Sunday Times/Faber Literary Quiz

[phoenixxx]

Are we all ready? At first glance it looks a stinker! Blondes 4: Bruce Gold? Drinks 3 is Alice Picture 1 is Michael Palin

[UMYC175]

Who helps a violinist give birth during a snowstorm? 'Pageant' by Kathryn Lasky is supposed to have a chapter in which two girls help a pregnant violinist during a snowstorm. Not supported by anything I have been able to track down so far, but the source (similar to answerbank) seemed very sure. Apologies if this particular stone has already been turned.

[untappedatom]

I think that is a modern children's story, and I seem to remember having a look at it and discounting it - can't remember why now!

[mycastam]

Can't lay my hands on Pageant, but have tried emailing Kathryn Lasky from a link on her website

A NY Times article (link below) gives some possible insight - but not enough to guarantee success with the question. (Sarah's
eccentric aunt Hattie, ... and starts trying to run Sarah's life, along with those of the classical musicians she manages"

The final blow is a subtle but insistent run-in with sexual reality. ''It seemed to Sarah that sex had become some sort of joke, and that although she understood, she simply did not find the punch line as funny as the rest of the world did.'' Could be a birth??? Missing a snowstorm though!


http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res =9A0DEFDF163FF93AA35752C1A960948260&n=Top%2FFe atures%2FBooks%2FBook%20Reviews

[mycastam]

Anyone got access to JSTOR? The English Journal is licensed to JSTOR by National Council of Teachers of English. There's an article about Pageant (and more) ...

Females Also Come of Age
Alba Quinones Endicott
The English Journal, Vol. 81, No. 4 (Apr., 1992), pp. 42-47
doi:10.2307/819929
This article consists of 6 page(s).

It will only show non-logged in users the first page. So if you could check it out, please it may give us a better insight?

[monaghan]

Hi - I have just checked via Birkbeck the JSTOR article - no go. Basically Pageant centres round a Jewish girl attending a 'WASP' school at time of Kennedy assassination. Didn't reveal anything new . However unless we can see a copy of book impossible to discount completely - no copies in my local libs. I too have come across countless babies born in the snow, left in the snow, mothers dying in car crashes on icy roads but not a musical mother in sight!

[Razor Boy]

Has anyone checked Midwives by Chris Bohjalian?

[phoenixxx]

I suggested this earlier but do not have a copy. However, there is a response further up this page which indicates it is not 'Midwives'. Anyone have a copy?

[monaghan]

These all seem to be dead ends. I am trying to look at it from the angle that the person who helps the violinist is the main character of the book/play but having said that this line of thought is not getting me anywhere. I think I discounted the Midwife book - but again haven't actually seen a copy. Or is the violinist giving birth a euphonism? for composing a piece of music - but this still doesn't help

[readerone]

Hello - I am new to this site (but not to the quiz) I was wondering about The Rosendorf Quartet for births 3 but haven;t been able to track this down. Any thoughts on this as a possibility?

[readerone]

another possibility for births 3 might be "Vivaldi's Virgins" I will try and check this out later today - any one looked at this already?

[LG123]

I had a look at Vivaldi's Virgins, but don't think it's the one. Anybody looked at the Rosendorf Quartet yet?

[untappedatom]

Re: Pageant
A friend remembered that a pregnant woman gets rescued from a blizzard by two friends - but not that they helped her give birth. I really think this is a red herring.

[mycastam]

Rosendorf: Have just had a very quick look on:

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=2qd31qqpnbI C&dq=&sa=X&oi=print&ct=book-ref-page-link

The contents for each "section" don't suggest a birth. Have search some of the available pages - but you do not get the whole book.

[mauril68]

Could it be "Strings" by Erika Bekesi ? Just from Google books and Amazon, I haven't actually read it...

[phoenixxx]

I don't think so. Reading synopsis on Google it appears the musician is male and I can't find any reference to snowstorms and childbirth.

[Gortnalibert]

Another suggestion for Births 3 � The Wandering Hill by Larry McMurtry (of Lonesome Dove fame), in which a noble English family, the Berrybenders, is waiting out the oncoming winter at a high plains trading post (Amazon blurb) � including Lord Berrybender�s pregnant, violin-playing mistress (NYT review)�.three children are born (Amazon)�can anyone help connect the dots for this one?

[Razor Boy]

According to the NYT review I read, she's a cellist...

[monaghan]

Yes - but the cello and violin are part of the same family - so I don't think this is a problem - tried local library but no copy of book available - I must say the Mc Murtry line of enquiry does look promising!!

[bluetone]

I've just picked up this thread, but I've read all the posts so far and can't find an evidenced and agreed answer to Pictures 4 (Eastern European author as boy on horse). There was a suggestion that it might be Dostoevsky but that didn't elicit cries of "of course, of course", so . . . ?

[falconer99]

It was agreed that it was Joseph Conrad, I believe.