bookshelves: e-book, gutenberg-project, published-1815, satire, britain-wales, amusing, re-visit-2016, regency-romp1811-1820, winter-20152016, lit-richer-jan-2016, lit-richer, radio-4x, play-dramatisation, under-100-ratings, philosophy

RE-VISIT 2016 via R4x HUZZAH!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06y048x

Description: Winter, 1815: Harry Headlong, like all Welsh squires, is fond of shooting, hunting and drinking. But he becomes seized with a passion to form the acquaintance of philosophers and dilettanti.

Narrated by Sir Michael Hordern. Starring Daniel Massey as Escot, Ronald Lacey as Foster, John Grillo as Jenkison, John Horsley as Cranium and William Simons as Headlong.



http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/12803

Opening: The ambiguous light of a December morning, peeping through the windows of the Holyhead mail, dispelled the soft visions of the four insides, who had slept, or seemed to sleep, through the first seventy miles of the road, with as much comfort as may be supposed consistent with the jolting of the vehicle, and an occasional admonition to remember the coachman, thundered through the open door, accompanied by the gentle breath of Boreas, into the ears of the drowsy traveller.

What a long opening sentence that is, and look out for long words too:

osteosarchaematosplanchnochondroneuromuelous
osseocarnisanguineoviscericartilaginonervomedullary

hahahah

Okay - I'm halfway through and can tell you that the foundation and corner stones of premise and plot are strong and funny. I love the name of Headlong ap Headlong and the waterforce reasons behind adopting it. Like Nightmare Abbey there is a meeting of unlike minds, opposing agendas and quaffables available in abundance. There are some outrageously funny moments and this should be a straight through pleasure but there is an underlying starkness and an awkwardness of prose that is jarring so if you have not yet encountered the satirical Peacock and are fancying a dive in then start with the skit on the Romantics that is Nightmare Abbey

CR Headlong Hall
4* Crotchet Castle
4* Nightmare Abbey
2* Maid Marian
TR Gryll Grange

bookshelves: one-penny-wonder, mythology, britain-wales, winter-20142015, dip-in-now-and-again, published-1980, tbr-busting-2015

Description: The Mabinogion is to Welsh mythology what the tales of Zeus, Hera, and Apollo are to Greek myth. these tales constitute a powerful work of the imagination, ranking with Tokien's Lord of the Rings novels and T.H. White's The Once and Future King. Evangeline Walton's compelling rendition of these classic, thrilling stories of magic, betrayal, lost love, and bitter retribution include the encounter between Prince Pwyll and Arawn, the God of Death, which Pwyll survives by agreeing to kill the one man that Death cannot fell, and the tale of bran the blessed and his family's epic struggle for the throne.

The Mabinogion is internationally recognized as the world's finest arc of Celtic mythology; Walton's vivid retelling introduces an ancient world of gods and monsters, heroes, kings and quests, making accessible one of the greatest fantasy sagas of all time.

Opening line : That day Pwyll, Prince of Dyved, who thought he was going out to hunt, was in reality going out to be hunted, and by no beast or man of the earth.

St David's Day coming up so it's this time of year where I searched for something complementary to read and this had occupied the 'onhold' shelf for far too long.

Read from July 30 to August 03, 2012

One from the boxes that will nicely fit my personal seasonal challenge.

Withdrawn from Swindon Borough Council Library Services.

Dedication: To the memory of my mother

Opening quote: 'Tush.' The old woman winked glitteringly. 'Who are you to question what happens? here we are. What's life anyway? Who does what for where and why? All we know is here we are, alive again, and no questions asked. A second chance.' She toddled over and held out her thin wrist. 'Feel.' The captain felt. 'Solid ain't it?' she asked. He nodded. 'Well the,' she said triumphantly, 'why go around questioning?'

'Well,' said the captain, 'it's simply that we never thought we'd find a thing like this on Mars.' Ray Bradbury, 'The Third Expedition'

There is no present in Wales,
And no future,
There is only the past
Brittle with relics...
R S Thomas

Opening: The coastal plain to the spouth of Aberbreuddwyd seems, at first sight, to do little more than fill an awkward gap between the sea on one side and mountains on the other. It is a thorny strip, a mile and a half wide, of marshy fields, small tenant farms, clumps of Douglas firs, abandoned aerodromes, toppled cromlechs and disused sheds of black tin.



Beautifully written and will search out the next.