Reading the Chunksters discussion

Ok...what did you think of the beginning to part III??

I was completely flabbergasted. I just read it this morning, so before making a full post I need to mull it over.

I'm trying to figure out how much Thistledown had to do with Lady Walpole's attempted murder of Mr. Norrell. Also, I wonder if Mr. Norrell does what happens to the magic he has done? If Thistledown is the one that tried to orchestrate it, does that mean that there is something mr. Norrell could do to change the fate of Lady Walpole if he just manned up?

Also, I'm so fascinated to see the expansion of Childermass' story and Mr. Segundus. Childermass seems to completely distrust Norrell now, I feel that something has been perfectly broken there. As for Mr. Segundus, I feel like he is very much at the mercy of Thistledown now while he has Lady Walpole in his care.

I have stopped trying to guess what is going on! ;-)
Although it did strike me that both Vinculus and Childermass look something like the description of John Uskglass...

I thought it was interesting that Childermass has been able to do some magic. Can anyone do magic if they just know how?

Becky, I hear you - I feel befuddled and flabbergasted as well. These chapters have a number of twists and turns.
So after these chapters, Rosemary, I resolve just to enjoy the reading journey because the stops and turns and other road calamities are unpredictable!

My general impression - the chapters are somewhat disjointed and once or twice I actually had to re-read the previous pages to regain the yarn of the story, but on the flip side (and this is the best side), the chapters are emotionally powerful! They are also surprisingly post-modern. The first chapter is a chapter from Strange's book, the second one is a very surreal picture of our world overlapping with the magical world. This chapter also has a certain emotional nerve, and it is very tense especially when Mrs. Pole attempts to kill Mr. Norrell. The passage is masterfully written and you can see the events taking place in slow motion.

Childermass has discovered his unusual and amazing sensitivity to magic (I find it hard to believe that he just trained himself to be a skillful magician), and his way of transmogrifying into a shadow is also quite symbolic on many levels.

Now, the description of the house where the French painters live is equally magical and hilarious. The house comes alive in those lines, and its true ambiance is 'strengthened' by 'the unique perfume exuded by two men who work day and night in a rather confined space and who never under circumstances can be induced to open a window'. I re-read this passage three times and immensely enjoyed it.

I think that Lady Walpole's attempt to kill Norrell is a result of what happened to Mrs. Strange. Others have posited that Mrs. Strange isn't dead. If that's the case, then she's trapped in the otherworld. Or, she might be dead. Either way, I believe that Lady Walpole blames Norrell for what happened to Mrs. Strange and so she went after him on her own. I don't think that thistlehair had anything to do with it.

This book is exceptionally well done. I'm glad to be reading it, especially with this group. It's a complex read but still accessible to the reader. That's a difficult balance to pull off in my opinion.

I enjoy the discussions for each week because it really helps to contain and explain all the things going on in this story. I read the chapters and then read the comments for the week which really helps me to grasp all the nuances going on. Like this week for example, after I read the chapters and read through the discussions, things I had sort of forgotten came back and made the week's read that much more enjoyable and reminded me of things I may have forgotten when I started the week's read.

I love how the character of Childermass is developing and how ALL the characters are becoming more entwined with each other as the story moves along. you never know who will be meeting who, what turns the story will take each week and it's just a lot of fun to read.

I agree, Tasha. The comments are very helpful. I really enjoy reading them.

I just came back from Italy, I am now catching up with the book. Today I read this section.
It is the first time I can guess when a character tells a lie, for example when Thistledown (Uskglass?) tells Stephen what Vinculus told him wasn't a prophecy. Vinculus' life-task is to tell the magicians and Stephen about their predicted future, he know things nobody else knows, except for Uskglass, for he has made the prophecies. So now, he doesn't want Stephen to know about them. I am also sure that the madman Segundus met and the vision he had about him were sent by Thistledown - there is clear evidence for it. I'm so excited about the next sections, I'm glad I must read them in short time to catch up with the rest of you!

I just finished this section and enjoyed it more than the end of section 2.

I am still wondering about the magic Childermass was noticing right before lady Pole tried to kill Mr Norrell. Is he just so in tune with magic now that he gets these visions when she is near? Was she, or Thistledown, casting some magic to distract him from noticing what was about to happen? I liked the revelation that he knows a lot more magic than he had previously let on. I don't blame Strange for trying to recruit him... I would have done the same! I do believe the lady came up with the plot to kill norrell on her own, after all it is she who us upset by her present arrangement, not thistledown. I wonder how she will get along in the old, magical house...

I'm finding Childermas' sudden importance to the story very intriguing. Maybe he's more than just the gold-seeking, power-hungry wretch he first appeared.

I too wonder if certain characters have more propensity to magic (such as in Harry Potter world) or if anyone can learn and study it, much like a student with a particular focus in college. But it would stand to reason that certain minds or personalities would be better at it, like any other study?