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It’s 91F/33C out and I’m a bit wilty. It isn’t supposed to be this hot in June; the end of July it is allowed but not early June. But no one ever seems to care about my opinion.
I recently began reading Portrait of a Lady by Henry James along with Danielle. I’m really enjoying the book. Today, however, I am not going to talk about that. Instead I am going to reveal how silly it gets at my house sometimes.
Bookman asked me the other day what I was reading on my Kobo. I told him I had just started Portrait of a Lady.
That’s by James Joyce, right?
No, Henry James. I replied
Well didn’t James Joyce write something with portrait in the title?
Yes, Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.
And then things got goofy.
Bookman insisted that Henry James and James Joyce were actually the same person, after all, had anyone ever seen them at a party together? The true name of the man is Henry James Joyce.
Oh yes, I exclaimed and the real title of the book is Portrait of the Lady as a Young Man, it’s one of the first transgender novels ever written.
We’ve finally set the literary record straight, so to speak.
Our work here is done.
I hear you on the heat. We are feeling the same here in Western Canada. My brain slows down with the rest of my system in the heat.
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roughghosts, some people thrive in the heat but I am not one of them. I always think that as summers get warmer there is always Canada to retreat to but you are getting warmer too. There will be no escape!
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You have done good work this day. The world is a better place.
(And I would happily exchanged Henry James Joyce for HJ and JJ, since I can’t get on with either of them.)
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Why thank you Simon! I have a perverse streak that allows me to enjoy both HJ and JJ and to actually find that both of them are rather funny. 🙂
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cute
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booksandbuttons, thanks!
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Ah, how I love bookish banter!
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TJ, bookish banter is one of life’s pleasures 🙂
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Love it! Maybe a podcast is in your future? 😉
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Laila, LOL, podcasts are doubtful, there would have to be too much editing of all the failures 😉
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Audio book by Caitlyn Jenner?
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Jule, LOL, but of course! 😉
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Well…Henry James did spend his life in England and Joyce was all the time in neighboring Ireland….so Bookman may have a point! 😉
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cirtnecce, I know, right? Between you and me though, Bookman should not be encouraged 😉
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LOL! I can actually see a paradigm shifting. 😉
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Arti, I am afraid to know what other paradigm shifts Bookman might instigate!
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HAhahahahaha. Love this. Made me laugh out loud this morning. I want to read Portrait of the Lady as a Young Man!
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Nikki, glad you got a laugh. I’d like to read that book too. What a mash-up!
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Hahahahahaha. I love that.
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My sympathies with the heat…. glad that yourself and Bookman keeping up the bookish chat!
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Ian, thankfully the heat is not going to be a string of days. Bookman is very creative when it comes to bookish chat 🙂
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Thanks Di!
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Silly is so relaxing, isn’t it? I adore people I can be really silly with.
And I agree about the heat. I wish we were back in Camden, ME, where it is a refreshing 60F.
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Joan, most definitely and Bookman is always ready to jump into silly. Oh, I think I might have to join you in ME, 60 sounds divine!
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Oh that cheeky Bookman! How you make me laugh and laugh. I have been getting Henry James mixed up with his brother William for many years now, even in academic papers, which causes some discombobulation. I don’t think I dare let the thought of him as James Joyce into my head. It may explode! 🙂
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Litlove, I am glad you had a laugh. Heh, I can see how William and Henry can be mixed up but I don;t want your head to explode by getting James Joyce in there too so just forget you ever read any of this 😉
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‘It’s 91F/33C out and I’m a bit wilty. It isn’t supposed to be this hot in June;’
Well, it’s 12C out here and I am freezing. It isn’t supposed to be this cold in June. It is, however, quite cold enough to send my brain completely fuzzy and a cross-gendered Henry James seems like a very sensible idea.
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Alex, ooo, that’s chilly for this time of year! I hope you warm up soon!
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You made me snort coffee out of my nose!
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Sorry, Grad, hope you’re ok 🙂
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Oh, your post does explain some mystery in the universe! LOL
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smithereens, one mystery down a billion more to go! 😉
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“Portrait of a Lady as a Young Man” – otherwise known as “Orlando”, by V Woolf?! Can’t wait to hear what you think of PoL – it’s my absolute fav.
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widget, Henry James Joyce wrote his book first so Orlando gets second place prize 🙂
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I care about your opinion and as a matter of fact I concur. It really IS way too hot for June. It makes me wilt, too, and worse really really cranky. And you can’t dress for it either–you freeze inside your work or melt outside and I won’t even start (yet) about my toasty old house…. Had a chuckle over your conversation with Bookman. They do actually have a small resemblance in that I tend to think twice about reading their work only to discover how wonderful it is. All those portraits, though… 😉
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Danielle, the inside/outside temperature is terrible. People make fun of librarians and all their cardigans but there is a reason behind the stereotype! Heh, so many portraits, hard to keep them all sorted 😉
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Hahahaha, thank goodness you’ve gotten that sorted out.
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Jenny, always glad to perform such an important service for the literary world 😉
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I’d love to hear your opinion on TPOAL when you think it is ok to share, Stefanie. It is one of my favorite stories.
Unfortunately, I’ve never really had the opportunity to talk about the book with anyone, because almost no one I know has read it, and those who have, have disliked it 🙂 .
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Polaris, I am very much enjoying Henry James. I know lots of people don’t like his writing but I very much do. I forget how much when I haven’t read him for a while. I will let you know more as I continue, but I expect I will love the book.
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Haha, love the bookish chat. I must say I don’t mine 33°C but I suspect our dry 33° is somewhat more pleasant than your presumably humid one. THAT would make me wilty. And if truth be known, I prefer a dry 25-28°C but no-one listens to me either.
We had a very cold start to winter, which for us was 1 June, with a near record strong of low for us minimums (around -5 to -7°C) but the last few days have been lovely. Minimums around zero and sunny, clear maximums of 15°C. We can take more winter days like that. That’s not likely to happen, but fortunately we are heading off into warmer climes for three weeks around the middle of winter. THAT will be good.
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whisperinggums, yes, the humidity does make the heat harder to bear. Wow, you have been having some chilly weather! Cool nights and moderate days like the ones you have been having though are my favorite. That’s my perfect weather 🙂 I hope your winter travels are taking you somewhere fun!
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They are … Both Australia but one trip into the outback which I love, and one to Tasmania, which I also love and which is where my brother lives.
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I love this little snippet of convo – so fun! 🙂
On a sidenote, I really need to read a Henry James (Joyce) novel. I keep seeing literary quotes/passages that I adore that are from Henry James, and so I’ve been thinking that it’s about time I read one of his novels, since I love all the passages so much. Soon I’ll venture out and pick up this Modern Library edition of Portrait of a Lady: http://i43.tower.com/images/mm100074494/portrait-lady-henry-james-paperback-cover-art.jpg – because I absolutely love the painting on the cover. And then I can proceed to read my first Henry James novel. 🙂 I’m glad to hear you’re enjoying it!
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Emily, glad you enjoyed the conversation! 🙂
I am still very much liking Portrait of a Lady. You are in for a real treat when you read it! The Modern Library cover is a very nice one!
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Thanks, Stefanie and Bookman! (And I’d like to read that novel. Perhaps you could arrange that for me?:))
I always had my suspicions about Pope John Paul II and the Queen Mother. Never seen in a room together either…
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Helen, I’ll see what I can do to find the lost manuscript 😉
Oh, I had not thought about Pope John Paul and the Queen Mother but I think you really might be on to something there!
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