Introduce yourself

**Stewart** · #1 (**permalink**) 03-Apr-2008, 23:14

I'll go first. Name is Stewart and I'm from Glasgow, UK. Not yet thirty and with a manic interest in reading, which has been developing into a worldwide concern. I read and review books on my blog, booklit and have been doing so for almost a year now.

Beth · #2 (**permalink**) 05-Apr-2008, 17:03

Beth from Illinois in the United States. Also an avid reader who is developing an awareness and appreciation of world literature.

LizzySiddal · #3 (**permalink**) 06-Apr-2008, 14:07

LizzySiddal - currently domiciled in Lanarkshire, Scotland. Particular interests in CanLit (my brother lives there), GermanLit (I used to live there) and ScottishLit (because that's where I am now). But I'll read anything that takes my interest. I blog at Lizzy's Literary Life and am documenting my particular addiction to the works of Brian Moore along with other mooreophiles at The Moore The Merrier.

**Stewart** · #4 (**permalink**) 06-Apr-2008, 14:40

Welcome on in, Beth and LizzySiddal.

sprollie · #5 (**permalink**) 06-Apr-2008, 19:09

Sprollie. Writer of novels and blog posts.
Based in Cornwall.
Fond of vegetarian pasties.
Obsessed with dogs.
I review at Vulpes Libris.
Glad to be here.

Patrick Murtha · #6 (**permalink**) 07-Apr-2008, 03:23

I think this is a very promising board, and I am looking forward to seeing it develop. As for me...an enthusiastic reader of good books of all kinds; also a student of film, music, art, history, and other subjects. Resident in Northeast Wisconsin, I've also lived in the New York, Boston, Chicago, and San Francisco areas. My bachelor's degree is in American studies and my master's degree is in education. I've taught English, history, and the social sciences at the high school, college, and adult education levels; I'm currently in corporate human resources.

**Stewart** · #7 (**permalink**) 07-Apr-2008, 11:17

Hi sprollie and Patrick. Glad to have you here.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patrick Murtha

I think this is a very promising board, and I am looking forward to seeing it develop.

Thanks. Let's hope it develops. I suppose it will need some time for search engines to pick it up and in the mean time it will just be a case of giving them information to favourably index the site.

Patrick Murtha · #8 (**permalink**) 07-Apr-2008, 14:21

One of the characteristics I hope this board develops is -- how does one say this without sounding stuffy? -- an informed tone. Many, many literature boards and Web discussion groups have proven to be mightily disappointing to me because the level of discussion is too childish. Interestingly, one of the most educated groups of readers I've encountered is at a board not devoted to literature; the reading threads at Style Forum, a group for menswear enthusiasts, are erudite and stimulating. Some the literary genre groups are also quite good -- rara-avis-l, for example, a Yahoo group focused on hard-boiled and noir fiction.

But I haven't yet encountered a general literature board that meets my needs, so I'm hoping this is it! I am equally glad that the focus is on world literature and that English-language works are not off the table (that restriction would be too hard for me to cope with). I also hope that we can be open to approaching non-fiction genres and quality genre fiction: "literature" and good writing are wherever you find them. Lastly, I hope that the discussions here can be informed by the growing coverage of literature across the Web and blogosphere as well as the traditional print realm.

**Stewart** · #9 (**permalink**) 07-Apr-2008, 14:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patrick Murtha

One of the characteristics I hope this board develops is -- how does one say this without sounding stuffy? -- an informed tone.

Likewise. And I don't think it's stuffy at all.

Quote:

I am equally glad that the focus is on world literature and that English-language works are not off the table (that restriction would be too hard for me to cope with).

I actually considered that, at first. But then came to the conclusion that while it's not the main focus, you can't exclude them completely from something called world literature, and a great deal of my own reading is comprised of books originally written in the English language.

Quote:

I also hope that we can be open to approaching non-fiction genres and quality genre fiction: "literature" and good writing are wherever you find them. Lastly, I hope that the discussions here can be informed by the growing coverage of literature across the Web and blogosphere as well as the traditional print realm.

That is, in theory, my hope. I would still put non-fiction under literature (essays, biographies, memoirs, etc.). I know that I'll be posting my thoughts on With Borges by Alberto Manguel, which I just bought there on my lunch hour. I've only read a few Borges short stories but I see myself interested in him for the influence he seems to have had, whether it be in Umberto Eco's The Name Of The Rose, Mark Z. Danielewski's House Of Leaves and I note that in another of my recent purchases, Paul Theroux's The Old Patagonian Express, the writer gives an account of his experience reading to Borges, something Adolfo Bioy Casares also did in his capacity as friend.

The blogosphere is proving great for literature coverage, whether it's the all encompassng news and reviews of the Complete Review or a single review that gets people excited and coming together, such as Asylum's review of Robert Walser's The Assistant.

Colette Jones · #10 (**permalink**) 07-Apr-2008, 21:05

I'm one of the mooreophiles mentioned by Lizzy above, although I'm getting very behind on the Mooreathon. Colette Jones is a favourite character, quite new to me, as I only read Gerard Woodward's trilogy recently.

In the avatar pic is my cat Tiggy. I think you'll agree he is gorgeous.

This looks to be a promising site, Stewart.

**Stewart** · #11 (**permalink**) 08-Apr-2008, 01:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by Colette Jones

I'm one of the mooreophiles mentioned by Lizzy above, although I'm getting very behind on the Mooreathon.

Hi, Colette Jones. If I can finally get around to reading The Lonely Passion Of Judith Hearne then I'll be sure to add my review. The book has been sitting on the shelf for months now. Not so bad as those that have been sitting for years, mind.

Colette Jones · #12 (**permalink**) 08-Apr-2008, 09:27

It's hard when there's so many good books out there. I will never get through my unread books but I love them anyway.

I am interested in translation and the nuances which may or may not come through. Unfortunately I can not read anything in a language other than English so I can't make the judgment myself whether the translator got it right or not.

Of the translated works I have read, Günter Grass' Crabwalk comes to mind as one I thoroughly appreciated.

I know there should be a couple dots over that "u" but I'm not sure how to make "foreign" letters in my post. I guess for this forum I had better figure out how!

Edit: Thanks for the tip in the next post. Name corrected above.

**Stewart** · #13 (**permalink**) 08-Apr-2008, 09:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by Colette Jones

I know there should be a couple dots over that "u" but I'm not sure how to make "foreign" letters in my post. I guess for this forum I had better figure out how!

Hold down the Alt key and type 129 in your numeric keypad. That strikes me as a good idea for a sticky post.

LizzySiddal · #14 (**permalink**) 08-Apr-2008, 23:14

That is a really good idea for a sticky post, Stewart. Because I have no idea how to produce German umlauts (or any other accents for that matter). The lazy but perfectly acceptable way of denoting one is to follow the vowel with an e: as in Guenter. But I am willing to become more professional.

And just for Colette, I shall now post a review of Crabwalk ....

Oblomovian · #15 (**permalink**) 09-Apr-2008, 11:52

Hi, great place you've built here, hope it takes off, if it hasn't already.

I'm from Ireland, and for books I have eyes bigger than my belly, so many still too read, but I suppose I should be thankful really.

**Stewart** · #16 (**permalink**) 09-Apr-2008, 11:58

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oblomovian

Hi, great place you've built here, hope it takes off, if it hasn't already.

It's not taken off yet, but then it's not even a week old yet. But I hope to build around it and, of course, find loads more interesting books to read.

Quote:

I'm from Ireland, and for books I have eyes bigger than my belly, so many still too read

I know exactly what you mean. I can hardly walk past a book store without an automatic impulse to go in. More often than not I give in, too. Yesterday it was a couple of Tolstoy novels and a replacement of Patrick Süskind's Perfume in the nice Penguin Modern Classics edition.

As for Ireland, I'm heading there soon for a week long road trip. Never been before, so looking forward to it.

Oblomovian · #17 (**permalink**) 09-Apr-2008, 12:25

Hope you have fun (I don't, but that's because I'm in a county whose only function seems to be as an annex of Dublin).

btw, Galway is always recommended by visitors.