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Welcome goonlings to the Awful Book of the Month! In this thread, we choose one work of Resources: Project Gutenberg - http://www.gutenberg.org - A database of over 17000 books available online. If you can suggest books from here, that'd be the best. SparkNotes - http://www.sparknotes.com/ - A very helpful Cliffnotes-esque site, but much better, in my opinion. If you happen to come in late and need to catch-up, you can get great character/chapter/plot summaries here.  For recommendations on future material, suggestions on how to improve the club, or just a general rant, feel free to PM the moderation team. Past Books of the Month [for BOTM before 2019, refer to archives] 2019: January: Roadside Picnic by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky February: BEAR by Marian Engel March: V. by Thomas Pynchon April: The Doorbell Rang by Rex Stout May: Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman June: 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus by Charles C. Mann July: The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach August: Memoirs of Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds by Charles Mackay September: Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay October: Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado November: The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett December: Moby Dick by Herman Melville 2020: January: The Jungle by Upton Sinclair February: WE by Yevgeny Zamyatin March: The Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini by Benvenuto Cellini April: The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio May: Black Lamb and Grey Falcon by Dame Rebecca West June: The African Queen by C. S. Forester July: The End of Policing by Alex S. Vitale August: The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood, of Great Renown in Nottinghamshire, by Howard Pyle September: Strange Hotel, by Eimear McBride October:Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things (怪談)("Ghost Stories"), by Lafcadio Hearn November: A Libertarian Walks Into a Bear: The Utopian Plot to Liberate an American Town (And Some Bears) , by Matthew Hongoltz Hetling December: Ignition!: An Informal History of Liquid Rocket Propellants by John Drury Clark  Current: The Mark of Zorro by Johnston McCulley Book available here: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/61620 About the book quote:The Curse of Capistrano is a 1919 novel by Johnston McCulley and the first work to feature the Californio character Diego Vega, the masked hero also called Zorro (zorro is the Spanish word for fox). It first appeared as a five-part magazine serial. The story was adapted into the silent film The Mark of Zorro in 1920. It appeared in book form in 1924, also using the title The Mark of Zorro.[1] About the Author quote:Born in Ottawa, Illinois, and raised in Chillicothe, Illinois, McCulley started as a police reporter for The Police Gazette. He served as an Army public affairs officer during World War I. An amateur history buff, he went on to a career in pulp magazines and screenplays, often using a Southern California backdrop for his stories. Pacing  Read as thou wilt is the whole of the law. Please post after you read! Please bookmark the thread to encourage discussion. References and Further Materials There were several more Zorro novels by McCulley. Those were The Further Adventures of Zorro (1922) Zorro Rides Again (1931) The Sign of Zorro (1941). He then wrote 53 Zorro short stories between 1944 and 1951, for West magazine. Apparently there have been over forty Zorro films. Highlights: The Mark of Zorro (1920 silent starring Douglas Fairbanks), which is on youtube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbQZZRf3Fsc (this is the movie that little Bruce Wayne and his parents saw the night they died) The Mark of Zorro (1940 remake with Tyrone Power) (on youtube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNR0rVytRWo ) ( The Mask of Zorro (1998) and The Legend of Zorro (2005) with Banderas I'm pretty sure I watched https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zorro_and_Son when it came out when I was a kid, it's the only thing that fits my personal timeline. I remember thinking it was amazing Suggestions for Future Months These threads aren't just for discussing the current BOTM; If you have a suggestion for next month's book, please feel free to post it in the thread below also. Generally what we're looking for in a BotM are works that have 1) accessibility -- either easy to read or easy to download a free copy of, ideally both 2) novelty -- something a significant fraction of the forum hasn't already read 3) discussability -- intellectual merit, controversiality, insight -- a book people will be able to talk about. Final Note: Thanks, and we hope everyone enjoys the book! Hieronymous Alloy fucked around with this message at 14:12 on Jan 16, 2021 |
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Jan 5, 2021 02:08
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:References and Further Materials This bit has to be left over from Ignition!
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Jan 5, 2021 03:07
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Just started this, and am enjoying it a great deal so far! Somehow I've never read or seen any Zorro media at all, so only knowing bits and pieces from cultural osmosis it's cool to go back to where it all started.
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Jan 6, 2021 17:28
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I’m about 20% in and my man, Z, has some issues to work out.
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Jan 7, 2021 00:57
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Word of warning: if you're listening to the Val Kilmer audiobook "dramatized" version, they change the ending a bit.
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Jan 8, 2021 16:10
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I'm not listening to this audiobook. I've made a grave mistake. My reading of this book is slightly different after learning that this is not, in fact, a translated Mexican novel, but instead written by an American.
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Jan 8, 2021 16:21
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FlowerRhythmREMIX posted:I'm not listening to this audiobook. I've made a grave mistake. Yeah, that's part of why I thought this might be a good BoTM. On the one hand, it's a classic character and the root of a lot of other, later superhero setups; he's Batman twenty years before Batman. On another, though, it just occupies this weirdly atypical space for American fiction, set in Spanish California, a time and place most American fiction just sort of pretends didn't exist, with an all-hispanic cast, but a white author, going all-in on appropriation. So I'm really interested to hear takes on it from all angles. it wouldn't surprise me at all if some parts of this are really sketchy on a re-read, but no matter what it should be interesting. Hieronymous Alloy fucked around with this message at 07:53 on Jan 9, 2021 |
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Jan 9, 2021 07:49
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I will definitely have some thoughts, hopefully coherent. I'm glad that the author is writing from multiple character perspectives too. Also, the comparison to Batman is spot on!
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Jan 9, 2021 18:33
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FlowerRhythmREMIX posted:I will definitely have some thoughts, hopefully coherent. I'm glad that the author is writing from multiple character perspectives too. Also, the comparison to Batman is spot on! Oh, it's not just a comparison. quote:Zorro, Spanish for "fox," was created by Johnston McCulley in 1919. The pulp hero became an immediate success and The Mark of Zorro premiered the following year. Batman creators Bob Kane and Bill Finger admitted to having seen the film and in subsequent interviews cited Zorro as a major influence. The similarities between the Fox and the Bat are obvious. In the film, Zorro sneaks around helping those in need while wearing head-to-toe black. Just like Batman, Zorro operates out of a cave-like cellar under his home, is assisted by his butler Bernardo, and maintains the secret identity of Don Diego de la Vega. Zorro’s history with the Dark Knight would inspire future Batman creators to incorporate The Mark of Zorro into comic book lore.
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Jan 9, 2021 18:57
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Hey this is great. A couple years back I read The Scarlet Pimpernel because it also is cited as one of the first secret identity hero stories, but I was a bit disappointed in it (it's more of a romance really with the secret hero stuff being more in the background). I wanted to read The Curse of Capistrano but couldn't find it on Gutenberg and eventually downloaded it from some other site (I think it was a non-US public domain deal), confused why Gutenberg didn't have it. Somehow I missed that it was renamed when it was republished, I thought Mark of Zorro was a sequel. Anyway I never got around to reading it so now I have the push to do so! I loving loved the Banderas movie when I was a kid so I'm looking forward to this.
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Jan 11, 2021 13:54
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This was a lot of fun! A fair bit of queasy "oh yeah this was written by a white guy in 1919" stuff - lots of references to anonymous "natives", both subservient and disloyal - which did manage to take me out of it every time. But that stuff aside, it's exciting, humourous, and has a memorable cast of characters. One thing I wonder is whether Zorro's true identity - the central secret of the novel -was really that much of a shock to audiences at the time? Because (I'm sure like everyone else here) I guessed it pretty much immediately...
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Jan 11, 2021 15:56
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I have thoughts about all of those things that I'll wait until I finish to discuss, but for the last point:Gertrude Perkins posted:One thing I wonder is whether Zorro's true identity - the central secret of the novel -was really that much of a shock to audiences at the time? Because (I'm sure like everyone else here) I guessed it pretty much immediately... I want to know the answer too. I don't know if it was cultural osmosis that I knew immediately, or if it is an inside joke type situation the author is having with the reader.
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Jan 11, 2021 16:47
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Gertrude Perkins posted:One thing I wonder is whether Zorro's true identity - the central secret of the novel -was really that much of a shock to audiences at the time? Because (I'm sure like everyone else here) I guessed it pretty much immediately... I was just coming here to post this. I think Batman may have spoiled everyone reading Zorro after say 1960, but I'm not sure.
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Jan 11, 2021 16:57
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ulmont posted:I was just coming here to post this. I think Batman may have spoiled everyone reading Zorro after say 1960, but I'm not sure. I haven't read this yet but it's probably like the ironic Greek plays where the audience 100% is meant to know something but the story still goes through the motions of a big reveal. The Scarlet Pimpernel was the same way.
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Jan 11, 2021 17:55
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This was an interesting read for sure! Definitely didn't fall as hard into as many -isms as I was afraid it would given how old it was (they're still there, but a lot less in-your-face than other writers at the time that I've read) and the plot is pulpy and fun. There were a lot of parts where characters just kept reiterating the main story points to each other which was a little tedious, but I'm sure that's just the result of it being published in serial format initially where you'd want those frequent recaps.
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Jan 12, 2021 03:36
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I love old pulp poo poo. Book kicked rear end.
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Jan 12, 2021 07:30
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I'm up to Chapter 16 or so, and I must say I kinda love that one of the more modern templates of the dashing suave swashbuckler archetype keeps defaulting to the strategy of "popping out of a coat closet and waving a gun around." I mean, it works, but it clashes slightly with my Antonio Banderas influenced mental image
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Jan 15, 2021 01:59
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I also love the frequency with which he leaves via the window. I imagine him stumbling over little flowerpots or landing in a trough by the outer wall.
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Jan 15, 2021 02:41
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I'm like halfway through and I gotta say I really love how much of a troll Diego is. Batman would own if Bruce Wayne walked around Arkham asking Riddler to see Batman's body. "Maybe it's someone we both know?" loving owned
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Jan 15, 2021 12:31
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Gertrude Perkins posted:I also love the frequency with which he leaves via the window.
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Jan 15, 2021 12:41
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anilEhilated posted:Literally came to post this. The whole thing reads like an action flick. It has a very Die Hard feel of everyone being competent and badass, but also really loving goofy
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Jan 15, 2021 18:36
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I think I'm gonna have to find and download McCully's sequels.
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Jan 15, 2021 19:00
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Asterite34 posted:It has a very Die Hard feel of everyone being competent and badass, but also really loving goofy RAMON! BUBBY! I'm your white knight
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Jan 15, 2021 19:21
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It was refreshing to read a hero that really enjoys what he does, especially when mocking everyone as Don Diego. I was surprised how Bernardo and slashing the 'Z' barely even appeared in the book, probably because everything I knew about Zorro came from the movies.
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Jan 15, 2021 20:53
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AngusPodgorny posted:It was refreshing to read a hero that really enjoys what he does, especially when mocking everyone as Don Diego. Yeah, I'm wondering if "Zorro" the modern character might not owe more to the various adaptations than he does to the original text. Like "Elementary, my dear Watson" and a lot of other Westerns, there's a tendency with these early heroes to develop as they hit the screen. I'm gonna have to read a lot of Zorro aren't I? Oh no! There were several more Zorro novels by McCulley. Those were The Further Adventures of Zorro (1922) Zorro Rides Again (1931) The Sign of Zorro (1941). He then wrote 53 Zorro short stories between 1944 and 1951, for West magazine. Apparently there have been over forty Zorro films. Highlights: The Mark of Zorro (1920 silent starring Douglas Fairbanks), which is on youtube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbQZZRf3Fsc (this is the movie that little Bruce Wayne and his parents saw the night they died) The Mark of Zorro (1940 remake with Tyrone Power) (on youtube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNR0rVytRWo ) ( The Mask of Zorro (1998) and The Legend of Zorro (2005) with Banderas I'm pretty sure I watched https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zorro_and_Son when it came out when I was a kid, it's the only thing that fits my personal timeline. I remember thinking it was amazing edit: I love this shot from the 1920 film:  You see! In the mirror of my steel! Hieronymous Alloy fucked around with this message at 22:28 on Jan 15, 2021 |
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Jan 15, 2021 22:17
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I was just searching on Amazon for the other novels and I'm surprised there really isn't anything. The second is in the public domain but the others aren't, so I was expecting a collection of all of them for like $10 or so but it's basically just Curse of Capistrano on Kindle, I think I saw one entry for the second book and none for the others. Wonder if it's a situation where nobody is really managing McCulley's estate so rereleases aren't really happening. Zorro is definitely more famous from the movies than books but it's still wild nobody seems to be putting effort into selling original Zorro stories. I've read through two of the three Robert Howard Conan collections and they're very nice - lots of details like original publication dates, early drafts, letters of Howard's, etc. Maybe I'm underestimating Zorro's cultural relevance but the stark difference seems crazy to me.
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Jan 15, 2021 23:33
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Yeah I was just doing the same search.. There is a hardback "Zorro: the complete pulp adventures" set that came out a few years ago, looks like. But it's five volumes @ $20 per, and no ebook editions.
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Jan 15, 2021 23:38
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I managed to find the second book, "The Further Adventures of Zorro". Zorro vs. PIRATES on the high seas! Captain Ramond returns as the scheming villain!
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Jan 16, 2021 04:06
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For movies, Disney+ has The Sign of Zorro from 1960. I could use more Zorro books though because I love old pulp stories.
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Jan 16, 2021 05:24
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"Zorro Rides Again" -- someone in a mask is saying they are Zorro and doing Evil Deeds! Our hero's reputation is at stake! Also many secret tunnels and / or caves These are all really more novellas than novels.
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Jan 16, 2021 06:11
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Not far in, loving the italicized exotic Spanish words like “patio” sprinkled about. No, seriously, it never occurred to me that that was a new word to English in the 20th century, and even new in Spanish in the 19th (yeah looked it up, prior to about 200 years ago, outdoor furniture was just furniture).
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Jan 18, 2021 04:34
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I bought a copy of Mark of Zorro off of Amazon and had it delivered yesterday. I burned through it last night, what a quick, snappy read. After having watched the first third or so of the 1920s film, where the reveal is basically immediate, I was a bit surprised to see how long the reveal was held in the book. I don't know how I would have reacted to it reading it as a young man in 1919, I assume it would have been a bit bigger of a reveal without a century of superhero / secret identity stories. The way Diego acted with Lolita was a bit bizarre, that was maybe the only part that rung false to me. His constant "checks" as Zorro to see if she would go back to Diego didn't really lead anywhere, I think they were mostly there to try to string out the mystery a bit more. It was nice that Lolita actually had a chance to act heroically in the scene at the Friar's, even if it was pretty standard damsel in distress stuff through the rest of the book. Humerus posted:I'm like halfway through and I gotta say I really love how much of a troll Diego is. Batman would own if Bruce Wayne walked around Arkham asking Riddler to see Batman's body. "Maybe it's someone we both know?" loving owned Super agreed with this. I love how much of a dick Diego is. The two page wrapup with everyone including the Sergeant being like "ahhhh, you got me" was weird, but it works in that it's totally how Diego, the consumate troll, would act. Hieronymous Alloy posted:Yeah I was just doing the same search.. There is a hardback "Zorro: the complete pulp adventures" set that came out a few years ago, looks like. But it's five volumes @ $20 per, and no ebook editions. The company that did the complete pulp set has a handful of ebooks in their "Tales of Zorro's Old California" series. Looks like 3 of the McCulley stories. Flat rate shipping to Canada seems to only be 5$, which is super low, so I may end up picking up some of the complete pulp series.
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Jan 20, 2021 15:32
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It's that time. noms for next month needed.
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Jan 22, 2021 00:52
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A genre isn’t specified, so I’ll go with non-fiction I’ve read that’s as fantastic as an fiction: Batavia’s Graveyard: The True Story of the Mad Heretic Who Led History’s Bloodiest Mutiny by Mike Dash, about an ill-fated Dutch East India expedition. The subtitle pretty much explains the book on its own, but it’s sort of like Endurance (itself a good book about Shackleford’s arctic expedition) but with a lot of treason and murder. It doesn't have an introduction like the other's, so I'll lift part of the Amazon description: quote:With the help of a few disgruntled sailors, Jeronimus soon sparked a mutiny that seemed certain to succeed—but for one unplanned event: In the dark morning hours of June 3, the Batavia smashed through a coral reef and ran aground on a small chain of islands near Australia. The commander of the ship and the skipper evaded the mutineers by escaping in a tiny lifeboat and setting a course for Java—some 1,800 miles north—to summon help. Nearly all of the passengers survived the wreck and found themselves trapped on a bleak coral island without water, food, or shelter. Leaderless, unarmed, and unaware of Jeronimus’s treachery, they were at the mercy of the mutineers. John Hawkwood: An English Mercenary in Fourteenth Century Italy by William Caffero. Some introduction: quote:John Hawkwood indeed lived by war, and no one was more successful at it. From modest roots in England, he rose to become the premier mercenary captain of his day, achieving fame on the battlefields of Italy, where he served for more than thirty years of his career. “He managed his affairs so well,” Sacchetti wrote in a postscript to the above novella, “that there was little peace in Italy in his times.” The Poison King by Adrienne Mayor, about Mithradates. Some of the introduction again: quote:Long ago and far away, in a little kingdom by the sea, a dazzling comet in the East foretold the birth of a remarkable Prince who would dare to make war on the mightiest empire. As an infant in his cradle, he was marked for greatness by lightning. While he was still a boy, enemies in the castle poisoned his father, the King. His own mother, the Queen, tried to do away with the Prince. But he escaped and lived like Robin Hood in the wilderness for seven years. He grew strong and brave and learned the secrets of poisons and antidotes. And a book that I’m not sure what it counts as, because it was intended as non-fiction but wrong, the Malleus Maleficarum by Heinrich Kramer and James Sprenger, the handbook for witch hunts. From the introduction to the version I have: quote:The Malleus Maleficarum (Latin for "The Hammer of Witches", or "Hexenhammer" in German) is one of the most famous medieval treatises on witches. It was written in 1486 by Heinrich Kramer and Jacob Sprenger, and was first published in Germany in 1487. Its main purpose was to challenge all arguments against the existence of witchcraft and to instruct magistrates on how to identify, interrogate and convict witches. I don't think any of these have come up before. Of course none of these do me any good as I've read them, but I can't very well recommend something I haven't read.
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Jan 23, 2021 01:58
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