Fans of British Writers discussion

Some of my other groups have a thread where members who want to get acquainted (beyond initial introductions), chat about off-topic subjects, or share things going on in their lives that might be of interest to others, can do so. So, I thought I'd start one here, too. :-)

What's coming up in my life right now is a week of vacation (the last one this summer) starting Monday. I'll be pretty much without Internet access, so I won't be interacting with you all for awhile. But I'm looking forward to catching up when I get back!

Well, it's turned out that the planned Australia trip (which was discussed a bit on one of the other threads recently) had to be scrubbed at the last minute, due to some illness in the family on this end. So, Barb and I expect to spend a quiet Christmas at home, after all. That means I'll be online regularly through the holidays, so able to keep current with our group during that time. I wish you all a very special Christmas season, and all the best in the coming year!

I am so sorry, Werner. I hope the illness is not too serious. Have a nice holiday.

Thanks, Jill!

Werner, that's so unfortunate. I hate when that happens. With an aging husband, I've had lots of last minute changes/disappointments/surprises. It can be hard, especially when it's something that's been looked forward to greatly.

We are spending Christmas at home as well. Actually I prefer it that way unless there are young children around to make it silly and festive.

I hope that the new year goes well for all, with good times outweighing the bad.

Thank you, Gail! Depending on how things come together in the next several days, our oldest daughter and her hubby may come over here for Christmas; so if that works out, we'll have a little bit of Australia here in Virginia.

I hope the visit works out for your daughter and her husband although it will certainly be colder here than in Australia!!!!!

Thanks, Jill! The coldness here could be a plus; Tony hasn't ever seen much snow, so he likes it when we can show him some. :-)

Werner.......can you, by chance, recommend a biography of Chiang Kai-Shek? I have read the Tuchman book about Stillwell and China but would like to read one that concentrates on Chiang specifically. Sorry, I know this post doesn't belong on this group.

Jill, no need to be sorry --this thread is for things that are "off-topic," so here, it's right on topic! :-)

I haven't read any biographies of Chiang myself, but I think the BC library has at least one. As a librarian, there are some sources where I can look for listings of books, and I can make recommendations based on things like expert's assessments, publisher's reputation, etc. Let me do some digging on that, and get back to you.

That's very kind. I know there is one biography written by one of his family members but I am not interested in it. I want something that is more objective. I really appreciate your effort. :o)

No problem, Jill! There were several hagiographic Chiang biographies written in the 1930s and 40s, but of course they omit some of the most significant parts of his life (he died in 1975). Possibly a good starting point would be The Man Who Lost China: The First Full Biography of Chiang Kai-shek by Brian Crozier and Eric Chou (Scribner, 1976). The only Chiang book the BC library has is one of the uncritical World War II-era books, Elmer T. Clark's The Chiangs of China (Abingdon-Cokesbury, 1943), and that one focuses on his wife and her family as much or more than it does on the general himself.

The Brian Crozier book sounds like the ticket. I think I might also tackle, at a later date, Madame Chiang's family, the Soongs, but I've got to start somewhere. Thanks so much for the tip.....I will start looking for the book, as I am sure my small library does not have it. I have a great on-line second hand book dealer, Abe's Books.....they should have it.

You're welcome, Jill! If Abe's Books doesn't have the Crozier book, it's in World Catalog, so shouldn't be hard to get by interlibrary loan.

Werner.....I don't know how much snow you have down Bluefield way, but it is a foot deep here and still coming down. Hope your daughter and her husband get there safely from Australia. He will really get to see a beautiful snow, unlike the weather of early summer Down Under that they are leaving.

Jill, it might be as much as a foot deep in places here, too! It snowed heavily last night and this morning, turning to freezing rain around mid-morning, and the college where I work closed for the day before we could get our car dug out. Ironically, it's now 32 degrees outside, with the temperature rising; that will allow a good deal of melting in the afternoon and make the roads more passable. But when the temperature drops tonight, that water will soon freeze to ice. Hope you and yours are able to be inside today, where it's warm and safe!

We haven't heard anything yet from Tony and Rebekah as to their travel plans. Whether or not they can come will depend partly on how quickly she can get her Australian passport; she became an Aussie citizen this year, which renders her U.S. passport invalid.

Just finished With Wings Like Eagles: A History of the Battle of Britain by Michael Korda. I was absolutely enthralled by it. Being a lover of British and military history, this one hit the spot. Well written, lots of detail but not so much as to overwhelm the story.......I would highly recommend it to those interested in that period of history and the beginnings of the Battle of Britain.

I am so anxious about the earthquake in Japan..wish I were reading something really intense to take my mind off it.

Alice, we're all concerned about the folks impacted by the earthquake and tsunami, in Japan and elsewhere; and very glad that your son and daughter-in-law came through safely!

Werner wrote: "Alice, we're all concerned about the folks impacted by the earthquake and tsunami, in Japan and elsewhere; and very glad that your son and daughter-in-law came through safely!"

Thanks Werner! I am finally starting to calm down. I made a new friend on goodreads today who lives in Japan.

Great! Glad to hear that.

Barb and I are preparing to welcome our oldest daughter and her husband here later today; they'll be staying with us for about a week. While they're here, I don't plan to be online much, if at all. But I'll be back next week, and thinking of you all in the meantime!

Well, this looks like the place to mention that I just returned from a whirlwind bus tour of England. Werner, I think you'll be interested to learn that a fair number of tourists on the bus were Aussies. We made several Australian friends, including a lovely couple named Jan and Dudley who described the best places to visit if we make our own trek there (I'm ready to head East having seen a fair portion of Europe now).

While in England, we visited Shakespeare's birthplace, which had surprisingly high ceilings and wide stairways (I mentally compared this Tudor home with Nathaniel Hawthorne's home, which is almost a hop-and-a-skip up the road from where I live). His own large home no longer exists and we missed his tomb because we'd gotten to the church too late.

I would have liked a full two days instead of two hours in Bath; one visit not made: the Jane Austen museum. As a Jane Austen "fan-girl," I would have liked to bring home some sort of souvenir (for Shakespeare, I picked up a small bust to sit on my office shelves). Our visit to Westminster Abbey, however, was after our bus tour, so we were able to spend as much time there as we liked. Of course, I made a special note of the Poets' Corner with its memorial to Shakespeare and Dickens (among others).

Has anyone else made a literary pilgrimage to the UK?

Me, in 2007. A Cosmos Bus tour of England, Scotland and Wales (unfortunately not Ireland). I visited the Jane Austen museum in Bath. It was OK. But, didn’t really learn anything new. But, we did get to view some of the costumes worn in BBC production of ‘Pride and Predjudice’. A lot of folk from Australia and New Zealand on our tour as well. My favorite stops were London and Edinburgh I would have to say. I bought a Christmas Choir CD at Westminster Abbey. Visited the now new residence of Prince William and Catherine (Kensington Palace). Went to a couple of Pubs and enjoyed the great beer. Had a very nice time at a dinner in Edinburgh complete with Highland dancing, the pipes and a taste of Haggis. Sighhhh…wish I could go again. Wasn't strictly a literary vacation. But, do have a photo of William Wordsworth's gravestone in a small churchyard cemetary in Grasmere. Beautiful place Grasmere.

We traveled to Scotland and Ireland last year (CIE Tours; loved our tour director, Patrick O'Riordan and missed him on this trip) and then England only on Trafalgar this year. The Trafalgar tour was much shorter and we felt much more rushed. Still haven't been to Wales though!

I loved Edinburgh, Dublin, and London. The food is very similar in all three places, but my husband and I decided the British have lost their touch with beer (my favorite since visiting Ireland is Guinness).

LeAnn and Janet, the rest of us are green with envy; but we're very happy for you both that you got to go on these trips and had a good time! And LeAnn, it's nice to have you back.

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Thanks! Happy Halloween!

Top of the mornin' to you!
I'm looking for recommendations. British authors who's novels take place in Britain.
I was quite dissapointed at first when I found Sam Christer's Turin Shroud. It not only took place in the US/Italy, but the jargon (many british phrases/words) didn't fit the characters, who were supposed to be American.
Thankfully the second book I read by him 'The Stonehenge Legacy', did take place in Wiltshire and surrounding areas, plus the lingo matched. I also much preferred the characters. So he got a well deserved 5 star rating for that one.
Back to my original question though. British author, british soil, compelling storyline... HELP! No romance please.

Stefanie, I have a couple of quick questions for you. All of the books on your "read" shelf seem to be by fairly modern authors (except for Rex Stout) and to involve fairly contemporary settings. (And I can also tell that you like mysteries, and action-adventure.) My questions are, are you open to reading authors from the early 1900s or before, and how do you feel about historical settings for fiction?

Hello guys... so off-topic news are that next week I have my german mid-term exam, four weeks from now I have my english grammar mid-term exam... and I'm really really not looking forward to each one of them.
Other than that... there's nothing much going on... :)

Werner, you're quite right. I've only read contemporary authors. I'm very kuch into suspense

Oops, how did this last post post?! I was trying to correct my spelling and must've hit the post button.
Ah well... Werner, back to your question. Yes contemporary. Although I am open to anything. I have recently acquired all of Jane Austens books, not so modern, but certain to entertain.
What about Matt Hilton, Andy McDermott or Paul Finch?

Melomatin, best wishes with your exams!

Stefanie, I'm not familiar with any of those three writers --I'm poorly read in the whole "suspense/thriller" field. :-( I do read mysteries; but unfortunately, I haven't personally read any by contemporary British authors that are set in modern England. The late Dame Edith Pargeter was a modern British writer, but she set her Brother Cadfael mystery series beck in the 1100s. And most of Agatha Christie's and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's mysteries are set in England (except The Valley of Fear, which has a story-in-a-story set in the U.S.), but they're older writers.

But perhaps other members of the group can help out with suggestions.! And while I haven't actually read any of their work, I have the impression that P. D. James and Colin Dexter set their work entirely in England.

You can't go wrong with Jane Austen! I've read three of her completed novels, and count her as a favorite writer; and I hope to read the other three sooner rather than later.

Dear friends:

I have just taken "The Lord of the Rings" quiz together with my boyfriend (who is another goodreads member and also a fan of Lord of the Rings) and we got a shameful 42% . I'm so embarrassed...

So, Saturday was Shakespeare's birthday and the 400th anniversary of his death....

My mother's best friend's only child was born on Shakespeare's birthday. I was born three days later on the anniversary of the bard's baptism (today).

Fun bit of personal trivia regarding a British author.....

Nuria wrote: "Dear friends:

I have just taken "The Lord of the Rings" quiz together with my boyfriend (who is another goodreads member and also a fan of Lord of the Rings) and we got a shameful 42% . I'm so emb..."

Nah, Nuria, don't be embarrassed! Those quizzes are generally pretty tough; they tend to ask about obscure things that you wouldn't remember very long after you read the book, so it's very possible to do poorly even on quizzes about books you greatly like.

Thanks, Werner. I feel better now :)

By the way, talking about Shakespeare‘s anniversary (maybe this should go in another thread), I'm making my students prepare a couple of scenes of Much Ado About Nothing. It's going to be quite good fun, as they will be acting out :)

Stefanie, If you want to read contemporary novels set in Britain, I highly recommend Kate Atkinson. Her books are all written in different styles and lately she has been writing mysteries. Her first book was Behind the Scenes at the Museum, but it has nothing to do with museums. My favourite scene in the book is when they are all gathered around the telly watching the coronation of the Queen.

I just got back from a holiday in Peru yesterday and finally got caught up with my email. Peru is a wonderful place and the people are very friendly.
I noticed some of our newest members are looking for new British authors to read. Here is a very short list:
Ian McEwan --I have read Atonement.

Somerset Maugham whose most famous book
Of Human Bondage is set in Britain.

Lawrence Durrell--his books do not take place in England, rather all over the world.

Ellis Peters has written a series of detetective novels about Inspector Felse set in the Britain of her time. One of them is called A Nice Derangement of Epitaphs.

Just want to second Rosemarie's suggestion of Kate Atkinson . Wonderful writer.

Hi all, my name is Stephen Cheshire, I am a new sci fi adventure author recently published with Zharmae Press in the USA. My first novel is called The Day Trip it is about a group of high school pupils on a trip to New York City, but an alien task force called the Armazoids have landed the night before and are preparing an attack on the Earth. I have written The Day Trip as an "easy reader" so people can stick with the story flow. I have put the Amazon.com link below, it is also on the UK one as well. If you wish to contact me I have also left my twitter name as well. I have four of these books coming out, I really hope you enjoy reading them as much as I did writing them.

Thanks

S W Cheshire

Twitter S_W_Cheshire

http://www.amazon.com/Day-Trip-Stephe...

I used to watch a lot of British TV series. I really liked the Hercule
Poirot series with David Suchet. As for Miss Marple, Joan Hickson was the Miss Marple par excellence. Does anyone else share my opinions. And Jeremy Brett is the perfect Sherlock Holmes. There were two Lord Peter Wimseys and both were good, even if they were altogether different. And then there was Inspector
Alleyn. I don't watch much TV any more because my to-read shelf never seems to have fewer books on it. I think they materialize on my shelves while I am sleeping!

Rosemarie, I used to watch Mystery a lot on PBS, too, back in the 90s; and I totally agree with you about David Suchet's Poirot, Joan Hickson's Miss Marple, and Jeremy Brett's Holmes! I never got an opportunity to watch much of the Lord Peter and Inspector Alleyn adaptations; but I did also really like the Brother Cadfael and Inspector Morse adaptations, respectively starring Derek Jacobi and John Thaw --though the latter's version of the character, judging from reviews I've read, was more likeable than the literary model. (I've never read any of Colin Dexter's Morse novels, and only a couple of Ellis Peter's Cadfael books --though I want to read more of the latter.)

What with family responsibilities added to working nights during the school year, I don't get much time for watching TV any more, either.

who likes Arthur conan Doyle books? Such kind of Sherlock Holmes

I like The Hound of the Baskervilles by Doyle, especially the atmosphere on the moors.

I count Doyle as one of my favorite authors! The Hound of the Baskervilles is my favorite of the Holmes novels, too; but I like all of the other three as well, and have read and uniformly liked a number of the Holmes short stories. But the author's science fiction, such as The Lost World or The Best Science Fiction of Arthur Conan Doyle, is well worth reading as well. Doyle himself considered his historical novels to be his best work, and I have those on my to-read shelf.

Werner, I did not know he wrote historical novels. I will have to check those out.

Rosemarie wrote: "There were two Lord Peter Wimseys ..."

Edward Petherbridge.

He was the only one who made sense for the Harriet Vane ones - the other actor was too old and not at all romantic.

Werner wrote: "I count Doyle as one of my favorite authors! The Hound of the Baskervilles is my favorite of the Holmes novels, too; but I like all of the other three as well, and have read and uniform..."

I have The Complete Sherlock Holmes in one volume next to my bed. My lovely husband heard me say I loved Holmes, and got it for my birthday.

When I get a chance, I'll try some of his other writing.

Alicia, I remember that in that series Lord Peter had a very handsome servant, and Harriet was perfectly cast.