Gulliver's Travels Read-Along Part Four: A Voyage to the Houyhnhnms.

Well, we have come to the end of our time with Gulliver. I know that I have enjoyed my re-read of Swift's work, and I have certainly enjoyed the thoughts of all of the participants in this read-along.

If you are interested in seeing our thoughts on the other sections, here are the links for you:

• Week One
• Week Two
• Week Three

This last section of the novel is where Swift really drives home his satire, and makes it a point of showing his readers some of the faults that he finds in society.

Gulliver is again too antsy for his own good and travels by sea. This time there is a mutiny and he is ultimately abandoned to a boat and set to drift towards an island. Upon landing, he immediately sees creatures similar to himself, but much dirtier and covered in hair. Thinking they are human or native, he cries out, only to be swarmed by them. Luckily, a large horse comes to his rescue. Gulliver eventually realizes that in this land, the horses or Houyhnhnms, are in charge. The people-like figures he saw are to the Houyhnhnms what horses are to the English. The people figures are called Yahoos.

Gulliver begins to befriend the Houyhnhnms and become acquainted with their customs and beliefs. They are wary of him at first and consider him a Yahoo, but they eventually realize he is capable of thought and reason.

One of the reasons I really enjoy this part of the book is that it is much more fantastical than any of the others. This is the first time that the race is not humanoid that Gulliver comes into contact with. It probably took the reader in 1735 (when this was first published) a lot of effort to see the horses as a legit race of people. For that, I have to commend Swift. He has allowed his story and the thoughts of Gulliver to come out in a much more significant way than if the land of the Houyhnhnms had been another human-like race.

Anyway, while Gulliver is with these people, we see a lot of change in him and how he views his own society. The Houyhnhnms don't have a large amount of emotion or attachment. When they pick a partner, they think of it logically. If a couple loses a child, another couple with two of the same sex can "donate" their child to fill the void. It is an odd society.

It is also a society without lies. The Houyhnhnm in charge of Gulliver often accuses him of telling "the thing that is not" when Gulliver explains his travels. Honesty and loyalty are high virtues in their society. You can see that Gulliver begins to be influenced in this section, and certainly he rags on certain professions (mainly lawyers) for the things they do,
"I said there was a Society of Men amoung us, bred up from their Youth in the Art of proving by Words multiplied for the Purpose, that White is Black, and Black is White, according as they are paid. To this Society all the rest of the people are Slaves," (241).

Gulliver eventually becomes so in tune with the wisdom of the Houyhnhnms that when he returns home, he cannot stand human society any longer and spends hours talking to his own horses. Essentially, his adventures have finally driven him over the edge.

When I read this section before, it was definitely the most profound. Swift is making large efforts to point out the faults in English society, as he does in all of the sections and voyages. But here, Swift really drives home his point that all society is not perfect, and while we may wish that things were different and done differently to some other extreme, there will always be something lacking. There has to be a limit. Too much knowledge can be detrimental to the lower classes. No emotion can lead to a boring existence. Being prone to war can drive people away. And exploitation of oddities can hurt those who are different.

In sum, society must find a balance between everything. Too much progress can be harmful, just as staying still can be harmful as well.


For me, this re-read was a lot of fun. This is a novel that was way ahead of its time and it was great to be reminded of why I loved it so much. I hope that those of you who made it to the end felt the same way!

If you have your post up, please comment here with a link so that I may put a link in on this post. Check back throughout the day to visit other bloggers to see their thoughts about dear old Gulliver and his travels to other places!

My Mom's Post
Lindsey

Gulliver's Travels Part 4: Guest Post from my Mom!

When my mom found out I was hosting a few read-alongs, she decided to participate as well. She is a big reader as well and I probably got my love of reading from her. She always has a book ready and waiting. And even though we have very different taste in books, I have gotten some wonderful suggestions from her.

I am glad she decided to join in and I offered to post her thoughts here, since she does not have a blog of her own. So her are her thoughts about the last section of Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift:

Book 4 of Gulliver’s Travels takes him off again, this time as a captain of a merchant ship. He hires replacements for his crew who became ill and they turned out to be pirates and organize a mutiny on his ship. They end up setting him free on the Island of Houyhnhnms.

Here the Houyhnhnms are horse’s who run the Island and they are clever and sweet smelling. Gulliver again learns to converse with the Houyhnhnms. They live a good clean life with no lies. They are a rational, uncorrupted, innocent, polite and moral society. Gulliver likes it here and doesn’t want to ever leave.

The slaves are human creatures called Yahoo’s. They are filthy and smell. They eat meat and garbage. He sees them as vulgar and they throw their excrement at one another. He compares the two and places himself somewhere in the middle. His clothes are what makes him different from the Yahoos and helps the Houyhnhnms accept him as different. Gulliver tries to become more like the horse and not like the human Yahoo’s.

Gulliver explains his society and war and the reasons for it. He basically is explaining the justification of reasons countries go to war, take over land and its people. He also explains how lawyers use laws and reasons to justify their means. Gulliver goes on to explain how money can corrupt; how the rich can buy gourmet food and then become unhealthy.

Gulliver lives with the Houyhnhnm’s for three years and he starts to imitate the horse by walking, speaking and acting like them.

The Houyhnhnm hold an assembly every 4 years, which shows that they have no problems living peacefully together. The horses become frightened with Gulliver trying to be like them, he is more a Yahoo and they want him to leave.

They help him build a boat and he ends up eventually being taken aboard a Portuguese ship where the captain convinces him to return home to his family.

His family is happy to see him again, they thought he was dead, but he cannot stand the sight or smell of his Yahoo-wife and children. He sees himself in the worst way and his pride is in disarray. Over time he reasons to change his thinking and starts to come back to normal.

Gulliver swears he’s telling the truth about his journeys. Are countries, politicians, authors telling the truth? The end comes down to Gulliver’s pride, just as those he mocks throughout the book.

This book makes you stop and think about ourselves, our own society, country and world. He takes a look at himself in different situations throughout the book where any one of us could see ourselves dealing with moral, political and societal issues today. The truth and pride we each have is what Gulliver himself is struggling with in his adventures.

In the end, I really like the book. It was thought provoking. You can read it for the enjoyment of the story as it is, but when you look at what issues he is raising, it also becomes much more, which I am sure is what he wanted.

Gulliver's Travels Read-Along Part Three: A Voyage to Laputa, Balnibarbi, Luggnagg, Glubbdubdrib, and Japan.

Two weeks ago the participants in my little read-along posted their thoughts on the first section of Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift. We talked a lot about the land of the little people!

Last week, we all posted on the second of Gulliver's travels, to the place of giants. It was great to see everyone's reactions and thoughts on this polar opposite place and experience.

This week, we all read the third of four parts, Gulliver's travels to Laputa, Balnibarbi, Luggnagg, Glubbdubdrib, and Japan. That's quite a mouthful, isn't it?

Gulliver is at it again. Once more, Gulliver takes to the sea in pursuit of adventure and misfortune strikes. In this case, his ship is not captured in a storm, but caught by pirates. Gulliver is cast off in a boat with limited food. Luckily for him, a floating island appears out of the sky and inhabitants rescue him.

The Laputans are a race that are seemingly obsessed with mathematics and music. Most of them spend a great deal of time studying these subjects, but they aren't put to great use. Instead, their knowledge seems rather silly and isn't put to good use. Gulliver learns all kinds of information about the people and their beliefs, including their refusal to use right angles in anything they build.

The Laputans also seem to be very strict with certain rules. My favorite chapter in the entire section is the third, where Gulliver discusses some of the rules and procedures of the island. When a city is in rebellion, it is common for the island to "hover" above and deprive the city below of sun and rain, forcing compliance. This is definitely an advanced idea, don't you think? What would kings and queens of England have given for that ability during the American Revolution?

You also begin to understand the differences here between the societies that Gulliver has visited. If you look at the first two places he visited: Lilliput and Brobdingnag, the only really differences are due to size. There doesn't appear to be differences in regards to intelligence and advancements. Here, we get the first inkling of something completely different. Those on the floating island, and the "nobility" have more technology than their subjects. They also abuse their technology (like hovering the island over poor farmers), to gain advantages!

There is also a huge difference between those who spend their life studying (the intellectuals) and those who do not (the commoners). It is certainly interesting to think of all of this in today's world and context. Our government certainly has more technology than the everyday person and there are intellectuals who are more concerned with learning than with spreading their knowledge for the well being of the people around them.

After Laputa, Gulliver decides to leave and visits a few other places. Most notably is that of Glubbdubdrib, where Gulliver is allowed to speak to the ghosts of the dead. This section is probably one of my favorites, as Gulliver selects people to speak with. It made me wonder who I would choose to speak with if given the chance (I would probably ask for George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Robert E. Lee, Teddy and Franklin Roosevelt, and Martin Luther King Jr. Wouldn't that be a lively bunch??).

When Gulliver is finally allowed to go home, he of course finds himself in Japan (I am thinking Swift threw this in as the "Orient" was still quite exotic back then, and to make his satire more realistic).

In all, this section seems to speak a lot more to human desire and want. Sometimes the very things we want are harmful to the society we live in. Gulliver discovers that for himself and criticizes the people he meets for carrying those harmful ideas out.

Anyway, there is only one more section to go, and it is a doozy. Like the first and second sections, the third and fourth play off each other in a remarkable way and I am looking forward to reading everyone's final thoughts on Gulliver's Travels!

If you have your post up, please comment here with a link so that I may put a link in on this post. Check back throughout the day to visit other bloggers to see their thoughts about dear old Gulliver and his travels to other places!

My Mom

Gulliver's Travels Part 3: Guest Post from my Mom!

When my mom found out I was hosting a few read-alongs, she decided to participate as well. She is a big reader as well and I probably got my love of reading from her. She always has a book ready and waiting. And even though we have very different taste in books, I have gotten some wonderful suggestions from her.

I am glad she decided to join in and I offered to post her thoughts here, since she does not have a blog of her own. So her are her thoughts about the third section of Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift:

Book Three is a lot different from the first two books. Gulliver is once again taken to a different world where he is lifted up to a flying island, Laputa. He goes into detail on how the Island moves and operates. The people have a short attention span and are mainly concerned about math and music. They worry that the sun will go out and do not realize their women are having affairs with the people of Balnibarbi. The King of Laputa can cause destruction to Balnibarbi at any time. To me this probably represents some control England would have had over another country during Swift’s time.

He moves on to the other lands of Luggnagg, Glubbdibdub and then onto Japan so he could return home. During his adventure he is allowed to talk with “ghosts” of past leaders. I found this to be really interesting because during his talks with these people it is insinuated that things were not as they seemed or events may not have been exactly as they are told through history.

I started to think, who would I like to talk to if I could. I think George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Benjamin Franklin are up there for me. Just to know where they were actually coming from and what our leaders today use in their perspective of what these leaders meant at their time in history, I think would be interesting to talk with them about.

Quite a different book from the first two-looking forward to Book IV.

Gulliver's Travels Read-Along Part Two: A Voyage to Brobdingnag

Last week the participants in my Gulliver's Travels read-along discussed the first part in Swift's satirical travelogue. In that first section, the reader learns about Gulliver's past life and the first of the four journeys he writes about in his book-his voyage to Lilliput, land of the little people.

In this second section, Gulliver embarks on yet another sea voyage, completely ignoring the fact that the first time he did so, well, it didn't turn out well.

Gulliver and a small portion of the crew travel to a piece of land to scout. Gulliver, being the overly curious man that he is, goes off alone to scout and upon returning to the boat, he sees them escaping a giant in the water and leaving him behind!

He then runs into some friendly giants, one of whom takes him in. Gulliver refers to this man as his master, although it is clear that this man is using Gulliver to make money-showing off poor little Gulliver as if he were a freak in a circus side-show. They slowly make their way to the capitol, where thankfully, the queen rescues Gulliver from the evil man he called master and sets him up as a favorite in her castle.

There is the usual in Swift's humor and awkward situations for Gulliver. From being attacked by a dog in the gardens, to being caught outside in a massive hailstorm, Gulliver's size, once again, allows for some funny situations.

I will say that while Gulliver viewed the Lilliputians as people worthy of learning from, it seems as if the people of Brobdingnag see Gulliver as only a curiosity and they really have no desire to get to know him or his customs very well. It is an interesting difference!

The events here are obviously contrasting what we saw in the first book and Gulliver's journey to Lilliput. If you recall, the Lilliputians are prone to violence and war with their neighbors, wheres as the...Brobdingnagians (?) seem to be a fairly peaceful people, even given their size and strength. Most of all, it was this difference that struck me in this reading.

Given what I know about the political stance around the time that this was written, you can tell that Swift is definitely giving us something to chew on, like he probably did with his readers at the time. The discussion on whether it is better to make up for your country's faults through war, or to refuse to fight and travel is an interesting question.

In particular, there was one passage in this section that really spoke to me. And while it is long, I wanted to share it with you. In this chapter, Gulliver is talking with the King about his own people and that of Europe:

"My little friend Grildrig, you have made a most admirable Panegyrick upon your Country. You have clearly proved that Ignorance, Idleness, and Vice are the proper Ingredients for qualifying as a Legislator. That Laws are best explained, interpreted, and applied by those who Interest and Abilities lie in perverting, confounding, and eluding them. I observe among you some Lines of Institution, which in its Original might have been tolerable; but these half erased, and the rest wholly blurred and blotted by Corruptions. It doth not appear from all you have said, how any one Perfection is required towards the Procurement of any one Station among you; much less that Men are ennobled on Account of their Virtue, that Priests are advanced for their Piety or Learning, Soldiers for their Conduct or Valour, Judges for their Integrity, Senators for the Love of their Country, or Counsellors for their Wisdom. As for yourself (continued the King) who have spent the greatest Part of your Life in travelling; I am well disposed to hope you may hitherto have escaped many Vices of your Country. But, by what I have gathered from your own Relation, and the Answers I have with much Pains wringed and extorted from you; I cannot but conclude the Bulk of your Natives, to be the most pernicious Race of little odious Vermin that Nature ever suffer to crawl upon the Surface of the Earth," (120-121).

I love that Swift is pointing out the faults of his own government, and how others must have seen them. I am one who believes that we need to see ourselves how others perceive us as well as how we might want to be seen. The King also lectures Gulliver on the violence of his people and tells Gulliver that "certainly we must be a quarrelsome People, or live among very bad neighbors," (119). This is another example of Swift discussing politics of his government and the constant need for war in his time period.

In all, I really enjoyed this section. It is far more political and detailed than the first, but I liked the contrasting natures. I remember really digging into this section in college, but not liking it that time. I guess it goes to show you that re-reading can serve a great cause!

I am looking forward to reading your thoughts, as well as getting to the third section. To be honest, the third section is the part I don't remember, so I am hoping that something sparks my memory in a good way!

If you have your post up, please comment here with a link so that I may put a link in on this post. Check back throughout the day to visit other bloggers to see their thoughts about dear old Gulliver and his travels to other places!

My Mom
Cariitoo
Lindsey
Jay

Gulliver's Travels Part 2: Guest Post from my Mom!

When my mom found out I was hosting a few read-alongs, she decided to participate as well. She is a big reader as well and I probably got my love of reading from her. She always has a book ready and waiting. And even though we have very different taste in books, I have gotten some wonderful suggestions from her.

I am glad she decided to join in and I offered to post her thoughts here, since she does not have a blog of her own. So her are her thoughts about the second section of Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift:

I really liked Book II where Gulliver finds himself in Brobdingnag and now he is the “small” person with the Giants now 12 times larger than he is, just the opposite of Book I and Lilliput.

The main difference in the two books is that Gulliver is looked at as more of a pet to the Giants. Where in Lilliput, Gulliver seemed to look at the people there as people.

He is also repulsed by the human body of the Giants-being able to now look at it up close and the vermin that prey upon the body. So it gives you a perspective of what is really revolting, the Giant people or the vermin who prey upon them, or both. Does this mean the Government and Royalty and then the regular society of people?

Gulliver thinks the society as mostly a moral people with just a few that are jealous or corrupt, the King’s jester, with a little malice at times. Just as Governments and Kings have also been at times.

Gulliver discusses the English society and government with the King and he then gives Gulliver his view and judgment by comparing them to Brobdingnag. This then causes Gulliver to take a different look and view point at the English. So it looks that if you take a step back, or remove yourself from a situation, you just may be persuaded to a different perspective of what you now think is what your government and society really are.

Gulliver is also knocked down literally by hailstones, and a few other things. He is also stripped of his clothes by the maids and is just a plaything to them. He is offended, but the maids do not see him that way and are just curious about him. Then a monkey takes him captive and treats him like a baby monkey. He has been reduced down, is this representing that the Giants are morally superior? Does this also mean that royalty and governments can do what they want, and the people are treated like pets, or do the people become a society where the corruption is low as that of Brobdingnag.

Gulliver escapes Brobdingnag. He is pampered by the royal family, but he is also treated as a pet. He misses being part of a society. He escapes by being at the sea shore in his traveling box and it is picked up by an eagle. An English ship finds his box in the ocean and he is rescued and brought back home. Everyone there now seems tiny to him and he is a giant. How his perspective has changed at first and as time goes on, it goes back to where he started.

I really liked this book. It helped to put both Books I and II together for me. Not having read Gullivers Travels before, it is really starting to come together. Thanks Allie for inspiring me to read this. Didn’t know what I was missing. There is so much you can compare and insinuate in all of his situations he comes into. You can really look at today’s world and put it into this book.

Sunday Salon: June 13, 2010.

Matt and I have had a rough day today. We woke up to find out that Matt's car was broken into last night. His driver's side window was smashed to pieces and things were thrown everywhere on the inside of his car. His car was also broken into back in January, when we were gone on our honeymoon, so this hits twice as hard. The first time his stereo and speakers were stolen. This time it was his golf clubs.

It is a shame that people have to resort to stealing. I don't understand that and I don't think I ever will. I also can't believe that someone would be okay with damaging someone else's property. Now we have to get him a new window so he can drive his car around.

We are both concerned about safety and have decided if we are still in Michigan, we are definitely moving to a different apartment complex. In addition to the break ins, we've had some issues with our neighbors and the area in general, so it will probably be better.

In good news, my friend Jenny got married yesterday on her grandparents' farm in Ann Arbor. It was super warm and humid, but she looked beautiful and was so happy. I have known her since the first grade and she stood up in our wedding, so I was glad we were there.

In reading news, I did not have as successful a week as I had hoped. While I finished The Hound of the Baskervilles, I didn't start the other Holmes novel. I did read both The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark and Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe, which was a great time, but I didn't even touch Gulliver's Travels or Cranford. I guess you know what I'll be reading before the read-along posts!

This week the goal is to finish both Gulliver's Travels and Cranford to finish up my posts. Then I really need to read the Turgenev for my Classics Circuit post. And perhaps start the Inferno. But we shall see!

Gulliver's Travels Read-Along Part One: A Voyage to Lilliput.

I am very excited the first of my two June read-alongs is well under way. Gulliver's Travels is a huge treat and it has been a long time since I have read it and I am glad to be sharing the experience with a group of my readers!

I first read about Gulliver in a class I took in college. The class focused on literature after Shakespeare and through the 18th century. My professor was in love with Swift, so we read a bunch of his work. Gulliver's Travels was by far my favorite.

I should also point out that I am reading the very same copy I read for that class, the 1998 Oxford World's Classics Edition (which was reissued a few years ago with a new picture, so I cannot find an image of my own book). I was sad to see, however, that I read this book during my highlighting stage, so there is blue highlighter throughout the book. Sad, but I thankfully grew out of that!

For those of you who have never read it and are not participating, it is important that I point out that much of the book is satirical. Swift is pointing out numerous flaws within society and government through his exploration of 4 different lands that Gulliver visits.

In this first section, Gulliver explains his past and how he wound up on a boat in the first place. As a doctor in a smaller town, Gulliver realizes he must leave in order to support his family. Since he also loves to travel, he signs up to work on ships to learn more about the world around him.

He shipwrecks and wakes on a beach to find himself tied down with scores of "little men and women" around him. This scene is probably one of the most famous from the book as a whole, and it is always fun to read about the men, who are only 6 inches tall, tying him down and attempting to shoot him with their small arrows. After attempts to assure the people that he is safe, he is led back to their city and becomes a favorite in court. The king grows to really like Gulliver and he seems to find some kind of happiness in observing the kingdom and court. There are a lot of noted differences between his height and the people around him.

There is where a lot of the satire comes in, as well as some historical knowledge. Gulliver's observations of court is a definite jab at King George I. He sees the Lilliputians as silly and vicious, much as how Swift saw the court in England at the time. Gulliver's reflections on the court show that he believes the king and his subjects to be far inferior.

Eventually, however, Gulliver's happy moments in Lilliput come to an end, as a plot to accuse him of treason unfolds. A friend helps his escape to the neighboring land of Blefuscu (the enemies of Lilliput), where he finds a washed up boat and returns to humanity.

This section is definitely a little lighthearted and through Swift's satirical lens, the reader can see the faults in the kingdom of Lilliput and transfer those thoughts to the government of England.

There is also a lot of humor that can fall under the radar as you read. One of my favorite passages is when a part of the palace catches on fire and Gulliver puts it out the only way he can:

"The Heat I had contracted by coming very near the Flames, and by my laboring to quench them, made the Wine begin to operate by Urine; which I voided in such a Quantity, and applied so well to the proper Places, that in three Minutes the Fire was wholly extinguished," (43).

This is what inevitably leads to the fall of Gulliver's favor in Lilliput and his eventual dismissal and escape.

I love the way Swift makes this come alive. We are in Lilliput with Gulliver, and we too as exploring their society and way of life. When Gulliver learns about how they educate their children, we too are exploring the odd way that children are removed from their homes to be brought up as functioning members of this society.

We are also there to read the little jabs at the society that Swift lived in. Before the incident with Gulliver putting out the fire, we learn that the fire emerged when a maid forgot to tend the fire since she was reading a Romance (43). Romantic types of novels and writings were emerging in this era, much to the disdain and horror of prominent writers. Perhaps Swift is cautioning young women to stay away?

There is also the scene where Gulliver is forced to turn in his weapons, something that was done to some Jacobite supporters in Ireland in the 1710s, shortly before Swift's work was published. The intended "comical scene" sheds some light about the feeling of weapons being taken away from the men who own them.

In addition to taking his weapons, the people of Lilliput also search his pockets, and their delights at finding mysterious objects in his pockets is pretty funny. The reader has to think to himself, "I know what that is," but as time passes on, we see objects from the past and wonder, what is that? It is like showing an Ipod to a child today and having them well aware of what it is and what it does. Take it back to the 1950s and people would have no idea what its purpose is.

In all, this section on Lilliput is one of my favorites in the book. It gives us a great glimpse of who Gulliver is as well as Swift's satirical sense of style. I hope all of you enjoyed it as well and I am looking forward to reading your thoughts as well!

If you have your post up, please comment here with a link so that I may put a link in on this post. Check back throughout the day to visit other bloggers to see their thoughts about dear old Gulliver and his travels to other places!

My Mom's Post
Lindsey
Jay
Caritoo

Gulliver's Travels Part 1: Guest Post from my Mom!

When my mom found out I was hosting a few read-alongs, she decided to participate as well. She is a big reader as well and I probably got my love of reading from her. She always has a book ready and waiting. And even though we have very different taste in books, I have gotten some wonderful suggestions from her.

I am glad she decided to join in and I offered to post her thoughts here, since she does not have a blog of her own. So her are her thoughts about the first section of Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift:

Okay, this is my first read-a-long and commentary on any given book. What a book to start with. As I have told Allie, in person, my literature education is sadly lacking. I have not personally read very many ”classics” either as a student or during my adult life. That is one of the reasons why I just love that she is doing this blog on the classics. Her reviews are filling in so many blanks that I’ve had when references in other books I read mention quotes from many of the “classic” literature. I’m also having a bit of trouble remembering my history from the early 1700’s when the setting of the satire of this book takes place. Trying to remember the political parties and Royalty of Europe was not one of my personal strong suits back in my days. I heard of Gulliver’s Travels, when I was younger, but it was not something that was required to read and I really had no idea what this book was about before starting it.

So what I’ve basically got out of Book I of Gulliver’s Travels is the correlation of the little people being Politicians and Royalty of the time. I also think many of the references have to do with the different religions that were a big part of politics back at that time and the influence they had on both the Royal families and politicians. England and France are represented by Lilliput and Blefuscu. The people of these countries will do basically whatever is necessary to get what they want and change the rules or manipulate to justify getting rid of those who do not fit what they believe in themselves or serve their purpose.

I have to say that I truly enjoyed many of his settings, especially, his method of putting out the fire. I can’t help but feel that he was really ingenious in his writing of the many ways to represent people and actions that he is taking his shots at. I think making the little people represent the politicians and royalty is his way of showing that normal people are more moral. Being little is making you small in your thoughts and actions. What also really points out to me, is how this behavior will always be there. Isn’t that how we perceive politicians and Royalty today?

I am looking forward to Book 2.

Sunday Salon: May 30, 2010.

The last half of this week has been extremely busy. On both Thursday and Friday I worked 15 hour shifts, and I am working straight through until next Friday. It has made me a little grumpy and tired and I sadly have not had a lot of time to browse blogs.

But, such is life and I know that working will be a better choice in the long run. I am also home alone this weekend. The rest of my family, and Matt, are down in Indiana going to the Indy 500. This is the first time in 17 years I haven't gone, but that's alright. They told me it is very warm and humid, so I'll take work over that any day. It has given me some time to relax after those long shifts and to cuddle with the cats.

Anyway, I ended up having a great reading week. Matt and I were up north at his parents' log cabin on Monday and Tuesday, so I flew through As I Lay Dying and The Return of Sherlock Holmes while I was up there. Matt was also reading, Eiger Dreams by Jon Krakauer, and we had a great time. Speaking of Matt, does anyone have any suggestions of things for him to read? He likes mostly non-fiction and things about mountain-climbing and the like. Let me know if you have any suggestions.

I also started Gone with the Wind, which I have never read and I have also never seen the movie. I am around page 630 or so in my edition right now (there are about 950 pages in my edition) and I just can't get enough of it. It is definitely a fast read for its size and I cannot wait to know what happens. I'll probably try and finish it in the next day or two.

Plans for this week are to finish Gone with the Wind, as well as read The Hound of the Baskervilles. I am also going to try and get through the first section of Gulliver's Travels for my read-along (by the way, there is still plenty of time to sign up for them! Links are above!).

I hope you all have a great reading week and I hope that I can be around a little more this week!

Sunday Salon: May 23, 2010.

Browsing through my blogroll earlier, I noticed quite a few posts about the end of the TV show Lost. I am glad to see that so many people love the show as much as I do.

I watched most of the first season as it came out on TV, but when it came time for the next few seasons, I always had a class during Lost time. So I stopped watching and never got back into it. Way, way back in November, Matt convinced me to watch through the series with him so I could watch the new (current) season with him as it came out. Needless to say, I couldn't get through it that quickly. But in the last few weeks, I have been hooked and some of my my most precious reading time has been spent watching episodes and falling love.

If you have never watched the series, you need to. It is extremely character driven, which my book nerd self absolutely loved. The characters are amazing and real, and I love so many of them. Now, I am going to come to the end when I watch the finale tonight, and I will think about how, like a great book, the series is coming to an end...but I can always revisit it.

I won't be watching it as it airs, so in a little while, I am banning myself from the computer. Matt won't be getting home from work till late, so I am waiting for him to start it. We also are going have some friends over to watch it with us. I even made "Dharma fish biscuits" with the characters' names on them to eat while we watch.

Anyway, in book news I had a fairly successful week. I started and finished Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. Many people were surprised when I said I had never read it before. I also attempted to start Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad (he also wrote Heart of Darkness), but I am 60 pages in and I am bored out of my mind. I have no idea what is going on and I am completely uninterested in the story. I decided to set it aside and I have turned to one of my favorite books for some comfort, As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner. It is a marvelous book and I can't wait to review it.

I also wanted to give a huge shout-out to everyone who is participating in one of my two read-alongs! I have been updating the main posts all week as people have expressed interest. If you are interested or plan on joining in, please sign up on the original posts. You can sign up for either Gulliver's Travels or Cranford. Those of you who are reading Cranford have totally left poor old Gulliver in the dust. But I have read Swift's work before, and it really is a great, quirky little book! Think about it hard!

This week I am planning on finishing As I Lay Dying, and maybe getting back into Lord Jim, if I can. There are also a few other things sitting on the shelf that I have a craving for...so we'll have to see what else I grab!

Happy Reading!

Gulliver's Travels Read-Along Sign-ups.

I am happy to announce that in June I will be hosting a Gulliver's Travels read-along, as voted on by my readers!

If you unsure if Gulliver's Travels is the book for you, here is the synopsis taken from Goodreads.com:

"Thus, gentle Reader, I have given thee a faithful History of my Travels for Sixteen Years, and above Seven Months; wherein I have not been so studious of Ornament as of Truth.' In these words Gulliver represents himself as a reliable reporter of the fantastic adventures he has just set down; but how far can we rely on a narrator whose identity is elusive and whoses inventiveness is self-evident? Gulliver's Travels purports to be a travel book, and describes Gulliver's encounters with the inhabitants of four extraordinary places: Lilliput, Brobdingnag, Laputa, and the country of the Houyhnhnms. A consummately skilful blend of fantasy and realism makes Gulliver's Travels by turns hilarious, frightening, and profound. Swift plays tricks on us, and delivers one of the world's most disturbing satires of the human condition. This new edition includes the changing frontispiece portraits of Gulliver that appeared in successive early editions."

If you are interested, you can leave a comment here and I will link you to the post to show that your are participating. I would also appreciate it if you could spread the word on your own blogs so that we can get more participants. I have found that the more participants in a read-along, the more fun it is!

For those of you who have not read Gulliver's Travels, it is a novel in four parts. Each part focuses on one of the places Gulliver travels to. With this in mind, I am planning on four posts:

• June 9: Part 1 "A Voyage to Lilliput"
• June 16: Part 2 "A Voyage to Brobdingnag"
• June 23: Part 3 "A Voyage to Laputa, Balnibarbi, Luggnagg, Glubbdubdrib, and Japan"
• June 30: Part 4 "A Voyage to the Country of the Houyhnhnms"

On each of those days, I will be be making a post about the part I just finished. If you decide that you are also going to write a post that day, comment here and I will link it, so that every participant may go and visit everyone else's posts. If you decide you just want to write one post, you can do so at the end of the month, link it here, and I will add it to my own post so that everyone may see it.

Again, leave a comment here saying you are interested and I will add you to the participant list.

I hope you will join us!

Particpants:

Iris
Jay
My mom (she doesn't have a blog, but I'll probably put her post up on my blog).
Cariitoo
Eva