexico..... 20 miles approx from Brownsville, Texas)....well really didn't give too much thought to what exactly a red tide was till we reached the beach and (3 of us in the truck, windows down) I started choking, just thinking I may have swallowed the wrong way till my companions started coughing, all our eyes were watering, and we rolled up the windows immediately...even that wasn't enough to stop the stench....2 car washings and our friend's truck still smelt of the decay on the beach the following day
no....I am imagining a day with light winds, and aromas of sand, water, tropical trees (a friend in England pointed out to me they have palm trees on some southern coastal areas, not sure if this area talked about is one of those though)--the sea gulls calling, waves lapping, rustling of the palms, my favourite time before the sun is high to walk the beach, or when the day calms down in the evening {wonder what no traffic noise sounds like!!!!}
bookad
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I spent the last three months of my first pregnancy living in Myrtle Beach directly on the ocean. I walked each day at tidal change since at that point, you could wade into the shallows and catch welks and concks.. before they crashed and broke.. A lovely memory for me.
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"wonder what no traffic noise sounds like!!!!"
Sigh.
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Oh my the things we take for granted - off and on during the day there is light traffic on my street except for about a half hour before school starts and again for about an hour starting just before school is over for the day at both the elementary and the middle school that have the same start time but finish up a half hour apart - and then in the evening from just after 5: till about 8: and in summer till about 9:00. After it is dead silent except for those walking or bike riding in the street unless, a strong breeze from the east which is so seldom you can almost count the number of times during a year and then there is this low sound that is hard to distinguish but you know it is traffic from a highway that is about 7 blocks away down hill all the way.
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We're going to leave this discussion open for reference, but lock it for comment. We do want to hear from you - Please join us in the newly opened discussion -
Remarkable Creatures November Book Club Online (http://seniorlearn.org/forum/index.php?topic=4060.msg205902#msg205902)