Just a List of Random Questions

The rules for the tag are:
~ Paste the button onto your blog post.
~ Leave a new list of questions (or just pass on the question list you answered) and tag a few people of your random choice (and say why you tagged them, if you have time!) (Be original and nonsensical in your question-creativity - make the blogging world a cheerful place :-) And be disastrously random.)
Now for the fun...
~Write down three facts about you - one of them is WRONG. Let your commenters guess in the comments which one is wrong (and tell them in the comments after a while)
~Answer the questions of the person who tagged you - make it all super random and interesting :-D

I was tagged by Hamelette to participate and I thought it looked like fun! First, here are three facts about me and one of them is a LIE

1) I go to public school
2) I don't like coffee
3) I have a cat named Gypsy
...So which one do you think is false? Guess in the comments and I'll tell you which is the lie!

Hamlette's Questions:

Favorite role from your favorite actor?
Okay, so sadly this was really hard to think of... I am not good with actors/actresses so.... Martin Freeman, and while I am tempted to say John Watson, I loved him too much as Bilbo Baggins. So there. And to cheat, second is Richard Armitage as Mr. Thornton because handsome....

Favorite role from your favorite actress?
Hmm... I love Dame Judy Dench and though she has been in so many, I really like her as Miss Matty in Cranford- and we have the same name in that movie, though she spells it differently :P

Book you've read that you tell people not to bother reading?
This is hard because if I dislike a book it is usually never finished so I feel unqualified to tell others my opinion of the book as a whole.... but if you twisted my arm I would have to say don't bother to read The Postmistress. The cover looks lovely and perfect, and the era seemed right (WWII and just after) but no. Do not bother to read it, because it will disappoint (or at least that was my experience.)

A food you refuse to try?
Can it be a drink? (Cheating again...) Green tea. My aunt, who made me a lover of teas, especially of the loose leaf variety, insists she will have me try it and like it.... but it smells weird and is said to taste earthy.... and who wants that?

Your favorite article of clothing?
My flowy white shirt. I feel fancy and Anne of Green Gables-y when I wear it. And who doesn't want to feel AoGG-ish?!

Have you ever gone to see the same movie in the theater more than once?
Yes. Sadly, I can't name a specific movie, but I remember seeing it with friends and then seeing the same one with my family. This has happened more than once.

Do you paint your toenails?
Yes! Especially since it pays off more than painting your nails. Toenail polish can last for months if you want it to... right now I have dark blue polish on my toes from when my mom and I got mani-pedis for spring break (a special treat :))

Do you wear any piece of jewelry every day?
I was going to say no but I suppose my watch counts as jewelry, and I am one of the few people I know (at least, who are my age) that wear one every day. It is silver, with a face, not digital, and I love it. It is delicate, so rather more like a bracelet than a clunky watch.

Are you on Pinterest?
The better question would be are you ever NOT on Pinterest.... ha

Do you collect anything?
Nope. I thought about it a couple times, but I don't ever follow through. Unless collecting books counts because I have bookshelves, closets, and nightstands full of those babies.

Have you ever asked a famous person for their autograph?
No, because I really haven't seen a famous person up close. Maybe someday..... like when I marry Richard Armitage? (Just kidding. Kind of.)... random aside, my sister is terrified when I fangirl over him because she says he is too old. Hmmph. Maybe he is, but his voice is lovely, his acting is wonderful, and he is a celebrity, so it's not like that will really end up being a problem. Okay, rant over. :)

Have you been outside the country you were born in?
Never. :'( tear tear. Unless you count as a fetus, because my parents went to Canada then....

Okay, that was fun! I am now supposed to tag people. And because I usually wimp out on this part, I am forcing myself to do it properly this time. I nominate Miss Dashwood and Petie. Do the tag if you would like, but no pressure. :) If I didn't tag you and you want to do this, go right ahead!

My Questions:

1. If you could go back in time and kill Hitler would you? Why or why not?
2. Have you ever experienced buyer's remorse? If so, what on?
3. Have you ever bought a book for it's cover? What book? Did you end up liking it?
4. What is your favorite flower?
5. What celebrity and/or fictional character are you most compatible with? (NOT who you most like, because that is not always the same thing.)
6. Quick! Jeans or dresses?
7. Time to be cliche and ask what time period you would go back to if you could.
8. Do you have a list of names you want to name your children? If they are not too secret, would you share one of them with us?
9. Where do you see yourself in ten years?
10. College: for or against? Why?

A Review of Till We Have Faces

I have always had a love for Greek mythology. I also love the apologetic of C.S. Lewis. So when I found out that C.S. Lewis had done a retelling of Cupid and Psyche, I immediately put it on my Christmas list. 

I got around to reading it in January and now I shall review it in February. Having had time to think over this story, it just appears even better.

Orual is the main character in this story, and she is the older half sister and mother figure of Psyche. The story is written from the first person point of view of Orual, and she is writing in her old age a book accusing the gods. 

The idea of a book's sole purpose being to accuse the gods seemed gutsy and unusual and pulled me in at once. The ancient atmosphere of Glome and the far off echoes of ancient Greece brought by the Greek teacher and father figure "Fox" fascinated me and brought back the old myths.

This book is more than just a creative retelling of Cupid and Psyche, though. It is the stark showing of the flaws and self deception of human nature. It shows the sin and harm of possessive love. Deftly weaving the story so that Orual's faults and self deceptions shine through, while still allowing the reader to feel sympathy and understanding with the character, Lewis takes us through the reimagined tale of Cupid and Psyche from the POV of a loving sister who is hurt and confused by Psyche's presumed death; then she is hurt and "concerned" when she travels to bury Psyche, only to find her lovely sister alive and well, speaking of a wonderful husband and a palace Orual cannot see.

Feeling cut off and separated from her sister's new life, Orual seeks council from wise and good friends. Both feel that Psyche is married not to a wonderful husband, but to some despicable being. Orual allows this belief to be her excuse for forcing Psyche to question her new life and disobey her husband's one wish....

You know the rest. Psyche looks upon her husband when he is sleeping to find him to be a beautiful god. Unable to look away, Psyche gazes in awe on his beautiful face, when some hot oil from her lamp wakes him. He flees and sends Psyche away to wander and wail. 

He appears to Orual and curses her for her part in Pysche's betrayal. "Now Psyche goes out in exile. Now she must hunger and thirst and tread hard roads. Those against whom I cannot fight must do their will upon her. You, woman, shall know yourself and your work. You also shall be Psyche" (173-174). 

Orual becomes Queen of Glome when her father dies. Though a marvelous Queen, she is cold. "I am the Queen; I'll kill Orual too" (225). "I locked Orual up or laid her asleep as best I could somewhere deep down inside me; she lay curled there. It was like being with child, but reversed; the thing I carried in me grew slowly smaller and less alive" (226). 

At the end of her accusations and small tales of life as Queen, Orual ends the first part of the novel: "It may well be that, instad of answering, they'll strike me mad or leprous or turn me into beast, bird, or tree. But will not all the world then know (and the gods will know it knows) that this is because they have no answer?" (250). A very strong accusation to make against the gods, don't you think?

So by then I had to know what went on in part two, Did Orual get her answer from the gods? Does she see Psyche again? Does she ever realize her self deception and selfish, possessive love of Psyche?

The second part goes on to tell of how the very writing out of the past and accusations forced Orual to truthfully tell of the past and her old thoughts and passions. Then happenings from the present showed Orual the past in a new light. Finally, Orual has "dreams," if such they can be called, where finally she learns the truth of the matter.

"...the change which writing wrought in me (and of which I did not write) was only a beginning- only to prepare me for the gods' surgery. They used my own pen to probe my wound" ( 253-254). 

"And now those divine Surgeons had me tied down and were at work. My anger protected me only for a short time; anger wearies itself out and truth comes in" (266).

 "A love like that can grow to be nine-tenths hatred and still call itself love" (266). 

"'Do not do it,' said the god. 'You cannot escape Ungit by going to the deadlands, for she is there also. Die before you die. There is no change after'" (279). 

"I could mend my soul no more than my face. Unless the gods helped" (282). 

And, finally, in you are not already gorged with quotes, here is what I think is the best: "The complaint was the answer. To have heard myself making it was to be answered. Lightly men talk of saying what they mean.... When the time comes to you at which you will be forced at last to utter the speech which has lain at the center of your soul for years, which you have, all that time, idiot-like, been saying over and over, you'll not speak about joy of words. I saw well why the gods do not speak to us openly, nor let us answer. Till that word can be dug out of us, why should they hear the babble that we think we mean? How can they meet us face to face till we have faces?" (294).  

Finally, C.S. Lewis ends with Truth. "I ended my first book with the words no answer. I know now, Lord, why you utter no answer. You are yourself the answer. Before your face questions die away. What other answer would suffice?" (308). 

So, what started as a review ended as a quote binge. But I hope you enjoyed the quotes as much as I did, and that they will spur you on to read the entirety of Till We Have Faces, because it is a unique story. And now I will leave you with a cozy little picture I found of C.S. Lewis. :) 

To begin at the beginning...

While browsing for post through The Penslayer's blog archives, I stumbled upon this. While, admittedly, an old posting, I loved the idea. And since it was a quick and fun thing to do, I decided to give it a go! (Although if I have my way there will be a real review up soon on C.S. Lewis' "Till We Have Faces.")

Now on to the fun part: the beginnings of some of my favorite stories:

Till We Have Faces C.S. Lewis: I am old now and have not much to fear from the anger of the gods.

The Fellowship of the Ring J.R.R. Tolkien: When Mr. Bilbo Baggins of Bag End announced that he would shortly be celebrating his eleventy-first birthday with a party of special magnificence, there was much talk excitement in Hobbiton.

The Hobbit J.R.R. Tolkien: In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.

Stepping Heavenward Mrs. E. Prentiss: How dreadfully old I am getting! Sixteen! Well, I don't see as I can help it.

To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee: When he was nearly thirteen, my brother Jem got his arm badly broken at the elbow.

Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen: It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of good fortune must be in want of a wife.

Rose in Bloom Louisa May Alcott: Three young men stood together on a wharf one bright October day awaiting the arrival of an ocean steamer with an impatience which found vent lively skirmish with a small lad, who pervaded the premises like a will-o'-the-wisp and afforded much amusement to the other groups assembled there.

Rebecca Dauphne du Maurier: Last night I dreamt I went to Manderlay again...

The Secret Life of Bees Sue Monk Kidd: At nI would lie in bed and watch the show, how bees squeezed through the cracks of my bedroom wall and flew circles around the room, making that propeller sound, a high- pitched zzzzz that hummed along my skin.

Plenilune Jennifer Freitag: Margaret Coventry stood on the platform at Leeds with a rain-speckled umbrella folded in one hand and her carpetbag in the other.

Emma Jane Austen: Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition seemed to unite some of the best blessings of existence; and had lived nearly twenty-one years in the world with very little to distress or vex her.

Voice in the Wind Francine Rivers: The city was silently bloating in the hot sun, rotting like the thousands of bodies that lay where they had fallen in street battles.

And finally, because I am really a three year old on the inside, good ol' Winnie the Pooh...

The Complete Tales of Winnie-the-Pooh A.A. Milne: Here is Edward Bear, coming downstairs now, bump, bump, bump, bump, on the back of his head, behind Christopher Robin.

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall

I was hesitant to read The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte. In my freshman year I picked up Jane Eyre, and I liked it but not as much as I thought I would. Some parts of the book were truly very interesting, but I could not relate to any of the characters. Perhaps if I was a more... emotional.....? I think that is the word I am looking for, so if I had been a more emotional person I would have related to Jane better. And every single person Jane or I had ever liked died. What is up with that?! And though Mr. Rochester is the dark and brooding type, I have decided that really is not my type. (Sorry to any people who staunchly love Mr. Rochester!)

I assumed that all of the Bronte sisters came of the same ilk in literature. After just hearing about Wuthering Heights and all its dark drama and death, I believed myself correct.

So with some trepidation I read this novel. I was surprised from the very beginning. For it started in a quiet English village, from the perspective of a civilized farmer named Gilbert Markham. It went on to describe the mysterious widow who had become the new tenant of.... you guessed it, Wildfell Hall. :)

Thorughout Gilbert's narrative, I was struck by the amusing satirical tone of the piece. The villagers were all agog over the new tenant, they were silly and base when compared to her, and they very quickly turned on her when the latest gossip came along. It was almost Jane Austen-ish in the beginning.

About halfway through the piece, we switch perspectives. The book is now an epistolary novel, with diary entries written by Helen, the tenant, to explain her mysterious past and her present mysterious actions toward Gilbert. (Who, not surprisingly, has fallen head over ears in love with her, as they would have said at the time.)

Helen's narrative starts off happily. Indeed, she is a spirited, happy little thing, jesting with her aunt over her matrimonial choices. She enters into London society with a swirl of gaiety and parties and beaus. But one beau stand out. At first, I rather liked him, but I was always concerned, for he didn't seem like the type who would suit Helen. 

I was right. More so even than I wanted to be. There were some extreme red flags during their courtship that Helen chose to completely ignore. She thought she could reform him. After all, she is his "angel." This proves to be... not the case, as you could guess. She cannot reform him. He was brought up in laziness, selfishness, vanity, and vice and he wishes to stay that way. Then he has some extreme,,, indiscretions, and I, as the reader was screaming for Helen to take her child and get out of there! 

But since her character is how she is, the time is what it is, and the role of women was what it was, that was not possible. So she went on living in that awful house for several more years. But everyone has their limit, and finally Helen reached hers. I cheered when she finally became the Tenant of Wildfell Hall.

To see if her husband follows her, to see if she and Gilbert can ever be together, and to find out if it is even possible for Helen to have a semblance of happily ever after, read the book. I think it is really good. It is not light social satire like Austen, nor frothy romance like Georgette Heyer, but it is not dark depressing Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights-ish. It is a perfect in between, and I enjoyed it more than I thought I would.

So don't judge a book by it's cover. Or it's sister's books..... but I believe the cover shown is a very pretty one, wouldn't you say so?

Now, have any of you ever read The Tenant of Wildfell Hall? Jane Eyre? Both? What did you think?

Our Mutual Friend (1998) Review

So it has been a little while since I have seen this. I probably saw it March-April-ish so bear with me.

When I watched Dicken's Our Mutual Friend miniseries, I had not yet read the book, so at first I was really confused. Then as things became more clear I couldn't wait to watch the next episodes.

Our Mutual Friend begins with the death of a wealthy heir, John Harmon, (or whatever his name was at the time, since he changed it a lot. For this review, I am just going to call him John Harmon.) who is sailing to meet his future bride. (The only way he can inherit the fortune is to marry Bella Wilfur.)
What is supposedly his dead body is found in the river by Gaffer Hexam and his daughter Lizzy. Thus begins the intricate plot of Our Mutual Friend. There are the token creepy dudes off to find the Harmon fortune (Silas Wegg and his friend.) There is also Charley Hexam's teacher, who is attracted to Lizzy Hexam. At first I thought maybe those two would work out, but people. He is NUTS. Very weird. Very vindictive and angry. By the end everything he did disgusted me. And he really could not have loved sweet Lizzy or he would have been happy for her instead of ruining all her hopes and dreams.

There are also the Boffins, the faithful servants of old Mr. Harmon and the new heirs to the fortune. Sometimes I liked them and sometimes they were a little weird. But really, their hearts were in the right place. And for all his declared "dimness," Mr. Boffin came up with an ingenious plan to show Bella where her true priorities lay.

                                            
Bella was pretty, but selfish and rude. She cared all about herself, she complained often, and was often petulant. I did not like her. How could John have? But he did and she refused him. (I could have told him that would happen. Plus, he was kind of being stalker-ish so I might have been a little worried too if I had been Bella.) Her change was believable though and I really grew to be quite fond of her. How could she be so okay with John lying to her and keeping such a big secret from her? I would have forgiven him, but I would have been mad at first. I mean, lying about your identity is kind of a big deal.... anyway.

Eugene Wrayburn and Mortimer Lightwood were foppish. Mortimer not as much, but still. And they were bored of everything. (though I could rather understand that, "Society" is dreadful company.)

                           
At first I wasn't happy with Eugene liking Lizzy. She kept saying she was beneath him, but honestly? He was beneath her. He put his own needs in front of hers. Except when it really mattered, he tried to do what was best for her. And he married her. What would Society think? Society be dashed! It was a great transformation for him.

Mortimer Lightwood... He finally saw the light and proclaimed the truth to society. BUT he was still back in London society when the show ended, so I am not really sure how well off he was. There was not even a nice girl in the picture. Sad, that.

Anyway, it all works out. The bad guys are punished, the good guys prevail, and the heros and heroines get their happily ever afters. (After a lot of worry and distress and SUCH a complicated plot.)

It was classic Dickens, with lots of characters, sub plots, and everyone was somehow related to everyone else. It was really good, and I enjoyed it. I found it for free on YouTube here.

And now I am going to post a bunch of Bella's dresses 'cause I love 'em. :)

                    

                                                           

                             

Review of 'A Room with a View'

I mentioned a couple posts ago that I had read A Room with a View. So now here is my review of it. I hope y'all enjoy. :)

A Room with a View is a well known book, I believe it is even considered a classic.... and for good reason. I remember picking this book up last summer and stopping midway. I can't imagine why.

I saw it at the library and decided to give it a go. I am happy I did. What I thought would be a short, nice little romance turned out to be much more than that.

Along with the romance came a little satirical critique on society. Lucy Honeychurch is a young lady on a tour around Europe with her guardian, her older cousin. I found Charlotte Bartlett to be extremely bothersome. "Whatever you want Lucy..... I am indebted to your mother for sending me on this trip.... I know my company must be dull for a young girl....." Ugh. Very fake and pitiable.

I could greatly sympathize with Lucy. It is difficult to feel one thing and have to do another. To do as expected instead of what one wants. To worry always how it will seem to other people; what they think, want, do.....
And to be young enough you speak freely when in "society" it simply isn't done.

Along with Lucy I wondered over George's intentions. He is unusual and crude, but I thought he would not be a cad, as Charlotte tried to make him seem. And I was quite justified, for though he is rather odd, he turned out rather well.

I believe the minister Mr. Beebe was very wise without knowing it when he talked of  Lucy living her life with as much gusto as she plays the piano. For piano is what made her happiest and that is how she ultimately ended up living her life.

I felt rather upset with Lucy near the end of the book when she tries to run from all her problems and to lie to everyone, even herself, about her true feelings. Luckily Mr. Emerson sets her straight. Mr. Emerson says what he is thinking, and though I certainly didn't agree with all he said, I found it refreshing.

Eleanor Lavish was as awful as Charlotte but in a different way. She tried to be too different, too against society. She was not real.  She seemed very fake and shallow. That is why even though she and Charlotte are very different, they end up being friends. They are both molded by "society" and not very relatable. (Autocorrect is saying that is spelled wrong... but it gives no good suggestion... hmm, oh well.)

Cecil, Lucy's fiance, was a bore. He was fine, but nothing special, nothing real. With George on the scene, he was sad in comparison. He was boorish. He thought he was much better than Lucy. He thought of Lucy as a work of art. The women must be protected at all times. (from what?) 'Lucy must find me immensely fascinating... why don't I drone on and insult everyone and everything in my fiancee's "country" village?"

Ick.

I liked her brother Freddy. He was jolly and was still young and uncouth enough to say what he thought as well. Mrs. Honeychurch was nice, but a little timid, a little too full of society. She loved Lucy and Freddy though so it was quite alright. I was disappointed that she and Freddy were so horrified at Lucy's latter choice of fiance. It is not that surprising, she did not "run off'"  with him, and they were respectably married. Ah well, I'm sure they will come to grips with it later.

Many things in the book made me think. Though it was a critique of early 1900s society, many of Forster's ideas struck me as true today. While I do not think we should all go as far as Mr. Emerson, maybe we should worry less about what society will think of us and more about what we think of ourselves. Do not be tied down to rules that do not seem right. Do the right thing, but not for the wrong reasons. These are some of the things I came up with as I was reading A Room with a View. I think it would be interesting if we all lived this way (myself included.)

Have you read A Room with a View? If so, what did you think of it? Were Lucy and George right? What are your thoughts on Forster's critiques of society?

A Review of Mrs. Miniver

Some correspondents of mine recommended the book Mrs. Miniver to me a while back. It proved a bit difficult to find, but finally my library had it at their main branch and had it sent over to me. (I just love libraries, don't you?)

So, I wasn't sure what to expect, because though I had seen the movie, I had been told the book was really nothing like it. This book is not even necessarily a novel. Rather, it is a bunch of short stories on a woman's life in around a year or so, I would say.

Each chapter was a separate story in and of itself, and I could read the chapters out of order and not be a bit confused. This is because the chapters were originally written as a column in The Times.

Mrs. Miniver, a book by Jan Struther, is about an upper middle class housewife pre-WWII and during the early years of WWII. It is about her thoughts, doings, and family. Mrs. Miniver is a unique person in her thoughts, and has a gift of making the everyday something special.

Sadly, as I was reading I didn't mark the things that stood out to me. So I shall just try to find them now, but I am sure some of the best snippets shall just slip past me.

"Mrs. Miniver was a fool about inanimate objects... It wasn't, with her, a question of the pathetic fallacy. She did not pretend to herself that cars had souls or even minds (though anybody, seeing the difference that can exist between one mass-produced car and another, might be excused for believing that they at least have at least some embryonic form of temperament). No, it was simply a matter of mise en scene. A car, nowadays, was such an integral part of one's life, provided the aural and visual accompaniment to so many of one's thoughts, feelings, conversations, decisions, that it had acquired at least the status of one's house. To part from it, whatever its faults, was to lose a familiar piece of background."

"Words were the only a net to catch a mood, the only sure weapon against oblivion."

"Not that he disliked school; but it had to be regarded, he found, as another life, to be approached only by way of the Styx, You died on the station platform, were reborn, not without pangs, in the train, and emerged at the other end a different person, with a different language, a different outlook, and a different scale of values. That was what the stray grown-ups you met on the holidays did not seem to understand when they asked you the fatuous and invariable question, 'How do you like school?' It was impossible to answer this properly, because the person of whom they asked it never, strictly speaking, arrived at school at all."

"She wondered why it had never occurred to her before that you cannot successfully navigate the future unless you keep always framed beside it a small clear image of the past."

And when getting gas masks with the children, the chapter ends so: "You did look a fright,' she said. "I 'ad to laugh.' One had to laugh."

I found the whole At the Dentist's chapter interesting.

I loved Aunt Hetty. "'Come along-we're having tea in the strawberry bed.' 'In the strawberry bed?' 'Yes. it's  a new idea that occurred to me last time Vin was here. You know how much better they always taste when you eat them straight off the plants? Only the drawback is, there's never any cream or sugar. So I thought, why not take the cream and sugar under the nets with us? We tried it, and it's a capital plan. I can't imagine why I never thought of it before.'"

I liked Mrs. Miniver's description of her first airplane flight in the chapter The New Dimension.

Her description of traveling struck me: "For you cannot make them understand the essential point, which is that when you went away you took the centre of the universe with you, so that the whole thing went on revolving, just as usual, round your own head."

"And it oughtn't to need a war to make us talk to each other in buses, and live simply, eat sparingly, and recover the use of our legs, and get up early enough to see the sun rise. However, it has needed one: which is about the severest criticism our civilization could have."

I also was amused when Mrs. Miniver spent her commute trying to find out what sound the new car's windshield wiper makes (beef tea), her agonies over which new calendar to get, and her musings over the strangeness of people who do not wait to catch a door someone else has already pushed open (Chapter: Christmas Shopping). I also enjoyed Three Stockings, and her musings on the way her children empty their stockings.

 Mrs. Miniver is a dear, lovely woman, and I loved her little book full of odds and ends and random thoughts. I wouldn't recommend it for everyone, but if you don't mind a book that is more about characters than plot, and more about everyday life than a sweeping tale of daring-do, then I recommend this to you.

Until next time then, lovely blog readers! Are you staying warm? It is freezing where I am, and I spent more than an hour today shoveling up inches and inches of snow and ice from the driveway.... brr! I think it is a tea and reading day!

End of the Year Book Wrap-Up

Okay, so I originally got this idea from Miss Dashwood. She said in her blogpost this was past the date, and it must have been, because when I went on the notebook sisters blog to find the post about this, it was not even one of the first few posts there! But I shall not pay attention. I will fill it out anyway, because it looked like lots of fun to do! So, without further ado, here are the end of the year book questions: 

1. What was your overall favourite book this year? (Yes. Pick one.)
This is so hard! Must I pick just one? *Madd Rose pouts* Fine. I think I liked the Last Sin Eater the best. (And as a series I liked Miss Marple the best. Soary, as Gilbert would say; I had to throw that in there.)

2. Favourite debut(s)? (Author must have been first published in 2013.)
Uh.... I don't really read many modern books, so I don't think I have even read an author that has just been published this year. Bummer.. WAIT! I think Wish You Were Eyre by: Heather Vogel Frederick came out this year! So there it is, problem solved.

3. Which books did you reread this year?
Tons and tons! Alright, fine I will try to name them all:
Anne of the Island b: L.M. Montgomery
Anne of Windy Poplars by: L.M. Montgomery
Anne's House of Dreams by L.M. Montgomery
Rilla of Ingleside by: L.M. Montgomery
Emily Climbs by L.M. Montgomery
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by: Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
A Rose in Bloom by: Louisa May Alcott
An Old Fashioned Girl by: Louisa May Alcott
Little Women by: Louisa May Alcott
Heavens to Betsy by: Maud Hart Lovelace
Betsy in Spite of Herself by: Maud Hart Lovelace
Betsy was a Junior by: Maud Hart Lovelace
Betsy and Joe by: Maud Hart Lovelace
Betsy and the Great World by: Maud Hart Lovelace
Betsy's Wedding by; Maud Hart Lovelace
Emily of Deep Valley by: Maud Hart Lovelace
Emma by: Jane Austen
Pride and Prejudice by: Jane Austen
Sense and Sensibility by: Jane Austen
Daddy Long Legs by: Jean Webster
....and that's all I can think of, but I think there were others.

4. Favourite cover(s) this year!

Note: not necessarily my favorite books, but I liked the covers

5. Worst cover(s)?
Um... I don't like to read or buy books with covers I don't like. I will say I dislike when publishers put the movie as the cover of the books.
                                                           

6. What self-published books did you read this year?
I've read Only a Novel by Miss Dashwood and I greatly enjoyed myself while doing so. :)

7. Which book(s) gave you a massive hangover?
The Last Sin Eater: because this book is just full of so many ideas and concepts and it is really good.

the Mitford series: because I loved this series to itty bitty pieces and when I finished the last book I just didn't know what to do with myself. I'd been "living" in Mitford for months, you know?

 Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society: even though this was a reread, I was so happy when it ended and then very sad because there is no sequel. And cannot be, as the author, Mary Ann Shaffer, has since passed away. :'(

8. Best standalone you read?
This is hard, as I read several good stand alones this year. Um... the Last Sin Eater, I suppose.

9. Biggest book(s) you've read this year?
I think it might be Wives & Daughters. I started several big books this year, but I didn't finish them. (I know, I am very bad about that sometimes.)

10. Book(s) you followed the hype for and then loved!
the Help by: Katherine Stockett... I think that might be it, I really don't follow "hype" or "trends."

11. Most disappointing book(s) you read this year?
the Postmistress looked promising but turned out to be rather bad. There are others, but that is the most recent one I can think of. (And yes, I know Miss Dashwood also did that but sometimes I am not an original thinker...)

12. Favourite leading-female character?
This year? Miss Marple

13. Favourite leading-male character?
And... Father Tim

14. Best romance(s)?
Juliet and Dawsey from the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (is that how you spell his name? Eh... I am too lazy to look it up, so if it is wrong, be a dear and please excuse. Thanks.)
Father Tim and Cynthia from the Mitford series (And Dooley and Lace)
Sally McBride and Dr.Robin "Sandy" McRae from Dear Enemy
Rose and Mac from A Rose in Bloom
Polly Milton and Tom Shaw from an Old Fashioned Girl
Emily Webster and Jed Wakeman from Emily of Deep Valley
Betsy Ray and Joe Willard
Emma Woodhouse and Mr. Knightley
Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy
ANNE AND GILBERT from Anne of Green Gables
I think I covered most of them, but if I didn't, please excuse

15. What book(s) hit the DNF list? (Did not finish.)
Sadly, a lot. I won't even list them all, readers, because I am a tad embarrassed about how many there would be. More and more this year I found it difficult to get through books. And not always because they are bad. Just because I lose interest. I sort of worries me as I haven't really had long lapses like that before.

16. What book(s) did you read out of your comfort-zone?
 the Last Sin Eater (I don't usually read Christian fiction, because it usually turns out to be some silly romance) and Agatha Christie's novels (because I didn't think I would like murder mysteries. I still don't like many murder mysteries, but Christie's special)

17. Which author did you read the most from?
Probably Agatha Christie. I read all the Miss Marple mysteries and several of Poirot and some stand alone novels of hers.

18. Top 5 books you'd recommend from all the books you've read this year?
Can this include series? Well I shall make it include series (this is my blog you know; )) 
In no particular order
1) Miss Marple mysteries
2) the Mitford series
3) the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
4) Miss Pym Disposes by: Josephine Tey
5) Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm by: Kate Douglas Wiggin (and if you want something similar, the Anne books by L.M. Montgomery)
5 1/2) I know I am such a cheater. Oh well... the Betsy Tacy series

19. How many books did you read this year all up?
I didn't keep a list... but quite a bit! You know what? That shall be one of my new years resolutions. I will keep a list of books I have read in 2014.

20. What's a book you're hugely excited for coming out in 2014?!
I wish I were hugely excited about one, but I am not. I am excited about the next Penderwick book, but I think that actually comes out in 2015 or later.

Little Women: A Review

So in my last post, I promised a review on “Little Women” (the 1994) movie, would be forthcoming. Well here it is-coming forth. J Okay, sorry about that.

I read Little Women around…. Third grade? Fourth grade? I’m not exactly sure. I liked it. I liked An Old Fashioned Girl and A Rose in Bloom better though.

But it’s really growing on me. My problem with it was mostly this: Jo didn’t marry the cute, funny, sweet, and lonely Laurie. And they are so cute together! 

                                  

I always got the feeling Laurie just married Amy because he liked the March family so much and was determined to get in it, one way or another. I felt that Miss Alcott threw Professor Bhaer on us at the last minute and was like, “Do you really want Jo to end up with SOMEONE? Well then, you ASKED for it!” Mocking me with their incompatibility and extreme age difference. Humph.

Now my opinion isn’t exactly that. I still hold true to the statement that Jo and Laurie should have been together, but I grudgingly admit that Professor Bhaer has his virtues. There.

Now this is for the book, mind you. I just saw the 1994 movie about a month ago, and enjoyed myself hugely. I came to know Jo better. (I used to think her a bit boyish and over the top and semi revolutionary….) Now I feel I can connect with her more. I love to read, try to write, and I can get a bit mad and lose my temper at times too. (The scene where Amy burns Jo’s book is simply horrifying. If that EVER happened to me… well.)

                     

I also came to like Professor Bhaer better. (The Prof. Bhaer’s accent and cuteness in the movie helped quite a bit…) BUT I still hold on to my Jo/Laurie hopes a little. I can’t help it. I still think that if Laurie wasn’t going to end up with Jo, he shouldn’t go for Amy. No, no, no. I feel, as Amy said in the movie, that she thinks he likes her for her family and not for herself.

 One thing that really spoke to me as I got older was the familial ties, the March sisters loving and close relationship, the general “kindred spiritness” of it all. That’s what I really love about classics. They often feature simple, wonderful, surprising, unusual everyday life.

This movie should have had me ranting and raving about how it’s not true to the book, and it’s a bit short, etc. But… with all its inaccuracies, it’s a wonderful movie that caught the essence of Little Women and has a wonderful soundtrack. Which is always a huge plus. I also thought the characters were fairly well cast, though I don’t remember Marmee being quite so “revolutionary” in her views and sometimes rather forward. Mr. March was not how I pictured him, but luckily he wasn’t in it much. Winona Ryder was a wonderful Jo. I have no complaints on that score.

   

One thing I want to stick in that doesn’t necessarily pertain to Little Women, but does pertain to Louisa May Alcott…I think some film director out there should get a hold of An Old Fashioned Girl or A Rose in Bloom. I would LOVE that! But I (or someone who is a devoted reader of such books, like myself) should supervise and make sure things are done right. Because there’s nothing worse than film writers and directors who positively RUIN a wonderful book. It is better off unmade than made badly. That’s all for my Little Women/Louisa May Alcott post. I hope you enjoyed!

P.S. I'm not completely sure what is going on with the font but it sort of looks like a typewriter, no? Next time I'll try to get it back to normal.

P.P.S. The ending was so cute. That's when Prof. Bhaer kind of got to me. :) Enjoy