NCantonLibrary Chat discussion

Just getting this ready for December!

I sent this out as an email to the whole group, but I'm also going to drop a link here to the Wikipedia page for the Franco-Dutch War. If you don't happen to know much about this period or have good footnotes, you might want some help following the political set up of this novel.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franco-...

My update:

I'm 16% done with The Black Tulip: Wow! What a really dramatic first few chapters. Warning for folks that Chapter 4 "The Butchers" is quite brutal, but remarkably well written.

I should also add that depending on the translation, your Chapter 4 might be called "The Murderers."

I never thought I would care this much about a tulip.

Courtney wrote: "I never thought I would care this much about a tulip."

I need this thing to live!!!!! I ought to be finishing it up today!!

Same for me. I did not expect to get so invested in this book. Dumas is good at that lol

And...done! Can't wait to talk to you all on Wednesday!

An article about the continued attempts to grown black tulips: https://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/20/ga...

Encyclopedia entry about the office of Stadtholder that also helps explain a bit about the set up of the Dutch government of the era.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/stad...

That NYT article was fascinating to see after reading this book! I noticed the grower was 29, and Cornelius was 28! I am amazed that the tulip mania persists (our frankly that it ever began).

Courtney wrote: "That NYT article was fascinating to see after reading this book! I noticed the grower was 29, and Cornelius was 28! I am amazed that the tulip mania persists (our frankly that it ever began)."
Maybe if I didn't kill 90% of the plants I own I would get, but I don't understand, either. :)