Journal Entry 1 by fushmush from Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Monday, February 07, 2011

Eighteen-year-old Charity Royall enjoys an idyllic summer romance with visiting architect Lucius Harney, a romance marred by her life in her poor mountain community and the amorous attentions of her guardian.

Possible bookray:
TQD
CaterinaAnna (UK)
Ekranda (UK)
 

Journal Entry 2 by tqd at Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Sunday, March 27, 2011

Thanks fushmush, especially for the extra plastic wrapping on the book on this wet and miserable autumn day! What wonderful weather to read a book called Summer, only I've got several other books that need to be read first (dagnabbit). I love Edith Wharton, I'm looking forward to this one. 

Journal Entry 3 by tqd at Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Saturday, September 03, 2011

Charity Royall as a baby was brought down from The Mountain, an area solely peopled with godless criminals, and is brought up by a relatively wealthy lawyer in the small town on North Dormer. She is now a wilful young woman, delighted with her ability to manipulate the besotted Mr Royall, contemptuous of small town life, but frightened of the larger towns nearby.

This was a pretty good read, but not my favourite Edith Wharton. I read (many years ago, I must confess) her New York books: The Age of Innocence, The Custom of the Country, and The House of Mirth and enjoyed them very, very much. They're set in a much older New York than I'm familiar with, and are peopled with upper class, or aspiring-to-upper-class, characters. I even favourably compared them to Jane Austen at the time! (I wouldn't do that now, mind, and I'm not quite sure what my much younger self was thinking then.)

Now in the last year or so I've read Ethan Frome and now Summer. They are both set in quite a different milieu from New York: rural (or small village) America. The characters are poor/struggling/getting by, there's lots of "ain't", and the plots lean towards the gothic. (At one stage in Summer, I'm sure there was summat nasty in the woodshed.)

I did enjoy it, it's definitely more earthy than Jane Austen and the Brontes (the only other "classic" female authors I've read), but it's not the sort of book I'd return to, unlike her New York stories. The main characters aren't as appealing (the main character in Summer is fairly unappealing, really, with her manipulation of those around her) and the plot isn't as satisfying.

If you liked Ethan Frome, you'll probably like Summer. But if you're more of a fan of watching another era's high culture and society than grubbing around with the poorer people (guilty as charged), then maybe you should just keep away from her more Gothic works.

I sent CaterinaAnna a message a week or two ago, but haven't heard back. I'll get this one moving again asap, thanks FushMush! 

Journal Entry 4 by tqd at Sydney, New South Wales Australia on Tuesday, September 06, 2011

Released 8 mos ago (9/6/2011 UTC) at Sydney, New South Wales Australia

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Popped in the mail to CaterinaAnna today!

Happy reading! 

Journal Entry 5 by Caterinaanna at Coventry, West Midlands United Kingdom on Friday, September 16, 2011

Arrived safely. Thank you tqd. 

Journal Entry 6 by Caterinaanna at Coventry, West Midlands United Kingdom on Friday, September 23, 2011

I can't say I enjoyed this slight novel: mostly because I didn't get drawn into it or feel particularly sympathetic towards Charity. When the story is simply 'girl with limited horizons dreams of escape, has a summer romance which comes to naught and settles for the best she can get' then I would expect far more from the characters than I felt I was given here. I didn't really feel I knew the men at all.

The blurb and the introduction suggested that Mr Royall's attentions were possibly more than those explicitly described, but I could neither see the evidence nor, given the mores of the society, the need for it as an explanation of his level of remorse - therefore even that was not enough to make me think charitably of Charity.

Sorry, but this is one of those whose inclusion on the list mystifies me.
 

Journal Entry 7 by Caterinaanna at Nottingham, Nottinghamshire United Kingdom on Friday, September 23, 2011

Released 8 mos ago (9/23/2011 UTC) at Nottingham, Nottinghamshire United Kingdom

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Taking to the Uncon for ekranda. 

Journal Entry 8 by ekranda at Northampton, Northamptonshire United Kingdom on Saturday, October 01, 2011

Was given this at Nottingham Uncon...sorry it's taken me so long to journal it life has been busy!! Am currently reading a book as soon as i finish i will read this one! Thanks for sharing. 

Journal Entry 9 by ekranda at Northampton, Northamptonshire United Kingdom on Sunday, October 16, 2011

I found this story rather enjoyable. I liked the main character, despite her flaws...she was rather vain, self centred etc yet there was more depth to her somehow, plus she had the excuse of being young! Charity needed to go on a journey in order to learn some very important lessons..which we can only hope led to her becoming less self centred at the end of it...I must admit though, that I felt a little let down when i reached the ending ...i felt it was perhaps a little abrupt...i wanted to know more!!!!!

Thank you very much for sharing this with me and all the way from Australia too!! As I am the last on the list i intend to take this to a bookcrossing zone where it should meet a new reader! 

Journal Entry 10 by ekranda at Somwhere in the forest or visitors area in Salcey Forest, Northamptonshire United Kingdom on Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Released 6 mos ago (11/16/2011 UTC) at Somwhere in the forest or visitors area in Salcey Forest, Northamptonshire United Kingdom

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

Meeting up with friends for a walk at Salcey tomorrow and thought i'd bring some books with me.

Hello and welcome to Bookcrossing!
Thanks for picking up this book. Treat it nicely, enjoy reading it and let everyone know what you thought of it here; you can be anonymous if you like or you might want to join Bookcrossing, if you do you can follow the book's onward journey. Then, pass it on when the time is right.
 

Journal Entry 11 by Cinderess at Salcey Forest, Northamptonshire United Kingdom on Wednesday, November 16, 2011

As if I needed any more books. But this sounded like such an interesting, and fast, read that I succumbed! I also came home to a free brand new novel to make matters worse tee hee.

Thanks EKR. :-) 

Journal Entry 12 by Cinderess at Camel & Artichoke - OBCZ in Waterloo, Greater London United Kingdom on Monday, December 12, 2011

Released 5 mos ago (12/13/2011 UTC) at Camel & Artichoke - OBCZ in Waterloo, Greater London United Kingdom

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

I didn't end up reading this so thought I'd pass it on. Maybe I'll come across another copy sometime.


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Journal Entry 13 by marsala at Chiswick, Greater London United Kingdom on Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Picked it up from the meetup.  

Journal Entry 14 by marsala at -- Somewhere in Chiswick in Chiswick, Greater London United Kingdom on Saturday, January 28, 2012

Released 4 mos ago (1/26/2012 UTC) at -- Somewhere in Chiswick in Chiswick, Greater London United Kingdom

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

Nearly forgot to make releasenotes for this book. Left it in a coffeeplace on chiswick highroad.