stoutfellow

I finally finished The Small House at Allington. I have to say I didn't enjoy it as much as I have the other books in the Barchester series. Trollope is as skilled at characterization as ever, but the most central figure in the book, Lily Dale, just doesn't appeal to me. Briefly, her plotline is this: she is courted by a man named Crosbie, who is a mid-ranking government bureaucrat with bright prospects. She falls in love with him and accepts his proposal, but soon after he jilts her in favor of one of his aristocratic connections. She declares that she still loves him, but accepts his decision - but she regards herself as tied to him in spirit, and rejects the very idea of any other suitor. (She's not a Miss Havisham, sinking into misanthropy; she remains vibrant and friendly, but is determined never to marry anyone besides Crosbie.) The cover blurb describes her as Trollope's most admired heroine, but I don't think she holds a candle to Mary Thorne or Lucy Robards.

Anyway, I've gone on to the next and final book in the series, The Last Chronicle of Barset. It looks gloomy, but we shall see.

Every evening, I like to scan through the overnight TV offerings, to see if there are any movies I want to record. Today, though, Dish Network is being persnickety; if I advance the guide as little as two hours into the future, it gives me an Information Not Available message. It ought to be updating the guide in that situation. Irritating... (I picked up a pack of blank DVDs today, planning to start using them to record movies; they're about the same price as videotapes, and much more compact. So much for that idea, at least for the time being.)