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Shayne Parkinson · 03-11-2014, 07:43 PM

Comments on various works of literature. One point each for the work and the commenter.

1. "One must have a heart of stone to read the death of Little Nell without laughing." Oscar Wilde on The Old Curiosity Shop. Bookpossum, Bilbo 1 point each.

2. "How to read Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone? Why, very quickly, to begin with, and perhaps also to make an end. Why read it? Presumably, if you cannot be persuaded to read anything better, Rowling will have to do." ? on Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Poohbear, 1 point.

3. "In form no more than a glorified anecdote, and not too probable at that". ? on The Great Gatsby. Poohbear, 1 point.

4. "It really won't do, you know! I mean to say: 'Nymphs and their Ways, The Love-Life of a Faun'. Doesn't he know what he's talking about?" J. R. R. Tolkien on The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. Issybird, pdurrant, 1 point each.

5. "One of the few English novels written for grown-up people." Virginia Woolf on Middlemarch. Bookpossum, 2 points.

6. "Juvenile trash". ? on The Fellowship of the Ring. Glorfindel, 1 point.

7. "I would not have had that reference made to the Queen's preposterous book (I have read it) for any money. I blush to join the Shameful lick-spittle Chorus." Charles Dickens on Queen Victoria's Leaves from the Journal of Our Life in the Highlands. Issybird, 2 points.

8. "Here are beauties which pierce like swords or burn like cold iron; here is a book that will break your heart". C. S. Lewis on The Lord of the Rings. Glorfindel, 2 points.

9. "An accurate daguerreotyped portrait of a common-place face; a carefully fenced, highly cultivated garden, with neat borders and delicate flowers—but no glance of a bright vivid physiognomy—no open country—no fresh air—no blue hill—no bonny beck." Charlotte Bronte on Pride and Prejudice. Billi, Issybird 1 point each.

10. "The work of a queasy undergraduate scratching his pimples.” Virginia Woolf on Ulysses. Poohbear, Orlok, 1 point each.

Current points:
Issybird, 4 points
Bookpossum, Glorfindel, Poohbear 3 points
Bilbo, Billi, Orlok, Pdurrant 1 point

Three points still to be won in this close contest!

Time for a few hints:
- All men, all born in the US
- Two of the three are best-known as critics
- #4 is the only one still alive

#6's review is somewhat [in]famous in parts of Tolkien fandom. More quotes: "Dr. Tolkien has little skill at narrative and no instinct for literary form." "... except when he is being pedantic and also boring the adult reader, there is little in The Lord of the Rings over the head of a seven-year-old child."

03-11-2014, 07:43 PM	#13057
Shayne Parkinson Author Posts: 1,532 Karma: 5447804 Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: New Zealand Device: Samsung Galaxy Tab	Comments on various works of literature. One point each for the work and the commenter. 1. "One must have a heart of stone to read the death of Little Nell without laughing." Oscar Wilde on The Old Curiosity Shop. Bookpossum, Bilbo 1 point each. 2. "How to read Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone? Why, very quickly, to begin with, and perhaps also to make an end. Why read it? Presumably, if you cannot be persuaded to read anything better, Rowling will have to do." ? on Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Poohbear, 1 point. 3. "In form no more than a glorified anecdote, and not too probable at that". ? on The Great Gatsby. Poohbear, 1 point. 4. "It really won't do, you know! I mean to say: 'Nymphs and their Ways, The Love-Life of a Faun'. Doesn't he know what he's talking about?" J. R. R. Tolkien on The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. Issybird, pdurrant, 1 point each. 5. "One of the few English novels written for grown-up people." Virginia Woolf on Middlemarch. Bookpossum, 2 points. 6. "Juvenile trash". ? on The Fellowship of the Ring. Glorfindel, 1 point. 7. "I would not have had that reference made to the Queen's preposterous book (I have read it) for any money. I blush to join the Shameful lick-spittle Chorus." Charles Dickens on Queen Victoria's Leaves from the Journal of Our Life in the Highlands. Issybird, 2 points. 8. "Here are beauties which pierce like swords or burn like cold iron; here is a book that will break your heart". C. S. Lewis on The Lord of the Rings. Glorfindel, 2 points. 9. "An accurate daguerreotyped portrait of a common-place face; a carefully fenced, highly cultivated garden, with neat borders and delicate flowers—but no glance of a bright vivid physiognomy—no open country—no fresh air—no blue hill—no bonny beck." Charlotte Bronte on Pride and Prejudice. Billi, Issybird 1 point each. 10. "The work of a queasy undergraduate scratching his pimples.” Virginia Woolf on Ulysses. Poohbear, Orlok, 1 point each. Current points: Issybird, 4 points Bookpossum, Glorfindel, Poohbear 3 points Bilbo, Billi, Orlok, Pdurrant 1 point Three points still to be won in this close contest! Time for a few hints: - All men, all born in the US - Two of the three are best-known as critics - #4 is the only one still alive #6's review is somewhat [in]famous in parts of Tolkien fandom. More quotes: "Dr. Tolkien has little skill at narrative and no instinct for literary form." "... except when he is being pedantic and also boring the adult reader, there is little in The Lord of the Rings over the head of a seven-year-old child." Last edited by Shayne Parkinson; 03-11-2014 at 08:10 PM.