Day 1 (DDRD 1,710) July 7, 2022
As noted elsewhere, I finished Oliver Twist (The Adventures of Oliver Twist, actually) early this morning, and decided to go ahead and start in on Nicholas Nickleby in order to get a full dose of Dickens today.
This is a much longer novel than OT. OT was one 509 (+ intro stuff) book; NN is two volumes: 504 + XXXI & 497 + XIII...for a grand total of 1,045 pages.
Inscribed on the title page is a date
Of course it's possible that other people have read this book since then, but I kind of like thinking that I'm the first person to read this volume in 51 years. And I kind of wish that the person who read it in January of 1971 had scratched some comments into the margins...but a cursory glance seems to indicate that this did not happen. At any rate, I'm glad to know that someone has trod this path before, but at the same time that it's not a path for multitudes. Sorry, but I'm just not a fan of multitudes. And though writers prosper when they have them, certainly at this point Dickens does not need them anymore.Okay. We're off. (You know.)
(Later.) I read the introductory pages--so to page XXXI, and ready to begin with page 1 tomorrow.
After the initial stuff--publisher information, chapter and illustration listings--there was an Introduction written by one Dame Sybil Thorndike. She wrote in quite a down-to-earth manner (if occasionally peppered with some paeans to The Great Dickens, which I was okay with) for one with such a formidable name, so I Googled her. Turns out she was an actress who, among other things, did a turn with Marilyn Monroe (in The Prince and the Showgirl). And after that came a short (7 page) Preface from CD himself. And quite a bit of writing it was, indeed. Dickens describes some of the background for the writing of this novel, including some information gathering trips he took in order to ascertain whether Yorkshire Schoolmasters were as terrible as he had heard they were. Well... here's a bit which sums up his findings there; these Schoolmasters are
"Traders in the avarice, indifference, or imbecility of parents, and the helplessness of children; ignorant, sordid, brutal men, to whom few considerate persons would have entrusted the board and lodging of a horse or a dog; they formed the worthy cornerstone of a structure, which, for absurdity and a magnificent high-minded Laissez-Aller neglect, has rarely been exceeded in the world." (XXV- XXVI)
Well...🔥🔥🔥!
So having taken on the Prison System in The Pickwick Papers and the Work House in Oiver Twist, looks like Dickens is gunning for the School System this time around...a subject I know he comes back to fiercely in Hard Times.
BTW, here are the details (courtesy of Wikipedia) reference the first publication of this novel:
"Nicholas Nickleby was originally issued in 19 monthly numbers; the last was a double-number and cost two shillings instead of one. Each number comprised 32 pages of text and two illustrations by Phiz:
I – March 1838 (chapters 1–4)
II – April 1838 (chapters 5–7)
III – May 1838 (chapters 8–10)
IV – June 1838 (chapters 11–14)
V – July 1838 (chapters 15–17)
VI – August 1838 (chapters 18–20)
VII – September 1838 (chapters 21–23)
VIII – October 1838 (chapters 24–26)
IX – November 1838 (chapters 27–29)
X – December 1838 (chapters 30–33)
XI – January 1839 (chapters 34–36)
XII – February 1839 (chapters 37–39)
XIII – March 1839 (chapters 40–42)
XIV – April 1839 (chapters 43–45)
XV – May 1839 (chapters 46–48)
XVI – June 1839 (chapters 49–51)
XVII – July 1839 (chapters 52–54)
XVIII – August 1839 (chapters 55–58)
XIX–XX – September 1839 (chapters 59–65)"And since, you asked, Yes:
Day 2 (DDRD 1,711) July 8, 2022
Read to page 44...and was quite captivated by this story right off the bat. I also have a very strong feeling of déjà vu, which is really puzzling me. I'm sure that I've never read this book before. It's possible that I've seen a movie version, I suppose...but I have no memory of that. Maybe it will hit me later on once I've read more.
Meanwhile...
This picture
caught my eye. This is a depiction of the first meeting of young Nicholas Nickleby (left) and his uncle, Mr. Ralph Nickleby. It's easy to see from his face that Ralph is an unpleasant kind of person, but when my gaze was pulled south of his visage, I couldn't help but wonder why I seemed to be gazing (involuntarily, I insist) upon Ralph's semi-erect penis.
I mean...if this is a suggestion that the rich want to fuck the poor, I understand, but I have to admit that I was a bit unsettled by such a vivid visual depiction of that desire.Or maybe it's just me.
Meanwhile, speaking of Ralph...here's a paragraph describing the back yard of his office which I thought was most excellent:
"Mr. Nickleby closed an account-book which lay on his desk, and, throwing himself back in his chair, gazed with an air of abstraction through the dirty window. Some London houses have a melancholy little plot of ground behind them, usually fenced in by four high whitewashed walls, and frowned upon by stacks of chimneys: in which there withers on, from year to year, a crippled tree, that makes a show of putting forth a few leaves late in autumn when other trees shed theirs, and, drooping in the effort, lingers on, all crackled and smoke-dried, till the following season, when it repeats the same process, and perhaps, if the weather be particularly genial, even tempts some rheumatic sparrow to chirrup in its branches. People sometimes call these dark yards ‘gardens’; it is not supposed that they were ever planted, but rather that they are pieces of unreclaimed land, with the withered vegetation of the original brick-field. No man thinks of walking in this desolate place, or of turning it to any account. A few hampers, half-a-dozen broken bottles, and such-like rubbish, may be thrown there, when the tenant first moves in, but nothing more; and there they remain until he goes away again: the damp straw taking just as long to moulder as it thinks proper: and mingling with the scanty box, and stunted everbrowns, and broken flower-pots, that are scattered mournfully about—a prey to ‘blacks’ and dirt."
Rheumatic sparrow. Heh heh, old Charlie D. never lets up, does he?
Oh...also, I watched Oliver! yesterday. And enjoyed it...especially the rather frightening portrayal of Bill Sikes by Oliver Reed...and the surprisingly sexy portrayal of Nancy by Shani Wallis. Nancy, who was around 17 years old in the novel, has been aged considerably--Ms. Wallis was 35 when she portrayed this character. It is also pretty clear that she has a sexual relationship with Sikes, and she is not at all shy about displaying some cleavage. There were other changes from the novel, some of which were dismaying. The ending, for instance...avoids the courtroom and the jailhouse (etcetera) and aims for something in the vicinity of repentance for Fagin. And I'm not sure as to whether or not Nancy was murdered or not in this version. The act of beating her occurs offscreen, and after I thought she was dead her legs are seen moving. At any rate, the overt violence of the novel is avoided.
I did enjoy most of the songs, and was surprised that I recognized no less than four of them: "food, Glorius Food," "Where is Love?", "Consider Yourself," and "I'd Do Anything."
The movie opens with an overture, which is proclaimed with this still picture:
I thought it would have been much more appropriate here to go for
...but apparently the makers of the movie felt no need to consult with me, and did not share my love for tacky wordplay.At any rate...it was worth doing, and that's said by a fellow who has little time for most musicals.
Day 3 (DDRD 1,712) July 9, 2022
Read to page 80.
And I continue to really enjoy this book. Funny, I was talking to a friend last night and mentioned that I was reading Nicholas Nickleby, and she responded by saying that she hated this book. Not that that particularly surprises me, as more often than not I find myself in the Wearing Out Things That Nobody Wears category, but it just makes me wonder: what is there not to like? Of course, I feel the same about most of the things I love. I'm truly baffled as to why Roy Harper isn't one of the most famous singer / songwriters of all time, right up there with Bob Dylan. And, and...well, and so forth.
In the course of a coach journey, Nicholas and some other characters have to stay the night at a ramshackle inn, and, much to my regret, they decide to pass the time by telling stories. Thus do we get ten pages of "The Five Sisters of York," and then almost immediately afterwards "The Baron of Grogzwig." I would much rather we just stick to the story, and I'd be tempted to scoop these digressions out if I had editorial power...maybe put them into a section after the novel or something.
Not that "The Five Sisters" was bad...just that it has nothing to do with the story of Nicholas Nickleby, and that's what I'm in for. There's a passage early on in this bit that I found quite poignant, as a matter of fact:
"If we all had hearts like those which beat so lightly in the bosoms of the young and beautiful, what a heaven this earth would be! If, while our bodies grow old and withered, our hearts could but retain their early youth and freshness, of what avail would be our sorrows and sufferings! But, the faint image of Eden which is stamped upon them in childhood, chafes and rubs in our rough struggles with the world, and soon wears away: too often to leave nothing but a mournful blank remaining."
That's some powerful stuff.
And btw, Newman Noggs is an amazing character. His behaviors are very bizarre, but almost from the very first I got the feeling that despite appearances, he was good-hearted. And that seems to be borne out when he gives a note to Nicholas, even though at this point I've not been made privy to the contents of said note. But clearly Norman has gone out of his way to give this note over, and I don't see how his intentions can be anything other than to be of benefit to young Nicholas.
Day 4 (DDRD 1,713) July 10, 2022
Read to page 110.
Got through "The Baron of Grogzwig" and have to admit that it was a fairly intriguing story, But I still could have done without it, for sure, and it didn't add anything to the story of Nicholas Nickleby. Speaking of, once we got back to that main story, I was once again intrigued, and once again was left wondering why anybody wouldn't like this story. It's about important stuff--the mistreatment of children, in this case in a "schoolhouse." It's written with intelligence and, believe it or not, touches of humor--admittedly of a sardonic nature. Dunno.
Day 5 (DDRD 1,714) July 11, 2022
Read to page 140. Nicholas has begun his teacher duties. And one of his first thoughts of the school he is in is this:
"...when he recollected that, being there as an assistant, he actually seemed - no matter what unhappy train of circumstances had brought him to that pass - to be the aider and abettor of a system which filled him with honest disgust and indignation, he loathed himself, and felt, for the moment, as though the mere consciousness of his present situation must, through all time to come, prevent his raising his head again." (116)
I had that same thought myself a time or two...back in the day. The answer I came up with was that I would try to be a denizen in the machine which strove to treat the kids better, with dignity and respect and even love. And of course, that's what Nicholas decides as well. Because Great Minds think alike.
I found a 2002 movie Nicholas Nickleby which stars a 22 year-old Charlie Hunnam as NN, and also stars Christopher Plummer, Anne Hathaway, and Nathan Lane. And good news, it's available on two free platforms: Pluto TV and tubi.
Day 6 (DDRD 1,715) July 12, 2022
Read to page 172. And I was becoming more and more sure that I had read this book before and forgotten it, so I did a search through my old blog posts, and low and behold, I found this:
The Book I Read 2015:
23. Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens**** I really enjoyed this book. Dickens is so good at abusing his characters in ways that make you get involved with his stories. You even forgive him for the occasional absurdities.
And I looked a bit more, and found this:
The Movie I Saw 2015:
67. Nicholas Nickleby (2002)***
And then I looked a little bit more, and found this:
somE quotes froM thE crimsoN petaL anD thE whitE (April 20, 2015):
Read Nicholas Nickleby because long-time friend Jim was making his way through Dickens and I asked if I could join him and this was next up on his list. Finished and wanted to see how they did up the characters in movie version but didn't want to pay so got one from the library, turned out to be the 2002 version (budget $10 million, take less than $4 million, tops) and I was almost immediately taken with the actress who played Kate Nickleby, who I quickly found out was Romola Garai. And immediately wanted to see more of RG (nudge nudge, wink wink) so checked out IMDb and found that she'd been in The Crimson Petal and the White....
Which set me off on a Michel Faber quest which lasted for at least another novel before I got distracted (magpie reader).
So I guess that's why this novel felt so familiar. (Blush.) But hey, at least I had the "This is very familiar feeling"...and pretty much from the get-go. Still...how could I have forgotten that I'd read this book? Seven years isn't a very long time, after all.
Read a bit more...to page 200.
Here's a thing which I noted:
"Newman cast a despairing glance at his small store of fuel, but, not having the courage to say no—a word which in all his life he never had said at the right time, either to himself or anyone else—gave way to the proposed arrangement. Mr. Crowl immediately went about making himself as comfortable, with Newman Nogg’s means, as circumstances would admit of his being made."
More specifically, "not having the courage to say no—a word which in all his life he never had said at the right time, either to himself or anyone else—gave way to the proposed arrangement." Because I don't know about you, but I have certainly been there, done that, & bought souvenirs.
Day 7 (DDRD 1,716) July 13, 2022
Read to page 238. There was a chunk of pages when the focus shifted to some new characters...people who lived in the same building as Newman Noggs...that I struggled with, but it pulled back in to the main story after a bit, and there was much rejoicing.
There was a description of a Minister of Parliament which was funny: "He was a tough, burley, thick-headed gentleman, with a loud voice, a pompous manner, a tolerable command of sentences with no meaning in them, and, in short, every requisite for a very good member indeed." (232)
Meanwhile, you'll never guess what is happening to this volume's binding.
Day 8 (DDRD 1,717) July 14, 2022
Read to page 276.
Watched a bit (apparently for the second time, but I've no memory of any of it) of the 2002 Nicholas Nickleby. I was just meaning to watch until the movie caught up to my reading, but they skipped so much and compressed so much else that by the 48 minute mark I was in unfamiliar territory. But I kept on watching a little more anyway. And by the way...Jamie Bell, who plays Smike, is the head of Tom Holland. And also by the way...Romola Garai (a mere 20 years old at the time of this film) is most definitely hot.
Day 9 (DDRD 1,718) July 15, 2022
Read to page 313.
This description of Miss La Creevy--
"The little bustling, active, cheerful creature existed entirely within herself, talked to herself, made a confidante of herself, was as sarcastic as she could be, on people who offended her, by herself; pleased herself, and did no harm. If she indulged in scandal, nobody’s reputation suffered; and if she enjoyed a little bit of revenge, no living soul was one atom the worse." (298)
--made me think of Jacqueline. She has conversations with saints, dolls, characters from books, tv shows, and movies...and is one of the happiest people I have ever known in my life. Not a bad way of dealing with this shit-stained world, I have to say.
And speaking of Miss La Creevy, here's one of her observations on said world:
"...the power to serve, is as seldom joined with the will, as the will is with the power...." (301)
Clearly not being immersed in the world has not interfered with her ability to see the world as it really is.
Day 10 (DDRD 1,719) July 16, 2022
Read to page 327.
Here's a bit of comic tomfoolery which anticipates the early days of Hollywood:
"...Mr. Scaley, leaning upon a stand on which a handsome dress was displayed (so that his shoulders appeared above it, in nearly the same manner as the shoulders of the lady for whom it was designed would have done if she had had it on)...." (316)
Which Phiz pictured looking like this:
I was kind of surprised that Dickens would have this kind of casual humor. Seems a bit ahead of its time to me.Meanwhile....
Fuckin' Heron Books.
Also...I was thinking about the interesting contrast between Mrs. Nickleby and Miss La Creevy. Mrs. Nickleby seems to live in the real world, yet she constantly believes in her own or someone else's fantasies, gets lost in her thoughts, and is sometimes cruel--as when she at least momentarily believes that Nicholas was at fault when he beat Wackford Squeers. Miss La Creevy, on the other hand, seems to live outside of the real world much of the time, yet she sees through to the heart of people; for instance, she has no doubt that Nicholas was innocent of any wrongdoing in the Squeers incident. I see a lot of my daughter Jacqueline in Miss La Creevy. Even when Jacqueline seems completely enveloped in her own world...a world in which St. Lucy has a seeing eye cat named Jet, is married to Aaron, The Little Drummer Boy, and has a child named Lucia...and I didn't even mention how Thomas the Tank Engine and Harry Potter fit into this scenario...yet she is very aware of everything that is going on around her.
It also makes me think about how often artists who seem to be detached from The Real World are the ones who see the world most clearly...and who may be the only hope we have of making the world evolve.
Day 11 (DDRD 1,720) July 17, 2022
Read to page 405...which means that there are less than 100 pages to go in Volume I.
And despite the fact that I still have 100 pages and Volume II to go, I finished watching the 2002 Nicholas Nickleby movie (with a little help from Burl Ives, the White Christmas Cat). And even though they really truncated the tale, I thought they'd done a good job of it. Charlie Hunnam was excellent in the title role, and brought a gentleness to it that was most affecting. And now, of course, I want to watch The Crimson Petal and the White again, because I could do with a bit more of Romola Garai. And guess what? tubi has got the whole series. Thank you, tubi.
Day 12 (DDRD 1,721) July 18, 2022
Read to page 470. So it looks like tomorrow might be it for Volume I.
Day 13 (DDRD 1,722) July 19, 2022
Read to page 504 = The End of Volume I. Ended on a high note, too, with a pulsating threat perceived but not yet clearly identified, a physical altercation which leaves Nicholas bloody, and a world of possibilities open for Volume II...which I will energetically commence to read tomorrow morning.
Day 14 (DDRD 1,723) July 20, 2022
Started Volume II and read to page 30. And the spine already split. It was not split when I started reading, either, so it only took a dozen intro pages and 30 text pages to get there. Of course, it has been read at least twice previously...
...the second of which is by me. Not exactly a testament to durability, is it? I sure hope nobody is paying big bucks for the complete set of The Centennial Dickens.
Day 15 (DDRD 1,724) July 21, 2022
Read to page 61.
You know, it seems that philosophically, Dickens is always aware of the shittiness of the world, yet at the same time he always has agents of The Good...nigh angelic figures who are anxious to help others and to set things to right. In Nicholas Nickleby, there is Newman Noggs, John Browdie, Mr. and Mrs. Crummles, and now (relatively speaking) the Cheeryble brothers. So while there are awful people like Ralph Nickleby and Mr. and Mrs. Squeers, who seem to have power and influence in the world, their machinations are stoutly countered by the people who represent The Good...and there's really no doubt that in the end, Evil will be vanquished. At the end of Chapter 35 there's this line: "In short, the poor Nicklebys were social and happy; while the rich Nickleby was alone and miserable." It's all very Christian, really...in the best sense of the word. The good hearted triumph over the selfish and malicious people in the world. There is a reward for goodness.
I think that's a message that we need now more than ever. But of course modern literature has little patience with such "unrealistic" themes.
Hmmm.
Day 16 (DDRD 1,725) July 22, 2022
Read to page 91.
I'm also thinking that it might be that in Dickens' books, when a person deliberately seeks his fortune, as does Nicholas when he takes the job as schoolmaster, it does not bear fruit. On the other hand, when one trusts to circumstances...as when Nicholas stands perusing the job board and is met by Mr. Cheeryble...then blessings flow. It's almost an illustration of the Biblical adage:
Matthew 6:25-34
American Standard Version
25 Therefore I say unto you, Be not anxious for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than the food, and the body than the raiment? 26 Behold the birds of the heaven, that they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; and your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are not ye of much more value than they?
Also, I forgot Miss La Creevy in the list of good people yesterday. And Nicholas and Kate, of course.
And here's one of my all-time favorite Weird Dickens things thus far:
"You know, there is no language of vegetables, which converts a cucumber into a formal declaration of attachment." (80)
Day 17 (DDRD 1,726) July 23, 2022
Read to page 122.
More meta-Dickens. On page 98, the narrator makes reference to a Mr Snawley. We are then told: "Mr Snawley may be remembered as the sleek and sanctified gentleman who confided two sons (in law) to the parental care of Mr. Squeers, as narrated in the fourth chapter of this history."
And another word was added to my vocabulary courtesy of Dickens: ferrule.
(This comes courtesy of https///www.goinginstyle.info/blog/2019/8/14/parts-of-an-umbrella-from-ferrule-to-crook-handle?fbclid=IwAR0KhzGQ7C1iB8GKMYyJW1zXgR86SIxZ73KLuQu5DkiPX4Nrr-BPeyVW-4E.) Funny, isn't it? How a thing that you've known for pretty much your whole life--the top of an umbrella--has a name that you've never heard of until you're about to turn 65. Unless it's just me, of course, and everybody else knew what a ferrule was. Today also marks the day that this happened:
Which, of course, is no surprise at this point. This is the 5th CENTENNIAL DICKENS I've read, and the spine has come apart on 4 of them. It just continues to amaze me that they took the time to make the books look nice, what with the fancy design and gold on the cover, and they sewed the binding, which is a true rarity these days, but they made the covers so poorly that gentle reading causes them to disintegrate.Again: do not pay more than a few dollars for these books if you find them.
And again: fucking Heron Books!
In other news...it's kind of funny how the 2002 movie, which for the most part did a good job of it in adapting this story, altered the rescue of Smike so drastically. Dickens' version is so much better. (No surprise.)
Also, check this out:
Speaking of some flowers, Newman Noggs said to Nicholas,
‘They belong to a sickly bedridden hump-backed boy, and seem to be the only pleasure, Mr. Nickleby, of his sad existence. How many years is it,’ said Tim, pondering, ‘since I first noticed him, quite a little child, dragging himself about on a pair of tiny crutches? Well! Well! Not many; but though they would appear nothing, if I thought of other things, they seem a long, long time, when I think of him. It is a sad thing,’ said Tim, breaking off, ‘to see a little deformed child sitting apart from other children, who are active and merry, watching the games he is denied the power to share in. He made my heart ache very often.’
And if it doesn't hit you immediately, try this:
‘They belong to a sickly bedridden hump-backed boy, and seem to be the only pleasure, Mr. Nickleby, of his sad existence. How many years is it,’ said Tim, pondering, ‘since I first noticed him, quite a little child, dragging himself about on a pair of tiny crutches? Well! Well! Not many; but though they would appear nothing, if I thought of other things, they seem a long, long time, when I think of him. It is a sad thing,’ said Tim, breaking off, ‘to see a little deformed child sitting apart from other children, who are active and merry, watching the games he is denied the power to share in. He made my heart ache very often.’
Day 18 (DDRD 1,727) July 24, 2022
Read to page 150.
Another new vocabulary word: elicit. Which means 1. a thing which has survived from an earlier period or in a primitive form or 2. (archaic) a widow.
And here are some thoughts on love"
"Mystery and disappointment are not absolutely indispensable to the growth of love, but they are, very often, its powerful auxiliaries. ‘Out of sight, out of mind,’ is well enough as a proverb applicable to cases of friendship, though absence is not always necessary to hollowness of heart, even between friends, and truth and honesty, like precious stones, are perhaps most easily imitated at a distance, when the counterfeits often pass for real. Love, however, is very materially assisted by a warm and active imagination: which has a long memory, and will thrive, for a considerable time, on very slight and sparing food. Thus it is, that it often attains its most luxuriant growth in separation and under circumstances of the utmost difficulty...."
Day 19 (DDRD 1,728) July 25, 2022
Read to page 180.
Day 20 (DDRD 1,729) July 26, 2022
Read to page 214 (end of Chapter XLVI...of LXV). Which is 46 of 65, so 19 chapters to go. AKA 497 - 214 = 283 pages, and since I seem to be reading at least 30 pages per day without stress, it's looking like 9 more days will do it here.
Although I might have to read a bit more later on today, as we're in a part of the story which (1) wasn't in the movie and (2) I don't have any memory of from when I previously read the book, and it's some pretty exciting stuff, actually. John Browdie has a much bigger (and better) part in the novel than was even hinted at in the movie...and at every turn he proves himself to be in the Good People category. I also am quite fond of the way he talks, even though it takes me a bit of extra time to sound it out, as Dickens writes the words as Browdie would pronounce them (e.g. "Ar wouldn’t mak’ ill words amang my neeburs, and ar speak tiv’ee quiet loike. But I’m dom’d if ar can gang to bed and not tellee, for weedur’s sak’, to keep the lattle boy from a’ sike scoondrels while there’s a harse to hoold in a’ Lunnun, or a gootther to lie asleep in!”)*
I know it's too early for me to be gaining any confidence in the idea, but as I round the clubhouse turn to my 5th volume of THE CENTENNIAL DICKENS (about 14% of the oeuvre), I'm beginning to think that I actually will end up reading The Complete Dickens... a fixation I'd thought no longer possible until I started to do it.
* And that's a pretty easy one, actually.
Day 21 (DDRD 1,730) July 27, 2022
Read to page 255.
Day 22 (DDRD 1,731) July 28, 2022
Read to page 295. I will probably have to read a bit more later on today, however, as some Very Exciting Stuff is about to happen between Sir Mulberry Hawk & young Lord Verisopht.
Speaking of Lord Verisopht...it used to really irritate me the way Dickens names characters to indicate something (or everything) about the character's character.) No need to wonder if the schoolmaster Mr. M'Choakumchild is a good guy or not, as a for instance. Now? Well, it kind of amuses me. Maybe I don't take this kind of thing as seriously as I once did. Maybe I was just so much older than and am younger than that now. At any rate...Lord Verisopht = Lord Very Soft, which indicates that he has no moral backbone, and thus falls into debt and falls under the influence of Sir Mulberry Hawk, who is a true, honest-to-goodness asshole. HowEVer...things have taken a turn there, haven't they? Well, we'll see how it comes out in the near future. Which is why I will probably be reading some more pages today.
Also...
I was superprised at Nicholas's diatribe - slightly over a full page long - against those who adapt works for the theater. The anger here seems uncharacteristic of him in its rudeness, and I have to wonder if Dickens hasn't peeped into his character and is grinding some personal ax...like maybe there were people who were stealing his works and adapting them (in the Torquemadian sense) to the stage?
And not for the first time I am struck by the idea that you could get some very cool names for bands from Dickens. Here are a few I noted from today's reading:
Mr Snittle Timberry (or maybe leave out the Mr.)
Pig Face
Thunder Sandwich *
Goldfish Sauce *
* Both of these come courtesy of the strange little man who throws vegetables over the garden wall in the hopes of seducing Mrs. Nickleby. He asks that someone bring him either a thunder sandwich or a fricassee of boot-tops and goldfish sauce. Who could fail to resist the charms of such a man?
And lastly, this makes me think of my ex-wife:
"...he measured his dislike - as men often do - by the extent of the injuries he had inflicted upon its object." (292)
P.S. Read a few more pages...to page 300. Have to say that I was not at all happy about how The Thing turned out.
On the other hand, here's a lovely bit of writing from early on in Chapter 51:
"In an old house, dismal dark and dusty, which seemed to have withered, like himself, and to have grown yellow and shrivelled in hoarding him from the light of day, as he had in hoarding his money, lived Arthur Gride. Meagre old chairs and tables, of spare and bony make, and hard and cold as misers’ hearts, were ranged, in grim array, against the gloomy walls; attenuated presses, grown lank and lantern-jawed in guarding the treasures they enclosed, and tottering, as though from constant fear and dread of thieves, shrunk up in dark corners, whence they cast no shadows on the ground, and seemed to hide and cower from observation. A tall grim clock upon the stairs, with long lean hands and famished face, ticked in cautious whispers; and when it struck the time, in thin and piping sounds, like an old man’s voice, rattled, as if it were pinched with hunger.
"No fireside couch was there, to invite repose and comfort. Elbow-chairs there were, but they looked uneasy in their minds, cocked their arms suspiciously and timidly, and kept upon their guard. Others, were fantastically grim and gaunt, as having drawn themselves up to their utmost height, and put on their fiercest looks to stare all comers out of countenance. Others, again, knocked up against their neighbours, or leant for support against the wall—somewhat ostentatiously, as if to call all men to witness that they were not worth the taking. The dark square lumbering bedsteads seemed built for restless dreams; the musty hangings seemed to creep in scanty folds together, whispering among themselves, when rustled by the wind, their trembling knowledge of the tempting wares that lurked within the dark and tight-locked closets."
Day 23 (DDRD 1,732) July 29, 2022
Read to page 330. A chunk of which was devoted to the Lillyvick and Kenwigs...which I could really do without. Other than their association with Newman Noggs, I really don't know why these characters are in this novel, as they seem to serve no purpose whatsoever.
On the other hand...only about 170 pages to go!
Day 24 (DDRD 1,733) July 30, 2022
Read to page 364 (end of Chapter LIV). Confrontation! Heated Arguments! Death! Rescue! Who could ask for anything more?
Day 25 (DDRD 1,734) July 31, 2022
Read to page 400. So under 100 pages, then, ennit?
Had coffee with a friend today, and one of our topics of conversation is always "What are you reading now?" After I told her about Nicholas Nickleby, she said that she might give it a go. ⚽ ⇨ 🥅 !
Oh, and here's a bit--
"Nicholas snuffed the candles, put his hands in his pockets, and, leaning back in his chair, assumed a look of patient suffering and melancholy resignation." (374)
--which shows that Dickens can be subtle when he wants to be. In this scene, Nicholas had been trying to read, but his mom kept yammering at him, and eventually he gave up. Dickens doesn't make a big deal about it, but shows how even though he puts up with her and even humors her, Nicholas does get fed up with his mom's relentless chatter at times.
Day 26 (DDRD 1,735) August 1, 2022
Read to page 430. No, went back for more and read to page 473. Mmm-hmm. So that was a big day. Engendered in part by proximity to the end of the book (now a mere 25 pages away), in part by the rather exciting plot developments, and in part due to the fact that I woke up at 3 am and was so tired for most of the day that I didn't have the energy to do anything but read.
And you know...if Jacqueline didn't have softball practice tonight, I think I'd just go ahead and finish this thing off!
Day 27 (DDRD 1,736) August 2, 2022
Read to page 497, aka The End.
And quite a satisfying read this was. And quite compelling, as can be evidenced by the fact that my average page per day rate was just a little short of 39...almost twice what I'd been shooting for. Dickens does a most excellent job of creating characters, both good and evil, and despite his sentimentality, romanticism, and optimism, he rarely parts ways with a rough sort of realism. I'm quite looking forward to The Old Curiosity Ships, which comes next...and about which I know absolutely nothing.
DDR Day 1 to 1,000: 13,449 pages read
DDR Day 1001 to Day 2000:
(1) Leviathan 63 days, 729 pages
(2) Stalingrad 27 days, 982 pages
(3) Life and Fate 26 days, 880 pages
(4) The Second World War 34 + 32 + 40 + 43 + 31 + 32 days = 212 days, 4,379 pages
(5) Baron Wenckheim's Homecoming 10 days, 572 pages
(6) The Great Bridge 25 days, 636 pages
(7) The Path Between the Seas 29 days, 698 pages
(8) Blake: Prophet Against Empire, 23 days, 523 pages
(9) Jerusalem 61 days, 1,266 pages
(10) Voice of the Fire 9 days, 320 pages
(11) The Fountainhead 15 days, 720 pages
(12) The Pacific Trilogy: Pacific Crucible 23 days, 640 pages
(13) The Pacific Trilogy: The Conquering Tide 28 days, 656 pages
(14) The Pacific Trilogy: Twilight of the Gods 31 days, 944 pages
(15) Jazz: Its Evolution and Essence 13 days, 304 pages
(16) Toward Jazz 18 days, 224 pages
(17) The Worlds of Jazz 13 days, 279 pages
(18) To Be or Not...to Bop 14 days, 571 pages
(19) Kind of Blue 4 days, 224 pages
(20) Kind of Blue: Miles Davis and his Masterpiece: 5 days, 256 pages
(21) Miles: The Autobiography 16 days, 445 pages
(21) A Love Supreme: The Story of John Coltrane's Signature Album: 8 days, 287 pages
(22) Ascension: John Coltrane and His Quest 8 days, 304 pages
(23) Living With Music: Ralph Ellison's Jazz Writings 11 days 325 pages
2nd 1K Total: 17,164 pages; Grand Total: 30,613
(24) The Pickwick Papers 28 days, 983 pages
(25) Oliver Twist 16 days, 542 pages
(26) Nicholas Nickleby 27 days, 1,045 pages
