The Wings of the Dove | 
panI‘m just sure you‘ve been waiting with bated breath to hear what I thought of the book that some of you might have wondered if I‘d ever finish. No surprise: I hated it. Full review at https://booknaround.blogspot.com/2023/11/review-wings-of-dove-by-henry-james.htm...
I have finally picked this one back up to try and power through it. It‘s definitely a slog. James likes to hear himself talk/write and circles round again and again and again. It remains to be seen if I make it through before I need to pick up my book club book but I‘m over half way! 🎉🎉🎉
#VolumesAndVocals
Day 1. Edge of Seventeen
#EdgeOfSeventeen
Per Goodreads: Set amid the splendor of London drawing rooms and gilded Venetian palazzos, The Wings Of The Dove is the story of Milly Theale, a naive, doomed American heiress, and a pair of lovers who conspire to obtain her fortune.
Yes, Ozzie, I usually feel the same way about books but I am really struggling with this one!
I finally pulled this off the shelf. It‘s been on the tbr pile longer than anything else (since high school—and since I‘m in my 50s…ashamed shuffling going on). I said I‘d read it for the #pickleschallenge @RaeLovesToRead is hosting but I wasn‘t sure I‘d truly follow through. We‘ll see! #baneofyourbookshelf
This one is for @BookNAround 💕
Just in case you thought Pickles had been distracted by morning cuddles... a gentle reminder that she is still very much judging you 😉
If anyone else wishes to join the challenge - all you have to do is pick the book that has been sitting on your shelf the longest or that you have been assiduously avoiding & get it read!
#pickleschallenge #baneofyourbookshelf
I'll do you a special Pickles post when you finish.
#Two4Tuesday @TheSpineView
1.Yes!Reading the tagged book,and Lawrence's The rainbow right now.
2 Always!I've decided this is my year of Henry James and DH Lawrence,never knew their writing of women was so nuanced and subtle.And just gorgeous sentences.
so-soThe plot is fascinating. A young couple, Kate & Merton, want to marry but don‘t have the money. Enter a rich American heiress Milly, who falls in love w/Merton. Kate realizes Milly is dying and wants Merton to woo her so she will leave her money to him. What follows is complicated by human emotions, guilt, & a trip to Venice. Unfortunately I think James was too long-winded in this one. It lost its emotional punch in a deluge of banal observations.
Was it contractually required that Helena Bonham Carter be cast in 1980s and ‘90s film adaptations of classic novels? I think so.
Kidding aside, I‘ve seen all three pictured productions and enjoyed them as well as the original source material... though I find Henry James‘ later novels to be “sloggy” and in the case of the tagged title, preferred the film over the novel.😀
#3books
panI think Henry James and I just don‘t see eye to eye. I liked the bones of the story but almost every sentence had nine or ten clauses (I counted some!) and it felt like a grammar exercise approaching some of them. I found the characters pretty stilted, I read a lot of nineteenth century fiction and this is the first time I‘ve ever gone ‘those aren‘t real people‘. I was surprised when I‘ve seen so much love for this but I just couldn‘t
Hi all! My brain is suffering a little bit with the isolation and uncertainty so I‘ve been reading much more slowly than usual, but I‘m trying to focus on the positives and I‘m incredibly lucky to have a garden at my parents house on such a warm sunny day. I‘m not getting along great with Henry James unfortunately - does every sentence need to have 9 clauses Henry??? But I‘m finally getting through my tbr!
I think @TheAromaofBooks might be trying to kill me! All three of the numbers she pulled for #bookspin, #doublespin, and #triplespin are all pushing 500 pages. 😂😂😂
#7day7covers #covercrush #foliosociety 💖 Day 1
(I loved the Helena Bonham-Carter film but I haven‘t read the book yet.)
Onward and upward with my bevy of display work from today 🙃. 2 replacements for my #EverymansLibrary Display! 😁 The James book might have the most beautiful cover of the whole set, it‘s really something. 👍🏻👍🏻
Have you read either of these?!
#LitsyLovesLibraries #MrBooksDisplays
pickPleased to report that I enjoyed the latest #modernlibrarytop100 book by Henry James so much more than the other two I read this year. This is a the story of three young people: a couple who can‘t afford to marry, and the wealthy heiress whose money they want. I was eagerly anticipating the denouement from page 1 (I took the precaution of reading the intro to help me understand, so I was aware of the plot before HJ starts it halfway through).
Nearly finished both of these, but it‘s time to get out of bed and to my brother‘s birthday lunch.
Classic tourist complaining about tourists. #modernlibrarytop100
When Milly smiled it was a public event—when she didn‘t it was a chapter of history.
(Against all odds I‘m quite enjoying this one so far! #modernlibrarytop100)
...So I‘m immediately starting the next #modernlibrarytop100 book, which is another Henry James novel.
Took the unusual step of reading the introduction to see if some context might help my enjoyment. It includes these gems:
“The aim of this introduction is to rescue [the book] from a tendency ... to stay away from James‘s late fiction unless their tastes are irredeemably highbrow.”
“[It] is James‘s most erotic novel.”
⬇️⬇️⬇️
Latest #libraryhaul: one #bookclub book, one #modernlibrarytop100 book
#SeptemberDanes #flyonthewingsoflove reminds me of this classic book, though I have not read it.
A story of two British lovers who plot to deprive a rich American girl of her heart and her inheritance. ‘The buried message is that when it comes to money, sex, love and death, most people are prepared to go a great deal further than they would admit.‘
Here‘s the final result. After purging a bag full of books, setting a few aside to bring to my office, and double stacking most of the shelves, I was able to fit almost all of my books onto the new book case. Definitely going to get another set of shelves to set up next to this one so that I can organize the books more aesthetically. Probably will have to wait a week or two because I want to make my BF do it when he comes home from work.
This is the month's book club pick and I'm really struggling. Of course it's my turn to lead the discussion. So I must persevere! I've got two weeks. Wish me luck!
Just a few of my #blackandwhite books. #spookyoctober @Jess7
pickIt has taken me about a month to finish this book. helped by Shmoop, where I re-read every chapter to make sure I knew what had been going on.
It also took so long because I didn't care much about the characters or what would become of them.
And then, suddenly, it gripped me. Especially the development of the characters and the way they relate to what's going on. Suddenly they become so real to me, with their strength and weaknesses. #1001books
The story of a Londoner who encourages her fiancé to woo and marry a wealthy young American who is dying of a mysterious malady. Still on my TBR, not sure it will make one cries, but I've decided to pick this merely for the title. By the way, I automatically think of Prince whenever I come across the phrase #whendovescry
#lyricalapril
I own this as an ebook, but would love to have this pretty copy. #whendovescry #lyricalapril
