I'm ashamed to say that I have not heard of these books until now. I'm glad to learn about them from your channel, though, and I'll keep an eye out for them now :-)
Don't be ashamed, I don't think it is at all a popular series of books. I think when most people discover this title, the 12 volumes puts them off. Try to pick up the first three in the series and see if you feel like reading more. I'm an 'all-or-nothing' kind of person, so I wanted to read them all, one after the other. I found it really rewarding!
The Deptford trilogy is the one that begins with Fifth Business, and The Cornish Trilogy begins with The Rebel Angels, right? I have read two of Robertson Davies three trilogies, but I get them all mixed up. Maybe The Cornish Trilogy is the one I haven't read.
@@deirdre108 I will make a point of including him in 2025. Thanks for voting for Davies! Even at university now, he hasn't even been mentioned. I had intended to highlight Canadian authors when I started this RU-vid channel, but I've done a very poor job of it. I will make sure to get to one of the Davies trilogies within the next year! Thanks for the motivation!
@@deirdre108 The Rebel Angels was great, and the second novel in the series, The Lyre of Orpheus, is also quite excellent. Although I felt the third novel let the series down rather badly.
I'm happy to hear that. Let me know what you think. I'd really like to know if you feel like continuing or rather just give it up. Many people have been asking if it's worth it. My opinion is absolutely yes, but I would also like to get other opinions.
USA might be my all time favourite. I feel it is just a perfect creation, and so artfully done. It always puts a smile on my face when someone tells me they are going to read the USA trilogy. Save Powell for another year. Two massive series of novels in one year might be too much. And it can wait. It is good, very good, but it does leave something to be desired. Whereas, I find USA to be the very end of literature. Ulysses gets all the credit for being so artsy-fartsy, but USA is the perfect American statement in regards to literature.
Very entertaining video. I am utterly unfamiliar with this author. I cannot say I will commit to 12 novels, nor am I inclined to read any more of this time period, and I found John Dos Passos quite tedious, my least favorite American writer of his period, so taste might be a consideration. I'm never sure about British novelists, although I love Lawrence Durrell, Graham Greene, Iris Murdoch, Maugham and I'm limiting it to 20th century Brits I'm well-read in. As literature, and as entertaining writing, how does he stack up against other British writers? Cheers!
It is a little difficult to say. There is a very weird feeling with these books at times. Almost like the narrator was recording his perspective, without taking into account his own life. I recall thinking, 'Oh, he's married now. And he has kids too!' So it is very much like following along inside the characters head, as he takes notice of the people around him, but not himself. I wouldn't rate him as highly as any of those authors you mention, ones I love as well. But there is something in the nature of the series in being so long, and the story. Seeing what happens to this man who we have followed through his whole life, and all of the people around him. I would say give the first book a try, just 250 pages, and if it's good, read the first three, the Spring section, that's just 750 pages. You either get hooked or you don't. I do think it is worth it.
Powell is on par with the great writers in English in the 20th century. He was a Tory, like Evelyn Waugh, so that means he has different perspective to many other writers in the 20th century. How could you not be intrigued by a writer who would title one of his novels in the Dance to the Music of time series “Casanova’s Chinese Restaurant”? I would suggest that anyone who wants to get a taste the subtle sophistication and ironic humour of Powell should start with his last pre-War novel, “What’s Become of Waring?”
