'[the father of Harry Burton] 'an irregularly employed housepainter, liked a "stirring novel" but nothing more challenging than Conan Doyle: "He had no use whatever for anything remotely approaching the spiritual in art, literature or music...", and yet the whole family rea and, on some level, took pleasure in sharing and discussing their reading. His mother recited serials from the Family Reader and analyzed them at length with grandma over a cup of tea. Every few minutes his father would offer up a snippet from the Daily Chronicle or Lloyd's Weekly News. The children were not discouraged from reading aloud, perhaps from Jules Verne: "I can smell to this day the Journey to the Centre of the Earth", Burton recalled. The whole family made use of the public library and enjoyed together children's magazines like Chips and The Butterfly'.
Century: 1900-1945 Reader/Listener/Group: Burton Print: Book
[List of books read in 1943, in diary for 1943]:
'The Farthing Spinster; Guy Mannering; Whereas I was Blind; And So to Bath; The Story of San Michele; Attack Alarm; The Murders in Praed Street; Lover's Meeting; The Secret Battle; Witch Wood; MD - Doctor of Murder; Murder at the Keyhole; That Girl Ginger; Ten Minute Alibi; Diary of a District Officer; Tarzan the Untamed; Peter Abelard; Pip; Pied Piper; A Man Lay Dead; Random Harvest; Madame Curie; Stalky and Co; Bellarion; Down the Garden Path; The Three Musketeers vol 1; The House in Cornwall; A Tall Ship; The Two Saplings; Farewell Victoria; Quinneys; House of Terror; Penguin Parade 4; Guy Mannering[presumably a re-reading]; The Man Born to be King; Casterton Papers; Old Saint Paul's; The Moon is Down; 1066 and all That; My Brother Jonathon; Gulliver's Travels; Ensign Knightley; Men Against Death; Fame is the Spur; Gone with the Wind; Mesmer; First Nights; The Hound of the Baskervilles; Little Gidding; Beau Geste; Beau Sabreur; The Amazing Theatre; The Pleasure of Your Company; Dandelion Days; Humour and Fantasy; Juno and the Paycock; The Beautiful Years; Teach Yourself to Think; Salar the Salmon; The Cathedral; The Mysterious Mr I; The Picts and the Martyrs; The Dream of Fair Women; The Star-born; Three Short Stories; A Thatched Roof; The Surgeon's Log; The Healing Knife; Nine Ghosts; While Rome Burns; The Star Spangled Manner; The Day Must Dawn; The Tower of London; Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde; The Old Man's Birthday; A little Princess; Ego 5; The Lighter Side of School Life; Kidnapped; The Trail of the Sandhill Stag; Ballet Lover's Notebook; Lorna Doone; The Plays of JM Barrie; Jane Eyre; I'll Leave it to You; Henry Fifth; Longer Poems; Antony and Cleopatra; The Man in Grey; The House in Dormer Forest; The Writing of English; Miss Mapp; The Song of Bernadette; Happy and Glorious; Sixty Poems; The Birth of Romance; The Comedy of Life; Some Little Tales; Dream Days; Royal Flush.'
Century: 1900-1945 Reader/Listener/Group: Hilary Spalding Print: Book
'In respect of contemporary novels he [Tennyson] had a very catholic taste. Latterly he read Stevenson and George Meredith with great interest: also Walter Besant, Black, Hardy, Henry James, Marion Crawford, Anstey, Barrie, Blackmore, Conan Doyle, Miss Braddon, Miss Lawless, Ouida, Miss Broughton, Lady Margaret Majendie, Hall Caine, and Shorthouse. He liked Edna Lyall's Autobiography of a Slander, and the Geier-Wally by Wilhelmina von Hillern; and often gave his friends Surly Tim to read, for its "concentrated pathos." "Mrs Oliphant's prolific work," he would observe, "is amazing, and she is nearly always worth reading."'
Century: 1850-1899 Reader/Listener/Group: Alfred Tennyson Print: Unknown
'I do not agree with you as to Gibbs’ book. . . . I have not yet seen a good war book. Doyle if course is ridiculous. I am sending you a copy of 'Polite Farces' by this post, It is no good, but as you want it you shall have it. '
Century: 1900-1945 Reader/Listener/Group: Arnold Bennett Print: Book
'Weak and tired and inclined, as always when out of action and interest, to go to pieces. Read, after twenty years, Merriman's miserable "[The] Sowers", Psalms and John iii in Arabic, some Tennyson and Swinburne, and the "Adventures of Sherlock Holmes".'
Century: 1900-1945 Reader/Listener/Group: Ronald Storrs Print: Book
'Saturday. Very stormy wind + heavy showers too wet to walk about. So bridge. Read A Sign of Four by Conan Doyle.'
Century: 1900-1945 Reader/Listener/Group: William Thomas Print: Book
'Fine day. Gym balances almost done. No letters. Read the Green Flag by Doyle. Ev Bridge. Play improving.'
Century: 1900-1945 Reader/Listener/Group: William Thomas Print: Book
Thurs. Lovely day. Read Lost World by Conan Doyle. Nil [i.e., no mail].
Century: 1900-1945 Reader/Listener/Group: William Thomas Print: Book
'Read the Poison Belt by A. Conan Doyle.'
Century: 1900-1945 Reader/Listener/Group: William Thomas Print: Book
'Read Round the Fire Stories by Conan Doyle. Joined the Library. Started Lettres de Mon Moulin Par Alphonse Daudet. No sign of peace. Will it last another year 2:1 it will.'
Century: 1900-1945 Reader/Listener/Group: William Thomas Print: Book
'Since leaving Oxford I have had quite a little
opportunity for reading and have read all kinds of
things, some of the better books being: Conan
Doyle's "Micah Clarke" and part of "Martin
Chuzzlewit", one or two of Alexander Dumas' tales,
two humorous books by George Birmingham about small
Irish villages, and one or two of Bernard Shaw's
plays. I am still doing dual control on B.E. 2b
machines which are quite out of date for military
purpose and were obsolete even before the war ...'
Century: 1900-1945 Reader/Listener/Group: Roderick Ward Maclennan Print: Book
