Beautiful Blog Award

So I have again been nominated for an award! Shocking, these things are like dominoes. It seems if one comes your way, they all come your way. I am very pleased that Emma Jane sent the Beautiful Blog Award my way.
                                        
Without further ado, here are the questions and my answers.

 ~What is one of your favorite period drama lines that you find yourself quoting often?
Oh goodness. Well I think several in my head, but not out loud. No one seems to get them. And my sister always thinks I am odd when I do so. But I often find myself saying "Soary, Anne" to her in a Gilbert-like way. Just because that is so fun. :)

 ~What was the last book you read?
The Shadow Things by Jennifer Frietag. It is not really a book I usually read, so I was a bit wary at first. However, I really ended up liking it and finished it in about two days. (I could have finished it in one but sadly school got in the way...

 ~What is the best movie you've seen so far in 2014?
Um.... Frozen? I think I saw that in 2014. Or maybe it was late 2013. Oh well, it was recently and I liked it a lot. The music is fabulous.

                     

 ~Who is one of your least-favorite period drama couples?
Least favorite? Hmm... Mme. and M. Thenardier from Les Miserables are the first to come to mind.

 ~Who is the one period drama man you can most imagine yourself marrying? (This doesn't have to be your favorite literary/period drama hero, just the man you think you would be most suited to.)
Gilbert. Honestly, I think we would do very well together. I find his sense of humor funny, he is kind, intelligent, and he is an everyday type of guy who is perfectly imperfect to me.... yeah as you can see I have never really gotten over my first big literary crush. (And now I don't think I will.)

 ~ What is your favorite time period and culture to read about?
Edwardian? 1800-early 1900.

 ~Are you familiar with the Irish music group Celtic Woman? If so, who is your favorite of the singers?
I am familiar with them. I think some of their songs are lovely but I really don't listen to them all that much. So I can't say I have a favorite singer because I do not know their names.

 ~What is one of your all-time favorite book covers?
Oh my... well I really like my Sense and Sensibility cover and my An Old Fashioned Girl cover. So I'll cheat a little and post both of them. :)

     

Here is a little interesting tidbit on my Sense and Sensibility: It was the first Jane Austen book I ever owned and read, and I got it for free from my libraries summer reading challenge when I was 11 or 12.

 ~Is there a specific period drama/literary character whom you often find yourself quoting?
Anne of Green Gables, for sure. I just love those books/movies. And the quotes just fit so many occasions.

 ~Is there a specific period drama/literary character whom you find yourself acting a lot like sometimes? 
Hmm. I don't think I am a lot like Anne Shirley, I wish I were more like Elinor Dashwood or Elizabeth Bennet.... I should be honest with myself and say I am more of a Catherine Morland. (But hopefully not quite so silly.) Does this mean I get a Henry Tilney? :)

Happy Belated Valentine's Day

I know it is not Valentine's Day, but I've been planning this post for awhile. And just because I was busy on Valentines Day making homemade cards and having dinner with my family, I will not spoil my own fun. So I have decided to do what I originally planned. I decided that there is nothing better than some wonderful, romantic quotes to make people happy. So, I picked some of my favorites. (Not all because that would be too many to count, dear readers!) so now, without further ado, some Valentine's Day quotes:

"A man in khaki was standing on the steps-a tall fellow, with dark eyes and hair, and a narrow white scar running across his brown cheek. Rilla stared at him foolishly for a moment. Who was it? She ought to know him-certainly there was something very familiar about him...'Rilla-my-Rilla,' he said. 'Ken,' gasped Rilla. Of course, it was Ken-but he looked so much older-he was so much changed-that scar-the lines about his eyes and lips-her thoughts went whirling helplessly. Ken took the uncertain hand he held out, and looked at her. The slim Rilla of four years ago had rounded out into symmetry. He had left a school girl, and he found a woman-a woman with wonderful eyes and a dented lip, and rose-bloom cheek- a woman altogether beautiful and desirable- the woman of his dreams. 'Is it Rilla-my-Rilla?' he asked, meaningly. Emotion shook Rilla from head to foot, Joy- happiness- sorrow- fear- every passion that had wrung her heart in those four long years seemed to surge up in her soul for a moment as the deeps of being were stirred. She tried to speak; at first voice would not come. Then- 'Yeth,'said Rilla." -From Rilla of Ingleside

And anyone who's read that book will be sighing right now, for Rilla saying "Yeth" meant something very special indeed. It is a rather long quote, but I just had to include all of it.

"It came clearly and suddenly on the air of a June evening. An old, old call-two higher notes and one long and soft and low. Emily Starr, dreaming at her window, heard it and stood up, her face suddenly gone white. Dreaming still -she must be! Teddy Kent was thousands of miles away, in the Orient- so much she knew from an item in a Montreal paper. Yes, she had dreamed it-imagined it. It came again. And Emily knew that Teddy was there, waiting for her in Lofty John's Bush.-calling to her across the years. She went down slowly-out-across the garden. Of course Teddy was there- under the firs. It seemed the most natural thing in the world that he should come to her there, in that old-world garden where the three lombardies still kept guard. Nothing was wanting to bridge the years. There was no gulf. HE put out his hands and drew her to him, with no conventional greeting. And spoke as if there were no years-no memories- between them. 'Don't tell me you can't love me- you can-you must- why, Emily-'his eyes had met the moonlit brilliance of hers for a moment-'you do.'" -From Emily's Quest
Oh what a romantic, romantic thing! The old call! I got a teddy bear for Valentine's Day two years ago and I named it Teddy Kent. I just loved this ending.

"I have a dream,' he (Gilbert) said slowly. 'I persist in dreaming it, although it has often seemed to me that it could never come true. I dream of  home with a hearth fire in it, a cat and a dog, the footsteps of friends-and you!'" - From Anne of the Island Ch. 41 "Love takes up the glass of time"

Anne of Green Gables is one of my favorites, and I just love this whole chapter! Oh Anne and Gilbert! Need I say more? ;)

"'But I've been thinking, Betsy. The Plan has been twisted about to let you in. You're in it now, that's all. I wouldn't like it without you. I wouldn't give a darn for my old Plan if you couldn't be in it.'"...... "After Commencement Day, the World!' Joe said. "With Betsy." - From Betsy and Joe 

Betsy and Joe are one of those wonderful high school couples. They meet the summer before freshman year, but have misunderstandings once school starts. For Freshman, Sophomore, and Junior year Betsy and Joe are caught in a tangle of misunderstandings, but liking each other through it all. Senior year crowns Betsy and Joe's happiness, and need I mention, my own. :)

"That's the rose you put in the birthday cake, and next week we'll have a fresh one in another jolly little cake which you'll make me; you left it on the floor of my den the night we talked there, and I've kept it ever since. There's love and romance for you!" -Tom Shaw, From An Old-fashioned Girl

I love Little Polly and Tom's relationship! It's a beautiful little love story. And the way he changes, and goes West, and makes himself a better man....! And Polly's sweet, unwavering love. It's a wonderful story, all in all.

And we can't forget Jane Austen!

“I cannot make speeches, Emma...If I loved you less, I might be able to talk about it more. But you know what I am. You hear nothing but truth from me. I have blamed you, and lectured you, and you have borne it as no other woman in England would have borne it.” -From Emma

 I simply love Mr. Knightley, with an "e." He is one of my favorite Austen heroes!

"“I come here with no expectations, only to profess, now that I am at liberty to do so, that my heart is and always will be yours.” - From Sense and Sensibility

That part makes me have a smile cry, you know, when you're smiling and you have happy tears in your eyes? It made Elinor cry too. (At least, in the '95 movie it did...)

“In vain have I struggled. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you.” -From Pride and Prejudice

True, Mr. Darcy followed that up with, I know you are lower than me in rank, birth "et cetera, et cetera, et cetera;" but really, it's a wonderful sentiment.

That is all for now, I hope you all had a very happy Valentine's Day!

Period Drama Tag Answers

1. What period dramas have you watched in January?

I have watched North and South, Sense & Sensibility,  Cranford, and The Scarlet Pimpernel

2. Do you prefer period dramas peppered with humor or laced with dark emotions?
If I had to choose. I suppose humor. I love to watch Period Dramas that have both humor and dark emotions.

3. What was the first period drama miniseries (two episodes or longer) that you ever watched?

I think that would have to be the Anne of Green Gables movies. I just love those so much!

4. How many Jane Austen adaptations have you seen?

I believe I've seen 6: Mansfield Park ('98?,) Northanger Abbey '07, P&P '95 and '05, Sense and Sensibility '95, and Emma '09.

5. What period drama, that you haven't seen before, are you most looking forward to seeing in the future?

Bleak House, I think.

A Review of Sense and Sensibility (1995)

This is my first review, so you must be patient with me. I will first start with a summary, then go on to actors, music, costumes, theme, &tc. Book comparisons will undoubtedly pop up throughout the blog. As I am writing this review, I am listening to the Sense and Sensibility music. I think it is delightful! But, to start with:

 The Summary:

 Sense and Sensibility is a story of two sisters, Marianne and Elinor Dashwood, who are both in love with two men who are not free to give their own love in return. They both have their hearts broken. Elinor, as is her way, takes it in stride and remains calm and collected for her family. "Always submission and resignation. Elinor, where is your heart?" So said Marianne to Elinor, a very characteristic response. Marianne is vivacious and headstrong. She does not hide her feelings, and weeps despairingly for a long time and hides her sorrow from no one when her heart is broken. So causing the famous scene where Marianne ventures out and it rains and she catches pneumonia. ( At least, I believe that is what it was...) In the movie, Col. Brandon saves her, quite heroically. While I love this scene, and Col. Brandon, that is not how it was in the book. I especially like the lines "Miss Dashwood, give me an occupation or I shall go (or was it run?) mad!" said by Col. Brandon. Sorry that I seem to not know the quotes word for word, this is all off the top of my head. I simply abhor Willoughby. I admit I didn't at first, I thought he was wonderful, saving Marianne in the rain (sigh) and bringing her flowers. But I saw his true colors, and that was the end of that. I also have seen that actor in several other places (Cranford, anyone?) and he is nothing but trouble in them all. Edward and Elinor, though are my favorite couple. In the book I liked Edward, but in the movie I adored him. I think it was because we got to see (and hear) more of him. The scene with Margaret and the atlas? It melted my heart. The same could be said for the wooden sword fighting scene. From book to movie, I thought it was well done. While you can't fit everything from the book into the movie, they did a fairly good job, in my (not so) humble opinion. I know they took out a few characters and added some extra things to the movie, but I enjoyed it and thought they made sense. I really like the movie and was so glad to have received it from my bosom friend (as Anne Shirley would say)  for my birthday. (Which, by some happy coincidence, is December 16, Jane Austen's birthday!!!)

The Actors:
I really liked the actors in this movie. Emma Thompson may have been a bit old for Elinor (I believe Elinor in the book is around eighteen) but she is wonderful in the role. She has such fabulous facial expressions, such expressive eyes. I always marvel at her sense. She also has a sense of humor, and several witty things are said throughout the movie by our Elinor. Kate Winslet played Marianne exceptionally well. I believe she would've been a tough character to portray; she is so unique, but, in any case, Winslet was very expressive and played the feeling Marianne very well. (Fainting and tears are hard to do.) While reading this over, I think I might give the impression that I do not think very highly of Marianne, which is not the case. She is just young and naive, and I don't look up to her as I do Elinor. (But I do adore her, upon my word, I do.) Greg Wise as Willoughby was done well, as I did not get the impression until later that he was somewhat of a fiend. I never did like it when Willoughby insulted Col. Brandon, though. I am so glad Elinor stuck up for him! Hugh Grant was very good. I thought he was very nice, and as I said, I loved Edward in the movie. Imogen Stubbs did a good job of making me hate Lucy Steele. She was so sly! So deceitful! So... oh, she just rubbed me the wrong way. She was exactly how I pictured her to look in the book, and I was quite pleased. I'm glad she ends up with nice, simple-minded Robert Ferrars, instead of dear Edward. Apparently, the actor who played Robert Ferrars was Emma Thompson's brother-in-law! Anyway, on to Snape Alan Rickman. At first, I was iffy. Could Snape play my beloved Col. Brandon? I was very soon reconciled to him however, and now I think of Alan Rickman as Col. Brandon instead of Alan Rickman as Snape. See the difference? On to Mrs. Jennings and Sir John Middleton. I thought they were the funniest pair. I laughed (with a grimace) at their jokes concerning the elusive "Mr. F." I especially liked Margaret's line, "I like them. They talk about things. We never talk about things." :) Fanny and John  Dashwood... let me suffice to say Fanny was proud and intolerable, just as she should be. Her hair always reminded me of a baby octopus, but I guess that was the "fashion." John Dashwood was easily persuaded and slightly dull. You could see he wanted to be courteous and help his sisters, but what is thought without action? Nothing, in my book.

Mr. Palmer was so droll! He and his newspaper. Poor man! What a silly wife he has! His face when he is holding his baby is priceless! "Mr. Palmer is just so good with him!" As if, Mrs. Palmer! Ahh, how funny. Now, I think I have covered many of the important characters. On to the music.

The Music:
As aforementioned,  I find the music delightful, if not a tad melancholy. "Play something a bit less sad, dearest." :) I don't think sad was quite the wording, but I'm sure you get the reference. The music sounded classical to me, which fit the period exactly, but my piano teacher might point out some or chords and things that show otherwise, but to the untrained ear (mine) it seemed to suit. Marianne was playing the piano quite often, and beautiful songs were played each time. That's about all I have to say about the music, without repeating how delightful I found it.

The Costumes:
They were all wonderful. I can't seem to find fault with this movie, can I? While they might not have been as accurate as some, (P&P '95) I thought they were very nice and fit with the time period. They dresses are cut rather low, but that was the style. Marianne's hair was a beautiful tumble of curls, and I thought Elinor's wavy bun suited her nicely. Many of the hairstyles seem to reflect the old Roman hairstyles, which I find fascinating. Lucy Steele's is the first to come to mind. I have seen that ribbon headband and bun style in my Latin textbook at school. The men's hairstyles I always enjoy. For some reason, long tussled hair looks good with their outfits. I do not like curly white wigs, though. (eh hem, Sir John Middleton!) Now, as this post is becoming rather long, I will wrap up with the overall theme.

The Theme:
I love Jane Austen's novels (of the three-going-on-four that I have read so far.) Love has always given me this wonderful, happy feeling. What can I say? I am a girly, hopeless romantic. She not only writes about love, but as many have noticed Jane Austen does a wonderful job of studying human characteristics. She makes wonderful, true to life characters (and sometimes caricatures.) She develops setting so very well also. Some say her books don't have a plot, but that, I believe is because of the plots subtlety. She does not bang you over the head with adventures and disasters, that much is true. Sense and Sensibility is one of my favorite novels of hers, (or anyone's) and I think it is safe to say I thoroughly enjoyed this movie adaptation.