The Sweet Dove Died

by Barbara Pym | Literature & Fiction |
ISBN: 0525483802 Global Overview for this book
Registered by Mountainwren of Bethesda, Maryland USA on 12/14/2003
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This book is in the wild! This Book is Currently in the Wild!
8 journalers for this copy...
Journal Entry 1 by Mountainwren from Bethesda, Maryland USA on Sunday, December 14, 2003
"The Sweet Dove Died, the most modern and disquieting of Barbara Pym's novels, describes a selfish aging woman's attachment to a man much younger than herself. "

To be sent to a BookCrosser in England!

Journal Entry 2 by Shylock from Skipton, North Yorkshire United Kingdom on Friday, February 13, 2004
Rec'd as a trade with kristamd-thanks very much!
I read a lot of Barbara Pym about 10years ago but can't remember which ones, but i don't think i've read this one. A bit similar to Anita Brookner/Anne Tyler-small lives in small communities, usually middle-aged women with feckless,weak men!

Journal Entry 3 by Shylock from Skipton, North Yorkshire United Kingdom on Tuesday, May 11, 2004
I loved this. A middle-aged upper middle class woman as the main character,utterly detestable in all her self-centred snobbery,but compelling,amusing and totally believable. A lady of leisure,a clothes horse and a fading beauty who regards it as her due that men should pay court with sumptuous dinners,gifts & outings,yet abhors the very idea of any intimacy that may ensue. After a chance meeting she finds two more admirers vying for her attentions-Humphrey the widowed antique dealer, and his youthful nephew...She fascinated & horrified me!

I'm thinking of doing a ring for this,in an attempt to revive a little interest in Barbara Pym, who never received the recognition she deserved in her lifetime.

adrienne10(us)
brujula(fr)
olifant(neth)
bookfrogster(uk)
shylock(uk) <-home safely,ring completed 28/2/5 ->

Journal Entry 4 by adrienne10 from Seattle, Washington USA on Wednesday, August 18, 2004
As is the way of bookcrossing, this and a few other ring/ray books have arrived all at the same time.... the week before classes start! I will get to it just as soon as I can. Thank you!

Journal Entry 5 by adrienne10 from Seattle, Washington USA on Friday, October 22, 2004
I apologize for having this book for so long. I read it over the past couple weeks. It is a short book, and I thought it would be a fast read. Unfortunately, even skimming (which is not my usual style of reading) it took forever to get through. Like most books, it picked up after page 60. Not quite enough.

I disliked this book. I found the characters flat, unsympathetic, and unlikable. I could not relate in any way to any character. I did not like the style of writing either. It seemed very exact and correct, but not necessarily easy to read. I skimmed through the end to see if the book redeemed itself in any way, but it did not for me. Lastly, I tend to wonder when reading books about the reality of actions. I wondered who acted like anybody acted in the book. I hope there are not real people like the ones depicted out there. And I hope the characters depicted are nobody's ideal.

I have brujula's address and will be sending ASAP.

Journal Entry 6 by Brujula from Valenciennes, Nord-Pas-de-Calais France on Thursday, January 6, 2005
Received today!
I have received many books lately, but I will try not to keep it over one month!
Thank you shylock, and adrienne10!

Journal Entry 7 by Brujula from Valenciennes, Nord-Pas-de-Calais France on Friday, February 4, 2005
I have really enjoyed this book. Barbara Pym has a really nice style, and she describes her characters really accurately. Of course, the main character, is a highly dislikeable spinster, selfish and self-centered. But we feel she suffers, even though she tries to be content with her life.

I mailed this book to olifant today. Happy reading!

And thank you so much, shylock, for letting me read this book.

Journal Entry 8 by Olifant from Porthmadog, Wales United Kingdom on Friday, February 11, 2005
Safely arrived in Utrecht. Thanks!

The book starts with this poem:

I had a dove, and the sweet dove died;
And I have thought it died of grieving;
O, what could it grieve for? its feet were tied
With a single thread of my own hand's weaving...
John Keats

Journal Entry 9 by Olifant from Porthmadog, Wales United Kingdom on Monday, February 14, 2005
Enjoyed this one and if I see other books by Barbara Pym I will definitely pick them up and read them. Agree with Brujula: you don't sympethize with Leonora (or Ned), but nonetheless they are very human.

Biography

Thanks for sharing. Book is off to bookfrogster today.

Journal Entry 10 by bookfrogster from Edinburgh, Scotland United Kingdom on Thursday, February 24, 2005
This arrived safely yesterday. Thanks for sending on Olifant.

Journal Entry 11 by bookfrogster from Edinburgh, Scotland United Kingdom on Saturday, February 26, 2005
I really enjoyed this tale of an extremely unlikeable spinster and her relationships. This is the first Barbara Pym I've read and it has made me want to read more by her. I liked her sly wit. Very observant. It didn't matter to me that I have never yet met chracters like those in the story. The only time when I came close to liking Leonora was when she decided never to end up in the same cycle as Meg.

Journal Entry 12 by Shylock from Skipton, North Yorkshire United Kingdom on Monday, February 28, 2005
Home sweet home, ring safely completed, happy to have found Barbara Pym a few more fans.

Journal Entry 13 by Shylock from Skipton, North Yorkshire United Kingdom on Sunday, March 6, 2005
Taking to the March meetup at The Wrens in Leeds. Hopefully it will pass through a few hands quickly cos it's thin!

Journal Entry 14 by sarax from Leeds, West Yorkshire United Kingdom on Wednesday, March 9, 2005
This was plonked in front of me with the words "you'll like this, it's thin"!

Shylock is quite right though 'too many books, too little time' means thin books pass through quicker.

Journal Entry 15 by sarax from Leeds, West Yorkshire United Kingdom on Saturday, August 6, 2005
Mostly read this in a bath in San Francisco - it came on holiday with me.

I quite enjoyed the gentleness of this but can't say that it enthralled me. Interesting way of skirting over any sexual contact - I sometimes had to go back a couple of pages to check if I'd missed something. Still not sure if James was intimate with Ned?


Journal Entry 16 by sarax at The Wrens pub, New Briggate in Leeds, West Yorkshire United Kingdom on Saturday, August 6, 2005

Released 18 yrs ago (8/9/2005 UTC) at The Wrens pub, New Briggate in Leeds, West Yorkshire United Kingdom

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Will bring to the meet....

Journal Entry 17 by worldofweasels from Leeds, West Yorkshire United Kingdom on Monday, August 15, 2005
brilliantly dry and sharp, I loved the glimpse into mid-seventies britain which still seemed so close to the mid-fifties in teashops, small indulgences, bad food and repression. Having previously read older Barbara Pym novels I was surprised by the modernity in dealing with sexual relationships compared to the older works about curates and their spinster sisters which rarely strayed beyond a chaste squeeze of the hand

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