1001 Group Read: Cold Comfort Farm

My book shipped today. But for those of you who already have a book and are plowing through it right now, here is the discussion thread I promised to put up. Can't wait to read your comments and thoughts.

I just ordered a copy so I will make a concerted effort to read this one next.

I read Cold Comfort Farm fairly recently (too soon to re-read it, at any rate). It's good fun, I hope you all enjoy it!

ordered here, I have hopes to catch up

What a strange book! I hated Flora right from the beginning (meddling little twit) but once I realised that this is really a spoof of other writers, I got right into it. It was fun trying to play 'pin the character on the character(s) they are based on'.

Waiting on my copy to arrive so I can join in.

yes, very important to realise that this is a satire on 19th-20th century romantic fiction. If you don't, it can be a frustrating read. If you do, it's hiliarious, esp if you are a fan of that genre.

I got my copy out and had it sitting on the table this weekend ready to grab when a good reading moment came along. Then my current house guest (2011 has been the year of overseas visitors it seems... and my books seem to be leaving the country when they leave too.) picked it up read the back and asked if she could read it. Me being all very polite said it was ok when in reality I was thinking "damn damn damn". Maybe she'll read it quickly but as she's Italian and English is her second language it may take a while... sigh. I own like 300+ books but she HAD to choose that one lol.

Kiwi, I have reached the point that I absolutely refuse to loan out a book unless I make out a card with a date and the name of the person I loaned it too. I never get the book back, but at least I have someone I can blame. hahahaha!!

I actually got a library kit for my birthday and it comes with a stamp, little pockets and date due cards. Now to learn how to lend out my precious little books :)

My copy showed up yesterday in the mail and I started into it last night. Hilarious!! The metaphores and the literary style is absolutely preposterous. And you gotta love the characters for being totally ridiculous. But I know some people who are like that.

I remember seeing the movie of the book a few years ago. A young, gorgeous Rufus Sewell appeared in it. The film was hilarious and I recommend watching it after reading the book. I'm still waiting on my copy of Cold Comfort Farm to arrive. Each day I check my doorstep only to be disappointed again.

OK. I give up. I think we need to have a vigorous discussion as to what "sukebind" is. My thought is that it is something like hay or perhaps something like milo that is used in making cattle feed. All guesses are welcomed. Considering that this is a ridiculous discussion, the more ridiculous your guess is, the better.

According to Wikipedia, sukebind in the context of this story means:

sukebind (a weed whose flowering in the spring symbolises the quickening of sexual urges in man and beast; the word is presumably formed by analogy to 'woodbine', honeysuckle and bindweed)

Of course, it also says:

The speech of the Sussex characters is a parody of rural dialects (in particular Sussex and West Country accents — another parody of novelists who use phonics to portray various accents and dialects) and is sprinkled with fake but authentic-sounding local vocabulary.

Finished it last night. A really great read. Think I'll give it 4 stars. Very creative. Loved the characters.

finally got my copy. Unfortunately, I've started another book while waiting for it. Behind as usual.

I think this book has a great first sentence: "The education bestowed on Flora Poste by her parents had been expensive, athletic and prolonged" and Flora is great heroine armed with her Pensees and the Higher Common Sense by Abbe Fausse-Maigre. There's so many memorable lines and characters that will stay with me like "There have always been Starkadders at Cold Comfort Farm", "Robert Poste's child", Aunt Ada Doom's "something nasty in the woodshed" and "curses, like rookses, comes home to rest in bosomses and barnses". I'm going to give this 4 stars for originality. There's very few humourous books on the 1001 list and it was good to chuckle and smile as I read Cold Comfort Farm. Oh, I love the names of the cows too - Aimless, Feckless, Graceless and Pointless.

Where from?? This sounds amazing!

I'm a member of a book club that reads a book a month and I have prevailed upon them to read Cold Comfort Farm for our meeting at the end of August. We've been reading some serious stuff, some quite unfunny, like Beloved and I thought a few laughs were in line, especially during this hot humid summer. I read this years ago, and liked it. It's fun to reread books after some several years. Well, in this case, it's been decades! I'll post some remarks from the members after our meeting.

Oh, I bought the Penguin copy (the "Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition") with the charming cover illustrations by Roz Chast and the very helpful introduction by Lynne Truss. Both features add to the fun of the book.

I just the other day watched the film -- it's pretty good, for a made-for-TV movie, and doesn't wreck the book. There aren't really many spoilers since the fun is in the characters, the dialogue, the satire, but don't watch if you don't already "know the ending," anyway.

I'm looking forward to reading more posts here.

BAH! I loved this book. It is satirical perfection. I want to have a beer with Stella Gibbons and talk about boys and Jane Austen and the weather. In that order.

Can I pull up a chair and join in the discussion? Sounds like great fun!