Two Quotes

"Study without desire spoils the memory, and it retains nothing that it takes in."

"Supreme happiness will be the greatest cause of misery, and the perfection of wisdom the occasion of folly."

Leonardo da Vinci 1452-1519

A Quote

"If the world were merely seductive, that would be easy. If it were merely challenging, that would be no problem. But, I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day." E.B. White

Picture is of Margaret Countess of Blessington 1789-1849

Princesses The Six Daughters of George III

"Princesses The Six Daughters of George III by Flora Fraser

This book gives a well researched history of the royal family of King George III. There are general references to the American revolution, the French revolution, and other government matters. The book also gives researched details about King George III "illness", the illness that made him mad. The focus of the book is on the personal lives of the royal daughters. King George III and his wife Queen Charlotte had 15 children, 6 daughters and 9 sons, 2 of the sons died as small children. The older 3 daughters were closer in age; the Princess Royal Charlotte, Augusta and Elizabeth, and later Sophia, Amelia and Mary were born. The daughters lived isolated lives, mainly as companions of their mother. Some of the daughters did not marry, nor have children, one had a child out of marriage, some of the daughters had various illnesses, one of them died young. The author Flora Fraser's mother Antonia Fraser is well known in the area of historical books, this is the first book I have read by Flora Fraser and I enjoyed it much.

The two pictures are of Kew Palace.

Halloween

From an old Scottish saying, "From ghoulies and ghosties and long leggety beasties and things that go bump in the night. Good Lord, deliver us! "

Have a safe Halloween!

"The Blue Boy"

"The Blue Boy" by Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788)

"The Blue Boy" painting was actually a portrait of Jonathan Buttall the son of a wealthy hardware merchant, painted in 1770. It is thought to be a study on 17Th century clothing, and also done in honor of Anthony Van Dyck portrait of Charles II as a boy.
As I posted earlier "The Blue Boy" is on display at "The Huntington" in San Marino, California.





My mother loved both of the paintings of "The Blue Boy" and "Pinkie", they were always on display in our formal living room. These paintings went along with her love for french provincial furniture.

"Pinkie"

"Pinkie" by Sir Thomas Lawrence (1769-1830)

"Pinkie" was actually a portrait of Sarah Barrett Moulton painted when she was 11 years old. She was born in Jamaica, the daughter of a wealthy plantation owner, later she was sent to school in England. Sadly she died 1 year later after this portrait was painted of her, probably of tuberculosis. An interesting piece of trivia, Sarah had a brother Edward, he later changed his last name to Moulton-Barrett, and he became the father of the poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning.
Both of the paintings of "The Blue Boy" and "Pinkie" are on display near each other at "The Huntington" in San Marino, California. They are in a gallery of collections of 18Th century English portraiture paintings.

"Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening"

"Whose woods there are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep."
Robert Frost ~~~

Fanny Burney

I am currently reading "Princesses The Six Daughters of George III" by Flora Fraser. In reading this book I have been introduced to Fanny Burney. Fanny Burney born Frances Burney in 1752, was a diarist, novelist, and playwright in England. She became close friends with Queen Charlotte, (wife of King George III) and the princesses when she was in their royal court. Fanny Burney is well known for her novels; Evelina, Cecilia, Camilla, and The Wanderer. She is also known for her many diaries of 18th Century life. Her novels satirized English aristocrats and described life for women in a male dominated society. Her diaries recorded her observations of courtly life, the speeches and trials she heard, and the most amazing is her recording of her own experience when she underwent a mastectomy without anesthetic in 1811 after being diagnosed with breast cancer. She greatly influenced the writers Jane Austen and William Makepeace Thackeray. Fanny married at age 42 to a French exile and they had 1 son Alexander. She died in Bath, England in January of 1840.

"I am ashamed of confessing that I have nothing to confess."
"To despise riches, may, indeed, be philosophic, but to dispense them worthily, must surely be more beneficial to mankind."
Fanny Burney 1752-1840

A Classic

"A classic is a classic not because it conforms to certain structural rules, or fits certain definitions (of which its author had quite probably never heard).

It is a classic because of a certain eternal and irrepressible freshness."

Edith Wharton 1862-1937

Robin Hood

"Hood" by Stephen R. Lawhead

"Hood" is book 1 in the "King Raven Trilogy", book 2 is already out and the title of it is "Scarlet".

This is the first book I have read of Stephen Lawhead's and it was simply wonderful! Mr. Lawhead did a splendid job in his careful researching of the legends of Robin Hood, and the geography of the area he wrote about which is Wales. Mr. Lawhead weaves an excellent story of the beginnings of "his" tale of Hood. While I was reading this book I could easily picture in my mind the forests, tree's, mountains, caves, plant life, and animals of 11Th century Wales. I was able with the help of a pronunciation guide in the back of the book, able to pronounce the names and places and language of the "Briton" people. The main character is Bran ap Brychan, heir to the throne of Elfael. Bran must save his people from the Normans, those land hungry villains.