Even the shite shines golden,
You can see why the Druids were beholden
And the pyramids were hewn
From those beads of sweat
and
The swastika shrugged
Lest we forget
The worshipping of this eternal orb
That drenches our natures
And which we absorb.
Zorba the Greek danced on
whilst bright Helios shone down,
Cruel and relentless
melting the wings of Icarus
and bringing him down to earth
With a bang.
Lynda M Roberts 2005
This blog has been rather neglected for the last couple of months. I’ve not given it up – and I’ve plenty of material to add. So watch this space…………..
test card image is from here
Happy Birthday Playwright, columnist and novelist Keith Waterhouse (1929 – 2009)
The last detective stories I read were Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes and I have been known to read the occasional Agatha Christie – oh and there was that Patricia Cornwell book about Walter Sickert being Jack the Ripper (which I didn’t like – and am still a bit furious with), I digress already. I was drawn to this book by Peter May (a new author to me) as the story is set on the Hebridean isle of Lewis. Having discovered that some of my ancestors came from there and having never visited myself I thought that I may learn something more about the island, its scenery and ‘customs’ by reading The Blackhouse
The Blackhouse is essentially a murder mystery and features recently bereaved Fin Macleod, a detective who escaped his Hebridean home to work in Edinburgh. The island murder has similarities with an earlier one which occurred on Macleod’s patch in Edinburgh and it is for this reason Macleod returns. The story is many stranded and interspersed with Macleod’s childhood flashbacks – this proves to be a real page turner.
Central to the story is the ritualistic Guga hunting (an event unique to Lewis) in which men and boys from the island embark on a hazardous journey to cull gannet chicks on a treacherous bleak rock in the North Atlantic sea. Macleod’s past and present rise up to meet him like the churning waves around the strange rock where his rite of passage began. These chapters are so atmospheric that I felt at times that I was actually out there on that rock. I was amazed to learn that this ritual is no fiction though. The uninhabited isle of Sula Sgeir is home to thousands of gannets whose summer nesting in the guano encrusted cliff face brings the hunters whose quarry are the gannet chicks, which when salted and boiled are considered a delicacy. The men from the Ness area of Lewis are called ‘Guga Hunters’. Memories, emotions, childhood friends all converge, flicker. The past and present intertwine, characters shrink and grow and there is senses of unrest as the old traditions start to be challenged by the young.
What begins as a simple murder mystery soon becomes a journey of memories – some very dark, set against a dramatic landscape whose beauty is stark. The author spent four years researching, filming and producing a TV series about the Gaelic language so knows the area well and this really comes across. The book is wonderfully written and I have read many reviewers praise the authenticity of the islands description having been residents themselves. I am delighted that this book is the first of a trilogy and I look forward to reading the next books.
Book image from here
Guga image Guga hunters information from here
The backdrop of the story is a Paris graveyard called Les Innocents. The time period is 1785, just before the French Revolution. Young engineer Jean-Baptiste Baratte has been commissioned by the French government to clear the ancient burial ground of its church and mouldering graveyard in the Les Halles area of Paris. The miners Baratte employs to excavate the bones are strange almost faceless creatures and tend to act collectively. But there is one who steps forward and stands out – the catalytic Lacoeur whom Baratte has employed as overseer. His relationship with the engineer both previously and consequentially ends in strange tragedy.
Miller‘s writing style is convincingly sensuous and whilst the narrative has enough historical detail to lend authenticity, is never dry and dull. Throughout the book the smell of the cemetery permeates. The people stink of it; it lingers on their breath, clothes and even their food as Miller’s masterly writing conveys. The author paints his words from shades of grey to blackness, his characters though realistically sketched, still manages to retain an air of mystery. A feeling of change underpins the novel though I feel that this is somewhat underplayed and the setting itself seems more of a small village – isolated from the real world rather than a throbbing pulsating city, vital angry and aggressive.
The clearing of the ancient bones, the demolition of the church and the political unrest which rumbles underneath the shifting stones all conspire to add intrigue to a rather simple story. Whilst the book holds the reader’s attention in atmosphere and authenticity, there are a lot of blind alleyways which the writer leads the reader up – and then abandons. For example, the graffiti on the wall is never properly explained, nor is the reason for Zigette’s sudden madness. Also the relationship with Heloise I feel, seems to work better when she is a creature of the night (and day) – before she becomes his mistress.
Though the prose is skilful, the characters wonderfully sketched, I had a slight feeling of disappointment upon finishing the novel, – a vague sense of being a bit let down by ‘Pure’. I suppose that I was looking for a conclusion, and there is a sense of the unfinished which frustrated me. However, this book is a good book though, beautifully written, with lots of atmosphere. I would certainly read another of this authors books and I think the book would translate wonderfully to the screen. All in all – an intriguing and interesting read.
Image from here
What I know about tigers could be written on one hand (and I certainly wouldn’t be putting that hand out to one, calling ‘here kitty kitty’) I’ve had a few tigers by the tail in my time, but here’s a list about what I know about tigers;- they are big cats, they are striped, they live in the jungle and they hunt, kill and they eat their prey. I’ve always found tigers fascinating creatures though and I think that this stems back to being read a story of the tigers chasing each other around a tree so fast until all that was left of them was butter! Then there was some unfortunate platform shoes I covered in tiger print in the 70s because I wanted to have ‘Tiger Feet’…but I digress. The inspiration for this post came from a painting I saw on the art blog Leslie White which features a wonderful painting of a white tiger – please check it out, – the tiger is just one of many great paintings painted by Leslie.
The Tyger was published in one of Blake‘s collections ‘Songs of Experience in 1794 and is probably one of his best known poems. The original archaic spelling that Blake uses for ‘tiger’ has been kept usually when the poem appears in anthologies, Though it appears as ‘tyger’ in the title, elsewhere the usual spelling applies. ’Tyger’ endows the animal with more mystique and enhances its exotic qualities. The tyger is also used a s a metaphor for many things and there have been many interpretations that seem to change with the years. Here’s some analysis of this deep and powerful poem, some of them stemming from William Blakes’s own life experience.
Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
In what distant deeps or skies Burnt the fire of thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand dare sieze the fire?
And what shoulder, & what art.
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand? & what dread feet?…………. (The rest of the poem can be found here with thanks)
Image from here thanks
The poem, beautifully read by Samuel West, video by Justaudio2008 with thanks
No sooner do I begin writing about one author whose birthday it is, - another pops up! Over the past three days Anne Bronte, A.A. Milne, Raymond Briggs and Edgar Allen Poe have all celebrated birthdays, or to be exact, they have had their birthdays celebrated for them – apart from Raymond Briggs who at 78 is still with us.
Anne Bronte
January 17th was the birthday of writer and poet Anne Bronte (1820 - 1849 Thornton Yorkshire) Anne, was the youngest of 6 children born to the Reverend Patrick Bronte and Maria Branwell she was barely one year old when her mother died. Anne wrote 2 books in her short lifetime (Agnes Grey which was published in 1847 and The Tenent of Wildfell Hall published 1848) and a lot of poetry. Much has been written about the Bronte family, their story is well-known. This website is dedicated to Anne and includes all her poems and a biography. But this beautiful poem, a tribute to the simple flower, the bluebell could almost be a metaphor for the author’s life, which is made poignant by her sad death at the age of 29. She is buried in Scarborough – her favorite place.
Read my review about The Tenant of Wildfell Hall here
18th January saw the birthday of British children’s author Alan Alexander Milne (1882 – 1956) the author best known for his books about Winnie the Pooh and children’s poems.
Born in Kilburn London, Milne grew up at Henley House school, a small public school ran by his father. One of his teachers was H. G. Wells (who taught there 1889 – 1890). The young Milne attended Westminsterschool and Trinity College Cambridge, where he studied mathematics. Whilst at Cambridge, he edited and wrote for the student magazine Granta. His collaborated on articles with his brother Kenneth and caught the attention of Punch magazine. Milne went on to be a contributor and later, assistant editor.
He married Dorothy “Daphne” de Sélincourt in 1913 and in 1920 Christopher Robin Milne was born. Milne bought Cotchford farm in East Sussex in 1925. He joined the army in World War 1, serving as an officer in the Royal Warwickshire Regiment and later, after a debilitating illness, the Royal Corps of Signals. He was discharged on February 14, 1919 . During World War 11 Milne was Captain of the Home Guard in Hartfield Forest Row. In 1952 he had a stroke and had to undergo brain surgery. He retired to his farm an invalid.
Milne published 18 plays and 3 novels and in 1924 produced a collection of children’s poetry called When We Were Very Young, this was illustrated by Punch illustrator E. H. Shepherd. Milne was also a screen writer for the British film industry (founded in 1920). But it is the two Pooh books which Milne is most famous for.
The books feature a boy named Christopher Robin (after Milnes’ son). The characters in the book were inspired by Christopher Robin’s stuffed toys – the most noteworthy being the bear named ‘Winnie the Pooh’. The bear was originally called ‘Edward’ but was renamed ‘Winnie the Pooh’ after a Canadian black bear called ‘Winnie’ (after Winnipeg) used as a military mascot in World War 1 and was left to London Zoo during the war. The ‘Pooh’ comes from a swan of the same name.’
Winnie the Pooh was published in 1926. A second collection of nursery rhymes Now we are Six was published in 1927 and was followed by The House at Pooh Corner in 1928 and were all illustrated by E. H. Shepherd. For a more in-depth look at this author please look here and this website and there are lots of Pooh related information to be found here
The author Raymond Briggs also shares his birthday with A.A. Milne. Briggs was born in 1934 Wimbledon London. He is a graphic artist, novelist and illustrator. though he is best known for his story The Snowman, shown every Christmas in cartoon form on television, he has illustrated many children’s books.
Briggs liked to cartoon at an early age, even though his father tried to dissuade him from what he saw as an unprofitable pursuit. He attended the Wimbledon School of Art from 1949 – 1953 studying painting, then the Central School of Art to study typography.
In 1953 he became a conscript in the Royal Corps of Signals, based at Catterick, where he was made a draughtsman. He returned to study painting at Slade School fo Fine Art after 2 years of National Service where he graduated in 1957.
He briefly painted before becoming a professional illustrator, and soon began working on children’s books. He taught illustration part-time at Brighton College of Art between 1961 and 1986
His famous works include Father Christmas (1973), Father Christmas goes on Holiday (1975) which both featured a rather grumpy Father Christmas and Fungus the Bogeyman (1977). These were in the form of comics, rather than the typical children’s book format where the text is separate to the illustrations.
Briggs has said that The Snowman (1978) was inspired by Fungus the Bogeyman;-
For two years I worked on Fungus, buried amongst muck, slime and words, so… I wanted to do something which was clean, pleasant, fresh and wordless and quick.
This work was entirely wordless and illustrated only with pencil crayons, which I feel lends it charm and spontaneity. In 1982 The Snowman was made into a Oscar nominated animated cartoon, becoming Briggs best known work and much-loved by all who see it. It is shown every year on British television and Christmas would not be the same without it! For a more in-depth look at the author and his life try this and the charming Snowman website here
19th January saw the birthday of celebrated Amercian author, editor, poet and literary critic Edgar Allan Poe (b. Boston Massachusetts) USA 1809 – 1849) Poe is famous for his tales of the macabre and mystery. He is considered an early pioneer of the short story and the inventor of the detective fiction genre and a contributor to the emerging genre Science fiction.
Orphaned young, Poe was taken in by John and Frances Allan, of Richmond Virginia. He attended the University of Virgina for only one semester as he was short of money. He enlisted in the army but failed as an officers cadet at West Point. He started his literary career with a collection of poems in 1827 (Tamerlane and Other Poems). The poems were credited anonymously to ‘A Bostonian’
Poe spent worked for literary journals and periodicals for the next several years, becoming known for his literary criticism. He lived in several cities including Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York City and it was in Baltimore 1835 he married his 13-year-old cousin Virginia Clemm.
In 1945, his poem The Raven was published too much acclaim and was an instant success. Poe died in 1849 at the age of only 40, the cause is still unknown.
Edgar Allan Poe’s short life is a very interesting one, full of adventures, triumphs and some sadness. His fiction work is considered Gothic and of dark Romanticism. His particular theme include death, decomposition and premature burial. But he also wrote humourous tales, satire and hoaxes, using themes that catered to the public taste of the time. Much more can be read about Poe’s life here and short stories and poems can be read on this excellent site.
Read my post about his poem Annabel Lee
Anne Bronte portrait from here
Read about Anne here
Thanks to JustAudio2008 for The Bluebell video
A.A. Milne image from here Pooh illustration from here
Raymond Briggs image from here and Father Christmas illustration here
Edgar Allan Poe image from here
Thanks to KajiCarson for the video
Original birthday invite image from here
UPDATE: There’s a video featuring Scottish Artists over on Echostains to celebrate Burns Night
HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHARLES DICKENS!
There promises to be a lot more activity on Bookstains this year – and a lot of changes. It seems these days that everyone and their wives are doing poetry challenges, these days so I feel that it is time to close mine in order to retain some originality. I shall still be featuring poetry but it shall be in a completely different format. I’m way behind with my book and film reviews, but I have taken notes, so expect these to appear in the form of posts soon.
To kick off 2012, here is a post about costume. I was undecided at first about which blog to use for this post. Although ‘echostains’ is an art and design blog, the clothes featured were actually worn by actors in films (period drama’s which were sometimes derived from books).
The place these pictures were taken was the wonderful Medieval Barley Hall in York, UK. December 2011 saw us visiting one of our favorite places (York) for a few days before Christmas. The weather was at its most treacherous – blowing a gale with lashings of Yorkshire rain. However we managed to find a safe haven in The Barley Hall which was all set out for a Medieval Christmas.
We’ve visited York a lot, yet this was one building we have never been in. Although it has long been known that there was a medieval building in the Stonegate vicinity, the building wasn’t actually officially recorded as Medieval until 1980. When the site was sold for redevelopment, it then became clear that the extent of the medieval structure was substantial.
The oldest part of the reconstructed Barley Hall dates back to about 1360. The house was built as a townhouse of Nostell Priory, which is monastery in West Yorkshire. In 1430, a new wing was added and soon after, the Hall became the home of William Snawsell, a leading York citizen, who was a goldsmith, an Alderman and Lord Mayor of York.
The atmosphere of the hall is wonderful and it was especially enhanced by the Christmas decorations. Charming as the Hall is, we received an unexpected surprise when we ventured upstairs. An exhibition of Period Drama clothes awaited us – some of them instantly recognisable. I didn’t know which ones to examine first, I was so excited!
Lizzie and Darcy clothes from BBC Pride and Prejudice
What a joy to be able to scrutinise the actual clothes which Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth wore in Andrew Davies adaptation of Austen’s Pride and Prejudice BBC 1995! Lizzie’s jacket is the one worn in the scene where Darcy successfully proposes to her. Other Pride and Prejudice clothes featured in the exhibition are hats worn by the characters Lady Catherine de Bourgh and the haughty Miss Bingley.
From the Georgian era to the Late Edwardian era. Costumes from the gorgeous Downton Abbey, created and written by Julian Fellowes, which premiered on ITV, September 2010. The latest episode was shown the Christmas period 2011. The image below shows a dress worn by Dame Maggie Smith who plays The Rt Hon Violet, Countess of Grantham. Her costumes are built to reflect the style appropriate of her heyday (early Edwardian) rather than the younger fashions of the day. This is a stunning gown!
As worn by Dame Maggie Smith in Downton Abbey
worn by Cate Blanchett in 'Elizabeth'
Elizabeth Taylor Young Toscanini 1988
Period drama women don’t have it all their own way though – the men are well represented in this exhibition.
Alan Rickman Judge Turpin Sweeney Todd
Tim Burton’s ‘Sweeney Todd’ 2007 (which starred Alan Rickman and Johnny Depp), features a pair of bloodstained trousers and an outfit worn by Alan Rickman as Judge Turpin with an explanation of how clothes are distressed for the bloody scenes.
bloodstained trousers from Sweeney Todd
Thanks to York dig for providing the first image, and The Barley Hall for providing the black and white photo. All other photographs are my own.
The exhibition is open until March 2012 – please drop in if you are in the area. You will be well rewarded!
For lots more information please visit http://www.barleyhall.org.uk/
More info about Tim Burton’s Sweeney Todd film costumes here
PLUS
PS it’s Chaim Soutine’s Birthday!
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