Dear Readers,

We will begin reading this bildungsroman (or is it an anti-bildungsroman?) very soon!

Save this link as all discussions will be linked on here!

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1/4 Part 1 "Arrival"- Part 3 "Satana Makes Shameful Suggestions"

1/11 Part 4 "A Necessary Purchase"-Part 5 "Freedom"

1/18 Part 5 "Mercury's Moods"- Part 5 "Walpurgis Night"

1/25 Part 6 "Changes"-Part 6 "Operations Spirituales"

2/1 Part 6 "Snow”-Part 7 "Vignt et Un"

2/8 Part 7 "Mynheer Peeperkorn (Continued)”-Part 7 "The Great Stupor"

2/15 Part 7 "Fullness of Harmony"-End

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Marginalia TBD

Join me, u/Greatingsburg, u/Joinedformyhubs, u/Superb_Piano9536, u/latteh0lic and u/tomesandtea in the discussions! I am hugely looking forward to this one!!

The action cranks up in this week's section of Abaddon's Gate, book 3 in The Expanse series by James S.A. Corey!

Look at the Schedule to follow along, and keep notes in the Marginalia.

Before we jump in, a quick word about spoilers: The Expanse is a popular book series and TV show, but this is the first read for many of us, so let’s keep our discussion spoiler-free. Feel free to discuss previous Expanse books (Expanse #1 and #2) but please avoid sharing details from shorts or future books. If you need to mention any spoilers, please tag them using the format >!type spoiler here!< (and it will appear as:  type spoiler here  ). Thanks for helping make our discussion enjoyable for all!

Chapter Summaries

Chapter 38: Bull

Bull is in the medical bay and we find out that his condition is not improving and he is running himself ragged. As Bull moves to continue putting the Behemoth on a path to get home he gets word that Ashford is out and making a move for power. Bull contacts Pa, who starts moving to protect herself; Sam, who has already been visited and recruited to do work for Ashford; and Serge who takes on the responsibility of squashing this counter-coup while Bull moves to hide and stay safe.

Chapter 39 - Anna

The Behemoth has more people in it than ever before and the environmental systems are not able to keep up with the heat load, meaning the temperatures are starting to rise to uncomfortable levels. Tilly has acquired some hooch and lemonade, along with dry ice, that allow Anna and Tilly a reprieve from the heat. In the drum Ashford’s armed soldiers start patrolling and looking for something, all while openly armed heavily. Serge, Bull’s second-in-command for the security team, approaches them with his small team to disarm them and set order. Before Serge can fully realize the danger of the situation he is shot in the head and the rest of the security team is taken into custody. Tilly and Anna are shocked and hide in Tilly’s tent. Cortez approaches Anna and tries to persuade her onto his side, he wants her to convince the masses to follow him and his plan, after revealing that they plan to destroy the ring and trap everyone on this side of the gate. Anna refuses to help Cortez and then upon learning that Clarissa was with Cortez’s group, Anna runs to see her but only briefly exchanges glances/gestures as the elevator closes.

Chapter 40 – Holden

Holden and his crew are in the hospital wing and notice the armed presence and threat. They quickly come up with a plan to get out and safe, they contact Sam and she gives them the way to a hiding spot.

Holden and his crew make their way to meet Sam, everyone is injured to a different degree, but nobody is close to their full capabilities. They pass one armed patrol with nothing more than a glance, but the second patrol recognizes Holden and the crew find themselves in a fight for their lives. Just when it looks like somebody will be shot, Amos knocks out both of the soldiers. The crew finds Sam and get briefed on the situation happening in the ship, giving the team the full picture…

Chapter 41 – Bull

Holden and Amos go find Bull at the direction of Sam. They exchange information and the foundations of a plan starts to come together. Bull takes in the new information and begins moving with a new plan, Bull, Amos, and Holden head to Monica Stuart’s Radio Free Slow Zone office. Monica is recruited into a propaganda campaign to help out Bull, and the team plans to bring in Anna to help convince the other ships to shut down their reactors and all power as part of the plan. Bull is planning on the broadcasts to also draw out Ashford’s forces and into a fight at the radio studios.

Chapter 42 – Clarissa

Clarissa and Ashford’s soldiers make their way to the bridge where they can monitor and execute their plans. Sam is statused about the progress on the comm laser modification and she starts her delaying tactics. After several delays Clarissa and Anamarie Ruiz are called to the bridge. After a brief discussion about the latest delay, Ashford shoots Sam and put Anamarie in charge. Cortez is in shock at the killing, but Clarissa helps him rationalize it.

Chapter 43 – Holden

More people make their way tot he Radio office space, Naomi, Alex, Anna, Tilly, and several military personnel from Anna’s congregation. They all learn of Sam’s death and change plans, now Alex and Naomi will go with them to Engineering to help keep the plan on track.

Chapter 44 – Anna

Anna is working through the situation she finds herself in, lamenting that she couldn’t do more to prevent the escalation to violence, and also coming to terms with being aligned with people that are going to to bad things to others. Holden organizes the assault team for engineering and Amos organizes the defense team for the Radio offices. Anna talks with Amos and finds a level of appreciation for him, even though he is about to kill people on her behlaf, just as they begin to broadcast and set in motion the plan.

Chapter 45 – Bull

The Engineering assault team makes their way to Engineering. They encounter resistance along the way, but the 4 Martian marines prove to be very capable and the team pushes them back with minimal casualties. One of the marines has smuggled concussion grenades onto the ship and they prove useful in the final push to get into engineering and finish off Holden’s loyalists. The team begins the shutdown of the reactor and the plan to increase nitrogen in the bridge to render Ashford and his crew unconscious.

Hello readers, it is soon time to meet Detective Galileo again!

I assume this can be read as a standalone mystery. If you missed the previous books, you can find the discussions linked here:

• The Devotion of Suspect X
• Salvation of a Saint
• A Midsummer's Equation

Summary (from goodreads or storygraph):

!Detective Galileo, Keigo Higashino’s best loved character fromThe Devotion of Suspect X, returns in a complex and challenging mystery—several murders, decades apart, with no solid evidence.!<

!A popular young girl disappears without a trace, her skeletal remains discovered three years later in the ashes of a burned out house. There’s a suspect and compelling circumstantial evidence of his guilt, but no concrete proof. When he isn’t indicted, he returns to mock the girl’s family. And this isn’t the first time he’s been suspected of the murder of a young girl, nearly twenty years ago he was tried and released due to lack of evidence. Chief Inspector Kusanagi of the Homicide Division of the Tokyo Police worked both cases.!<

!The neighborhood in which the murdered girl lived is famous for an annual street festival, featuring a parade with entries from around Tokyo and Japan. During the parade, the suspected killer dies unexpectedly. His death is suspiciously convenient but the people with all the best motives have rock solid alibis. CI Kusanagi turns once again to his college friend, Physics professor and occasional police consultant Manabu Yukawa, known as Detective Galileo, to help solve the string of impossible to prove murders.!<

Schedule:

Join u/espiller1, u/nicehotcupoftea and me on Tuesdays for the discussions:

• 7th January: Chapters 1 – 13
• 14th January: Chapters 14 – 27
• 21st January: Chapters 28 – 40
• 28th January: Chapters 41 – 50

Book Bingo:

• Bonus Book
• POC Author
• Mystery/Thriller

Hello to the fans of Historical Fiction or just books in general really!

The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride, seems to be a fantasical read from what I have heard.

u/infininme, u/tomesandtea, and me (u/joinedformyhubs) are excited to read with you! So is the cute doggo.

The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store Goodreads

In 1972, when workers in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, were digging the foundations for a new housing development, the last thing they expected to uncover was a human skeleton. Who the skeleton was and how it got buried there were just two of the long-held secrets that had been kept for decades by the residents of Chicken Hill, the dilapidated neighborhood where immigrant Jews and African Americans lived side by side, sharing ambitions and sorrows.

Chicken Hill was where Moshe and Chona Ludlow lived when Chona ran the Heaven & Earth Grocery Store, which served the neighborhood's quirky collection of blacks and European immigrants, helped by her husband, Moshe, a Romanian-born theater owner who integrated the town's first dance hall. When the state came looking for a deaf black child, claiming that the boy needed to be institutionalized, Chicken Hill's residents—roused by Chona's kindess and the courage of a local black worker named Nate Timblin—banded together to keep the boy safe.

The schedule will span over 5 weeks to check in each Friday!

January 3rd, chapters 1 - 7

January 10th, chapters 8 - 11

January 17th, chapters 12 - 18

January 24th, chapters 19 - 25

January 31st, chapters 26 - end

We can't wait to spend the New Year reading this book with you, will you join us?

Welcome back, kindred spirits. This week we started out with some poems, then some stories, and finally entered the period after the war.

The Seventh Evening

Anne reads a poem about someone who misses out on life because they're too focused on pursuing a goal. Walter worries that Gilbert will think the poem is about him, but Susan says that won't be the case because Anne and Gilbert have always found a balance between chasing their dreams and living their lives. Anne also reads a poem that she'd written in Lover's Lane, and one about Captain Jim.

The Reconciliation

One of the greatest things about being middle-aged is that you no longer have to care about the petty drama that seemed so important when you were a teenager. Sadly, Myrtle Shelley did not get the memo, and for the past thirty years she's been nursing a grudge against Lisle Stephens, who stole her boyfriend at a dance once.

Recently, however, she was moved by one of Mr. Meredith's sermons. Mr. Meredith, who is deeply respected in Glen St. Mary despite having children who play in the Methodist graveyard and ride pigs, gave a stirring sermon on forgiveness, and it's inspired Miss Shelley to make amends. (The story also establishes at this point that Miss Shelley thinks Anne is shallow, just in case you thought that Miss Shelley was going to be a sympathetic character.)

But wait: maybe you still have some sympathy for Miss Shelley? Even if she has committed the mortal sin of criticizing a Blythe? Then wait till you learn the truth of what went down at that barn dance thirty years ago: Lisle Stephens didn't even know that Myrtle was interested in Ronald. From her point of view, she met a guy at a dance, they danced together, and then Myrtle Shelley bitch-slapped her out of nowhere and never talked to her again.

Myrtle hikes to Lisle's house in the cold (she could have gotten a ride, but that would have been less dramatic). When she gets there, Lisle greets her as an old friend, because she has absolutely no memory of Ronald or the dance. When Myrtle explains, Lisle says she forgives Myrtle for slapping her. Outraged, Myrtle slaps her again.

The Cheated Child

This is a story about a boy named Patrick, but he wants to be called Pat, so that's what I'm calling him for this recap. Pat's been living with his rich uncle Stephen ever since his parents died, but now Uncle Stephen has kicked the bucket, and his will has something very strange in it regarding Pat's guardianship: Pat is to spend three months with each of his relatives, and then he will choose who should be his permanent guardian, and they get a ton of money. His lawyer tried to talk him out of this because this is an absolutely batshit insane way of assigning custody of a child, but Stephen was like "nah, I'm turning my family into a bizarre reality show that I can watch from beyond the grave and there's nothing you can do about it. Making greedy people fight over a sad orphan is fun."

(By the way, all of these greedy relatives hate the Blythes for no apparent reason. Just in case you didn't realize that they're Bad People.)

Pat stays with Aunt Elizabeth's family first. They're nice enough, aside from not letting him ride the bus (something he's always wanted to do), and of course not letting him visit the Blythes. It's obvious, however, that they just want the money. Pat notices a house in the distance, and begins to daydream about it.

Then he stays with Aunt Fanny's family. The children bully him and frame him for things they've done, but Aunt Fanny never punishes him, obviously because she also wants the money.

Then he stays with Aunt Lilian, his patronizing aunt who lives with her cousin, Miss Adams, and finally he stays with his Aunt Melanie. The one good thing about living with her is that she has a dog, so when the dog gets killed on his birthday, and Aunt Melanie insists on still throwing the party that he didn't want in the first place, Pat decides to run away on the bus. He doesn't have enough money to get to the Blythes, but he does manage to get to the house that he's been daydreaming about.

The house turns out to be a place called Sometyme Farm. Pat meets a man there named Barney who's kind to him. He also meets Barney's girlfriend Barbara Anne, and her niece, "the Squaw Baby," who inexplicably is the little girl from Pat's daydreams. While Pat and the Squaw Baby play, Pat overhears Barney and Barbara Anne talking, and realizes that Barney is actually his uncle, and technically eligible for Uncle Stephen's "if Pat chooses you, you get the money" deal, which means that Barney would be able to keep Sometyme Farm! Of course, Pat immediately chooses Barney, and they all live happily ever after.

Fool's Errand

Lincoln is a bachelor whose mother has just died, and now his sister is pressuring him to settle down. Lincoln is conflicted about this: he likes dreaming about being married, but he doesn't know if reality would live up to his imagination. Besides, how would he even find someone to marry?

Lincoln suddenly remembers something strange. When he was a child, he'd gone to visit his uncle, and he'd played with a little girl named Janet. He'd told her that he'd marry her when he grew up, but then he never saw her again. Now, Lincoln finds himself haunted by this memory, and he decides to give in to curiosity and see if he can find Janet again. He goes to visit his uncle and discovers that Janet still lives there, is still unmarried, and remembers him! I know I should say something sarcastic about how contrived this is, but I'm a sap so I'm just going to leave it as it is.

The Pot and the Kettle

Despite taking place in the early 20th century, this story features a plot so horribly Victorian, at one point the protagonist actually stops and says "this is horribly Victorian."

Phyllis Christine Dunbar "Chrissie" Clark is visiting her old nurse, Polly "Clack" Claxton. Chrissie is being pressured by her father and great-aunt to marry a cousin named George, because a wealthy relative left her a lot of money that she'd only receive if she married George. Chrissie has never met George, but she assumes he's fat and unattractive because, well... his name is George. My sincerest apologies to anyone reading this named George, but let's be honest, we all know what people named George look like.

Because of this disagreement, Chrissie has been sent to stay with Clack, but Clack suspects that Mrs. Clark is secretly plotting something. (Clack, Clark... this story is dangerously close to violating the One Steve Limit.)

The previous night, Chrissie attended a barn dance and met a gardener named Don. Apparently, going to barn dances and eating pie with a gardener was shocking, scandalous behavior for rich people back then. It was a simpler time. Chrissie continues to spend time with Don and, of course, falls in love with him. (She also goes swimming with him and imagines George in a bathing suit.) Of course, she hasn't been honest with him about who she really is--he thinks she's a governess.

Of course, she can't keep this going forever. After her month at Clack's is up, Chrissie confesses to Don about who she really is, and breaks up with him. She returns home, convinced that she'll never marry anybody, but she's so heartbroken over Don that when Don suddenly shows up, she runs to him and says she'll marry him even if he is a gardener. But wait... plot twist! Don IS George! Clack was right: Mrs. Clark was plotting something. This whole convoluted thing was her idea.

Another Ingleside Twilight

We've moved into Part 2. The rest of the book takes place after the events of Rilla of Ingleside. Susan spent Part 1 criticizing Walter for writing poetry; she now treasures the poems he left behind.

Welcome back to our final discussion for Beloved Land. I hope you have enjoyed the book, learnt a bit about Timor-Leste and gotten something from discussions. Today we are covering the final chapters 8 through end. Thank you to u/nicehotcupoftea for leading us through the 1st two sections with helpful summaries and interesting questions.

Click links for the marginalia and schedule.

#Summary

• Chapter Eight - The Lure of Easy Money

The Timor sea contains gas and oil reserves that account for (at the time of writing) more than ¾ of the GDP. The Timor Sea aka tasi mane (male sea) is a sacred place associated with a source of wealth. The oil wealth can be clearly seen in Dili. It has bought money, contentment, safety and an influx of people from the rural regions. However, it also comes with the potential for problems aka the 'resource curse'.

Timor-Leste uses the US$ and the 1st government created a sovereign wealth fund, however investment in in country education, infrastructure, agriculture, developing exports other than oil and large cultural ceremonies expenditure suggest the resource curse it likely. Tourism is almost non-existent, but most importantly, spending is high and investment in the country is low. Timor-Leste even became in position to donate to other countries in their times of need. Unfortunately the Strategic Development Plan 2011-2030 for the country is incredibly ambitious, and plans to action it are sorely lacking.

Timor-Leste generates its revenues not from taxes (even though there is a dangerous dependency on resource revenues), but from selling its own resources, namely oil. Ease of Doing Business from World Bank reported Timor-Leste 168 out of 183 (which went to 181 out of 190 in 2019, perpetuating issues.

Outside of the Capital little has changed, and subsistence farming and poverty are rife. Politicians talk of international air links and high-speed internet when in the country no piped water, only 6-hours of electricity and little sanitation is a reality. Children suffer from malnutrition and malaria.

The electricity generation method chosen by the state was to use the outdated and highly polluting heavy oil generators. The project was poorly executed, long delayed and 3 x over budget.

Oil was already prospect back in the 1950s and 60s, and Baucau was abuzz with oilmen on the hunt after oil seepages from the ground were reported. Australians invested heavily waiting for the announcement that oil was found. The search was tough, and years passed with no big commercial discoveries. In 1974 Woodside discovered a large gas field between Timor-Leste and Australia (but closer to the former) known as Greater Sunrise. No gas has been extracted due to the contention over ownership of the area between Timor-Leste and Australia leading to strained relationships between the two countries and a no-man's-land called the Timor Gap. This in turn lead to Australia being less opposed to Indonesia's annexation of Timor-Leste than it should have been, and also to become the 1st country in 1978 to recognise said annexation.

Later Timor-Leste and Australia eventually settled on 50/50 split of Greater Sunrise revenue. However, extracting the gas then became a point of contention between the 2 nations and continues to be so.

Peake claims Timor-Leste was the most resource-revenue-dependent country in the world. He also states reserves would run out in 2024 (spoiler alert...it did not). He speculates on how one day, in the not too distant future, the country's bank balance may be zero or worse well into the negative.

• Chapter Nine - The Tropical Bakery School of International Capacity-Building

The Tropical Bakery, located near the United Nations compound was frequented by the malae in town. A latte costing as much and more than many Timorese had to scrape by on day to day. Peake questions how much the expats in Timor-Leste are actually helping. At the time Timor-Leste was receiving some of the highest per-capita allocations of aid, and yet malnourishment was high with 49.9% of Timorese living below the poverty line of US$0.88/day.

Millions of dollars is spent yearly on development projects in all forms from many countries that don't always succeed. Often the proposals are extensive and written in English so completely inaccessible to the target local department. Infact La'o Hamutuk (a Dili-based NGO) estimates that about 90% of development assistance never actually reaches the country. Peake recognises there have been some successess, but is very critical of both the mode of implementation and the high turn over of staff affecting productivity. He believes the international community has a responsibility to self-reflect in order to enact true progress. The International community blame the locals for their lack of success whilst sending positively inflated reports home. On the other hand the Timorese are unhappy with the International communities interference especially after the influx of oil money meant reliance on aid (for some of the Timorese at least) was drastically reduced.

Peake praises some committed malae in Timor-Leste, such as Isa Bradridge who ran Familia Hope orphanage in the hill town of Gleno, and Keryn Clarke who worked towards providing ready clean water access to 10% of the population.

• Chapter Ten - Far From Home

In Northern Ireland men from Timor-Leste work in meat processing plants in Dungannon and Portadown. They send money back to relatives who buy TVs and radios that blare late into the night. Northern Ireland and Timor-Leste share Catholicism, colonial histories and a split island with a history of conflict.

In the Republic of Ireland, after watching The Death of a Nation, unemployed bus driver Tom Hyland felt motivated to do something. He single handedly embarassed the Irish government into changing its policy on Indonesia. Later he moved to Dili to teach English, and became Ireland's honorary consul receiving Timor-Leste's highest honours.

The Timorese community in NI started with one man. A Timorese butcher living in Portugal. After being recruited and moving to NI more of his country folk followed. Timorese people are entitled to a Portugese passport, and therefore free travel in other EU countries. There were 1000s of Timorese in NI and the UK at the time of printing.

Peake visits Dungannon finding it run down and depressing he begins talking Tetun with one man who invites him back home. 11 men live in a 3 bedroom house shift-sharing the beds. Not all have been able to find employment yet. They get US$10 an hour and send much (minus the obscene 18% transfer fee) home. There's not much left to live on. They have tons of questions for Peake as he is the 1st Irish person they have ever really spoken with. Sadly they face a lot of racism and prejudice. The English speaking immigrants fare better, but a lot of men were permanently cold, isolated, lonely and depressed. Many turn to gambling, so much so that Tetun signs can be seen.

Peake meets Bernadette McAliskey a Irish civil rights leader, political activist and friend to the Timorese community in Northern Ireland. The Timorese politicians make many empty promises, but ultimately it is Bernadette's NGO that look after the growing Timorese community in Dungannon.

• Epilogue

Peake returns to Timor-Leste and Taur Matan Ruak former chief of the army is running for head of state. Journalist Jose Belo has been helping him campaign. (He actually becomes President and later Prime Minister ). Peake ends with wishing Timor-Leste all the best creating a state of their own. How successful have they been since the writing of this book? I guess I have a little more research still to do.

Thank you all for joining myself and u/nicehotcupoftea for Read the World Timor-Leste 🇹🇱

REFERENCES

• The book quotes Timor Lest as 120 out of 169 on the Human Development Index. That has changed more recently to 141 out of 191.
• Oil reserves are currently estimated at US$16 billion, however, they could be depleted already by 2030.
• Here you can read more about the planned LNG liquefaction plant at Beasu in Viqueque district of Timor-Leste.
• For more info on Timor Leste's role in the Second World War the wikipedia article has a good summary.
• Learn more about the contention between borders here.
• The picture mentioned of Gareth Evans and Ali Alatas foreign ministers to Australia and Indonesia respectively celebrating splitting the oil reserves and cutting Timor-Leste from the eqaution entirely can be seen here
• I was hoping to find the youtube video of Woodside's development plan being rejected by the security guard, but couldn't find anything. I did find this video which gives an interesting summary of the issues. Still today the stalemate continues
• Peake speculates the oil will run out in 2024. This article from last year predicts that it will actually be 2034, and that, finally, the government is being proactive.
• Peake compares Timor-Leste's spending to that of Nauru which went from a country with one of the higest per-capita incomes to one of the lowest. Let's hope not!
• China has built the Presidential Palace, the defense headquarters and the Foreign Affairs buildings all in Dili.
• Check out this short video of Familia Hope orphanage and Isa Bradridge. Trigger Warning!
• Peake mentions the traditional Tebe Tebe dance. Check it out here
• The Death of a Nation: The Timor Conspiracy 1994 was the documentary that motivated Tom Hyland to bring awareness of the atrocities going on to the Irish government. I have added this to my To Watch List.
• Learn more about Bernadette McAliskey and NGO South Tyrone Empowerment Programme here

Hello everyone! We’ve finally reached the final discussion of Under the Banner of Heaven! It’s been an insightful journey through profound and challenging themes and I want to thank everyone who has shared their insights and reflections along the way. This week, we’ll be covering Chapters 23 through the conclusion. If you’d like to revisit any details, chapter summaries are available here. You can also visit the Schedule and Marginalia post. Links to additional resources for extra context are included below.

As u/Less_Tumbleweed_3217 wisely reminded us in our first discussion, the topics in this book can be difficult to read and discuss. Let’s continue to create a space where everyone feels respected and comfortable sharing their thoughts. Please engage thoughtfully and with an open mind. Also, if you reference material outside of this week’s chapters, don’t forget to use spoiler tags. You can format them like this: >!type spoiler here!<, and they will appear like this: >!type spoiler here!<

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Chapter 23: Judgment in Provo

• If you're wondering what Ron Lafferty's mustache looks like, here’s a Yosemite Sam comparison.
• STATE v. LAFFERTY (2001): Utah Supreme Court ruling on Lafferty’s case.
• Netflix: Murder Among the Mormons (2021) - This three-part documentary dives into Mark Hofmann’s forgeries, bombings, and the impact of the Salamander Letter on Mormon history. Watch the trailer here.
• The history and variations of the Angel Moroni statues that top LDS temples. Fun fact for my fellow The Expanse series readers: The TV series >!depicts a gold Moroni statue on the Nauvoo/Behemoth ship, check out the science behind it!<.
• Refusal of Insanity Defense: Lafferty’s refusal to use an insanity defense raises questions about religious delusions in the legal system.
• Firing squad sparks talk of Mormon 'blood atonement': article discussing Utah's use of firing squads and Mormon theological concepts.
• Tenth Circuit Court's Decision: The 1991 decision to overturn Lafferty's conviction sparked debates on religious motivations and legal standards.

Chapter 24: The Great And Dreadful Day

• Dan believes he is Elijah, tasked with heralding the Second Coming of Christ. Elijah, central in Judeo-Christian traditions, is associated with preparing the way for God (Malachi 4:5-6). In Mormonism, Elijah is key to temple ordinances and priesthood restoration.
• Dan’s view of humanity as divided into the Children of God and the Children of the Devil conflicts with LDS teachings that all individuals can become righteous through repentance (2 Nephi 2:27).
• The phrase “great and dreadful day” appears in Malachi 4:5 and Doctrine and Covenants 110:16, interpreted in LDS doctrine as a day of judgment and restoration.
• “Avenging angels” appears in early LDS fundamentalist rhetoric, such as among the Danites, but is not part of official LDS doctrine.
• The Millennial Day Theory links the six creation days to thousand-year Earth periods, culminating in a seventh millennium of peace as a Sabbath rest.
• LDS theology teaches a pre-earth life where spirits chose God’s plan to gain bodies and experiences on Earth (Abraham 3:22-26).
• A NASA article explains why the Moon can be visible during the day.
• Explore the psychology of religious fanaticism, which examines the cognitive and emotional factors driving extreme beliefs.

Chapter 25: The American Religion

• The LDS Church is among the top employers in Utah. Brigham Young University (BYU), owned by the Church, employs between 15,000 and 21,998 individuals, making it the largest private employer in Utah County.
• The New York Post highlights the LDS Church's significant economic contributions through education, humanitarian efforts, and real estate investments, including its $289 million acquisition of 46 farms across eight states.
• The Guardian describes the Church's comprehensive welfare system, which supports those in need through employment services, food production, and distribution facilities.
• The Salt Lake Tribune reports that the Church's U.S. real estate portfolio includes agricultural, commercial, and residential properties valued at over $16 billion.
• Another Salt Lake Tribune article notes a slowdown in LDS Church growth, with U.S. membership appearing stagnant in 2024 despite continued raw numerical increases.
• A BYU RSC study reveals retention challenges. Global activity rates are around 25–30%, and retention in Italy aligns with this average.
• A CGU podcast discusses The Book of Onias, a text by Mormon fundamentalist Robert Crossfield (Onias) that offers insights into fringe LDS perspectives.
• This Reddit post on r/exmormon showcases a house reminiscent of Emmylou’s design.

Chapter 26: Canaan Mountain

• Canaan Mountain is known as a "sky island" for its isolated, elevated summit that hosts rare desert plants like mariposa lilies and Indian paintbrush, contributing to its biodiversity. In the Old Testament, Canaan is the "Promised Land" given to Abraham and his descendants (Genesis 17:8; Exodus 6:4).
• The Water Canyon Trail leads to Canaan Mountain and is popular for its slot canyons, petrified sand dunes, and ancient petroglyphs created by Ancestral Puebloans.
• The Navajo Sandstone formation in Canaan Mountain's cliffs, dating back over 180 million years, offers insights into Earth’s deep history.
• The article from KUER explores the transformation of Short Creek, the twin towns of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Arizona, from an FLDS stronghold to a tourist destination.
• DeLoy’s mention of "sacred long underwear" refers to the FLDS religious garments, which, while similar to LDS garments, are distinct in design and symbolism. The Bedtime Story explores the sacred undergarments of LDS and FLDS traditions, emphasizing their deep spiritual meaning as symbols of devotion while addressing the vulnerability of those misunderstood for wearing them.
• DeLoy’s trip to Las Vegas reflects apocalyptic fears from the year 1999, a period when many groups, including the FLDS, anticipated divine interventions that did not occur a.k.a. the Y2K panic.
• An interesting article that critiques Jon Krakauer’s Under the Banner of Heaven from an academic perspective, focusing on the portrayal of Mormonism.

Welcome to your first discussion of this standalone novel in the Cosmere universe-so NO need to start on Book 1, you can just jump in! Just a reminder, here is where we are in the order of things!

• The Way of Kings (book 1)
• Words of Radiance (book 2)
• Edgedancer (novella)
• Oathbringer (book 3)
• Dawnshard (novella)
• Rhythm of War (book 4)
• The Sunlit Man (4.34) <-----------------------us now!
• Knights of Wind and Truth (book 5)

Schedule

Marginalia

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Chapter 1: 

We meet Nomad, on the run from the Night Brigade, able to jump between worlds but in a fragile state as he lands in a new location, running out of Investiture. This means he can’t use his translation ability or his physical prowess to its full capacity due to his Torment, as his Aux struggles to help him. He finds himself condemned to certain death by sun exposure and captured by a type of people with ember hearts. Discovering he can have tools but not weapons, he manages to escape and jump on an escaping hovercycle with his captors. Those left behind perish horribly.

Chapter 2:

Nomad is dragged to safety behind the hovercycle. We understand more about the natural cycles of this planet. After about an hour, the hovercycles arrived at a floating city, made of a patchwork of ships that looks fairly ramshackled. We learn more about Nomad’s past-scholar, soldier, renegade. Nomad’s first run in with the leader of the ember hearts who goes in for a kiss to touch Nomad’s face. When nothing happens, he is nicknamed “Sess Nassith Tor aka One Who Escapes the Sun”. The leader is unhappy with this development and beats Nomad up. Soon the city breaks apart!

Chapter 3: Nomad is taken inside a building as the whole city disassembles into different ships. Some ships go to scatter seeds and plant the day’s harvest. Nomad is taken to the gladiator ring and manacled. As he and other prisoners are cast into the mud of the arena, ember people emerge with weapons and they run for their lives. One particular ember lady seems fixated on Nomad and his Torment means he can only fight defensively with tools from Aux, even as she has a machete. One of the peasants helps him onto a box to escape her and from there, Nomad sees the prisoners divided into those who would be condemned to the sun and the remainder, both groups seeming to be family or friends. The ember lady comes back for Nomad and they end up in the mud, with Nomad victorious. Their leader, Glowing Eyes, is displeased and uses the manacles to control Nomad into unconsciousness.

Chapter 4: Nomad wakes up manacled spreadeagle to the side of the ship, right in time to witness Glowing Eyes drain the life from some of the caught prisoners. Nomad catches sight of a rifle. Next up, a woman who was able to dodge her captors is pierced with some kind of spear that embeds an ember into her heart and she is transformed into an ember person. Nomad and Aux debate how many spearheads he would need to power up. Next up, the man who helped him before Nomad is offered the same treatment. Nomad calls up his powers and rips one arm free, summons Auxiliary from the mud and throws his Shardblade into the pillar to get Glowing Eyes’s attention. He then turns Aux into different items, hoping to lure the spear to him. And just as he is about to get his boost, a ship explodes!

Chapter 5: The ember people are under attack and their embers suddenly dull. Aux is formed into something that keeps him freezing the same as them. Still, Nomad is thrown into it when the ship he’s attached to explodes and traps him underneath. Using Aux as a crank, he begins to free himself and sees the raid. Two of the rebels look for the ember lady and strap her in their hovercraft-a rescue mission. Glowing Eyes recovers and takes out one of the rebels, which gives Nomad an opening to offer aid, first by freeing his hand, and second by creating a shield from Aux to protect them in the chase that follows. But first he frees the man who helped him in the ring. Now they are chased by the newly awakened embers.

Chapter 6: The counter chase is on, and sharpshooters are targeting the fuselage of the hovercraft. Nomad works to protect it and consults with Aux about the power source. The scholar in him takes over while observing their speed and the shift in perspective. Nomad, considering his limitations, jumps onto a chasing ship and fights the crew. Alas the second ship is getting closer to the hovercraft, so he changes tactics and jumps on that instead. The two enemy ships have converged and all eight embers attack in a haphazard manner. Nomad dodges them and finds the power source, absorbing it fully and rendering the ship powerless. He catches a ride on the second ship and gets back to the hovercraft.

Chapter 7: Time to meet the rebel alliance. Luckily, he can now understand their language. And we learn the ember lady is named Elegy and she is the raider’s sister, and they are “Threnodites”. The hovercraft arrives to the shadow city, Beacon. Although Nomad continues speaking Alethi to obfuscate his actual language, and is offered a bed and a bath, he follows the driver, Rebeke, to meet with the “Greater Good”-three old ladies.

Chapter 8: The Greater Good- Confidence, Compassion and Contemplation meet with Rebeke and Nomad grabs some tea. Nomad’s reputation as a Sunlit Man precedes him. Still, the main mission was apparently to recover a metal disk belonging to “Scadrians”, an authorization key to open a door somewhere to the mythical land beneath the ground, an apparent pet project of the Cinder King. The Greater Good and the group discuss their options, which are few. Nomad knows this is a surveyor’s card to authorize the return of a small exploratory starship. Nomad contemplates his knowledge of the planet and his own failings and heads into the storm.

Chapter 9: The storm reminds him of Roshar, even as it is mild in comparison. He goes for a contemplative walk and considers stealing the engine power of the hovercycle until his own consciousness prods him to consider his rescuers. He is suddenly drawn to a power source in the distance that turns out to not be “Kal” but is instead the one and only Wit!  

 ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Join us next Friday for Chapters 10-19 with u/Joinedformyhubs !

Welcome (or welcome back) to Free Chat Friday!  For many of us, the holidays are almost here.  An early Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and Happy Kwanzaa to those who celebrate!  Are you getting in the spirit and feeling festive, or are you maybe getting sick of all the commercial trappings of the season being shoved in our faces?  Either way, I can’t wait to hear what you’ve all been up to and what you’re planning to do next.  

For those who are joining us for the first time:  Free Chat Friday is a chance to get to know each other better and chat about whatever is on our minds, free from any specific themes or topics.  You don’t even have to talk about books, although of course we’d love to hear what you’re reading.  Free Chat Friday will be open all week (and beyond) so you can always pop back when you have a moment to catch up on what everyone chooses to share.  

RULES:

• No unmarked spoilers of any kind
• No self-promo
• No piracy
• Thoughtful personal conduct - in a world where you can be anything, be kind!

So how was your week?  Any plans for the weekend? Have you been reading anything interesting?  Share whatever you’d like!

Welcome all to our penultimate dive into The Well of Lost Plots by Jasper Fforde. Remember to keep your head above water folx. The last thing we need is to get drowned by recycled junk mail, spam and story drafts.

If you need them, here are the links to the schedule and marginalia for the Thursday Next series.

Let's jump to it!

#Chapter Summaries

• Chapter 18 - Snell Rest in Peece and Lucy Deane - Next and co. are quarentined by the Anti-mispeling Fast Response Group while the vyrus is pressed down by dictionaries into one word then smothered out completely. Snell passes away. Miss Havisham requests that Bradshaw hold up reporting events for a few days while they investigate the tampered with key.

Havisham and Next meet in Mill on the Floss to discuss the murder of Perkins. The Sword of the Zenobians is code-word-protected meaning only a Jurisfiction agent can get in and out. A rogue agent! Who had apparently also tried to kill Next that day by sabotaging her Eject-O-Hat. Havisham and Next arrest Lucy for attempted Fiction Infraction when they find her armed with a rifle. They imprison her in The curious experience of the Patterson Family on the island of Uffa along with 796 other Lucy Deanes.

At Juris Tech Plum examines the Eject-O-Hat as Next listens to Sofya and Vera on a footnoterphone crossed line. The hat has been sabotaged by someone who knew what they were doing. Only luck saved Next.

Next's practical test is a plot adjustment. She must create a Happy Ending in Shadow the Sheepdog by Enid Blyton. She has to swap the dogs, and she has to do it solo.

• Chapter 19 - Shadow the Sheepdog - In the book Next has problems convincing the auctioneer to allow her to buy Johnny’s father’s pigs for triple the price. Until Next helps him get regular cups of tea by moving the tea tray so that Miss Aurora Pittman, a D-7, can now enter Mr. Phillips' spatial limits. Next next goes to the vet with a story that the dogs need to be switched due to plans by Johnny Foreigner to abduct him for medical experiments.

Next's accidental hand brushing of one of the characters mean she is now betrothed and is whisked away by Townspeople for her wedding and 10 mins later her burial. The Generics are sentiment junkies hooked on the hard stuff - Grief. Instead Next creates mixed emotions in them and uses the diversion to escape with Shadow.

• Chapter 20 - Ibb and Obb Named and Heights Again - Granny Next, still in the Medici court, left a note for Next to "Remember", but she doesn't recognise her sketch of Landen. Ibb has developed into a female and wants to be called Lola. Obb has become a 50 year old male called Randolph. Next promises Lola a shopping trip in the afternoon. Gran returns and reminds Next about Aornis and talks about Landen.

Only eight members of Jurisfiction had access to The Sword of the Zenobians. One being Vernham Deane who went missing after going into Ulysses to hunt for missing punctuation.

Next is on her way into Reading for her Cavisham Height duties when she experiences an accident. 8 identical blue Morris Marinas. Next takes charge. The only thing left is a single bolt.

Spratt is making progress with his booze and reconcilliation, but has recieved a letter the union forbidding it. Jack and "Mary" (Next) go to Mickey Finn’s to carryout a Cavisham Heights plot only to find themselves at The Text Sea. There has been a deletion!!! Things aren't looking good for the future of Cavisham Heights. The plot will start to spontaneously unravel, but Next has the idea that Jack can tell Mary about what should have happened at Mickey Finn's, even if the chapter will only be a page long. After the scene they discuss ways to save the book.

Cheshire cat calls, Next's got a hearing for her Fiction Infraction in Alice in Wonderland.

• Chapter 21 - Who Stole the Tarts? - The Gryphon is now head of the Jurisfiction legal team after Snell's death. Mrs. Fairfax, Grace Poole, Blanche Ingram and St. John Rivers all give evidence that Next changed the ending of Jane Eyre. Her defense is love and the Gryphon calls Edward Rochester to the stand. He says that though Next changed the ending, and he has been injured, he has never been happier. Next is guilty as charged, but sentencing could be years away.

Havisham grades Next A-plus-plus Hons for her assignment in Shadow the Sheepdog. She's the only one in 32 years to ever succeed. Havisham intends to make inquieries about Vernham Deane's disappearance.

• Chapter 22 - Crimean Nightmares - Granny Next talks to Next about Landen and Aornis. She advises Next not give Aornis so much power in her dreams. Next is the one in control of her mind. It's time to get on the offensive meaning Next has to go back to the Crimea and relive Anton's death.

Next dreams. Aornis is there taunting her and they will have to do the traumatic day over and over till dawn.

When Next wakes she is confused and thinking Landen died that day not Anton. She remembers their fling in Crimea but not his name.

• Chapter 23 - Jurisfiction Session No. 40320 - Randolph and Lola's teacher, Dr. Fnorp - a generic Generic, turns up at the door. Lola is doing ....er great..., but Randolph is not. Next asks him to help her run the engine so they can talk. Randoloh confesses he loves Lola, and Next advises him to tell her.

Jurisfiction session number 40320 - Bellman asks why the Perkins and Snell case is not yet closed. Bradshaw says it's because they still still want to speak to Vernham Deane. Deane has been classed as a PageRunner which means illegal activities. He was a villain cad from The Squire of High Potternews who vanished after a maid also disappeared. This was the morning after Perkins' death. He had been refused a plot adjustment which meams he has motive. Analysis of the book reveals a stowaway, and further investigation shows Deane had been handling punctuation stolen from Ulysses. The theory is that Perkins found out about the punctuation so Deane released the Minotaur and vyrus to cover his tracks. Deane is dangerous.

Item seven - that that that that had had had had had, had had had had. Had had had had! That....had. 👀

To celebrate Next becoming a full Jurisfiction Agent Miss Havisham gifts her a small shard from the Last Original Idea.

• Chapter 24 - Pledges, the Council of Genres and Searching for Deane - On the 26th floor of the Great Library they can see out the windows to all the other Great Libraries in various languages all in (or maybe of) the Great Panjandrum. In the Council of Genres Next takes the oath of the BookWorld and gets her official badge.

Miss Havisham confesses Harris Tweed, Perkins, Deane and herself were all given an Ultra Word™ book to test. It was flawless. Perkins called Miss Havisham the night before he died. He said he had a surprising discovery, but she has no idea what. Havisham disappears to run an errand while Next is sent back to Plum and the hat.

Thanks for reading along with me this week. Next week u/Amanda39 will see us through to the end of the book.

See you there 📚

Come on, come all! Scythes, Nimbus agents, and Tonists alike.

While the main Arc of a Scythe series may have completed its swing, we're not done yet with Neal Shusterman's exciting world - we're diving in to the companion book Gleanings, comprised of multiple tales spanning the entire timeline of the series and beyond. Origin stories, new scythes, old friends! Oh my!

Goodreads summary:

!The New York Times bestselling Arc of the Scythe series continues with “captivating…thrilling” ( School Library Journal ) stories that span the timeline. Storylines continue. Origin stories are revealed. And new Scythes emerge!!<

!There are still countless tales of the Scythedom to tell. Centuries passed between the Thunderhead cradling humanity and Scythe Goddard trying to turn it upside down. For years, humans lived in a world without hunger, disease, or death with Scythes as the living instruments of population control.!<

!Neal Shusterman—along with collaborators David Yoon, Jarrod Shusterman, Sofía Lapuente, Michael H. Payne, Michelle Knowlden, and Joelle Shusterman—returns to the world throughout the timeline of the Arc of a Scythe series. Discover secrets and histories of characters you’ve followed for three volumes and meet new heroes, new foes, and some figures in between.!<

!Gleanings shows just how expansive, terrifying, and thrilling the world that began with the Printz Honor–winning Scythe truly is.!<

As this book is comprised of short stories, I will list both the story names and the pages on the schedule, just in case you want to be totally surprised each week!

Schedule:
Jan 1 - Pages 1 through 81 - >!"The First Swing", "Formidable", "Never Work With Animals"!<

Jan 8 - Pages 83 through 162 - >!"A Death of Many Colors", "Unsavory Row", "A Martian Minute" (ending on line "...cranking up to full power") !<

Jan 15 - Pages 162 through 247 - >!"A Martian Minute" (starting on line "There was an old story..."), "The Mortal Canvas"!<

Jan 22 - Pages 249 through 338 - >!"Cirri", "Anastasia's Shadow", "The Persistence of Memory"!<

Jan 29 - Pages 339 through 423 - >!"Meet Cute and Die", "Perchance to Glean", "A Dark Curtain Rises"!<

So, will you be joining us? Are there any stories you're hoping will appear? Let us know!

Detectives, magicians, and romantics it's time for the penultimate Glass Library book Secrets of the Lost Ledgers and all the mysteries involved. Who's the daddy?, will they or won't they? will Daisy ever find a career and more.....

Find the (updated....sorry about that folx) schedule here and the marginalia here.

Right let's get down to business.

#Summary

• Chapter 1 - London, Summer 1920

Sylvia is with Walter and Evaline Peterson asking about invisible ink for Huon. She cannot go to Petra due to the Huon - Petra rivalry. At work whilst cataloguing Sylvia comes across a book she feels an unfamiliar magic in and assumes it's invisible writing. She takes it to Petra to read but it is not invisible graphite. Together they go to Huon. The invisible writing is from Daniel Barratt to Oscar Barratt (Huon's beloved uncle). Daniel was afraid for his life. The other side of the page has an encoded map.

• Chapter 2

Daniel Barratt is a distant cousin of Huon's, and he died in 1891, the same time his wife (a paper magician) and children (boy 4 and girl 2) went missing and were never found. Daniel had been coerced into working for a bookmaker of dubious character, and when he wanted to stop he sent his family away and collected evidence. The bookmaker's name is unreadable, but he is an associate of Lord Coyle. On the coded map/diagram is an address in Whitechapel. The trio decide the police need to be involved and obviously Sylvia uses this for an excuse to see Gabe and his two, post stabbing, body guards, Alex and Willie. Huon copies out the invisible diagram while Gabe speculates that Thurlow might be the corrupt bookmaker. Daniel's wife's maiden name was Hendry. In the past a Hendry paper magician had attacked Gabe's parents with deadly paper arrows. When Gabe goes to check his parent's records Alex approaches Sylvia with his concerns that Gabe is becoming obsessed with Thurlow. Neither Gabe nor Sylvia find out anything much about Hendry (except that he was fair haired).

• Chapter 3

The Whitechapel address was an old, delapidated building. The crew investigate the building to find an ancient Roman mosaic on the cellar floor. They follow the instructions on the invisible diagram to reveal a metal box hidden under the floor. Inside were 2 ledgers filled with invisible entries. However, the bookmaker is not named in them either. Huon will transcribe them, for a fee. They replace the tesserae and leave. The crew head to Cyclops to fill him in on their investigation. He approves it. Their next stop will be Lady Coyle. Cyclops suggest they also investigate Daniel's associate and also the Hendrys. Willie is hoping to put the Hendry behind bars "for Matt and India". Sylvia questions Cyclops about Hendry and learns little.

• Chapter 4

The crew arrive at the Coyle's to hear Mrs. Coyle and her son Valentine arguing. Mrs. Hobson had recently visited Mrs. Coyle. Valentine has invested in Ponzi's American ventue (👀), and are waiting for it to pay off (could be a long wait!). Hope Coyle claims to know nothing about her late husband's business, and all his assest have been sold off. Sylvia asks about Hobson only for Hope's cutting comments to actually have the affect of reassuring Sylvia about Gabe. Back at the library Stanhopeless has resurfaced and wants to speak to them. Instead they go for ice-cream. Daisy arrives at the library just in time to join. She is going to be a designer *ahem. Before leaving, Huon calls with an address for where Daniel and his family lived at the time of his death. Some of the neighbours are Hendrys.

• Chapter 5

Melville Hendry lived alone above his stationery shop in Smithfield. Coyle used to exploit magicians by threatening to expose them. Gabe assumed Coyle demanded Hendry work for him and use his flying paper as a weapon, but Sylvia wasn't convinced. One neighbour is Fred Laidlow, Myrtle Hendry's husband. He is missing a hand. Naomi Hendry is a spinster who also lives with them. SylGab fill them in on events. Fred tells that Daniel was flush before he died. He worked as a clerk in Harrods. Myrtle is very critical of Daniel. The day he died his home had been ransacked. Back in Feb 1891 Daniel and Rosina became reclusive. Myrtle won't comment on Melville. On the way out the door Sylvia notices a paper rose containing strong paper magic. Fred tells the crew that Melville is actually their brother.

• Chapter 6

Gabe wants to confront Thurlow, but they have nothing to confront him with. Stanhopeless shows up at the library. Mrs. Hobson's meddling has given Gabe a bad reputation for apparently leaving Ivy for Sylvia, and she has come to warn Gabe out of the kindness of her dead black heart. Willie warns Sylvia off Gabe. Later at The Buttonhole Gabe and Sylvia talk #finally kiss 🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳.

Until Willie comes and breaks them up. So naturally Sylvia decides now ia the time to throw in the towel on SylGab forever....*sigh!

• Chapter 7

Daisy meets Sylvia at the library. She's worried about her. The girls and Professor talk about Daisy's design sketches that are flawed or colies of real outfits. Sylvia falls asleep reading and wakes to Gabe (and Willie) asking her to continue investigating....but with rules. Naturally Sylvia agrees. They go to Harrods to meet manager of the finance department, Mr. Barrowman, who had worked with Daniel. Daniel had been fired for embezzling money by pocketing debts he collected whilst writing them off as a loss in the official records. The police hadn't been called because they were worried about Daniel's mental health at the time. Barrowman suspects Daniel was a gambler. Later Huon calls the crew to meet him at Petra's shop

Next week join me to discuss chapter 8 through chapter 13.

See you there magicians 📚

Hello readers Welcome back to Ireland 🇮🇪 for more from the O'Driscoll family in bonus novella Wildflower Girl. This discussion is for the whole book and remember that on the 31st Dec we will have a discussion for the final book in the trilogy Fields of Home.

Don't worry if you missed book 1, Under the Hawthorne Tree, as you can find all the discussions here. The marginalia for the series can be found here.

Note - there will be spoilers for book 1, Under the Hawthorn Tree, in this discussion!

#Book Summary

• Chapter 1 - Bridge: Peggy now 14 is excited they've recieved a notice to go to America. Eily says they won't go. The sisters argue but later make up at the bridge. Castletaggart is basically a ghost town.

• Chapter 2 - Changes: They hardly have any customers anymore. Eily picks up hours in the Big House where she can. She is smitten by John Powers. Billy Kelly, their landlord, comes around offering to sell them the building, but they can't afford it. Nano won't survive the journey to America, but Michael and Peggy want to go. They can send money home. However, Michael gets a job as stable boy in the Big House and Eily is to be married to John. They will all move up to the Powers' cottage. Peggy appeals to Aunt Nano as she is determined still to go to America. Eventually Eily, John and Nano agree to let Peggy go. Peggy and Eily have an emotional moment together.

• Chapter 3 - Farewell: Peggy has a farewell party, and after Aunt Nano gives her Aunt Lena's Bible complete with family tree. The siblings stay up late together for the last time. Peggy unable to sleep goes out to collect wild flowers for Nano one last time. They send her off with Nell Molloy, food, some funds and a horse hair bracelet made by Michael.

• Chapter 4 - Queenstown: Peggy travels by cart, compliments of Father Lynch, with the Molloy clan. Queenstown harbour is bustling. Peggy is nervous but with Nell's help she secures passage on the Fortunata to Boston in 2 days time. Everyone from Castletaggart heads to shabby lodgings and a hearty meal.

• Chapter 5 - The Fortunata: The next morning they wake to find Fortunata has arrived and is unloading its cargo onto the quay. The excitement soon dies down when they board and see the cramped, dark, airless bunks they will call home for the next 5-6 weeks. The ship sets sail, there's no going back.

• Chapter 6 - Setting Sail: The festive vibes and excitement quickly die down as the passengers begin to suffer from sea sickness. Sarah Connolly introduces herself to Peggy and they become fast friends. Sarah grew up in a workhouse. She is travelling to America with her 2 brothers for a fresh start.

• Chapter 7 - Storm: The ship was thrown around, the hatches are battened down, and the passengers are trapped in the hold. Water is pouring in from above. Peggy ends up thrown from her bunk, but is heaved out the freezing water by Sarah and James. Mary has broken her arm. They finally come through the storm, but so much is lost and damaged. An old man and a baby have drowned. They are buried at sea.

• Chapter 8 - The Long Voyage: Nell is sick with cabin fever. Peggy goes on deck to empty the slop bucket and tries to linger but cannot. The captain is strict that the passengers must not linger on deck. Peggy and Sarah talk wistfully about their future in America.

• Chapter 9 - America: Land! Nell is still very unwell. The Captain orders everyone to clean up and the hold to be scrubbed. They drop anchor for a doctor and nurse to come aboard and assess the passengers. Peggy has done her best to clean up the children and Nell, but it is clear Nell and Tim are unwell. The Molloys along with other sick passenger are sent to the hospital on Deer island. Peggy and Sarah are given a full bill of health and continue on. Peggy promises to tell Nell's husband what's happened. The ship docks in Boston.

• Chapter 10 - First Foot Forward: Peggy finds Daniel Molloy and tells him about Nell and his children. Peggy and Sarah (and 4 other girls) decide to go with Mrs. Margaret Halligan, landlady and proprietor of the Shamrock Agency for the Employment of Young Ladies. At (ramshackle) 49 Empire Hill the girls claim their bunks and rest. After a good scrubbing, de-nitting and a hearty meal Mags tells how she had arrived herself 25 years previous. The girls will pay to be kept, and pay a fee when Mags finds them work.

• Chapter 11 - Skivvy: Peggy gets a job for Mona Cavendish working as a maid in a mens boarding house. Her room is a cramped storage closet. Peggy works hard with no days off. She's lonely and homesick. One day she had to prepare the men's meal alone. It was a disaster. Cavendish was passed out in bed the smell of whiskey in the room. In the middle of the night Cavendish wakes Peggy to yell at her. She hits her knocking out one of Peggy's teeth. That's enough for Peggy and she packs up her things and leaves before the house wakes.

• Chapter 12 - The Runaway: Without a penny to her name Peggy goes back to Mags'. Mags cleans her up and dries her tears. Sarah is now a lodger and works at a shirt factory but Peggy isn't good enough at sewing. Mags gets her a job at Rushton.

• Chapter 13 - A Good Capable Girl: The house is enormous and beautiful. Mags warns Peggy not to touch anything and be a good capable girl. The housekeeper, Mrs Halligan, and Mags talk about her duties then she is introduced to the lady of the house Elizabeth Rowan. Peggy will be a kitchen maid for cook Mrs. O'Connor. She will share a room with Kitty. She is busy from the first day and collapses exhausted into bed.

• Chapter 14 - the Likes of Us: Peggy gets kitted out with a uniform. Mrs. Rowan is a good, kind boss. Peggy feels overwhelmed trying to remember all her duties. She and Kitty quickly become good friends. Kitty's family had emigrated in 1847 during the worst of the Great Famine. Her whole family, except her 4 year old sister, May, died on route to America. Kitty worked a few places before settling in at the Rowans'. She lost track of her little sister. Kitty can't read or write so Peggy begins to teach her.

• Chapter 15 - Roxanne: Young Simon Rowan was often in the kitchen but Roxanne only appeared to complain. She was unhappy that Peggy had gotten blood on her petticoat while mending it (poorly). Peggy was terrified of Roxanne's new puppy Bonaparte after being attacked by dogs when young. Later Roxanne blames Peggy for getting her dress dirty when it was actually Bonaparte. Peggy has made a dangerous enemy.

• Chapter 16 - The Wild Flowers: one hot day Peggy and Kitty go out to the fields. Peggy dreams of home and of Eily. Kitty confesses to dreaming only about her little sister May. They collect wildflowers for their bedroom.

• Chapter 17 - The Kitchen Sink: The heat makes Peggy wants to wash in the bathroom but Mrs. Madden forbids it. One day when the house was quiet Peggy washes in the kitchen sink only to get caught by Simon, who doesn't care one bit. He asks for a container and after quickly dressing Peggy takes one to him where he is watching a baby mouse under a bush. The mouse escapes.

• Chapter 18 - The Day Off: Peggy's trail month is up and she gets her salary (minus $2 for Mags) and a day off. She goes to Boston city and buys some warm stockings and hand cream. She goes to Mags', but Sarah has moved out to live with her brothers. Peggy catches her coming out of work at the factory. She's exhausted. Peggy gifts her the handcream she bought.

• Chapter 19 - The Missing Ring: One day whilst Peggy is cleaning the music room she finds a ring. Roxanne accuses her of stealing and when she goes into her apron pocket to give it back and explain it is missing. No one believes she didn't take it and they all turn against her. She cleans the pots alone that evening and it takes her till 1am to finish the task.

• Chapter 20 - Maids of All Work: The next morning Peggy leaves Kitty to sleep only to discover later she is very poorly. Peggy takes on Kitty's duties. Peggy still has not been forgiven for the ring. The doctor comes the next day and Kitty is diagnosed with a chest infection. Peggy offers to look after her. Roxanne slips up to Mrs. Madden accidently confessing to trying to set Peggy up. Finally the cook and housekeeper believe her and the ring was found by Mrs. Rowan. Peggy is so busy she misses her day off.

• Chapter 21 - Autumn Changes: Mrs. Madden announces she will be leaving to run a first-class lodging-house. Peggy is sorry to see her go. Peggy finally recieves letters from home. One from Nano and one from Eily. Eily and John are married amd may be expecting. The shop closed, but Nano and Joshua have become good friends. Peggy sobs. On her day off Peggy gets daguerreotype portraits done to send back to Eily and Nano. She also buys herself a new (used) purple coat.

• Chapter 22 - The New Housekeeper: Mrs. Madden leaves after warm goodbyes and gifts from everyone at Rushton. She doesn't look back as the cart drives away. Miss Hannah Lewis takes her place 2 days later amd instantly creates tension with Mrs. O'Connor. She criticises everything and puts Kitty on notice saying she must get well quickly or lose her job. Peggy and Roxanne clash again when Peggy cleans the girl's room. Roxanne throws a book at her and cuts her head but Miss Lewis doesn't care.

• Chapter 23 - Mutiny: Miss Lewis makes changes that upset the staff. The quality of staff food is decreased and she is after Kitty. Mrs. O'Connor and Peggy do their best to protect Kitty and get her back on her feet. There is mutiny and Mrs. O'Connor refuses to talk to Miss Lewis and even sabotages the quality of the food that the Rowan's get to reflect badly on Miss Lewis, which it does.

• Chapter 24 - Good Riddance: Peggy suspects Mrs. O'Connor is looking for another job on her day off. She has to help Miss Lewis make dinner. Miss Lewis is clearly trying to show Mrs. O'Connor up with her extravagent menu. Peggy sabotages the meal by adding green-eye to the herb mix. The Rowans and Miss Lewis spend the night being very ill. Two days later when Mr. Rowan is recovered Miss Lewis is let go.

• Chapter 25 - Thanksgiving: The staff work hard preparing for thanksgiving. Peggy tries all the new food and enjoys it. She finally feels at home in America with Kitty and Mrs. O'Connor. She was even able to send some money home to Eily along with her daguerreotype.

Thanks for continuing the journey of Peggy with me. I really enjoyed this book, and I look forward to reading all your thoughts and comments 📚

#References

• I found this article on Irish emigration to America was quite interesting
• Eily mentions working in the Big House. Check out this link for some pictures of various Big Houses in Ireland (and a little history behind them).
• Passage to America was a tough voyage as explained on this website and this website doesn't sugarcoat the trip at all. It was tough, dirty, diseased and arrival didn't necessarily mean comfort. Tough times!
• I was curious about the term Cabin Fever and as usual went off on a little trip down the rabbit hole. I assume that in this book Cabin Fever was actually its historic use and a term for typhus. Anyway this one was interesting. Beware Jack Nicholson. He scared me a tad when I opened the page 1st time! Oh and just incase you don't know the grossness that is typhus, here you go. It makes sense that many passengers would be suffering from this.
• Deer Island Hosptial was a real place. Learn more here
• It turns out that if you lose a tooth the advice on how to save it hasn't changed much.

Well, my fellow exped mems, we did it. We finished Absolution. The mish is drawing to a close...or is it only just beginning?? Ffffffffffffffffffff-

Okay, now I'm creeped out by my own Lowry mimicry, so let's just move on from that. There's no reward in the risk. Schedule and Marginalia are linked; now on to the discussion!

~~~~~~~~Chapter Summaries:~~~~~~~

The First and the Last 2:

Some of Us Will Be Queens

We learn that Lowry, like most if not all other characters in this series, has a penchant for writing on walls. In his case, it’s a diagram showing the expedition members’ romantic entanglements. The team establishes base camp in Area X and Sky reminds everyone of their mission directives: evaluate, do not engage, sample, withdraw. Lowry is skeptical and plans to shoot to kill. 

The lighthouse looks strange, resembling different things to different people, and some on the expedition have taken drugs to suppress this and any other visions. The pile of discarded suits disappears overnight without explanation and they have yet to meet a single survivor from before the border went down.

Calorie Counts

Several members of the team leave base camp to secure the village, which Lory thinks is pointless because the entire area might be hostile. As if to prove him right, an alligator kills and eats one of the psychics in the middle of base camp. Lowry would like to eat the animals in Area X right back, but that’s against the regs due to the contamination risk, even though the air itself could just as easily be hazardous.

Jack-In-The-Box

Lowry reviews the files Jack provided on Old Jim. Lowry’s mission is to head for Dead Town, bring Old Jim back alive, and retrieve Jack’s money. We learn that Old Jim’s partner/almost-spouse died on a mission and it may have been Old Jim’s fault. Lowry recalls Jack’s warning to watch out for Henry and also mentions that people at Central had been infected by watching surveillance tape of Old Jim playing piano. The files mention someone called Schubert in relation to Old Jim and Lowry wonders whether Old Jim even had a real daughter in the first place. Overnight, another expedition member goes missing.

Haunted Walkie-Talkie Twhut Fest

The walkie-talkies start transmitting disturbing sounds when Sky tries to contact the team securing the village. Lowry begs Sky to turn the walkie-talkie off and she says it’s already off. Both of them realize they’ve drawn their knives and drop them. They dump the walkie-talkies in the water, but Lowry keeps his in case he needs to communicate with Area X later. The box containing the dumped radios turns up in camp the next day. Sky can’t handle it, so Winters orders the team to shoot the box and dump it again, further away this time. Lowry shoots his this time, too, but keeps his satellite phone.

Lowry feels like time is slipping away from them. He also notices the complete lack of domesticated animals, even though there were farms in the area before the border came down. Around the campfire, the team feels enveloped in an invisible presence and one of the expedition members disintegrates. Not Lowry: he claws the living wall and shreds it with his teeth. The team is in shock and Lowry kicks off a raucous party to snap them out of it. Another expedition member dies overnight with a gunshot wound to the head. No one heard a shot.

Slinky-Dinky Pinky-Winky

Sky recorded a video of Lowry’s encounter with the invisible wall of flesh; in it, Lowry looks like he’s making love to it rather than fighting it. Awkward. The team sets out from base camp and find a convoy of deteriorated trucks that look as though they’ve been rusting in Area X for fifty years instead of the one year since the border came down. Further on, they are ambushed by a sludge that transforms into grotesque doubles of the dead expedition members. Lowry blasts away at them with his machine gun, but the doppelgangers reform and the team’s guns turn into flesh. Lowry, Winters, and Sky toss their weapons, but everyone else’s hands fuse to their guns, which begin devouring them. 

Beach of Boners, Death Destroyers

Lowry, Sky, Winters, and one of the psychics, Scaramutti, escape to the beach where they camp overnight. They’re close to the lighthouse and it looks more like a normal lighthouse up close, but still glowing faintly green. In the morning, they discover that the sand is covered in not shells, but bones; in the distance out to sea, they can see half of the destroyer which the border severed when it came down. Sky insists she sees people on it, but Lowry swears the opposite.

Sky shows Lowry a video she found on one of the expedition cameras which shows her screaming at her doppelganger as more and more people show up in Area X. Sky thinks it’s showing the future and wonders if she is actually a double already. 

They find a boat which Lowry is convinced is a trap, but Sky and Winters launch it anyway and head for the destroyer. The next day, the rowboat washes back up on shore, empty. Lowry realizes he hasn’t seen Scaramutti in two days.

The First and the Last 2:

Not Enough Fucked-Up Stuff in Barrels

Lowry visits the places on Jack’s list: Cass’s apartment, Old Jim’s house, and the biowaste facility. He doesn’t find Old Jim or any of the money, so he heads for Dead Town.

Molt Revolt

Lowry heads to Dead Town City Hall and through the secret door, where he sees the names of his expedition mates written on the wall, including his own. There’s also a body, wearing something that may or may not be a Southern Reach uniform. Was there an expedition before this one?

Someone has left a sign on the corpse saying DO NOT EAT. Unfortunately, the corpse smells delicious and even has the texture of perfectly-cooked turkey. Lowry eats the corpse, starting with the feet; when he gets to the head, he sees it has Whitby’s face. After some dithering, Lowry finishes it off. It can’t be the real Whitby. Can it?

Tyrant to King’s Dread

On the roof of City Hall, Winters reappears, saying the destroyer was a dead end. He informs Lowry he’s covered in scales turning into eyes. Lowry sees Whitby riding an alligator on the ground below, points it out to Winters, and pushes Winters off the roof when he goes to look.

Hoarse Tongues

Whitby enters Lowry’s mind, possibly? And Lowry begins to shed golden dust from his pores. Lowry perceives that Whitby has come from the future to ensure Area X happens as it had already happened, and that this was the best possible outcome. Because Area X is also trying to colonize the past, and that outcome would be much worse.

When Lowry reaches the lighthouse, these visions end. He sees hundreds of bodies spilling out of the lighthouse, each one of them Henry from the S&SB.

Village Dump

Lowry heads to the Village Bar where he finds Old Jim’s letters to Cass. Another expedition member, Hargraves, shows up. It seems like she’s been in Area X a long time, and has figured out a lot of stuff. She says there’s no off switch and has pieced together Old Jim’s last moments. Hargraves reveals that she is Cass, the False Daughter, and that she was Jack’s real fail-safe, not Lowry. She tells Lowry she found a piece of paper in Old Jim’s pocket that said “Kill Lowry”, and she shoots him.

Two Men In a Fucking Boat Thing

Lowry is injured but still heading towards the extraction point. He sees Landry, who isn’t making much sense, but convinces Lowry to get into a boat. Except it isn’t a boat, but a creature with large teeth. Landry lunges at Lowry, who shoots him and makes his way to shore.

Third Skin

Lowry makes it to the extraction point and sees a suit which appears to be made of millions of tiny organisms and starts talking to Lowry. The suit tells him Hargraves made it through but that Landry has been dead a long time. Lowry and the suit rest for a bit and he feels comforted by the idea of crossing the border.

It's almost the New Years, so let me help you with your resolutions!

This January, do you want to read bigger books? More classic novels? Do you want to spend January 2025 in Davos getting intellectual? Maybe taking a rest cure? Do you need to cut out the noise and focus on something philosophical? Do you want to discuss serious topics like personal attitudes to life, health, illness, sexuality, and mortality and how a society can descend into chaos? Or do you just want to read more German novels to accompany our Read the World Germany selection? Have you always wanted to read more Mann? Any Mann?

So, what are you waiting for, join us for The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann! Plus 2025 is the 101th anniversary of this novel, so let's raise a toast! Schedule coming soon!!

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"In this dizzyingly rich novel of ideas, Mann uses a sanatorium in the Swiss Alps, a community devoted exclusively to sickness, as a microcosm for Europe, which in the years before 1914 was already exhibiting the first symptoms of its own terminal irrationality.

The Magic Mountain is a monumental work of erudition and irony, sexual tension and intellectual ferment, a book that pulses with life in the midst of death"- (link)

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Join me, u/lazylittlelady, u/Greatingsburg, u/Joinedformyhubs, u/Superb_Piano9536, u/latteh0lic and u/tomesandtea for what is sure to be a großartig erfahrung!

Schedule

Welcome to our next discussion of The Fraud.  The Marginalia post is here. You can find the Schedule here.  This week, we will discuss Volume 5: Chapter 8 through Volume 6: Chapter 30. 

 A summary of this week’s section is below and discussion questions are included in the comments. Feel free to add your own questions or comments, as well. Please use spoiler tags to hide anything that was not part of these chapters. You can mark spoilers using the format > ! Spoiler text here !< (without any spaces between the characters themselves or between the characters and the first and last words). 

*****CHAPTER SUMMARIES:*****

VOLUME 5, continued:

Bogle’s testimony continues.  He explains how the Claimant offered him passage to England and how, when he arrived, Lady Doughty cut off his annuity.  Bogle also admits to giving the Claimant a picture of Sir Edward Doughty and a picture of Upton House, but no maps of the estate.  Whatever people think of the Claimant, it seems universally true that Mr. Bogle can be believed.  He is sincere in his testimony and stands by his story, even when the Doughty family offers him his annuity should he recant.  The trial has been going on so long that William decides he cannot support the ladies’ attendance any longer; they’ll have to pay their own way, so their appearances become irregular.  They happen to be present on what turns out to be the last day of the trial.  Evidence is given that Sir Roger Tichborne had a tattoo on his left arm, but the Claimant doesn’t have one.  The foreman announces they have heard enough and can deliver a verdict.  The Claimant is declared to be Arthur Orton, a criminal to be charged with perjury and taken to Newgate.  The verdict causes a huge commotion!  Sarah decides to head to Regent Street with the others,  as “Sir Roger’s” supporters do not plan to abandon him.  

Eliza is more interested in Andrew Bogle, who she invites to tea.  But his son, Henry, wants to know why.  She introduces herself as a writer, and the Bogles ask for money in exchange for interviews, but she counters by offering a hot meal since she cannot pay them.  Henry goes off to help “Sir Roger” and Andrew agrees to talk with Eliza.  He insists that he’s said everything he can about the case, but Eliza points out that his entire life story would be of interest.  Mr. Bogle was born in Hope, a parish of Saint Andrew, Jamaica, to an African father named Anaso, who came to be called Nonesuch, and a Jamaican mother, Myra.  Their friend Peachey, who outlived them both, helped Andrew to learn about his family.  His father’s people were called the Nree (possibly referring to this kingdom? Correct me if I’m wrong, please!), and Peachey, who also came from this village, told him about his people.  His father was one of the high-born men, the oh-zo, while Peachey was from the lowest group, the oh-soo.  Bogle’s grandfather was a highly respected judge.  Bogle’s father was kidnapped at nine years old, just after a coming-of-age ceremony for boys where masked men come to tell great secrets.  In his father’s case, it was a Scotsman in disguise, a fraud who was not a real masked man.  The Scotsman dragged Bogle’s father to a boat where many were in chains already, and his father never saw his home or family again.  The ship, the King David, sailed to Bristol and then to Kingston, Jamaica.  

VOLUME 6:

We continue the story of Andrew Bogle’s father with his arrival at Hope, the Jamaican estate where his kidnapper, Mr. Ballard, has brought him.  Ballard enjoys naming the enslaved people in ways he finds funny, such as calling an ugly woman “Aphrodite”.  He names Anaso “Nonesuch” to mock his pride, and “Bogle” because it means “scarecrow” and is meant to humble Anaso. Ballard works for an English owner named Roger Elletson, who dies in November of 1775. Elletson’s wife, Anna Eliza, implores Ballard to use a “humane plan” in managing the enslaved people on the estate because her late husband had cared so much for their welfare. (I could not be rolling my eyes harder.)  Ballard considers this impossible, but knows his predecessor lost his job due to cruelty, so he gives it a try.  One day, Bogle is told to lead Ballard to the hut of Big Johanna, whose true name is Derenneya, an enslaved woman who has given birth to Ballard’s baby (again).  This is the only one of his babies that she has allowed to live.  The baby’s skin is very dark, and Johanna has named her after herself:  Derenneya means Stay with mother.  Ballard makes Bogle take the baby outside so he can “correct” Johanna.  

Within a year, Anna Eliza Elletson marries the Marquis of Chandos and within two years, she has a little girl who she names after herself.  Not long after this, one of her late husband’s bastard sons arrives from England with a letter instructing Ballard to find a useful trade for the boy, named Roger, and forbidding him to be used for hard labor.  (Ah, a father’s love.  How… touching? These people are the worst.)  The terrified boy, whom Ballard dubs “Mulatto Roger”, won’t speak and so Bogle volunteers to teach the boy to tend the animals like he does.  Roger is entered into the ledger under the Chickens and Pigs column.  Time passes, and the enslaved people’s true names start to fade from memory.  Johanna has gained quite a reputation:  within the enslaved community she is known to have traditional powers including cursing her enemies, and with the enslavers she is considered a strong worker who runs away so frequently that she is mutilated for her persistence.  Roger is also getting a reputation as having two sides to his character, the mouse and the snake, with the snake eventually winning out.  Ballard holds his annual meeting with Thomas Thistlewood, the owner of a neighboring estate named Breadnut Pen.  Since Hope is so large, Ballard must rent additional workers from Thistlewood despite how much he despises the man for his egregious cruelty and awful business practices.  Thistlewood loudly boasts of his sadistic abuse against the enslaved population on his estate and Johannah overhears from the kitchen.  She must help the drunken Thistlewood to his carriage when he leaves, and she whispers mysterious words in his ear.  That night, Hurricane Johannah a huge storm destroys Breadnut Pen while leaving Hope untouched.  Ballard must “correct” Johanna again, but he is too thorough and ends up killing her accidentally.    Johanna’s daughter, now called Little Johanna, inherits not only her mother’s name and jobs, but her powers.  Bogle envies her for having any link to a heritage and a family, since he cannot even picture his mother’s face anymore.  The Marquis of Chandos has died when Anna Eliza pulled his chair out and he fell, and the grief has caused Anna Eliza to be institutionalized in an asylum.  Her daughter, at 12 years old, has inherited Hope and all the enslaved people on it.  Attorneys are in charge for now.  

Myra, Bogle’s mother, works in Roger’s cane field and this is bad luck because Roger has become the cruelest overseer in Hope.  (Ballard expected this, as no one - even the Black enslaved people - seemed to think anything good came from mulatto overseers.) Nonesuch loves Myra for her “clear and bright” mind, but they can only see each other on Sundays.  They long to have a child, but Myra cannot seem to conceive.  Most people Nonesuch knows would consult Little Johannah for help, but Myra only wants to acknowledge Christian faith and eschews the traditional beliefs of Nonesuch’s people.  One day, Myra develops an abscess behind her left ear and must go to the hothouse to be treated for the Yaws, but the treatment could leave her unable to have children.  Luckily, Myra was treated early enough that she avoided the worst of the disease.  Although Nonesuch is able to father many children over the years, Myra never gets pregnant.  Desperate to have a child with the woman he loves before it is too late, Nonesuch finally consults Little Johannah who tells him to collect pennyroyal.  This advice gives him hope and he can joyfully attend jonkonnu.  The next September, Myra gives birth to Andrew (our Mr. Bogle), and Nonesuch enters his son’s name in the ledger, knowing all he can do for his child is to help him avoid the hard labor gangs and get him assigned to safer jobs.  When Andrew is six, Nonesuch succumbs to his own untreated case of the Yaws and dies in the hothouse.  Andrew inherits his father’s jobs and skills.  Myra has two other children, both of whom die in childhood, and she wastes away from grief.  Andrew mourns her, knowing she won’t live much longer.  Andrew is in love with Little Johannah, despite their age difference and the way everyone laughs at him for it.  His friend Ellis encourages him to be more like Anna Eliza, who is betrothed to the future Duke of Buckingham in what he calls an “adding up marriage” because their fortunes and estates will be combined. Ellis thinks Andrew should pursue his own “adding up marriage” with Dorinda, the housemaid who might have her freedom bought since she is the daughter of another estate’s owner.  But Andrew only feels safe with Little Johanna, who he considers his wife in his heart.  

The Duke’s agent, Edward Tichborne, arrives and Bogle becomes his page, learning a lot by listening to Tichborne’s constant talking.  In this way, he finds out he will be taken to London soon.  In England, Andrew is pleasantly surprised to discover that life and people there have many parallels to Hope.  The other servants remind him of his friends in Jamaica, and he is intrigued by the bold servant boy, Jack, who admires John Baguely and wants to take Andrew to political meetings where the son of a slave and her master, a preacher named Wedderburn, will speak in favor of slave uprisings.  Having witnessed a public hanging, Andrew prefers safety and he pretends to sleep when Jack sneaks out.  The Chandos-Buckinghams have left to spend the autumn in Stowe, but Tichborne needs to consult with the Duke on his out of control spending, so he and Bogle make the 10 hour journey.  Tichborne talks the whole way and Bogle gathers that the man envies the Duke his privileged position and considers himself worthy of nobility but cursed by being born third of seven sons.  Andrew is not surprised that a lowly fate happens to high born people - it was his father’s experience, after all - but Tichborne is beside himself.  Tichborne has more respect for the Duchess, who treats the poor well, and is ill-used by the Duke (who is unfaithful and has sired many children).  They no longer speak.  They arrive at the Duke’s house and Bogle is overwhelmed by its size and grandeur.   While Tichborne and the Duke discuss business and the fraught state of things in Jamaica, Bogle spots a painting of a boy archer, and finds the subject so reminiscent of Ellis that he is overcome with homesickness.  Bogle views several other pieces of art, including one carved from white stone that depicts a king receiving his crown while a servant grovels at his feet.  It is the only piece of the Duke’s art he understands:  he writes these relationships in the General List with ink and paper back on Hope, but here in the halls of power “the order of things” is inscribed in stone.  

Back in London, Bogle surprises himself by attending the political debates with Jack.  Wedderburn speaks in favor of the French Revolution, which he thinks will soon repeat in England, and against the nobility and royal family.  He cheers Thomas Spence and Thomas Paine.  After the speeches, Bogle wishes they’d heard more about slaves and when Jack insists that all men without rights are slaves, Bogle doesn’t respond.  Bogle misses jonkonnu because Tichborne wants to spend Christmas in London.  In January, Tichborne sends Bogle back to Jamaica by himself, where he is informed by Peachey that his mother died.  Peachey has softened the story, but Bogle discovers that despite her fragile state, someone had assigned Myra to work in the boiling house and she collapsed there.  He also discovers that Little Johanna has disappeared amidst rumors that she transformed into a horse or a tree.  Bogle finds out that - due to her mysterious and threatening ways of speaking and her hatred for Roger - she has been sentenced to three months on a treadmill in Kingston Prison.   Bogle finds himself numb and empty, which ironically makes him more productive and earns him small privileges.  One is to collect the newspapers from England, which is how he discovers the execution of five men who plotted on Cato Street to kill the English rulers.  He does not see Jack’s name among those hanged, and is surprised to find Robert Wedderburn’s name mentioned as being in prison at the time of the plot (and therefore alive).    Later, when Bogle collects the rented workers for Hope’s harvest season, he passes Wedderburn estate, which borders the long ago destroyed Thistlewood estate.  He ponders the idea that the preacher he heard speak in London might have Jamaican roots, and is again despondent that he has no history of his own to connect with.  

Johanna returns, completely changed by the brutality of her time on the treadmill.  She speaks of her prophetic circular dream that says the world sits on a blood-drenched treadmill, the secret engine of the world, which will turn over and cut down those in power, who she calls Bahama grass.   Tichborne, desperate to increase the productivity of Hope due to the Duke’s massive debts, freaks out about actual Bahama grass which had been planted by Ballard as a decorative border but has spread and ruined the estate’s soil.  This makes Little Johanna laugh.  Tichborne gets Macintosh to have the women’s gang pull it all up by the roots.  When the Duke will not answer Tichborne’s desperate communications, he quits his job and leaves Jamaica, taking Bogle with him.  Tichborne has married Kathryn, and Bogle accompanies them on a honeymoon trip around Europe where he is an object of intrusive curiosity.  They narrowly avoid encountering the Duke, who is hiding from his creditors, and the mere reminder of such a privileged man sends Tichborne into a fit of depressive binge-drinking.  Yet things are looking up:  three of his brothers have died, leaving him second in line to inherit, and the eldest brother has seven daughters but no son.  Tichborne’s wife, Kathryn, has just given birth to a baby, Henry.  And then comes the wonderful news that a distant cousin - a Doughty - has died and left Tichborne her entire estate including Upton House in Dorset and a large part of Bloomsbury (on the condition that he changes his name to Doughty).  The only fly in the ointment:  his youngest brother’s wife has just given birth to a boy, named Roger.

Welcome to the marginalia for our two books for Read the World (Germany) - Demian by Hermann Hesse, and Go, Went, Gone by Jenny Erpenbeck.

This is a communal place for things you would jot down in the margins of your books. That might include quotes, thoughts, questions, relevant links, exclamations - basically anything you want to make note of or to share with others. It can be good to look back on these notes, and sometimes you just can't wait for the discussion posts to share a thought.

When adding something to the marginalia, simply comment here, indicating roughly which part of the book you're referring to (eg. towards the end of chapter 2).

Because this may contain spoilers, please indicate this by writing “spoilers for chapters 5 and 6” for example, or else use the spoiler tag for this part with this format > ! SPOILER ! < without the spaces between characters.

Note: spoilers from other books should always be under spoiler tags unless explicitly stated otherwise.

Here is the schedule for the discussion which will be run by u/nicehotcupoftea, u/fixtheblue, u/miriel4, u/thebowedbookshelf and u/bluebelle236.

Any questions or constructive criticism are welcome.

Let's go, everyone! See you in the first discussion on 24th December.

Hello all welcome to the only discussions for the short ghost story To Be Read at Dusk. This story is psychological as it makes the reader question ghosts and further the human mind...what is real and what is not real, how the mind can speak something into existence..

This ghost story, or rather not a ghost story at all, as one of the character declares "I DON'T Talk of ghosts", takes place in the Swiss Alps. The sun casts a deep red color across the snow, like deep red wine spilling. Five couriers sit on a bench and talk about their experiences with ghosts as the main character is eavesdropping.

The German tells a story about an old woman at a dinner party who declared she could sense her sister just died, even though she was far away in Spain. His own grandmother could always tell the death of a relative before it happened, and his father came to him in a dream the night before he passed.

and what about the times your head fills with the idea of your friend and you start seeing them in every person you see, just to eventually come across that person, he says

The next story is about a woman who was haunted in a reoccuring dream by a man in dark clothes and a silver mustache. Her husband and servants took her to a countryside house to be away from society, where she was happy, until one day a man with dark clothes and a silver mustache visited for dinner. She passed out and was carried away, where she stayed haunted, until one day someone witnessed her disappearing in the back of a carriage cowering in fear with the dark clothed man

The last story is about two twins. Twins are often used in horror, to portray good and bad, conscious vs unconscious, and nature vs nurture. One twin had apparently visited the other twin in a dream declaring the twin is very sick and dying. The next day, the twin visited his sick brother right before he died just to say “James, you have seen me before, to-night – and you know it!”

All of these stories are just accounts of things HAPPENING, but no definitive explanation of anything.

At the end of the story, the eavesdropper hears only silence. When he looks at the bench where the five couriers sat talking, the bench is empty and no one is around

Great St. Bernard Pass

Here is a narration of the story on youtube for 27 minutes

Mystery lovers, welcome to the last discussion of our Mystery read! I think we can all say that Gipsy's Acre really is a place to die for!

Useful links:

• Schedule
• Marginalia

Summary 🐎🌃

17. Mike plans to meet Phillpot to go to an auction, where he intends to buy Ellie a papier-mache bookrest. He sees a familiar face that he can't quite place there, and another at the restaurant where he and Phillpot are waiting for Ellie, who went horse riding in the morning. When he sees the mysterious person going away, he notices he looks like Stanford Lloyd.

When Ellie doesn't show up, they go looking for her in the woods, and find her dead.

18. A passerby says he saw the horse running away, and that Ellie was alone. Another woman claims to have seen Mrs Lee nearby a few hours prior.

19. The autopsy on Ellie's body reveals some non-fatal injuries, so the doctor concludes that she must have gone into cardiac arrest after falling from her horse. Greta claims Ellie suffered from heart attacks. Mrs Lee appears to have left the country (despite this not being unusual for her).

20. Mike and Philpot wonder if someone paid Mrs Lee to scare Ellie to make them sell the house. He shows Philpot a message he found enveloped around a stone, which says that a woman killed his wife. He takes it to sergeant Keene, who believes it is referring to someone other than Mrs Lee, who he suspects might have been killed by the person who paid her to scare Ellie. He also tells Mike they found a golden lighter in a gazebo on his property, with a 'C' engraved on it.

He later meets Claudia, who is interested in buying his house. He learns that her ex-husband was Stanford Lloyd.

21. Mike learns that, at the moment of Ellie's death, most of her relatives were in England. He finds out he is Ellie's heir, and Mr Lippincott warns him to be careful and hire a legal advisor.

After Ellie's funeral, William E. Pardoe visits Mike. He is Ellie's cousin, and the man Mike saw at the auction. William mentions that Cora is a close friend of Claudia Hardcastle, and they were together on the day of Ellie's death.

22. Mike travels to New York, where everyone is awful. He receives news that Mrs. Lee has been found dead, presumably after an accident. Claudia Hardcastle has died as well while horse riding, after another accident? Not suspicious at all!

He decides to fire Mr Lloyd after his legal consultant tells him that the man has given him some bad advice. Mr Lippincott seems not to trust the banker as well.

He visits Santonix at the hospital, shortly before his dear friend dies.

23. Mike decides to ask Greta to marry him (WHAT???), declaring that she has helped him so much after Ellie's death and that he needs her on his side.

Well, the real reason for this is that Mike's marriage to Ellie and her death were all a very intricate plan. He and Greta met in Hamburg a while ago and fell in love, so they decided to find a way to make easy money. Remember the classmate who drowned in a pond?

Mike had let him die to steal his super expensive watch. A similar thing happened later with another friend that he stabbed (WHAT????????). Apparently Mike really likes money and is completely insane? Well, what a twist.

Mike goes back to Gipsy's acre, where he sees Ellie in the woods, looking in his direction but unable to see him.

He and Greta are ready for a celebration, but he panics after he opens a letter from Lippincott, that contains a picture with him and Greta in Hamburg.

A surge of hate for Greta arises, so he kills her because he wants to know how it feels.

24. The police arrest Mike. He tells doctor Shaw that he and Greta put cyanide in Ellie's pills. Shaw had found out because Claudia had borrowed some pills from Ellie, but this time they were able to find the body much earlier, sothe smell of the poison was still in the air.

Mike gets arrested, and while in prison he starts writing down his memories, still thinking about Ellie and reflecting on the “endless night” he is.

Welcome to the marginalia for Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquival.

This is a communal place for things you would jot down in the margins of your books. That might include quotes, thoughts, questions, relevant links, exclamations - basically anything you want to make note of or to share with others. It can be good to look back on these notes, and sometimes you just can't wait for the discussion posts to share a thought.

When adding something to the marginalia, simply comment here, indicating roughly which part of the book you're referring to (eg. towards the end of chapter 2).

Because this may contain spoilers, please indicate this by writing “spoilers for chapters 5 and 6” for example, or else use the spoiler tag for this part with this format > ! SPOILER ! < without the spaces between characters.

Note: spoilers from other books should always be under spoiler tags unless explicitly stated otherwise.

Any questions or constructive criticism are welcome.

Let's go, everyone! See you in the first discussion onThursday December 26th.

Hello bibliophiles This will be the Marginalia for the last 2 books in The Children of Famine trilogy. We are about to dive into book #2 - Wildflower Girl

See you all soon :)

What is a Marginalia post for?

This post is a place for you to put your marginalia as we read. Scribbles, comments, glosses (annotations), critiques, doodles, illuminations, or links to related - none discussion worthy - material. Anything of significance you happen across as we read. As such this is likely to contain spoilers from other users reading futher ahead in the novel. We prefer, of course, that it is hidden or at least marked (massive spoilers/spoilers from chapter 10...you get the idea).

Marginalia are you observations. They don't need to be insightful or deep. Why marginalia when we have discussions?

• Sometimes its nice to just observe rather than over analyse a book.
• They are great to read back on after you have progressed further into the novel.
• Not everyone reads at the same pace and it is nice to have somewhere to comment on things here so you don't forget by the time the discussions come around.

#MARGINALIA - How to post???

• Start with the book name (marginalia are used for an entire book series), general location (early in chapter 4/at the end of chapter 2/ and so on).
• Write your observations, or
• Copy your favorite quotes, or
• Scribble down your light bulb moments, or
• Share you predictions, or
• Link to an interesting side topic.

Note: Spoilers from other books should always be under spoiler tags

As always, any questions or constructive criticism is welcome and encouraged. The post will be flaired and linked in the schedule so you can find it easily, even later in the read. Have at it people!

Happy reading 📚

Welcome everyone to the first discussion for Stephen King's Fairy Tale. Please find the schedule and marginalia at the links. Remember that r/bookclub takes a strong stance on spoilers and not everyone here will have read all Stephen King's other books. If you feel you absolutely must make comparisons or references to any of his (or any other book, in fact) please just mark it with spoiler tags where > !the spoilery text goes here! < and there is no space between the! <.

Right now all that's cleared up lets hop to it. There are discussion prompt questions in the comments, but as always, feel free to add your own.

#Summary

• Chapter ONE - The Goddam Bridge.The Miracle. The Howling.

The Little Rumple River's unsafe wooden bridge was replaced in 1996 with a new steel one that went unpaved for years. One Saturday in November of 2003 Charlie's mother walked to Zip Mart to get fried chicken for dinner. On the way back a plumber in a panel truck skidded on the frozen steel and crushed Charlie's mother into a stanchion killing her gruesomely. After she died his 'regular drinker' father began drinking out of control. Charlie began having to take more care of himself as his father became increasingly absent. He sometimes woke to hear him crying in the middle of the night. 3 years later, in 2006, George lost his job. After a binge he promised Charlie he would stop drinking and get another job....he didn't.

That summer was rough for Charlie. The bills rolled in, and his father even got a job at the Jiffy Car Wash. It didn't last. Charlie was behaving badly and suffering from insomnia worrying about their impending homelessness. Charlie prays his father will stop drinking.

One day Lindy Franklin, a recovering alcoholic, shows up for a Twelfth Step visit. They go to an AA meeting that night and the next day and he keeps going and gets sober (with a few slips along the way). After 6 months sober he gets his job back at Overland. In February of 2012 George Reade went solo and became Investigator and Independent Claims Adjuster. He worked long hours making his business work. He does well and is paying off his debts, but he won't be able to pay for Charlie's college tuition. Therefore, Charlie has to do well enough for scholarships. Charlie works hard at school, at his varsity football and baseball, at volunteering. He had has to payback his debt! His father stopped dtinking because he prayed for it.

Bowditch (or the Psycho) House was delapidated and scary Andy claims to have been shoving mail back into the overflowing mailbox when an angry German Shepherd called Radar barked at him threateningly before being called off by Bowditch. Charlie's father advises him to stay away from the old man. And he did....until April 13th when Charlie overheard Radar and Bowditch in distress. Charlie saved him.

• Chapter TWO - Mr Bowditch. Radar.Night in the Psycho House.

Charlie finds Bowditch on the back porch with a broken leg after falling off a ladder. Charlie calls 911 and is advised to stay and keep him warm. They talk and Bowditch sends Charlie to get him some Empirin from the bathroom. The house is rundown, but neat and full of books and magazines. As the EMT's arrive Charlie offers to take care of Radar while Bowditch is in the hospital. Reluctantly he agrees.

Charlie stays at the house doing homework until it is time to feed Radar at 6pm. At home he tells his dad about Bowditch and the house. Charlie feels bad Radar is alone and goes back to the house to check on her, which was lucky as he had left the doggie door open. They play fetch briefly before Charlie turns on a light leaves her Bowditch's shirt and a toy for comfort. He texts his teacher that he will miss 1st and maybe 2nd period the next day.

• Chapter THREE - A Hospital Visit.Quitters Never Win. The Shed.

After feeding Radar Charlie meets Mrs. Althea Richland who gossips about Bowditch and Radar. He visits Bowditch in the hospital who has had one operation, but he will need another, a hip replacement. Charlie saved Bowditch's life, but Charlie continues to credit Radar. He shows Bowditch photos of Radar which cheers him up. He knows he has a long convalescence period, and considers putting Radar down. Charlie objects and offers to take care of her instead.

At school Mrs Silvius and Charlie talk about Bowditch's old school TV. Charlie plays like crap at practice, and walks out calmly. Back at Bowditch's house Charlie hears scratching, followed by a weird chittering noise coming from the shed. Radar is also disturbed by the noise.

Charlie's dad knows about Charlie quitting baseball, and is supportive even if he doesn't fully understand. A reporter from The Weekly Sun is trying to get hold of Charlie. Before heading home he checks out the shed again. Nothing.

• Chapter FOUR - Visiting Mr Bowditch. Andy Chen.The Cellar. In Other News. A Hospital Meeting.

The next day Charlie goes to feed and play with Radar. He turns on the ancient TV, and it works. He takes a picture of Radar, then heads to the hospital where a nurse asks him to fill in a form as Bowditch's emergency contact. Bowditch's leg is encased in an external fixator, and he is pretty high on pain meds. Recovery is going to be hard. Bowditch is grateful to Charlie, but won't allow Charlie into the shed to get a mower to cut the grass. He tells him to go into the basement to get a scythe to cut the grass down enough to mow it. Bowditch agrees to allowing the reporter to take a picture of Radar. He also asks Charlie to walk Radar, and to deal with the groceries due to be delivered.

Charlie ponders what Bowditch did to earn his money and wonders if Radar has ever been to the vet. Andy turns up at Charlie's to convince him to come back to the baseball team. Later reporter Bill Harriman takes a picture of Charlie and Radar and tries to fish for info before Charlie cuts him off. Charlie and Radar take a walk back to Charlie's and Radar meets George warming to him quickly. Charlie takes her back home even though George offers to let her stay.

At Bowditch's Charlie goes into the basement for the scythe and feels saddened by the abandoned puzzle. He is missing baseball. Charlie scythes half the lawn. In the hospital Bowditch is in pain and overwhelmed. He tells Charlie he trusts him and he's the best thing that's happened to him for a long time.

The hospital calls Charlie to talk about recovery and aftercare with him, and his guardian. Charlie and Radar's story make it into the Chicago Tribune. Bowditch has called Charlie his recovery plan. Charlie will need to clean his rods and prepare for his return home. Charlie may need to stay over for the first few nights. George supports Charlie's decision.

• Chapter FIVE - Shopping. My Father’s Pipe.A Call from Mr Bowditch. The Flour Cannister.

Charlie and George shop for supplies for Bowditch and Radar. Then Charlie explores the house before scrubbing the windows. Back home George and Charlie talk. George is worried that his drinking has created a caretaker mentality in Charlie. Charlie tells him he is grateful for George's sobriety, and is paying it forward. Charlie says nothing about his "debt". George is supportive as long as Charlie doesn't let his studies slip.

George has looked into Bowditch and discovered little. The property was bought by Adrian Bowditch. It seems that Bowditch is very financially comfortable, but he didn't find any records. Bowditch owns a classic car but possibly no licence to drive it.

Charlie prepares the bed for Bowditch's return by making up the sofa bed. Bowditch calls, and he is pretty stoned. He asks Charlie to come visit and then asks of he can keep a secret. He also offers to pay Charlie $500 a week. The money is in the flour jar, a LOT of money is in the flour jar. There are also what Charlie suspects are gold pellets.

Next week u/IraelMrad will be hosting chapters 6 through 10.

See you there 📚

We're kicking off 2025 with a little mystery set in the Adirondacks: The God of the Woods by Liz Moore. This novel has generated a lot of buzz this year, including its recent win as Goodreads readers' top Mystery/Thriller of 2024! If you want to see what everyone's talking about, be sure to snag your copy and join u/eeksqueak, u/spreebiz and myself in January.

Schedule:

• 1/2/25: Part I (Barbara) - Part II (Bear) | Carl 1961
  • Through the section ending with "...making their way to the preserve."
  • 95 pages
• 1/9/25: The rest of Part II (Bear) - Part III (When Lost)
  • 91 pages
• 1/16/25: Part IV (Visitors) - Part VI (Survival) | Judyta, August 1975, Day Two
  • Through the section ending with "...above her head, the sound of footsteps."
  • 99 pages
• 1/23/25: The rest of Part VI (Survival) - Part VII (Self-Reliance) | Judyta, August 1975, Day Four
  • Through the section ending with "...Your task for the day is to set eyes on Vic Hewitt."
  • 94 pages
• 1/30/25: Rest of the book - 88 pages

So, will you be joining us in the woods as we try to solve this mystery?

As we close the year, cast away the cares of the old and focus on the new. Look at the world and one another with new eyes and consider the possibilities.

Let’s begin with a brief reminder of the architecture that marks the "Romanesque arch" – a style in Roman revival of a row of arches and vaults and columns that was popular in 11^(th) and 12^(th) century Western Europe. The arches in question are rumored to be those of San Marco, Venice.

It was no surprise that our poet, Tomas Tranströmer (1931-2015) began his career in psychology.  He is considered to be one of the most important Swedish poets in the post-WWII era, debuting his poetry in 1951 and quickly becoming one the most translated poets in the world, in more than 60 languages and showered in awards, including the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2011. I’ve linked the video of his award ceremony below. Sadly, this award came after a stroke in 1990 that left him unable to speak and partially paralyzed, so the ceremony features many other poets reciting his poetry in multiple languages although he is, of course, in attendance.

He was mainly raised by his mother, Helmy Tranströmer, a schoolteacher after his parents divorced when he was 3. Tranströmer grew up under the shadow of Swedish neutrality in WWII and the post-war landscape. His school life was pretty miserable- he is even an extra in the Ingmar Bergman film that was shot there, Torment, about a sadistic Latin teacher. It was probably his summer visits to Runmarö, an island in the Swedish archipelago where his maternal grandfather had a pilot station that inspired his deep interest in nature. A bout of “melancholy” led him to begin playing the piano at age 15. Music would be one way he could continue his communication after his stroke, learning to play with one hand and entertaining his guests with music instead of words. Here is one of the last videos of him playing the piano before his death with a recitation of his poem, “Allegro” from one of the last public recitations before his stroke.

Later, his education took him to Stockholm University, where he not only graduated with a degree in psychology but published his first poetry collection, 17 Poems (1954). His main poetic inspirations were Horace (keeping in the Roman theme), who he read in high school for the first time, Thoreau, and other contemporary poets. Is he the John Donne of his time? I'll let you decide.

After graduation, Tranströmer spent his time working with the juvenile prison population, as well as the disabled, convicts, and drug addicts. His pace of output was very deliberate and time-intensive—with a single poem taking as long as it needed, even a year, which left him plenty of time to pursuit his career, as well as translating many poems into Swedish, as well. The 1950’s was a time when he traveled widely, including to places behind the iron curtain. His friendship with American poet, Robert Bly, began in the 1960’s and would continue for their entire lives, leading to certain collaborations in translation and a rich set of correspondence that has been printed (see below). I've given you two translations to compare, including one by Bly.

His early poetry was very focused on nature and natural rhythms and his later work is more abstract and concerned with the human spirit, while never losing sight of the natural world. In his career, Tranströmer published 15 collections, including two after his stroke and a short autobiography, Minnena ser mig (The Memories see me), in 1993. He left behind his wife, Monica, married in 1958, and their two daughters, Emma and Paula. See the link below to hear some of Emma’s work. In 1997, the Municipality of Västerås established the Tranströmer Prize, which rewards outstanding poetic writing in his honor (Gyrdir Eliasson is the winner in 2024).

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 “Tranströmer’s poems imagine the spaces that the deep then inhabits, like ground water gushing up into a newly dug well”- Tom Sleigh in his 2006 "Interview with a Ghost"

 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

“because, through his condensed, translucent images, he gives us fresh access to reality”- The Nobel Committee on awarding him the 2011 Nobel Prize in Literature.

"This interplay between fragile triviality and sublime resilience. … That was the condition of poetry” - Tranströmer on finding inspiration in Horace.

 ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Romanesque Arches

by Tomas Tranströmer, translated by Robert Bly

Tourists have crowded into the half-dark of the 
enormous Romanesque church.
Vault opening behind vault and no perspective.
A few candle flames flickered.

An angel whose face I couldn't see embraced me
and his whisper went all through my body:
Don't be ashamed to be a human being**—**be proud!
Inside you one vault after another opens endlessly.
You'll never be complete, and that's as it should be.

Tears blinded me
as we were herded out into the fiercely sunlit piazza,
together with Mr and Mrs Jones, Herr Tanaka and 
Signora Sabatini—
within each of them vault after vault opened endlessly.

 _____________________________________________________________________________________

Romanesque Arches

by Tomas Tranströmer, translated by Robin Fulton

Inside the huge Romanesque church the tourists jostled in the half darkness.
Vault gaped behind vault, no complete view.
A few candle flames flickered.
An angel with no face embraced me
and whispered through my whole body:
"Don't be ashamed of being human, be proud!
Inside you vault opens behind vault endlessly.
You will never be complete, that's how it's meant to be."
Blind with tears
I was pushed out on the sun-seething piazza
together with Mr and Mrs Jones, Mr Tanaka, and Signora Sabatini,
and inside them all vault opened behind vault endlessly.

____________________________________________________________________________________________

Romanska bågar

by Tomas Tranströmer

Inne i den väldiga romanska kyrkan trängdes turisterna
i halvmörkret.
Valv gapande bakom valv och ingen överblick.
Några ljuslågor fladdrade.
En ängel utan ansikte omfamnade mig
och viskade genom hela kroppen:
”Skäms inte för att du är människa, var stolt!
Inne i dig öppnar sig valv bakom valv oändligt.
Du blir aldrig färdig, och det är som det skall.”
Jag var blind av tårar
och föstes ut på den solsjudande piazzan
tillsammans med Mr och Mrs Jones, Herr Tanaka och
Signora Sabatini
och inne i dem alla öppnade sig valv bakom valv oändligt.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Some things to discuss might be the contrasting mood in the opening to the conclusion of the poem, the images of arches and the infinite potential of the human spirit, even as the idea of being “complete” is impossible. What feelings and ideas take root during this reading? Do you have a preference between the two translations-especially if we have any Swedish speakers? How does the Bonus Poem, which is also featured in the video above, contrast with our poem? How was this as the last poem in Poetry Corner for 2024? Do you have any suggestions on future poets? Do drop me a line!

 __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Bonus Poem: Allegro (1962)

Bonus Link #1: Hear the poet recite his poem in Swedish: “Romanska bågar”

Bonus Link #2: A beautiful musical arrangement of “Romanska bågar”, sung by Via Vitae, arranged by Per Gunnar Petersson.

Bonus Link #3: More music! Emma Tranströmer, his daughter, is a singer who put many of his poems into song in her collection,  “Dagsmeja”.

Bonus Link #4: A video of his Nobel lecture in Swedish, with music and poetry readings in multiple languages. The English text of the poems is below the video. Here is the introduction translation in English.

Bonus Link #5: A comparison of two translations, both Bly and Fulton, from Edmund Prestwich.

Bonus Link# 6: More about Romanesque Architecture and Durham Cathedral, a prime example of the style.

Bonus Link #7: "For the Left Hand Alone"- an interesting essay originally published in 2023 by Jared Marcel Pollen.

Bonus Link #8: If you would like more information about Tranströmer’s long-running and productive relationship with poet Robert Bly, there is a book of their correspondence, Airmail: The Letters of Robert Bly and Tomas Tranströmer

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

If you missed last month’s poem, you can find it here.

As 2024 rapidly draws to a close, faithful bookclubbers all over the world are beginning to look to the year ahead.

They speculate about what books 2025 has in store for them and wonder if this will be the year one of their nominations will win a vote.

But above all, the members of this bookish community want to know: What are the 2025 Book Club Bingo Squares?

Never fear, faithful bookclubbers, the r/bookclub Ministry of Merriment is here to answer this burning question!

To help you plan your bingo strategy for 2025, we humbly offer you this preview of the 2025 Bingo Board. Thanks to u/espiller1 for the adorable design!

The 2025 Bingo Megathread, where you will post your 2025 bingo cards, will go up in January along with the new Bingo Helper and updated FAQ so keep your eyes peeled 👀.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For those of you still wrapping up your 2024 cards, you have until January 8th to submit them via the Megathread.

This year's cards are here and here.

Be sure to check out the Bingo Helper Guide created by u/midasgoldentouch to see which books count for which squares and visit our Book Bingo FAQ and 2024 Bingo Q&A post for any questions.

Happy reading, happy bingo-ing, and Happy Holidays!

Cheers, r/bookclub's Ministry of Merriment🥂

Welcome to the marginalia for Fairytale by Stephen King.

This is a communal place for things you would jot down in the margins of your books. That might include quotes, thoughts, questions, relevant links, exclamations - basically anything you want to make note of or to share with others. It can be good to look back on these notes, and sometimes you just can't wait for the discussion posts to share a thought.

When adding something to the marginalia, simply comment here, indicating roughly which part of the book you're referring to (eg. towards the end of chapter 2).

Because this may contain spoilers, please indicate this by writing “spoilers for chapters 5 and 6” for example, or else use the spoiler tag for this part with this format > ! SPOILER ! < without the spaces between characters.

Note: spoilers from other books should always be under spoiler tags unless explicitly stated otherwise.

Any questions or constructive criticism are welcome.

Let's go, everyone! See you in the first discussion on Monday December 16th.

Hi all,

I'm excited to announce that once we finish Oliver Twist, our next Evergreen read will be A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce. A prominant Irish writer who has influenced generations of writers that came after him. This will be my first James Joyce book, and I hope you will join me!

Here's the Goodreads link

The portrayal of Stephen Dedalus's Dublin childhood and youth, his quest for identity through art and his gradual emancipation from the claims of family, religion and Ireland itself, is also an oblique self-portrait of the young James Joyce and a universal testament to the artist's 'eternal imagination'. Both an insight into Joyce's life and childhood, and a unique work of modernist fiction, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is a novel of sexual awakening, religious rebellion and the essential search for voice and meaning that every nascent artist must face in order to blossom fully into themselves.

We will be starting towards the end of January so look out for a schedule coming soon!

Hello, fellow /bookclubbers!

This February, join us for an adventure in Wales in Miss Percy's Travel Guide to Welsh Moors and Feral Dragons by Quenby Olson, the second book in the Miss Percy Guide series. We'll rejoin Mildred, Fitz, and the crew on their journey - it's sure to be smooth sailing, what could possibly go wrong globetrotting with a dragon?

Book summary:

!First, there was a trunk. Inside the trunk was an egg, and inside the egg was…!<

!Well, it certainly was not a chicken.!<

!Miss Mildred Percy, former wallflower and current adventurer, is now in charge of a dragon. Along with Mr. Wiggan and Mrs. Babbinton — our stalwart companions from the first volume of Miss Percy’s adventures — she embarks on a journey across Wales, in search of the mysterious Nyth y Ddraig, or Nest of Dragons.!<

!But traveling with a young dragon in an unfamiliar land proves more difficult than anticipated. Between angry mobs, midnight rescues, and recalcitrant sheep, they battle (figuratively) their way across the countryside, defend themselves against enemies old and new, and discover something remarkable hidden in the mountains of Wales.!<

Keep your eyes peeled for the schedule sometime in January. We hope you join us!

Hey all, the results are in!

Here is the leaderboard:

Published in 2024

1. The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
2. The Wedding People by Alison Espach (2 votes behind winner)
3. Intermezzo by Sally Rooney (3 votes behind winner)
4. James by Percival Everett (5 votes behind winner)

January Any Genre

1. The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride
2. The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides (2 votes behind winner)
3. The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England by Brandon Sanderson (5 votes behind winner)
4. Yellowface by R.F. Kuang (8 votes behind winner)

(Wheel of Books: We do give the books that almost won another chance and spin the Wheel of Books from time to time and read one of the runner-ups.)

Watch this space, schedules will be posted soon.

Will you join one (or both) reads?

Welcome to the Marginalia thread for The Nightingale, by Kristin Hannah. This is our post for you to share any ideas, questions, or anything else pertaining to the book as you read it.  If you’ve got a thought you’d like to share with us as you read, you can put it here instead of waiting for the discussion posts on Sundays. If you find any other media related to the book - such as a podcast, video, or article - you can drop it here, too.

Remember, if you’re going to post anything that might be a spoiler, use spoiler tags around your text. Do that by typing: > ! spoiler text ! < without any spaces. This will hide the text like this: >!spoiler hidden here.!<

Help people reading your post by starting it with where you are in the book. For example, Middle of Chapter 2, pp xx.

We’re excited to start reading the book with you and hearing your thoughts. Our first discussion post will be next Sunday, December 22, on Chapters 1-7.  The schedule is here or on the book club calendar. Enjoy the first section, and we’ll see you for the first discussion!