Recent reading

[luzula]

I haven't made a book logging post for over a month! This is partly because I've been reading a lot of Yuletide, but also because I needed to save my hands. But now, with the joys of dictation, I can make one.

Britain’s Lost Revolution, by Daniel Szechi (2015)
Yes, it's another book about Jacobite history! I was fascinated by the stuff in his other book about how Jacobite policies rapidly became less and less about autocratic kings and more and more about guaranteeing the power of parliament. This book goes deeper into how that shift happened in the early 1700s, and about the failed Jacobite rising of 1708. Apparently the author has dug deep into French archives, so there's a lot about the diplomatic maneuvering between the French court, the Jacobite court, and their British supporters. Queen Mary of Modena seems to have been a skilful politician.

A Spindle Splintered, by Alix Harrow (2021)
This was for book club, and I didn't entirely bounce off it as I did with the author’s witch book. But I also thought it was fairly forgettable. The secondary world felt kind of thin, because it was mostly constructed for the purposes of a meta discussion of fairy tales. I think this author is just not for me.

I have also participated in regshoe’s readalong of Flight of the Heron, which has been a delight and a joy. It's so good to see new people coming into the fandom, and get new interesting angles on the book. I also beta read a novel draft by naraht, which I greatly enjoyed, though I also did a lot of nitpicking around navigation, which I guess is typical of me. I guess you could describe it as a science fictional gen soulbond story with deep space exploration? And finally, I read about a fourth of Christopher Hill’s The World Turned Upside Down (1972), about radicals during the English Civil War. Then I had to take it back to the library because someone was waiting for it; I guess I'll order it again.

Comments

[garonne]

I am impressed that not only does your local library have a book in English about that rather obscure topic (at least, obscure in Sweden, I guess), but that you also have another person in your town who was interested enough in the topic to reserve it.

In my own local library, it seems one of the librarians was interested enough in Mary Queen of Scots to buy five different books on the subject! (not in English, however). This is a small local library with only a shelf to cover the entire history of England and Scotland, of which about 20% are on Mary Queen of Scots :D

Incidentally, The World Turned Upside Down sounds really interesting. Is it any good? I guess so, if you want to get hold of it again.

[luzula]

In fact it was not my local library, but the university library! And I do live in the second largest city in Sweden. But yes, I am kind of curious as to who the other person is.

I am impressed that there exist five books in French on Mary Queen of Scots that are non academic books that a public library could have! But then again, I guess there probably exist five popular books in English on Marie Antoinette, so... And also it seems like Mary Queen of Scots actually grew up in France? I don't know much about her, not my period. : ) At any rate, 20% seems excessive.

Yes, the world turned upside down is quite interesting, regshoe has a review of it if you want more details. It's more of an academic book than a popular one though.

[garonne]

Okay, it makes more sense now that I know it was a university library :D

I did not actually know that Mary Queen of Scots grew up in France...

I do find academic history books quite difficult to read because the authors spend so much page space arguing with other authors whose works I am not familiar with, and explaining how their theories differ from other existing theories that I'm also not familiar with... I guess it's normal, because they have to justify that their grant money was used to produce new and significant research, but it does make it very difficult for the poor non-academic reader like me! I wish they would just clearly state the facts or say what their own theories are! I was very proud recently when I realised that I had now struggled through enough academic books about the industrial revolution to understand what authors mean when they say they agree or disagree with the Hammonds, Thompson, Hobsbawm, etc. but it took years.

[jesse_the_k]

Lovely prose, wouldn't have known it was dictated. (Probably your extensive front-of-classroom experience helps here.)

Ahhhh! a readalong for this highly-generative canon is just what I needed!

[luzula]

Actually I think it's more my podficcing experience then my classroom experience, which is after all in Swedish! I'm good at enunciating when I want to.

Oh, I'm sorry you didn't see the readalong before, if you were interested in it! I know I mentioned it when it started, but maybe you missed it.

No worries

[jesse_the_k]

I've been missing lots of things.

[nnozomi]

Glad you have good dictating software, take good care of your hands.

which I greatly enjoyed, though I also did a lot of nitpicking around navigation, which I guess is typical of me.
My experience was that your "nitpicking" is both very helpful and entertaining!

[luzula]

Thanks!

Well, I'm glad to hear that! Yes, I certainly did some of that on your novel, as well… : ) It must be very interesting to see the different kinds of feedback that people give, depending on their interests and what they want out of a book.

[chestnut_pod]

Hurrah again for good dictation software! Out of curiosity, did you have to say aloud all the HTML doohickies?

[luzula]

I put those in by hand afterwards... But even so, it saves me a lot of typing. : )

[regshoe]

The continued Jacobite reading sounds good! All that politics and diplomacy is really another side of the whole thing from the memorable image of the '45 and romantic Highland Jacobitism, and must be fascinating to learn more about.

Ooh, I hope you can return to The World Turned Upside Down soon—how are you finding it so far?

[luzula]

Yes, the focus in this book was on diplomacy and plotting, not very romantic. It really shows how contingent many events were, for example an emissary threw all his documents overboard when he thought an enemy ship was approaching, so when he got to France, he had to go back again to Scotland to get the credentials to prove that he was a proper representative. This delayed the planned rising for a year!

Yes, I did enjoy the world turned upside down, but it is an academic book and not a popular one. Since I don't know as much about the 17th century, there were a lot of references to people I didn't know.

[regshoe]

Oh, wow—that is certainly a good example of highly contingent history!

Yes, I do remember it assuming quite a lot of background context that I didn't know about. I ought to read more about the period, really, it's a fascinating bit of history. (I've very much enjoyed reading a bit more about it in The Rider of the White Horse, which I've just finished!).

[hyarrowen]

Heavens. I haven't thought about Hill's book in decades. I think I read it, back in the day when I was studying the Stuarts in the sixth form, but don't remember a word of it. As far as the Civil War goes, my dad had offices in the Commandery (the Royalist HQ in Worcester) when he stood for Parliament (he didn't get in) and that's about as close to the action as I'll ever get. My view of the civil War is decidedly that of 1066 And All That": Cavaliers Wrong but Wromantic, Roundheads Right and Repulsive. It's all anyone needs to know, really.

[luzula]

Wikipedia tells me that the sixth form is at age 16 and 17, and Hill’s book seems awfully academic to read at that age! But I guess you were advanced. : ) I don't know much about the English Civil War either, but I did enjoy that Sutcliff book set during the period, and regshoe read and recommended Hill’s book.

[hyarrowen]

Heh, well, it was a good school. The girls' half of Tolkien's school. I can't remember a word of Hill's book now, though.

Sutcliff is always (well, usually) good.