Leeway

I'm actually having more trouble following the action, as quite a few of the characters seem to be "feeble-minded" not just one as in The Sound and the Fury. I'm not enjoying it as I have nothing but contempt for the father and his stupid quest. I'll probably get around (some day) to reading most of Faulkner twice, but I think I'll pass on this one. I can't exactly explain why I am so angry about this novel, other than perhaps the stupid, stubborn and often lazy characters that Faulkner is portraying (with a higher percentage here than in many other of his novels) did not fade away but actually have taken charge of U.S. politics. I was going to write more, but it would just take me further off tangent. Not sure if you picked up on the humor of the story. Definitely swathed in Gothic humor. As for the characters, they would have been (be) considered "poor white trash," but that is what Faulkner wants us to perceive, then he goes deep into their minds and spirits, humanizes and elevates them to nearly epic proportions. As for drawing a direct line between fictional characters of that time and Tea Party types of today (I'm assuming that is the reference), it's an interesting thought, but I'm not sure the line is that straight.

"Sir Arfred 'itchcock, mate!" Ticknor & Fields Saatchi & Saatchi

Chewbacca Gummy Bear Doublemint Twins

I saw Armitage read that in a lightly staged production recently. Excellent I would have liked that.

The question was what to read after spending over a month with Clarissa. The answer turned out to be an old friend, Iris Murdoch, and her The Green Knight, published 1993, and her 25th novel. Murdoch was diagnosed with Alzheimers in 1997, so I expected that this novel might find her seriously off her game. I don't think it does. It has the usual Murdoch strengths and weaknesses, but overall it is quite a good read. And since the novel does make use of the Green Knight myth, I decided to read: Simon Armitage's modern "Englishing" of the original alliterative poem. I very much enjoyed reading this modern version, but it also has the original Middle English text on the facing page, so one gets the best of both.

T. Boone Pickens T-Bone Walker T. Tebow

THE WEST COAST SOUND (Shelly Manne and His Men, Vol. 1) - Contemporary/King Japan.

Monte Budwig Monte Hall Monet, Claude

Brotz Brotzmann Et tu, Brutus

Reynard the Fox Fantastic Mr. Fox Foxygen

Mother Hubbard Mother Jones Mutha F---a! (thanks Miles).

Martin Davidson Marshall Mathers Slim Shady

Daisy Duke Victoria and her Secret Frederick of Hollywood

Cesar Millan Dog Whisperer Pieter Wispelwey

Congrats, that is quite an accomplishment. I have to admit this was not even on my radar, but you have piqued my curiosity. I don't intend to add it to my reading list at any point in the near future, but perhaps someday... Did you start with Pamela? That seems more my speed, and if I make it through that ok, I might eventually consider Clarissa... Thank you. Actually Clarissa was enjoyable, one gets caught up in the deep psychology and sociology of the story, just requires perseverance. No, I have not read Pamela, just jumped into the deep end first. But I do have Pamela on my list to catch up with.

Would love to have been there. What instruments did he play?

Yes, it is GTM, but already emerging from GTM into new areas, so there's a flexibility and vibrancy to it. It's quite absorbing music, and like Colin said, it rewards repeated listening. And look at the marvelous corps of musicians: Musicians: Mary Halvorson - electric guitar; Nicole Mitchell - flute, alto and bass flutes, piccolo, voice; Sara Schoenbeck - bassoon, suona; Reut Regev - trombone, flugelbone; Carl Testa - acoustic bass, bass clarinet; Anthony Braxton - alto, soprano, and sopranino saxophones, clarinet, Eb contralto clarinet; James Fei - alto and soprano saxophones, clarinet, bass clarinet; Andrew Raffo Dewar - soprano and c-melody saxophones, clarinet; Jay Rozen - tuba, euphonium; Stephen H. Lehman - alto and sopranino saxophones; Jessica Pavone - viola, violin; Aaron Siegel - percussion, vibraphone; Taylor Ho Bynum - cornet, flugelhorn, trumpbone, piccolo and bass trumpets, shell.

Marvin Hamlisch Porky Beef Wellington

I would heartily recommend it. It's central to Braxton's work, and, on a more subjective note, I've enjoyed listening to it. You can usually pick up sets for around $85 on the Net. If he's got it for much less, grab it. PS: plus it supports the artist!

Best of luck! Read it in college for an 18th Cent. English Lit. class. Could have read an abridged version but volunteered to read the whole thing just for the hell of it. Resulting paper was not as good as it should have/could have been, but I got a good grade for persistence, I think. A great work, as you're finding out. I'd like to hear Robin Holloway's opera "Clarissa." There is an excerpt on YouTube. FINISHED!!! Finished Clarissa: 1499 pages, 537 letters in the Penguin (1st) edition. A challenging read, but a marvelous experience. I had hoped to finish it on Valentine's Day, because, after all, it is a love story, albeit gone seriously wrong. I can see why this novel typically ranks high on lists of "best English novels." Richardson does a magnificent job maintaining voices and characters through the many hundreds of epistles. Furthermore, the social texture of the novel is extraordinarily dense and rich. Questions of sex and gender, rich and poor, virtue and vice, individual and community, tradition and modernity, so many other fundamental elements, it gives the novel the quality of myth. I'm truly glad I read it.

Maxwell Smart Brainiac Pointy-Headed Intellectuals

Eric Cartman Hoss Cartwright Descartes

mjazzg covered things rather nicely, but from my perspective, ratcheting down the possibilities, I would pick Thumbscrew, as it gives perhaps the clearest view of Halvorson as a guitarist. I would add Illusionary Sea to get a sense on how she sounds in a larger group of her making.

YOUR TONIGHT IS MY TOMORROW - Eric Watson (p), Steve Lacy (ss), J-P Celea (b), Aaron Scott (d). 1987. Paris. Owl LP Not sure what the connection was between Watson and Lacy, but they recorded twice AFAIK. Interesting to hear Lacy here as a "sideman," playing in a group different from his own. Alas, Lacy's only on 3 of the LPs cuts.

Mary Arden Richard Shakespeare William Shakespeare