The other day we took a slight diversion through the churchyard to have a look in the boxes of books in the church porch , people have been leaving books, DVD's and jigsaws to help folk to entertain themselves during the lock down and what a good idea too ! . It reminds me of my youth when I was a member of the YHA and had several friends that ran Youth Hostels in the North of England , one of the features of any YH was the bookcase where you could find a strange array of paperback books , the idea was you picked a new book and left an old one you had read . I ended up being introduced to some genre of literature I would never have bought - some good some bad , however it was a great system that worked well . Note I am keeping an eye on the dog to stop him helping himself to the homemade jars of jam ! .
I selected from the boxes two James Herriot 'Vet' books and a biography of Jane Austin , strangely I have never read any of the Herriot books although I do remember the BBC tv series back in the 70's (?) , I've already read one of them - they are light amusing easy reading and have just started the Jane Austin Bio - not a book I would have bought but far more interesting than I first thought . I do remember attending a lecture on Austin at our local Arts Center but it must be thirty years ago and for the life in me I cannot remember why I did ? - think it might of been to impress a female ? but the only thing I remember was the finishing lines spoken by the woman who gave the talk - " remember that all of Austen's heroines aren't wearing knickers !" *
* Evidently they didn't come into fashion till later !?
Well that's quite a statement to end the lecture on! If I'd known that as a 16 year old I might have been more inclined to opt for English Lit at A-level.
ReplyDeleteThat aside, off-piste reading (or any other such activity) is good.
I was once told by a professional lecturer that people only remember the end of talks (unless your taking notes - which I evidently wasn't)
DeleteI had to study Pride & Prejudice for O-Level (as it was then) and did not find it particularly appealing, even though I was already very interested in the period of history in which the story was set. Nor did the rest of the class! It was a rather strange choice for a group of 16 year old boys, not helped by the teacher's total failure to explain the historical setting, period mores &c. without an understanding of which the novel is difficult to understand. Had we been told about the lack of knickers it would certainly have aroused our interest! - at least for a while, though I suspect the lack of overt sexual content would have quickly dampened our enthusiasm...
ReplyDeleteWhen I became a teacher myself, I always made a point of prefacing the study of any book, play or poem by looking at the period in which it was set; before studying Shakespeare, I would teach them about the construction and operation of theatres like the Globe, which never happened when I did Hamlet.
Think this is what I'm finding interesting about her biography it's being put in context with the era she lived. I've never attempted read any of her books but may give it a go.
DeleteA great idea of your local church. Living in Bath, we get an overdose of Jane Austen, and her books never really appealed to me. I did enjoy an 80s adaptation of Northanger Abbey back in the day which was very Gothic. The James Herriott books are hilarious however.
ReplyDeleteYes there is a whole 'Austin Industry' out there , I must dip my toes into ne of her books sometime .
DeleteExcellent plan of your local church. I have always liked the idea of people who leave books in places like stations or on buses with a note attached asking folk to read and pass on. I hope you enjoy your books .
ReplyDeleteIt's a great idea in these strange times .
DeleteGood that the Church does so well with the drop off-pick up Library. Good to have places like this for people to share.
ReplyDeleteIt is indeed in these troubled times .
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