Blogs I read
Snippet Reviews: Book Club Readings 2006 & 2007
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beth — Tue, Apr 3 2007
Since it's so early in 2007, I'm throwing the 2007 books in with 2006. I'm just crazy that way!
2006
Decline and Fall, Evelyn Waugh - This book was hilarious and outlandish. I enjoyed it so much, I immediately went to the library and checked out Brideshead Revisited and A Handful of Dust. (Decline and Fall was still my favorite.)
The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood - Since I'd read this before, in addition to reading it, I read analyses of it, and also read Brave New World to further explore dystopia societies. I found the heroine much more disturbing this time around in her passivity to her environment, and the book really makes you wonder how you would react.
The Razor's Edge, W. Somerset Maugham - I can't remember much about this book, but I enjoyed it and the two main characters, Larry and Isabelle, and how their lifes took such different paths based on their differing desires in life.
Mansfield Park, Jane Austen - I can't believe I'm about to say this about my beloved Jane Austen, but this book was just crap. Is that too harsh? The main character, Fanny, is a prissy, timid, uptight goody-goody who irritates you almost from the first, and by the end of the book, you're thoroughly fed up with the rest of the characters too. Austen may have been trying to make a sardonic statement about society in this book, but the characters are so annoying, I hadn't the patience to examine it too deeply. For once, I found the movie adaptation much better than the book.
The Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum - Who couldn't love this classic? It was interesting reading it again as an adult - it's so violent in places! The Tinman is an enigma - crying because he doesn't want to harm a bug, but then he cuts off the heads of wolves without a thought. Frank Baum, you so crazy.
The Prince and the Pauper, Mark Twain - We really wanted to read something by Mark Twain, but do you know how hard it is to find a book of his that isn't 600+ pages or simply a collection of short stories? The Prince and the Pauper was enjoyable, if completely preposterious and full of anachronisms. It's funny - I knew the concept of the prince and the pauper, but didn't know anything past "a prince and pauper switch places..." until I read this.
Frankenstein, Mary Shelley - I have to tell you, Frankenstein's monster speaks a lot more eloquently than I do! The book is very interesting. While not the most perfectly written book (loose ends, chronological impossibilities, a complete glossing over of how Frankenstein gave the monster life), it does ask lots of questions about the nature of humanity and how you measure what is evil. I read the annotated version, which had the craziest hippy drawings ever.
2007
Gigi, Collette - Gigi is really a novella and is an amazingly quick read. It's amusing to examine a life where the norm is to become a courtesan and it's crazy and a little boring to pursue marriage instead. It's also a little disturbing to think of grooming a child to become the lover of a man twice her age. Yikes. I feel I should read more Collette, since she is considered a preeminent writer of France.
A Room With A View, E.M. Forster - It was hard to get started with Forster's writing style, but this was a thoroughly enjoyable read, if a bit fluffy. The book is mostly based on character studies, so it's suprisingly that you get so little character development with the male romantic interest. But learning about Lucy, her aunt, the reverend, and Lucy's first fiance is interesting and the story is fun reading. Delia loaned me Maurice afterwards, and I found that a better developed novel, and preferred it of the two.
Up Next! We're reading Moll Flanders for our April book club.
2006
Decline and Fall, Evelyn Waugh - This book was hilarious and outlandish. I enjoyed it so much, I immediately went to the library and checked out Brideshead Revisited and A Handful of Dust. (Decline and Fall was still my favorite.)
The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood - Since I'd read this before, in addition to reading it, I read analyses of it, and also read Brave New World to further explore dystopia societies. I found the heroine much more disturbing this time around in her passivity to her environment, and the book really makes you wonder how you would react.
The Razor's Edge, W. Somerset Maugham - I can't remember much about this book, but I enjoyed it and the two main characters, Larry and Isabelle, and how their lifes took such different paths based on their differing desires in life.
Mansfield Park, Jane Austen - I can't believe I'm about to say this about my beloved Jane Austen, but this book was just crap. Is that too harsh? The main character, Fanny, is a prissy, timid, uptight goody-goody who irritates you almost from the first, and by the end of the book, you're thoroughly fed up with the rest of the characters too. Austen may have been trying to make a sardonic statement about society in this book, but the characters are so annoying, I hadn't the patience to examine it too deeply. For once, I found the movie adaptation much better than the book.
The Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum - Who couldn't love this classic? It was interesting reading it again as an adult - it's so violent in places! The Tinman is an enigma - crying because he doesn't want to harm a bug, but then he cuts off the heads of wolves without a thought. Frank Baum, you so crazy.
The Prince and the Pauper, Mark Twain - We really wanted to read something by Mark Twain, but do you know how hard it is to find a book of his that isn't 600+ pages or simply a collection of short stories? The Prince and the Pauper was enjoyable, if completely preposterious and full of anachronisms. It's funny - I knew the concept of the prince and the pauper, but didn't know anything past "a prince and pauper switch places..." until I read this.
Frankenstein, Mary Shelley - I have to tell you, Frankenstein's monster speaks a lot more eloquently than I do! The book is very interesting. While not the most perfectly written book (loose ends, chronological impossibilities, a complete glossing over of how Frankenstein gave the monster life), it does ask lots of questions about the nature of humanity and how you measure what is evil. I read the annotated version, which had the craziest hippy drawings ever.
2007
Gigi, Collette - Gigi is really a novella and is an amazingly quick read. It's amusing to examine a life where the norm is to become a courtesan and it's crazy and a little boring to pursue marriage instead. It's also a little disturbing to think of grooming a child to become the lover of a man twice her age. Yikes. I feel I should read more Collette, since she is considered a preeminent writer of France.
A Room With A View, E.M. Forster - It was hard to get started with Forster's writing style, but this was a thoroughly enjoyable read, if a bit fluffy. The book is mostly based on character studies, so it's suprisingly that you get so little character development with the male romantic interest. But learning about Lucy, her aunt, the reverend, and Lucy's first fiance is interesting and the story is fun reading. Delia loaned me Maurice afterwards, and I found that a better developed novel, and preferred it of the two.
Up Next! We're reading Moll Flanders for our April book club.
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