Day 0 (DDRD 1,999) April 22, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read from i to 5 (9 pages). It was unpleasant.
Day 1 (DDRD 2,000) April 23, 2023
As for this Bleak House...this so-called Bleak House....
Volume I XXV + 540, Volume II V + 528. (Both volumes printed in Switzerland, by the way.) So a grand total of...1,098 pages. That's a lot of spicy meatball, for sure. In fact, it's the longest Dickens work yet. At 30 pages per day it would be a 37 day journey. But I'm thinking of doing a 25 pages per day / 44 day journey...and doing 5 pages per day of Miscellaneous Papers Volume II alongside it. That tome is IV + 490 = 494 (and printed in France), so it would take 99 days at that rate, which would (obviously) take me beyond Bleak House, but that would allow me to finish up the non-fiction Dickens with much less suffering than I've endured in previous ventures. I'll try it out and see how it feels. *
At any rate...I'm finally back to a Dickens novel after far too long away (The Uncommercial Traveler, A Child's History of England, Reprinted Pieces, and Miscellaneous Papers Volume I), and I am definitely ready for The Good Stuff.
So let's go.
Read to page XXV...so didn't actually start the novel, but today's a church day (arrive 9:30 for 11 o'clock service, as Jacqueline has choir practice before the service), so I might be able to read a bit more if Joe lets me.
The Introduction by Sir Osbert Sitwell (whose Before the Bombardment sounds like an interesting read--note to self) was worthy of remark in that while it briefly alluded to Dickens' faults, it was overwhelmingly laudatory, and you never got the impression that Osbert was casting shade the way that most (maybe all) of the other Introductionists do. (Tell me that its human nature, ah, ah.)
Day 1 (DDRD 2,000) April 23, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 13 (8 pages).
Word of the Day: defalcation
noun
de·fal·ca·tion ˌdē-ˌfal-ˈkā-shən ˌdē-ˌfȯl-, di-; ˌde-fəl-
1 archaic : DEDUCTION
2 : the act or an instance of embezzling
3 : a failure to meet a promise or an expectation
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/defalcation
Other than that...nothing of interest, I'm sorry to say.
But it was nice to only read 1/4th of what I normally would have read for a day's DDR work.
* Ahn da udder hund...if I read 6 pages a day, it would only take 82 days. And if I pushed it to 7, it would be down to 71. 8? 62. Hmmmm.
Day 2 (DDRD 2,001) April 24, 2023
Read to page 25. With the extended opening description of foggy, murky London I had a brief moment thinking, "This isn't as good as I remembered it being." Then everything slid into place and the pages flew by. Ah, Dickens...I've missed you so!
Day 2 (DDRD 2,001) April 24, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 21 (8 pages).
There was some talk of fairies in one piece...
and (too) many jokes about Going To The Dogs
in another. And nothing else.
Day 3 (DDRD 2,002) April 25, 2023
Read to page 60. It's amazing how easy it is to be carried along by this story...and how clever and engaging Dickens' writing is. Especially with Miscellaneous Papers Volume II as immediate contrast. I could easily read another thirty pages of this book. But instead (sigh) I'm going to drag myself through 8 pages of👉👉👉👉👉👉👉👉👇
Day 3 (DDRD 2,002) April 25, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 29 (8 pages). Finished the dog piece (not amusing) and started the "Arabian Nights" farce
(I am not amused). Thought about reading A little
more, just to make some distance...but couldn't do it.
Day 4 (DDRD 2,003) April 26, 2023
Read to page 85. Ah, Dickens descriptions are so superb ofttimes:
"He was short, cadaverous, and withered, with his head sunk sideways between his shoulders and the breath issuing in visible smoke from his mouth as if he were on fire within. His throat, chin, and eyebrows were so frosted with white hairs and so gnarled with veins and puckered skin that he looked from his breast upward like some old root in a fall of snow." (61)
In other news, just noticed this
in the front of the book. Which is strange, because (1) did the writer die before putting down that final number? and (2) this book doesn't look like it's ever been read before. Oh, and (3), as I write, it's April 202. So at least 43 years later. Possibly 52.
Day 4 (DDRD 2,003) April 26, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 37 (8 pages). More Arabian Nights tomfoolery. I don't know why Dickens bought anyone would be
amused by this bullshit.
Day 5 (DDRD 2,004) April 27, 2023
Read to page 111.
Seems to me that this book's Harold Skimpole is the parallel of David Copperfield's Richard Babley (Mr. Dick). Both are essentially useless people who live off of the generosity of others and do exactly what they want to do...very much like well cared for children. In fact, Skimpole is even referred to as a Child. I wonder if this is Dickens' longing for a childhood he didn't receive--pampered, secure, and loved, with absolute freedom to pursue his own joys. I'm also wondering if there are analogous characters in other books whom I missed.
Dickens sure does like to allude to Macbeth...especially the phrase "beguile the time" ("To beguile the time, / Look like the time...." Act I, Scene v, lines 74-75). I haven't kept track of how many times this line has popped up, and I certainly don't have the wherewithall to go back and track it, but suffice it to say that it crops up A LOT.
Day 5 (DDRD 2,004) April 27, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 45. We're STILL in the "Arabian Nights."
It's not even a little bit good.
You know, it wouldn't kill me to take a day or two
off from this side hustle, would it?
Sigh. 449 bottles of beer on the wall, 449 bottles of beer....
Day 6 (DDRD 2,005) April 28, 2023
Read to page 141. Couldn't stop at 25 pages. Didn't even want to stop at 30. Met Mrs. Pardiggle today. What a perfect depiction of the blowhard do-gooder. And the but about her constantly knocking things over with her skirts was really quite funny.
A friend of mine has told me several times (yep, he's one of THOSE) how a fellow teacher was mortified when I assigned my incoming AP seniors Bleak House for summer reading. Friend did this with such glee that I began to feel guilty about it, wondering what had possessed me to be so cruel to 17 year-old children. But reading this book again is erasing my chagrin. This is not only a great book, it's also a good book...even a FUN book. It deserves to be read.
Day 6 (DDRD 2,005) April 28, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 73 (28 pages!)...but not because
I couldn't stop. In fact, I could have stopped without compunction a page in. Or a paragraph. Or a sentence. But I had some waiting in the car time, so I thought I'd try to pack in a few extra pages of this thing.
I'm happy to say that I finished off that miserable "Arabian Nights" bit, and read another few
...all equally bad, I'm sorry to say.
It never ceases to amaze me that the man who wrote Bleak House also wrote this 👚.
P.S. I was using dictation for this, and Google doesn't want me to say shit. It gave me an S with 3 *. When I went to erase the *s, this picture of a toilet with a piece of s*** in it came up. Oh. Excuse me. I actually did think this was a toilet with a piece of s*** floating in it. Apparently it is a shirt.
My bad.
P.P.S. For future reference (and to help me keep hold
of my hope for making it through this mess), here's how
the rest of this volume breaks down. The li'l essays / stories
go to page 250. Then from 251 - 459 we get Plays.
And from pages 460 - 490 we get Poems.
I don't know if that helps or not, but there it is.
Day 7 (DDRD 2,006) April 29, 2023
Read to page 170.
Day 7 (DDRD 2,006) April 29, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 83 (10 pages).
Day 8 (DDRD 2,007) April 30, 2023
Read to page 195.
Day 8 (DDRD 2,007) April 30, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 109 (26 pages, Church). The last piece I read today,
"A Nightly Scene in London," was a moving 5 page
description of Dickens (or possibly "Dickens," but it
seemed like Dickens to me) coming upon five
women sleeping on the street and helping them
out with money for food and lifting for the night.
Day 9 (DDRD 2,008) May 1, 2023
Read to page 221.
Day 9 (DDRD 2,008) May 1, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 119 (10 pages). Murderers & stuff.
Day 10 (DDRD 2,009) May 2, 2023
Read to page 251. Hadn't actually meant to read 30 pages this morning...but there it is. Starting to look forward to watching the 2005 miniseries version of this novel...available from the LFPL, of course. (Though I do have it on vhs.)
Day 10 (DDRD 2,009) May 2, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 128 (9 pages). That's 26% done (🙂)...
74% to go (🙄).
P.S. I was locked in a church for an hour and a half (choir practice), so I did some more time with this wretched book. Read to page 139. Then I couldn't take it any more,
so I turned to the Poetry section and read that...pages
460 to 490. That's right, 30 pages of poetry. Bad poetry.
REALly bad poetry.
😬😬😬😬😬
Day 11 (DDRD 2,010) May 3, 2023
Read to page 275. Didn't even notice that I'd passed the halfway point of Volume I. You know why? Because it's THAT good. So take that, Bill M.
Day 11 (DDRD 2,010) May 3, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 152 (13 pages). Read a bit more today
because "Curious Misprint in The 'Edinburgh Review'"
actually started off kind of interesting...Dickens
proving that a reviewer of one of his novels didn't
know what he was talking about...
but after a few pages it was back into the murk, alack.
Day 12 (DDRD 2,011) May 4, 2023
Read to page 300.
Day 12 (DDRD 2,011) May 4, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 160. More Medium mockery. Not that I mind
that...but we've been down this road so many times....
Day 13 (DDRD 2,012) May 5, 2023
Read to page 325. Also found out that the 2005 miniseries version of Bleak House is on Hulu. Going to be watching some of that in the near future. Also, there's this bit:
"He doesn't impose upon me the necessity of rolling myself up like a hedgehog with my points outward." (305)
That's a good thing to find in a fellow human being.
Day 13 (DDRD 2,012) May 5, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 181 (21 pages). Umbrella, New Year's Eve
...nope. One interesting thought, but I put that HERE.
Day 14 (DDRD 2,013) May 6, 2023
Read to page 350. And hey, lookee there: less than 200 pages to go in Volume I. And it's still magical!
Day 14 (DDRD 2,013) May 6, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 192. Thought I'd caught a typo (of which there have
been a few...but very few) when I read the word "stertorously." I was sure that the word meant was "stentoriously." But one of the gifts
of old age and general increptitude is a lack of faith in one's self,
so I Googled. And lo and behold, stertorously means
"With heavy breathing, as if snoring; in a stertorous manner." (https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/stertorously?fbclid=IwAR103pvg7DvjXtucDsAPRg3q0-71SYSSmV8Sa1slj-9WHbG7XjIb1ZUGpHk)
So this book might suck, but at least it is teaching me a few
words I didn't know before. (Always look on the bright side of life.)
Speaking of the bright side...it looks like I am averaging 12.8
pages per day in this book...considerably more than I was hoping for. But that is a testament to my fortitude & my desire to get finished, not to the quality of the writing here. It truly sucks.
Oh, and P.S., tomorrow I enter the final section of "essays"
(don't know that they deserve to be identified as such, hence "")
and since I've already read the (shitty) poems, that means I only have the PLAYS left after that.
Day 15 (DDRD 2,014) May 7, 2023
Read to page 375. Enter Mr. Bucket. I can't remember why, but I liked this character quite a but, as I recall.
Day 15 (DDRD 2,014) May 7, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 200. 8 pages. One of which was blank, and another of which was a title page...but I need alk the help I can get to make it through this book. 259 pages to go!)
Day 16 (DDRD 2,015) May 8, 2023
Read to page 400.
There were several references to a " bull's eye" in today's reading. I thought it might be an old term for a flashlight, but I had a look-see just to be sure, and
 |
| https://www.peoplescollection.wales/items/7328#?xywh=-375%2C400%2C1302%2C799 |
So there you have it. Yes, it would be very nice to be reading A heavily illustrated, annotated version of this most excellent book.
Day 16 (DDRD 2,015) May 8, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 208 (8 pages).
Day 17 (DDRD 2,016) May 9, 2023
Read to page 425. I'm not sure, since (1) I just met him this time around and (2) I don't remember much from my first read, but I'm pretty sure that I live Mr. George.
Day 17 (DDRD 2,016) May 9, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 217 (9 pages).
Day 18 (DDRD 2,017) May 10, 2023
Read to page 450.
Day 18 (DDRD 2,017) May 10, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 229 (12 pages).
Day 19 (DDRD 2,018) May 11, 2023
Read to page 475.
Dickens makes a reference to a "paviour's hammer." I found a picture--
--which had (in part) this caption:
So there's a Paviour's rammer for you.
Maybe I should just annotate this book myself.
Day 19 (DDRD 2,018) May 11, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 237 (8 pages).
Day 20 (DDRD 2,019) May 12, 2023
Read to page 500...which means a mere 36 pages to go in Volume I, and I'm pretty sure ill be finishing those up tomorrow--if not before. This been continues to be interesting...at times fascinating. Too bad the same can't be said for👉👉👉👇
Day 20 (DDRD 2,019) May 12, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 250...which is the end of the "essays" (thank you, Jesus). Now I have 209 pages of plays in between me and the end of this odious book, and I'm just going to put my head down and grind it out. I regret to say that these plays are not written in typical play form, as that would really speed things along.They are written more in the form of short stories or essays, so it's not going to be a quick 200 pages. Sigh.
P.S. Had more than a little bit of waiting time, so I decided to have a look at the first play, The Strange Gentleman. And it was no great shakes, but it was a bit interesting, and the change of genre was welcome bland maybe did shave a few words off of each page, despite appearances...so I ended up reading the whole thing (to page 286!).
It was a mediocre play with a truly shitty ending, but hey...it was a 50 page day, so 🎩s off to Harper.
Maybe this won't be such a long "200" pages. (Only 173 now.)
P.S. I started thinking about the name Nemo, and wondered if Dickens could have been inspired by Jules Verne's famous submarine captain. So I Googled. This beauty
was published March 1869 to June 1870 (as serial), 1870 (book form) and in English 1872.
Bleak House was published March 1852 to September 1853, and in book form 1853.
So what I meant to say was...I wonder if Jules Verne was inspired to name his famous submarine captain after Dickens' character iin Bleak House?
P.P.S. Only 5 plays to go in Miscellaneous Papers Volume II. It will all be over soon!
P.P.P.S. Watched some more of the BBC Bleak House...to the end of Episode 2. It is really good...though I have to say that (sorry) this Esther isn't pretty enough to fit the bill that's posted. (Neither is Lady Dedlock, for that matter.)
Day 21 (DDRD 2,020) May 13, 2023
Read to page 536--The End of Volume I. And a most wonderful volume it was indeed, and with a breathless cliffhanger as well. My memory is so poor that I can't recall how this cliffhanger will be resolved, so despite having a 36 page day, I'm STILL tempted to read on into Volume II. But I won't. At least not until after I do my 8 pages in 👇
Day 21 (DDRD 2,020) May 13, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 298 (12 pages).
P.S. Had some time, so went back in for some more of "The Village Coquettes." This is not as good as the not good previous play, but its not mind numbing, at least. Stopped at page 307. Which leaves 29 more pages for this one. I'd love to finish it off, but that's probably not going to happen today. But hey, 21 pages isn't a bad day, is it?
P.S. Got back to it and read to page 317 (31 page day). PROBably could push through the final 19 and finish this play tonight...but I don't wanna.
Day 22 (DDRD 2,021) May 14, 2023
Read to page 26 of Volume II...and it was🔥Spontaneous Combustion Time!🔥 Dickens includes some pretty disgusting details here: fat dripping off the windoes, the smell if cooking pork chops, und so weiter.
Also, this:
Which would imply that the previous reader put Volume I down in a month or so (see above...way above). Strange thing, though, is that this Volume, as with Volume I, does not appear to have been read. The cover is intact and the ribbon has not been moved for from the Factory Setting. Curious and curiouser.
Day 22 (DDRD 2,021) May 14, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 336 (19 pages), which finishes off "The Village Coquettes." It wasn't good, but it wasn't terrible, at least.
Four plays to go now, and these are shorter, so maybe I can polish them off one a day (?).
Just a tad bit more than 100 pages to go, at any rate.
On page 318, Flam asks (in an aside) "What weathercock morality is this?" in response to Squire's saying that he regrets the harsh words he said to his tenant farmer the other day. I thought that "weather cock morality" was a fine phrase to describe the politicians our day...and possibly a good band name.
P.S. Had another go at it and read to the end of "Is She His Wife? or, Something Singular!" (to page 356--making today a quite impressive 39 page day). This play was pretty bad, but I have to admit that the pages went by quickly, so at least there was that. And Oh!: 100 pages to go!
Watched Episode 3 of the BBC Bleak House...and the ending was quite touching, courtesy of Mr. Bucket.
Day 23 (DDRD 2,022) May 15, 2023
Read to page 50. At one point, Mr. Bagnet says (of his wife) to George, "I'll tell you what. The old girl's weight—is twelve stone six. Would I take that weight—in any metal—for the old girl? No. Why not? Because the old girl's metal is far more precious—than the preciousest metal. And she's ALL metal!"
Which I thought was funny and kind of sweet. And since there weren't any ANNOTATIONS to guide me, I Googled and found that "12 stone 6...equals 174...pounds."
https://stonetopounds.com/12-stone-6-in-pounds
Which struck me as pretty impressive for a woman... especially in the mid-19th century, when the average weight of a woman was 112 pounds.
(https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan-history/2016/01/23/diet-exercise-th-century-detroit/79242306/).
In other news, there was a typo in today's reading:
Typos are pretty rare in these books, which I appreciate, but after all, they are 150 years old (give or take), and have been read by millions of people, so you'd think all of the bugs would have been beaten out of the rugs by now. Fucking Heron Books. And you know what makes it even worse? Check out this screenshot from Project Gutenberg:
Day 23 (DDRD 2,022) May 15, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 382--thus finishing "The Lamplighter." Which was not terrible, but was not as good as the previous play, which was not as good as the play which preceded it, which was inferior to the first. Which wasn't very good. (I don't know why...perhaps she'll die.)
Day 24 (DDRD 2,023) May 16, 2023
Read to page 75. Poor Esther!😢😢😭
Day 24 (DDRD 2,023) May 16, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 390 (8 pages).
Might try to read more, but it's been a long, long , so maybe not. On the + side...only 70 pages to go!
Day 25 (DDRD 2,024) May 17, 2023
Read to page 100. I also finished Part 4 (of 8) of the BBC adaptation, which is almost even with where I am in the book. So I'll have to put the brakes on that. I was particularly struck by Katie Angelou's performance as Charley. Her reaction to Esther's "misfortune" was very moving. So I MDb-ed her and was surprised to discover that she had very few credits--a total of 9, and Bleak House the only substantial one. Hmmm.
Day 25 (DDRD 2,024) May 17, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 410 (20 wretched pages). This play, "Mr. Nightingale's Diary," which was co-written by one Mark Lemon, was just awful. A mistaken identity farce which just went on and on. The good news? Only one more play, and then I leave this Volume behind. The bad news? The last play is 50 pages long. Well...maybe it won't suck.
Mmm-hmm.
Day 26 (DDRD 2,025) May 18, 2023
Read to page 126. Wow, Mr. Guppy is such a turd!
Day 26 (DDRD 2,025) May 18, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 423.
Before I started reading "No Thoroughfare," I Googled the title and was aghast to learn (from Wikipedia, of course) that in addition to the play, there was a (short) novel of the same name. I went over to Project Gutenberg for the novel, compared it to the play, and immediately saw that there were substantial differences between the two--it wasn't just a matter of re-formatting. And I began to wonder, "Should I read the novel, too?" After all, if I'm planning on claiming to have read The Complete Dickens someday (as indeed I am), how could I ignore a novel? And with that millstone necklace, I began to read the play. It didn't get off to a promising start. The descriptions of characters' costumes went on and on--so much so that I had to wonder if it was meant as farcical. (Alas, I concluded that it was not.) And then I lurched into the play itself, thinking that I'd be hard put to choke down eight pages of THIS rot. And rot it was. Yet another Mistaken Identity thang. (Why does that trope so fascinate Dickens?) But as I read, I began to think, "This is very familiar." And then it hit me: I had read this before. I went back to previous blog entries and there it was in my Dickens Christmas Project: "No Thoroughfare." The novel. I guess it was so bad that I repressed the memory.
And now...here I go again.
36 pages to go.
P.S. Took another bite...to page 431. 28 pages to go.
Is it possible that I could finish this wretched thing off tomorrow?????
Day 27 (DDRD 2,026) May 19, 2023
Read to 160.
Day 27 (DDRD 2,026) May 19, 2023
Miscellaneous Papers Volume II
Read to page 459, the end of the PLAYS section, and since I'd already read the POEMS section, that means The End of this stinking Volume. But more than that: with this, I've finished all of the non-novel Volumes in The Complete Dickens. It's been quite a chore. Of the 11 non-novel Volumes, only two of them (American Notes / Pictures From Italy and A Child's History of England) were good / worth reading. If you love Dickens, you should avoid all of the non-novels except for AN/PFI & ACHoE. And "A Christmas Carol," of course. The rest of it will only damage your love, though. Trust me, I've been there.
Day 28 (DDRD 2,027) May 20, 2023
Read to page 202. Feels good to be free of that second DDR book... and so much sooner than I thought I could be free of it. Ended up with a 17.6 average page per day rate, and my goal was 8. A goal I thought might be too ambitious, actually. Geez, if I had stuck to 8 ppd, I'd still have 34 reading days ahead of me. And I probably have 10 days or less of Bleak House in front of me.
Speaking of which, even though I love this novel dearly, as the romance between Esther and John Jarndyce becomes more prominent, it pains me more than a little bit. The story of an old (don't know if the book told us how old John is, but I'm picturing mid-forties at minimum) guy falling in love with a young girl (I think Esther is still a teenager, and at most is in her early twenties) just hits too close to home to me for it not to hurt. My Esther was the great love of my life, and even though it's been years since I last had any communication with her, I literally think about her every day. And though I'm loathe to admit it, I miss her. So, yes: painful.
Day 29 (DDRD 2,028) May 21, 2023
Read to page 230.
Day 30 (DDRD 2,029) May 22, 2023
Read to page 260.
Day 31 (DDRD 2,030) May 23, 2023
Read to page 290. 528 - 290 = 238 pages to go. That's eight days!
You know, somebody should have written a series of stories about Inspector Bucket. But so far as I know, nobody has. Hmmm.
Day 32 (DDRD 2,031) May 24, 2023
Read to page 320.
Day 33 (DDRD 2,032) May 25, 2023
Read to page 365. Also watched Part 5 of the BBC Bleak House. I've put off watching for a bit, mostly out of fear that I'd get ahead of the reading, but watching this morning made me wonder anew at how good this production is. Also thinking I need to see more of Anna Maxwell Martin, who plays Esther, and found that she's in a movie called Becoming Jane (about You-Know-Who) that I might have to have a look at in the near future.
Day 34 (DDRD 2,033) May 26, 2023
Read to page 402. Also watched Parts 6 and 7 of the BBC version. They made some pretty big changes in the storyline, which I was a bit disappointed about, but it's still good. Probably won't watch any more until I finish the book, though.
Day 35 (DDRD 2,034) May 27, 2023
Read to page 431--so less than 100 pages to go now. Also watched the first half of the BBC thing, and damn it, got a little bit ahead of my reading. Worse, it showed something that I didn't remember happening. That's life, though.
Day 36 (DDRD 2,035) May 28, 2023
Read to page 475. Which means that 2 more days will finish this one off. Maybe 1 if I fall in...as I did this morning (44 pages). This is a soap opera, for sure, but a really good soap opera. One that has a social conscience, a sense of humor, and some truly great characters. I can't imagine anyone not loving this novel. Not even Bill Mattingly.
Day 37 (DDRD 2,036) May 29, 2023
Read to page 510...which leaves a mere 18 pages. And some stuff is happening that I don't remember at ALL from my previous reading (and watching), so...what say we just dive back in and put this one to rest, eh?
And...whoop, there it is. Onward to Hard Times. Bleak House was a great read, very enjoyable.
DDR Day 1 to 1,000: 13,449 pages read, 13.45 Average Pages Per Day
A History of Philosophy Volumes I - XI
History of Civilization in England by Volumes I - III
Miscellaneous and Posthumous Works of Henry Thomas Buckle Volumes I - III
Civilization and Capitalism, 16th - 18th Century Volumes I - III
The Mediterranean and the Mediterranean World in the Age of Philip IIl Volumes I - III
This Happened In My Presence: Moriscos, Old Christians, and the Spanish Inquisition in the Town of Deza, 1569-1611
The Stolen Village: Baltimore and the Barbary Pirates
Peat and Peat Cutting
+
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(24) The Pickwick Papers 28 days, 983 pages
(25) Oliver Twist 16 days, 542 pages
(26) Nicholas Nickleby 27 days, 1,045 pages
(27) The Old Curiosity Shop 22 days, 753 pages
(28) Barnaby Rudge 24 days, 866 pages
(30) Martin Chuzzlewit 32 days, 1,045 pages
(31) American Notes 10 days, 324 pages
(32) Pictures From Italy 7 days, 211 pages
(33) Christmas Stories Volume I 10 days, 456 pages
(34) Christmas Stories Volume II 15 days, 472 pages(35) Christmas Books 17 days, 525 pages
(36) The Annotated Christmas Carol 7 days, 380 pages
(37) Dombey and Son 30 days, 1,089 pages
(38) Sketches by Boz 22 days, 834 pages
2nd 1K Total: 26,834 pages (to SBBII) = 28.76 Average Pages Per Day
Grand Total: 40,273 pages, 20.83 Average Pages Per Day
(39) David Copperfield 21 days, 1,092 pages(40) The Uncommercial Traveller 12 days, 440 pages
(41) A Child's History of England 10 days, 491 pages
(42) Reprinted Pieces 14 days, 368 pages
(43) Miscellaneous Papers Volume I 18 days, 542 pages
+ 25 pages Bleak Hose and 9 pages Miscellaneous Papers II = 2,000 days' worth.
2nd 1K Total: 29,801pages = 29.8 Average Pages Per Day
Grand Total: 43,250 pages, 21.625 Average Pages Per Day
(44) Miscellaneous Papers Volume II 28 days (don't count, while reading BH), 494 pages
(45) Bleak House 37 days, 1,098 pages
