And the Spin number is...

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 14!

Which gives me Lorna Doone by R. D. Blackmore, an intimidating brick of a mid-Victorian novel set in Scotland.  I hadn't realized that it's historical fiction, being set nearly 200 years earlier, in the late 1600s.   Doubtless there will be a whole lot of very Scots dialogue!

Of course, when I googled the title to get a nice book cover image, the first thing that came up was cookies.  I don't think I've ever had a Lorna Doone cookie, but it is pretty funny to me.  When the cookies were first made and named by Nabisco, they would have been meant to evoke the romance of the Highlands.  Today, if you told almost any American that you were reading Lorna Doone, they'd think "...you're reading a cookie?"  The name would be meaningless otherwise.

Scots wha hae!

Comments

  1. reeseNovember 22, 2020 at 6:59 PM

    It does seem to be one of those books nobody ever reads anymore--I know I haven't--which may be sad, because books like that are so often good. There are seven (!) film/TV versions acc. to Wikipedia, so somebody liked it. Hope you do, too..

    ReplyDelete
  2. JeanNovember 22, 2020 at 9:50 PM

    The intro to my copy says it used to be a huge favorite -- up there with Jane Eyre. In 1906, Yale students (all dudes, remember) voted it their favorite book. Funny how some books just disappear.

    ReplyDelete
  3. CleoNovember 22, 2020 at 11:57 PM

    I had the impression it was a little of a slog to get through but I don't know where I got that idea. I look forward to your thoughts on it!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Michelle AnnNovember 23, 2020 at 1:12 AM

    You've got the wrong end of the country, I'm afraid. Although it is set on the moors, it is Exmoor in Devon, in the south of England, not the Scottish moors. I hope you enjoy it anyway!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Jenny @ Reading the EndNovember 23, 2020 at 4:35 AM

    Hooray! I hope it's good! I believe I may have had the like, illustrated comics version of this when I was a little kid, but I remember nothing about it.

    ReplyDelete
  6. IzaBzhNovember 24, 2020 at 5:22 AM

    I bet this is going to be a great read ! I watched the tv adaptation with Sean Bean years ago and read the novel back then, but just remember I loved it, not much more. However, I have it on kindle and hope to re-read it. I hope you'll love it and I can't wait to read your review - no pressure ;)

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  7. JeanNovember 24, 2020 at 10:00 AM

    OK, now I am confused. Indeed the introduction (that's as far as I've gotten, and not very far into that) says Exmoor, which I vaguely figured must be in Scotland. How is Lorna Doone not in Scotland? (And why are shortbread cookies named after her if it isn't?) Now I really have to read it, in order to figure out what the heck is going on.

    ReplyDelete
  8. BronaNovember 24, 2020 at 10:52 PM

    I look forward to you untangling the mystery of its geography!

    ReplyDelete

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