Book Group: They're reading Helen DeWitt's "The Last Samurai" (nothing to do with the Tom Cruise movie!) over at Conversational Reading - Maybe we should do the same here?

from jed above:

ok, starting on the 5th with a 4 week schedule rather than a 6 week one.

so you can take a knife to your copy and divide it by four parts of equal size?

will do :) my copy is 480 pages so ~ 120 each week.

I can't decide whether this should have a new thread or not

if we're doing it in four parts i'd approx suggest (us edition)

1-98
99-189 (chapter titled 'i. we never get off at sloane square for nebraska friend chicken')
191-358 (donald richie quote, chapter starts '20 march 1993')
358-end (chapter starts 'i decided not to apply')

this is top-light end-heavy but the thing is there's a natural break at p190 which one might as well go with.

(tbh it's easier to break into thirds than quarters)

sorry! i'll start a new thread later today & link up the schedule with c-sharps info. thanks.

think I've got a weird edition - it's the hardcover, clocks in at 530 pages.

us paperback is 530 pages as well?

ps that's 'nebraska fried chicken', not 'friend chicken', i cannot type

oh okay - just saw the 480 pager upthread and assumed that's what everybody had. well, guess I'll get started reading!

are we agreed on a 4 week schedule starting NOW?

Yep, fine by me.

Yep, go for't

Is this book about Samurai?

I saw some trailer for the film once and I thought it was. But whenever I see a quotation from it here it seems to be about modern Britain or something!

Book Group: They're reading Helen DeWitt's "The Last Samurai" (nothing to do with the Tom Cruise movie!) over at Conversational Reading - Maybe we should do the same here?

pinefox, the samurai are <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/books/00/10/15/reviews/001015.15goldbet.html";>the movie samurai serving as substitute father-figures</a> for the main character. the book is full of LANGUAGES and TRANSLATION, maybe you will think it is neat.

couldn't open that last link; clearly misread the thread title; think I have been somewhat misled by conversation at rare ILX FAP the other week where I thought all the ILB people were saying this novel WAS the same as that Cruise film.

whoops, here you go:

nyt review of 'the last samurai'

come on board, pinefox. it would be good to have your input.