Jean Rhys Reading Week discussion

Hello Rhys fans!

My name is Eric and I was invited by book blogger Jacqui to co-host this Jean Rhys reading week. I read Rhys' early work when I was at university. I only came to Wide Sargasso Sea many years later after finally reading Jane Eyre *I don't know how I missed out on reading this as a teenager*
I've been wanting to revisit her writing for a while and consider further her fascinating long life with its relatively slim amount of literary output.

I'm looking forward to hearing lots of people's thoughts about this great author's writing and life. Join in and let us know something about yourself and what you'd like to read by Rhys during the reading week.

Here's a post on my blog about the Jean Rhys Reading Week: http://lonesomereader.com/blog/2016/7...

Hi!

I'm @Lillie_Langtry on Twitter and also a quarter of @Read_Women.

My mum has a lovely bookshelf full of old orange Penguin editions, and I picked After Leaving Mr Mackenzie off it as a teenager and enjoyed it... but then forgot about it. We read Wide Sargasso Sea at uni and I loved it - but never put two and two together and realised it was the same author I'd read before.

More recently, I read Good Morning, Midnight and Smile Please and rediscovered how wonderful Rhys' writing is.

I'm going to read Quartet to start with, I think, and as I got Diana Athill's memoir of her publishing days, Stet, for my birthday, I'm also going to read what she says about her relationship with Rhys.

Hi Lillie

That's great you've read several of her books before. I'm excited to read Quartet as well to see if her style was the same when she first started publishing.

I didn't realize Anthill wrote about Rhys. Do let us know what their friendship was like!

Eric wrote: "Hi Lillie

That's great you've read several of her books before. I'm excited to read Quartet as well to see if her style was the same when she first started publishing.

I didn't realize Anthill w..."

Hi Eric,

Athill also wrote the introduction to Smile Please where she explains how Rhys had plans for a two-part autobiography (I'm writing from memory here but pretty sure I remember correctly), of which Smile Please was to be the first. She had completed it and sent it to Athill, but then changed her mind, deciding it needed more editing. Unfortunately before she could submit again, she died. However, Athill had experience of Rhys' editing style and was certain that very litte would've been changed. She describes Rhys as an absolutely meticulous writer who was furious because one of her works had two superfluous words in it - one of which was "quite"! I think that gives such an insight into her as a writer.

Hi Vivek

So great that you're joining in! I do want to read The Blue Hour, but not sure I'll have time to by the Rhys Week with all the other rereading.

Ha! Yes, that does seem to be a criteria of her books! Her style is so directly emotionally honest.

Hi everyone,

My name is Jacqui (I go by the name of ‘JacquiWine’ on both GoodReads and Twitter), and I write about books at my blog, JacquiWine’s Journal. It’s mostly books, but I also post the occasional piece about wine too. Having never studied literature beyond O Level, I’m just an ordinary reader as opposed to a professional writer or reviewer. Nevertheless, I do enjoy summarising and discussing particular books, and that’s what the blog is there for – there’s a link here if you’re interested:

https://jacquiwine.wordpress.com/

I’m still quite new to Jean Rhys’ work, but what I have experienced has convinced me that I should try to read pretty much everything she has ever written. Maybe not this year, but at some point in the future – I’d like to save some of her work for next year and beyond! When I wrote about two of Rhys’ early novels (After Leaving Mr Mackenzie and Voyage in the Dark) I realised that several other readers were also interested in reading or revisiting her books – hence the decision to organise a Jean Rhys Reading Week as an opportunity for interested readers to share their thoughts and impressions of her work. There’s a little more information about the JRRW in our 'plans' post here:

https://jacquiwine.wordpress.com/2016...

I’m delighted that Eric Karl Anderson – a long-standing fan of Rhys – will be joining me in co-hosting the #ReadingRhys Week from 12-18th September. Alongside adding notes to GoodReads, Eric writes about books at his blog, Lonesome Reader, which you can find here:

http://lonesomereader.com/

We’re really excited about the Jean Rhys Reading Week. You can share your thoughts here, via your blog (if you have one) or via Twitter using the #ReadingRhys hashtag. It’s up to you. We’re both looking forward to hearing other readers’ perspectives about this amazing writer and her work.

If you’re interested in joining you can let us know what you’re thinking of reading. I’m planning to focus on Rhys’ short stories, both the early stories from The Left Bank and the later ones from Tigers are Better Looking. Also hoping to persuade my book group to read one of her early novels, probably Mr Mackenzie as it could be a good intro.

All the best,
Jacqui

I haven't read anything by Rhys but intend reading Sleep It Off Lady for the Rhys Week. I'm looking forward to it.

I'm new to Rhys too, but I've wanted to read her for a long time and the Reading Week seems like a great chance to get started. I think I'm going to read Good Morning Midnight. Excited about hearing other people's impressions and getting to know Rhys better.

Hi all,

Messy_Tony is my handle, but my name is Tony Messenger. I run a blog messybooker.blogspot.com where I planned to write about all the shortlisted Booker Prize titles from 1969 onward. I abandoned that pursuit when the Man Booker changed their rules to include works outside of the Commonwealth. Now I primarily read and review translated fiction, however reading Jean Rhys will be a return to my roots (in a way), English literary works.

I'm very much looking forward to the week and I fully intend to have read (and will review) her five novels over the course of the week.

As an aside this will quite possibly be the last "event" read along for quite sometime, a little like the restrictions the Oulipo place upon themselves the participation in events such as "Spanish Literature Month" and "Women In Translation Month", have constrained my output. Unlike the Oulipo I'm not sure if that has triggered ideas or inspiration.

I do have a new project planned and leading into it with Jean Rhys is an ideal approach.

I hope I can contribute lively discussion.

Hi Everyone,

I like to read books that enter and cross different cultures and I'm interested in themes around identity and belonging, whether to a culture, society, family. I grew up in NZ, travelled a lot in my 20's and now live in France.

I collect my initial thoughts about books I'm reading here on Goodreads and write them up in a more reflective way on my blog Word by Word.

I have developed a particular attraction over the past two years to authors from the West Indies, Caribbean - there is something that resonates across their work that I adore, it's hard to articulate what exactly that is, but it is present in the works of Jamaica Kincaid (my Top Read of 2015 was her novel The autobiography of my mother), Maryse Condé, Simone Schwarz-Bart (Top Read for #WITMonth this year The Bridge of Beyond), Cristina Garcia, Edwidge Danticat and no doubt others I have yet to explore.

I haven't read Jean Rhys. I have only read about her, most notably in a riveting entire chapter of Diana Athill's Stet, An Editor's Life. It is the indirect influence of her birth and childhood on the West Indian island of Dominica and the culture shock of arriving in a very different England than that she had dreamed of, that interest me in particular.

I have chosen to reread the chapter in Stet and to read her novella Voyage in the Dark, which I came across when Jacqui reviewed it. I like in the opening introduction that after finishing After Leaving Mr Mackenzie, Jean wrote to her friend Francis Wyndham (also a friend of Diana Athill)

the West Indies started knocking at my heart

indicating an element that transforms the readers understanding of the heroine, her West Indian childhood.

Athill admits that she reached a better understanding of the 'bad-at-life' side of Jean Rhys since coming to know Dominica, which she describes in poignant detail in her chapter of Rhys, recognising suddenly how foreign Jean was when she came to England in 1906 at the age of sixteen.

Thanks Jacqui and Eric for organising this reading week, I look forward to the reviews and lively discussions that will follow.

Tonymess wrote: I'm very much looking forward to the week and I fully intend to have read (and will review) her five novels over the course of the week.

Hi Tony

That's very ambitious of you! I'm looking forward to reading what you think of her books and feel special that you've chosen this as one of the last read alongs you'll be joining in for some time. I'll be interested to see what your next project is as well. :)

Claire wrote: "I haven't read Jean Rhys. I have only read about her, most notably in a riveting entire chapter of Diana Athill's Stet, An Editor's Life."

Hi Claire! I'm so happy you're joining in. I love reading your thoughts about books - especially in how you focus on cross-cultural experiences. It'll be especially interesting to read what you make of Rhys having only read about her before. Several people have recommended I read Athill before so I would love to read her books - especially Stet & her experiences with Rhys. I also love the critic Lorna Sage's writing about Rhys.

I've just finished Voyage in the Dark and there are so many interesting things to say about Rhys Caribbean life vs her life in England in relation to the story in this novel. I'll be great to have your perspective on it. :)

Hi everyone! I'm Zakia (@Inyrpnigalions, when I'm on Twitter). This is such an excellent idea. I've read Good Morning, Midnight and Leaving Mr. Mackenzie. What interests me about Jean Rhys is the way that she brings together feelings of abjection and transcendence - especially since the abjection is so realistically grounded (like the obsession with clothes, the daily scrabbling for money, the visibility of the solitary middle-aged woman). Vivek describes it well! I'm also intrigued about how Rhys's work speaks to the new prominence of (seemingly) autobiographical fiction by women. I find myself wanting to tell her characters to get it together but also feel too shaken to the core by the honesty of her writing to want it to be any different. Anyway, I think Voyage in the Dark is the next one I'm going to read. And the Athill book seems like an absolute must-read - so intrigued by their working relationship. Looking forward to more posts!

Jonathan wrote: "I haven't read anything by Rhys but intend reading Sleep It Off Lady for the Rhys Week. I'm looking forward to it."

Thanks, Jonathan - that's great. I've been reading some of the stories too - Tigers are Better-Looking and the Left Bank - so it will be fascinating to see your response to Sleep it Off, Lady. Looking forward to your thoughts.

Tonymess wrote: "Hi all,

Messy_Tony is my handle, but my name is Tony Messenger. I run a blog messybooker.blogspot.com where I planned to write about all the shortlisted Booker Prize titles from 1969 onward. I aba..."

I'm sure you'll be able to contribute to the debate, Tony, especially given our recent Twitter exchange about Voyage in the Dark! Delighted to hear that your are enjoying your first taste of Rhys. Looking forward to exchanging perspectives with you.

Claire wrote: "Hi Everyone,

I like to read books that enter and cross different cultures and I'm interested in themes around identity and belonging, whether to a culture, society, family. I grew up in NZ, travel..."

Just to echo Eric's response, it's great to have you on board, Claire. I'm particularly interested in your thoughts on how Rhys' writing about the Caribbean fits with your experience of other literature from this region. Looking forward to your comments and posts.

Karen wrote: "Hi, I'm Karen! I saw the announcement for Jean Rhys Reading Week via Jacqui on Twitter where I am @k_files. I've been a Jean Rhys fan since 2000, when a woman I'd just met at a party gave me a copy..."

How cool! Great to have you on board, Karen - thanks for getting in touch. Looking forward to your thoughts on revisiting Rhys.

DaisySteiner wrote: "Hi everyone! I'm Zakia (@Inyrpnigalions, when I'm on Twitter). This is such an excellent idea. I've read Good Morning, Midnight and Leaving Mr. Mackenzie. What interests me about Jean Rhys is the w..."

Hi Zakia. I think you've picked a good one with Voyage in the Dark. It blew me way when I read it earlier this year, so I'll be fascinated to see how you find it compared to the others you've read. Yes, good point about the abjection - the importance of clothes in these women's lives is very striking. I've noticed it in several of her works...

I am quite fascinated by Jean Rhys and see that others are too, so I very much look forward to this reading week and learning more about readers' insights on Rhys's work. I've read Good Morning, Midnight several times. It may be a slender novel, but it is astonishing in its honesty and extremely well written. Rhys really gets to the core of what a single woman's experience was like during the inter-war years, an experience that still resonates with women today. Last year I read Voyage in the Dark and right now I'm finishing off Quartet. Rhy's bio sounds appealing. I've also read Wide Sargasso Sea. I love modern fiction and am an avid reader. My interests are really quite varied, but I especially like writing by women.

Elaine wrote: I've read Good Morning, Midnight several times. It may be a slender novel, but it is astonishing in its honesty and extremely well written. Rhys really gets to the core of what a single woman's experience was like during the inter-war years, an experience that still resonates with women today."

Hi Elaine, you're absolutely right about this! Great that you're joining in and I'll be interested to hear more of your thoughts about Rhys' books.

Hello! I'm Louise (@looloolooweez on Twitter) & I have a confession: I have never read anything by Jean Rhys. Figured this would be the perfect opportunity to start! I picked up Wide Sargasso Sea... and I've been in a bit of a reading rut lately, so hopefully this will be a good "rescue" book, haha.

Louise wrote: "Hello! I'm Louise (@looloolooweez on Twitter) & I have a confession: I have never read anything by Jean Rhys."

Welcome, Louise! There's no embarrassment in that. There are plenty of authors that I "should" have read. Yes, this is a great excuse to start reading Rhys. I think Wide Sargasso Sea will be a great way to get you motivated into reading again. It's such a unique novel!

Hello everyone. I'm Claire Fuller (ClaireFuller2 on Twitter). I have to admit that I read Wide Sargasso Sea a few years ago and didn't really enjoy it, but I keep hearing so many good things about Rhys, and I have more unread books by her on my shelves. This morning I happened to pick up Good Morning, Midnight, and then realised that Rhys week was happening. I've started it, and I'm really enjoying it.

Hi Clare, that's fantastic - great timing! I haven't read WSS yet -- nevertheless, based on what I've read or heard from others, it seems quite different to her early work. Glad to hear you are enjoying GMM. Welcome to the week.

Hi everyone, I'm Vanessa. I am new to Rhys but I won a giveaway of Good Morning, Midnight in anticipation of the Reading Rhys week. I have already devoured it. I purchased a copy of Wide Sargasso Sea so hopefully I can join in on that discussion as well.

Claire wrote: "This morning I happened to pick up Good Morning, Midnight, and then realised that Rhys week was happening. I've started it, and I'm really enjoying it."

It's interesting that Wide Sargasso Sea seems to be her most well known book but I've heard from others as well how they like it less than her earlier novels such as Good Morning, Midnight. I'm so glad you're joining in Claire!

Vanessa wrote: "Hi everyone, I'm Vanessa. I am new to Rhys but I won a giveaway of Good Morning, Midnight in anticipation of the Reading Rhys week. "

Congratulations, Vanessa! I'm happy it's inspired you to read more of Rhys' books. I look forward to discussing them with you.

Hello, I'm Ruth. I am an occasional book blogger over at: https://icannever.wordpress.com/ I only discovered the wonderful Jean Rhys this year and have read most of her novels. I'll probably read her short stories this week (I have an old Penguin copy of Sleep It Off lady).

Hi Everyone! This will be my first experience with Rhys as I've not read anything by her. I enjoy reading and learning about new to me writers. I've started Wide Sargasso Sea and was immediately drawn into the story by the narrator's voice. I'll also be reading Good Morning, Midnight.

I'm on Twitter at @chriswolak and blog about books at WildmooBooks. I ended up with two copies of Wide Sargasso Sea by accident and am offering one as a giveaway here: http://www.wildmoobooks.com/2016/09/j...

Looking forward to this week's conversations!

Unfortunately, I will have to bow out of the reading week. I live in Spain and none of my local bookshops had Jean Rhys in English, and I want my first experience of her writing to be in original version. I ordered Good Morning, Midnight, but I'm not optimistic about it getting here in time to participate in the reading week. After I'm done reading it, I will definitely read your thoughts and comments on the book. Enjoy the week!

Aisha wrote: "I ordered Good Morning, Midnight, but I'm not optimistic about it getting here in time to participate in the reading week."

That's a shame but don't worry too much, Aisha. FYI, this group will be left open after the official #ReadingRhys week finishes so feel free to join in anytime in the future whenever you're able to read her work.

Thank you Eric! I look forward to hearing what everyone else has to say and posting my thoughts after I've read the book.

Chris wrote: "Hi Everyone! This will be my first experience with Rhys as I've not read anything by her. I enjoy reading and learning about new to me writers. I've started Wide Sargasso Sea and was immediately dr..."

Hi Chris, welcome to the group! Great to hear that you're enjoying your first experience of Rhys. She is so good when it comes to creating character. I'll be interested to hear how you find Good Morning, Midnight compared to WSS. I haven't actually read either of them yet as I'm hoping to save a couple of the novels for the future. Nevertheless, I suspect they might be quite different from one another..

Ruth wrote: "Hello, I'm Ruth. I am an occasional book blogger over at: https://icannever.wordpress.com/ I only discovered the wonderful Jean Rhys this year and have read most of her novels. I'll probably read h..."

HI Ruth. That's great, thanks for joining us. I've been reading quite a few of her short stories over the past couple of months, mainly the pieces from Tigers and her first collection, The Left Bank. Looking forward to hearing what you think of Sleep It Off, Lady.

Hi everyone, for more information about Jean Rhys Reading Week, please click on the link below. The post includes details of how you can get involved + a list of the books/topics we'll be posting about during the week. We hope you enjoy #ReadingRhys!

https://jacquiwine.wordpress.com/2016...

Hi, my name is Amy. Six months ago, I moved from Philadelphia to just outside of Tokyo, Japan, so I'm feeling the need for more community (both online and in real life).

I learned about Rhys Reading week watching Eric's youtube channel. Last week, I read Wide Sargasso Sea in preparation for this week, and it was my first time reading Jean Rhys.

I'm so happy to be part of this discussion, thank you so much Eric and Jacqui for organizing!

Hi, I'm Elizabeth Woodcraft. I'm so pleased that this week is happening. I have loved Jean Rhys for a very long time - I so identified with her when I was 18. She was vulnerable but she was bolshy, she was hyper hyper aware of what people thought about her and she felt it all deeply, but then she turns her nose in the air and shrugs it off. She was also very lovely, which I hoped was also true about me (but not quite). So now I'm re-reading Voyage in the Dark. She's come over to cold grey England to be a dancer, and she has to live on 35bob a week (£1.75). Then she meets Walter and he sends her a great deal of money so she can buy a good dress, some lovely underwear, a coat and a dark blue and white velvet cap. Perhaps I hoped, as I wandered round Birmingham, that I would meet a Walter and all those clothes could be mine. Fortunately that didn't happen. I'm looking forward to hearing what other people think of her, especially those who have the treat of not knowing her work till now.

Hi! I learned about Jean Rhys Reading Week from JacquiWine on twitter. I read Wide Sargasso Sea years ago when I read that it was an alternate version of Jane Eyre. I found it fascinating. I don't have time for to reread it right now, but I look forward to read everyone else's thoughts on it.

I originally wanted to read The Left Bank but I couldn't find a copy, so I'm reading Tigers Are Better-Looking instead. I'm attracted to Rhys' stories because she writes about people who don't fit in, who perhaps cannot fit in, and who don't always understand why.

Can't wait to check out the discussions on her other works as well.

I'm run a small publishing company called Papillote Press which specialises in books about Dominica, the Caribbean island where Jean Rhys was born and lived until she was 16. I'm delighted to see that you're focussing on Rhys' writing. Her books are extraordinary. I often feel that her writing is suffused with her West-Indian-ness and that this is often forgotten (her biographers were not familiar with Dominica). Of course, Wide Sargasso Sea is the most Caribbean of her novels but all her works reflect her "outsider" status and her tussling with what we would now call identity. I look forward to reading further contributions.

Hi, I'm Melanie (aka Melwyk) from The Indextrious Reader. I wasn't sure if I'd have a chance to post this week, but I did finally put my thoughts together on After Leaving Mr Mackenzie, my 2nd Rhys read. My 1st intro to Rhys was Wide Sargasso Sea, which I read some years ago now, and I have to admit I didn't really like it. Maybe it is time to give it another go, with everyone's insights on it to help out.

Amy wrote: "Hi, my name is Amy. Six months ago, I moved from Philadelphia to just outside of Tokyo, Japan, so I'm feeling the need for more community (both online and in real life).

I learned about Rhys Readi..."

Hi Amy, you're very welcome. Eric has been reading WSS too, so I'm sure he'll be interested to hear what you made of it. :)

Elizabeth wrote: "Hi, I'm Elizabeth Woodcraft. I'm so pleased that this week is happening. I have loved Jean Rhys for a very long time - I so identified with her when I was 18. She was vulnerable but she was bolshy,..."

Elizabeth wrote: "Hi, I'm Elizabeth Woodcraft. I'm so pleased that this week is happening. I have loved Jean Rhys for a very long time - I so identified with her when I was 18. She was vulnerable but she was bolshy,..."

Hi Elizabeth, I love your memories of how you identified with Rhys when you were a teenager. Voyage in the Dark is my favourite of Rhys' novels (although I've yet to read GMM which I suspect might represent the pinnacle of her early work). It must have been such a shock to her system when she arrived in England, a place with little warmth or light in comparison with her homeland. No wonder she found it so unwelcoming.

Ms. Arachne wrote: "Hi! I learned about Jean Rhys Reading Week from JacquiWine on twitter. I read Wide Sargasso Sea years ago when I read that it was an alternate version of Jane Eyre. I found it fascinating. I don't ..."

Hi Ms Archane. I liked what you said about Rhys' stories when we were chatting over at the blog the other day, the fact that the timeless of the emotions ensures her work remains relevant to current readers - that's so true. I can't wait for the new Penguin edition of the Collected stories - it'll be great to have them all gathered together in one place!

Polly wrote: "I'm run a small publishing company called Papillote Press which specialises in books about Dominica, the Caribbean island where Jean Rhys was born and lived until she was 16. I'm delighted to see t..."

Hi Polly, thanks for joining us here. Yes, I'm completely with you on Rhys' ability to capture the voice of the outsider - it's a theme that runs through much of her work. You might be interested in this interview I conducted with the author Andy Miller, a huge fan of Rhys' work. He talks about her position as one of life's perpetual outsiders, not just in terms of her movement from the Caribbean to England and Paris, but in her marginalisation from society too. There's a link here:

https://jacquiwine.wordpress.com/2016...

Melanie wrote: "Hi, I'm Melanie (aka Melwyk) from The Indextrious Reader. I wasn't sure if I'd have a chance to post this week, but I did finally put my thoughts together on After Leaving Mr Mackenzie, my 2nd Rhys..."

Hi Melanie,

Many thanks for your post on Mr Mackenzie. It's so interesting to see another perspective on the novel. It divided opinions within my book group too, especially in terms of responses to Julia.