Introduce Yourselves!

[Rachel-K]

Here's a place where we can all say hello as we get started. Are you a regular reader of historical fiction? What fascinations does the figure of Marie Antoinette hold for you?

[AIM7]

I have been a part of BN book groups in the poast and really have enjoyed it ... I have not read anything about Marie Antoinette and look forward to this discussion. Hello everyone!

[Artstaii]

Greetings! "Abundance" was the first historical novel I've ever read, and I loved it! I've purchased several copies for friends and family. I didn't know much about Marie Antoinette as a person at all - I truly enjoyed this book!

[AlexisNova]

Hello, y'all:

I'm a high school English teacher who reads not only as a corollary to my teaching but also for the sheer pleasure of it. One novel my freshman students will read this term is Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities. In anticipation of teaching it, I purchased Abundance in July and just read the last page an hour ago.

Needless to say, I shall recommend Abundance as an outside reading choice for those students who wish to look more closely at the life of the woman who was the focal point of so much discord and hatred in revolutionary France.

[NorCalTrish]

Hello! I am a history major in college and I love historical fiction! I purchased "Abundance" when it first came out but I actually haven't had the time to sit down and read it. I will do that now (before school starts back up) and I am looking forward to joining the discussion about the book. I am also a big fan of Marie Antoinette and I enjoy the history of the French Revolution.

[jd]

Good morning I am looking forward to this discussion. I love historical fiction. I am interested in the french revolution and MA -jd

[ukduchess]

Hello! I have been interested in historical fiction for the last couple of years. After the movie on Marie Antoinette came out recently, it piqued my interested. It seems to me that she has been portrayed sometimes unfairly. I am already half way finished with Abundance and I am loving it! Even thought it is fiction, I feel like I am reading an account that is as accurate as possible. I look forward to being a part of the discussion.

[fourboysandmom1]

Hi,
I'm Lori and I am excited to be able to discuss this wonderful book!

[SenaJeterNaslu…]

Thank you for putting ABUNDANCE,A Novel of Marie Antoinette on your reading list. I read A Tale of Two Cities when I was a high school student, along with a lot of other novels by Dickens; I even named my dog Dickens. Obviously, he was a big influence of my development as a writer; however, I must say that Dickens, like so many others, had a very prejudiced view of Marie Antoinette. Please tell your students, there's no evidence that Marie Antoinette (her friends called her Antoinette) ever said "Let them eat cake" nor did she have a callous attitude toward the suffering of the people of France; the nobles were much more hard-hearted than the king and queen.
Thanks again for reading my novel and recommending it to your students and friends.
Sena

[Seattleslew]

Zena -- I think you ran the Contemporary Fiction Conferences in U of Louisville in the 70s, right? I read at two of them. Glad to see you're doing so very well.

John Herrmann
Libby, Montana

[mx6stcy]

Hi!
My name is Dawn and I have participated in the B&N book clubs on a few other occasions. I love history. My favorites are the Tudors, Marie Antoinette, and Cleopatra (or anything involving those eras). I've been reading alot of Marie Antoinette lately and I'll be hitting B&N this evening to get this book. Looking forward to a great discussion!

[JenniferD]

Hi, my name is Jennifer from Rhode Island. I enjoy historical fiction and have read books by Phillipa Gregory. I am very much looking forward to this book and the opportunity to meet some reading friends. I am going to start reading tonight. I'm not sure how the format goes, whether discussions are based on certain chapters, etc... I'll just see how it goes.

[Fozzie]

Hi everyone! I am Laura from the south coast of Maine. I am a B&N discussion group regular.

Historical fiction is my favorite genre, so there was no way I was going to let this book pass me by. I am just about 40 pages into it now. I am reminded of the Tudor novels by Philippa Gregory.

I know nothing about Marie Antoinette, so I know I will learn a lot by reading the book and participating in this forum.

[Writor]

Hello. A friend loaned me her copy of "Abundance" and although I don't usually read historical fiction, this novel was fascinating. I loved the present-tense immediacy. The era of the French Revolution has always intrigued me, and I too am a fan of "Tale of Two Cities." When I went to France last spring, of course I visited Versailles, and having read the novel gave the experience another layer of meaning. I look forward to hearing more from the author.

[kiakar]

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rkubie wrote:
Here's a place where we can all say hello as we get started. Are you a regular reader of historical fiction? What fascinations does the figure of Marie Antoinette hold for you?

---

Hey Rachel:

You are back! That is really great! Welcome! I am a oldie with reading fiction especially historical. And I haven't read too much on Marie Antionette but really enjoyed this novel.

[ML]

Hello All. I was drawn to the novel _Abundance_ because I thoroughly enjoyed Sena's book _Ahab's Wife_. I don't know if I will be able to get through the novel in time to discuss it here (I am currently reading two other novels), but I certainly will look forward to others' comments.

[kiakar]

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ML wrote:
Hello All. I was drawn to the novel _Abundance_ because I thoroughly enjoyed Sena's book _Ahab's Wife_. I don't know if I will be able to get through the novel in time to discuss it here (I am currently reading two other novels), but I certainly will look forward to others' comments.

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Yes, I also read the novel, Ahab's wife and was drawn into Sena's writing. So I had to try this one. But of course I also wanted to find out more about Marie Antionette.
A women who was never a girl. And we all complain about our world! Wow! SHe had alot to deal with.

[3B-S]

Hey, I read "Ahab's Wife" several years ago and loved it. Then this year I saw the movie "Marie Antoinette" and liked it very much. So when I stumbled across "Abundance" at a book sale, I snatched it up. My idea of Marie Antoinette had softened some from the movie, but this book gave me a whole different idea of the girl and woman. I like her so much better now than the picture I formed of her in history class many years ago.

[viva2]

Austin, Texas, has been my home longer than any other place. I greatly enjoy living in a university town and find the vibrancy of life here full of appeal.

I am currently a member of two land-based Barnes&Noble book clubs from which I have made several very close friends and many good acquaintances. The books we have read over the years have widened my world view as well as enriching my sense of self.

I have been a member of several of the old Barnes&Noble on-line book clubs and enjoyed the interplay of thoughts and personalities that an on-line group affords.

This book on Marie Antoinette has lured me back to Barnes&Noble's new online book clubs and I greatly look forward to participating in the group. That the author will be a participant is a definite plus.

I was drawn to the book because the idea of learning more of a child being drawn into a world both alien, (speaking a different language and country,) and familiar, (another royal family,) was fascinating. To see, as well, a child thrust into the role of an adult in a high stakes world of royal intrigue is one that I have yet to encounter.

[marcialou]

I read historical fiction from time to time. Still on my bookshelf are Roots, I Claudius, and Legacy (about Queen Elizabeth I). I'm more interested in Marie Antoinette now that I've read Abundance than I was before I started. I always wonder where history ends and imagination begins in a book like this.


Marcia