tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15714418.post2666924378152144812..comments2024-03-25T19:05:07.205-06:00Comments on Reading, Writing, Working, Playing: Story Throwdown: Mysteries of Udolpho vs. To the Lighthouse vs. The Thirteenth TaleJaneGShttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11094501834387622997noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15714418.post-3510136594221882292010-05-06T02:25:26.596-06:002010-05-06T02:25:26.596-06:00Well, Dan has to get all of that complex expositio...Well, Dan has to get all of that complex exposition in somewhere, I guess, Jane! And talking of Dan Brown, have you ever read <i>Foucault's Pendulum</i> by Umberto Eco? now that's the antidote to The Da Vinci Code - I seem to be on a mission to persuade as many people as possible to read it :)Tracyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03070070360087765540noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15714418.post-77472984857704774972010-05-01T19:33:44.895-06:002010-05-01T19:33:44.895-06:00I have loved reading everyone's comments about...I have loved reading everyone's comments about the three books I finished last week (I never claimed to have read all three in one week!). Woolf seems to challenge a lot of people, though there are definitely some diehard fans out there as well.<br /><br />Tracy - I loved your comment about Dan Brown stories--I though the same think whilst listening to The Da Vinci Code. :)JaneGShttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11094501834387622997noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15714418.post-70625369527106334422010-05-01T12:23:19.805-06:002010-05-01T12:23:19.805-06:00Fun post! I like seeing common threads through ver...Fun post! I like seeing common threads through very different books, and I tend to read widely different books at once, so sometimes those connections are a bit odd. I really enjoyed The Thirteenth Tale. Like you, I feel that Woolf just isn't really for me. I read To the Lighthouse a few months ago and while I could appreciate the writing, I just didn't enjoy it. I have Udolpho, which I picked up because of Northanger Abbey, but it looks intimidating so I haven't read it yet. It's interesting that you said it was the easiest of the three to read, so maybe I'll pick it up soon. Maybe on one of the many stormy days we usually have in OK during May.Lindsey Sparkshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03654365166738983077noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15714418.post-84652107631368926632010-04-27T06:53:07.232-06:002010-04-27T06:53:07.232-06:00I read A Room of One's Own decades ago - a ...I read <i>A Room of One's Own</i> decades ago - a 'worthy' book, but have never been tempted to tackle <i>To The Lighthouse</i> - one of my schoolfriends had to study it for A Level English and hated it. Can't say I'm a big Virginia Woolf fan. But you're right that unless they're thrillers, many/most modern books are usually a combination of external events and the characters' thoughts about those events (or in the case of Dan Brown - characters complex thoughts about secret codes whilst being chased by a knife wielding mad monk - most real people's thoughts wouldn't get past Help! Keep Running!)Tracyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03070070360087765540noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15714418.post-25757639327679950512010-04-27T03:22:29.986-06:002010-04-27T03:22:29.986-06:00Such an interesting and thought provoking post - t...Such an interesting and thought provoking post - thanks indeed for sharing with us. I enjoy To the Lighthouse - but it is a shock in story telling, I don't know if you can even call it storytelling in fact. <br /><br />Happy Tuesday<br /><br />HannahHannah Stonehamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11139146341592918233noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15714418.post-89584839110928047162010-04-26T23:24:46.675-06:002010-04-26T23:24:46.675-06:00I've read To the Lighthouse and The Thirteeent...I've read To the Lighthouse and The Thirteeenth Tale and I would never have thought of comparing the two, but of course they do have similarities even though they are so different. I much preferred To the Lighthouse. Maybe I was expecting too much from The Thirteenth Tale but I found it disappointing, after a good beginning it became too drawn out , I thought. All those loose ends that needed pulling together were too much for me - or it was my mood. I have no inclination to read it again, whereas To the Lighthouse stands up well for a re-read (I've read it twice). Woolf's writing style pulls me in.BooksPleasehttp://www.booksplease.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15714418.post-14902083458786364702010-04-26T22:27:16.143-06:002010-04-26T22:27:16.143-06:00Extremely interesting, as usual Jane. I haven'...Extremely interesting, as usual Jane. I haven't read The Thirteenth Tale and know nothing about it. But your analysis/comparison of gothic Udolpho and modern interior monologue in Virginia Woolf is something I have to cope with often in my job. Like you I find them both interesting to study, link and contextualize, but they are not my cup of tea if I wish to read for pleasure.<br />Three books in a week? Good pace!Maria Graziahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08876779286144473782noreply@blogger.com