Teaching Lymond...

[fajrdrako]

This interesting article turned up on one of my lists today, about a teacher named Marjorie Leithead who discovered Francis Crawford and used him as a teaching aid:
Been There, Dunnett. I wonder: is her name really pronounced "Lighthead"?

"I bribed my wild boys in second year to stop blethering and do some work with promised tales of Lymond in France. They were swept along with the swash and buckle of it all, the back-stabbing and the plotting...." And the bisexual promiscuity? Did she include that part?

She must really have some personality as a teacher to get the 'wild boys' to listen to extracts of historical fiction!

I did like (and relate to) Marjorie Leithead's ending: "In discovering the Lymond Chronicles I knew I was going down a road thousands of others had gone down before me, but somehow it felt as if the secret was mine alone, that I was the only one to understand Lymond's complex relationships.... None of my reading since has brought anything like the feeling of joy and frustration, the triumph and the awe I felt at my romp through Europe with Lymond. I am bereft now I've come to the end of the journey, but inspired because I have."

Comments

[rosiespark.livejournal.com]

I'd have been more impressed if she'd got his name right. Any of his names. What's so difficult about remembering Francis Crawford of Lymond, Master of Culter, Voevoda Bolshoia and Comte de Sevigny?

Did I miss any? *g*

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I'd have been more impressed if she'd got his name right. Any of his names.

Ahem: yes, me too.

Did I miss any?

My Lord. Jesus. Sir.

[rosiespark.livejournal.com]

My Lord. Jesus. Sir.

*snerk*

Hurrah for Danny Hislop!

[vervassal.livejournal.com]

Uncle, Vervassal, Don Luis....

[vervassal.livejournal.com]

Uncle, Vervassal, Don Luis.... Thady Boy.

[(Anonymous)]

Oops. Dinnae mean to double post.

[rosiespark.livejournal.com]

Uncle

To Kevin, Lucy and the rest of Richard and Mariotta's offspring, right?

Vervassal, Don Luis.... Thady Boy.

Vervassal, yes, but the other two are disguises rather than actual names/titles.

Did the apple seller who accompanied Piero Strozzi on his reconaissance trip into Calais have a name? *g*

[vervassal.livejournal.com]

And Philippa, in passing.

[rosiespark.livejournal.com]

Philippa calls him Uncle? Where?!

[(Anonymous)]

"Shall I call you Uncle?" she asks, saucily. In Checkmate.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

"The Russian version was Frangike. Rather too scented, I thought, like a new brand of onion."

[rosiespark.livejournal.com]

That's a good one.

Oh help! How did the entire LC end up on my re-read pile again?

Oh, I see. My brain has just informed me that a pre-Siege read-through is de rigueur. I am powerless in the grip of circumstances...

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

All the Dunnett books are always on my to be reread pile, regardless of how recently I've read them. And of that to be reread pile, they are the ones I am most likely to actually reread.

A pre-Siege read-through. Good idea! Otherwise I may find myself embarrassed.

[rosiespark.livejournal.com]

How about a book every two weeks? There are about twelve weeks left till the start of the Siege, no?

Or we could leave it till later and do a book a week, if you'd prefer a less drawn-out read. No strict rules or anything like that, just both of us reading the same book at (approximately) the same time and discussing stuff if we feel like it, and inviting anyone on our flists to join in - how does that sound to you?

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

A book every two weeks sounds good. We could start and see what a comfortable timeframe becomes - I wouldn't mind starting The Game of Kings today.

[rosiespark.livejournal.com]

So, did you start it? I had the best of intentions - but only got as far as the list of characters on Sunday, I think it was. Didn't get time to pick it up again till today. Lymond has just set out for Midculter, leaving behind him a chastened Mungo Tennant and a hungover pig. I'm not a huge fan of the opening scene - parts of it feel a bit clunky. Did I read somewhere that it was added on thie insistence of DD's editor, or am I misremembering? Anyway, it feels DD really hits her stride in the next sections. A gently dishevelled Lymond flirting dangerously with Mariotta in the stairwell? No wonder she falls for him! :)

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I plan to get to it tomorrow, all going well. It's been quite a week.

The story of chapter 1 is that Dorothy Dunnett started with a lot of backstory and exposition, and the editor told her she had to start with Lymond. So she did.

I love the drunk pig. I actually like most of the action of that section, I particularly like it when Lymond attacks Midculter, but I think the connecting section are a bit clunky. Which is okay; I even love Dorothy Dunnett's clunk more than anyone else's most flowing prose.

It's just as well I'm not Mariotta. I'd have disgraced the whole family.

[rosiespark.livejournal.com]

Catching up, rather late, on comments - did you start Gok? I did, but haven't been getting on very fast: I'm still only 190 pages into it. Lymond is planning the cattle raid with Maxwell (at the Ostrich!), Lord Grey has just informed Gideon that he's to expect a visit from Lymond, and Mariotta has received the first pices of jewellery.

It's just as well I'm not Mariotta. I'd have disgraced the whole family.

This is making me giggle. It's lucky Lymond isn't going to be present at the Siege. There would be a stampede... *g*

Danny Hislop

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I adore the man. I find that when we play the casting game, no one else's mental image of him matches mine in the least. I think of him as fey, but tough.

Re: Danny Hislop

[rosiespark.livejournal.com]

I'm curious - what does he look like to you?

Re: Danny Hislop

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Pretty darn good.

Re: Danny Hislop

[rosiespark.livejournal.com]

Um, I'd sort of gathered that. ;) You wouldn't like to be a bit more specific, would you?

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

The Master of Culter.

"Lymond is back"

[rosiespark.livejournal.com]

I already got that one! He spends all the first book being called the Master ("of Culter" being optional) - when he's not being referred to simply as Lymond, that is.

Glad to meet another Dunnett reader!

[namastenancy.livejournal.com]

Do you know about Marzipan, the Dunnett group on Yahoo? Of course, they've discussed the books endlessly but there are a couple of other groups that are doing a slow (too slow for me), line by line read. If that's your thing.

namaste SF nancy

Re: Glad to meet another Dunnett reader!

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Yup, I enjoy all the Dunnett lists I can find - even though I'm not currently participating much. I'm probably overdue for another reread - but it's difficult to do it slowly!