It’s hard to believe, but our week has already come to an end. It’s been fantastic to see some other readers giving attention to the marvelous books of Robertson Davies. Many thanks to my fabulous guest bloggers:
- Calmgrove on The Deptford Trilogy
- Lizzie Ross on For Your Eye Alone
- Consumed by Ink on High Spirits
- Buried in Print on Murther and Walking Spirits
And thanks to those who posted on your own blogs during this week; here are the links I’ve collected:
Booked for Life on Fifth Business- A Gallimaufry on What’s Bred in the Bone
- Reenchantment of the World on Fifth Business
- HeavenAli on Leaven of Malice
- Bookish Beck on Fifth Business
If I’ve missed anybody, please let me know!
As for next year, I was thinking of this as a one-time event, but I feel as though we are just getting started. Perhaps next year I’ll make it a one-day birthday celebration; that will give you all plenty of time to make plans and read a trilogy — or two, or three…
At any rate, please continue to read and write about Robertson Davies whenever you can. I’m grateful to you all for filling this week with lively comment and discussion, and I hope you’ve enjoyed it too.
Keep #ReadingRobertsonDavies!
The Emerald City Book Review Archive 
This week has very much been a consciousness-raising event, Lory, for which I’ve no doubt I’m not the only one extremely grateful that you’ve run it. A one-day event next year may be sufficient, but as his birthday falls on a Friday perhaps it might shade into the weekend?! Perhaps that would allow for links to other reviews or discussions (just as you’ve done here) — it’s very evident that newbies, like me, as well as established fans have relished this concentrated focus. Thanks again, to you and to all the other contributors, I’ve learnt so much and been superbly diverted!
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Superbly diverting is an excellent description of this author’s work. With resonances that continue to linger…I’ve also appreciated the new insights that come from others, and I think next year is a definite possibility, time frame only to be determined. Thank you for your enthusiastic participation!
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Oh do host it again Lory, as a day or a week! I feel as if we’ve only just got going….
And thank you again for this year, who knows if/when my love of RD’s work would otherwise ever have been revived!
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Marvelous result, just what I hoped for.
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Thanks for hosting! Maybe next time I’ll get to join in! 😀
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I do feel we should do this again just to give a chance to the people who missed out…
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I have to admit, I put down Murther and Walking Spirits to my great disappointment. I loved the beginning with his death and observing all around him, but the subsequent story telling just did not resonate.
I have a copy of the Deptford Trilogy, so next I will try the Fifth Business. However, Davies sounds like a very interesting soul–I liked Lizzie’s post, and it’s just possible I might like the man better than his work. But I have not given up!
At any rate, congratulations on a successful event!
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I have to say, I think it’s not one of his strongest novels, though with interesting aspects of its own. Fifth Business is worth a try — I think you will find it more dramatically involving. I’m glad you enjoyed reading the posts this week, anyway.
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Most people do seem to find Fifth Business easier to relate to….perhaps because we’ve all been young and grown older and viewed our past experiences differently from another vantage point in time.
Whereas we’ve not all been murdered by our spouses and left to wander in a between-state. It’s, by nature, a less comfortable story to inhabit.
The part that I most enjoyed was the way he structured the story (shan’t say how, as it’s connected to a spoiler) and how he comes to think differently about aspects of his identity through that. But that does mean it feels a little more distanced on the story-side of things.
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Thank you for hosting this Lory. As with Elizabeth Goudge, you’ve made me expand my reading microcosm and that is always a good thing and what I particularly love about following blogs!
If you do it again, I would definitely try to read another title, though I hope I will have completed the Deptford trilogy by then. But you know, famous last words and all that…
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So glad you could join in, and if you haven’t completed Deptford, it will be just as enjoyable in a year’s time.
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Many thanks for hosting, Lory! *raises glass to Robertson Davies*
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Cheers to him, and to all of us. It was a wonderful party.
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Well, that week just blew past me! Although I ended up not participating online, I did try reading What’s Bred in the Bone during August. I read about 150 pages and then decided I’d given it enough of a shot to decide it wasn’t for me. But perhaps if this event comes around again, I will give his non-fiction collections a go… Thank-you for hosting and giving me the push to try reading something different than usual!
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Davies is not for everyone, and I would not want to force him on anybody! But I do think he deserves more attention than he gets. Thanks for giving it a try anyway.
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