Posts tagged Books

Book Four: Pride and Prejudice. Austen, Jane.

Background: Jane Austen was born in 1775, at Steventon Parsonage, Hampshire, England. She was the seventh of eight children in a tight-knit family. Her father and brothers provided her education along with extensive reading. She began her literary career by writing parodies and sketches to amuse her family. Her family moved for her father’s health and again after his death in 1805. Austen lived an uneventful life, but she closely observed what went on around her. Her observations of manners and class were key to her novels. 

Brief Synopsis: Pride and Prejudice… I am going to skip this section. Most people know what the book is about and my last entry was longer than usual.

What did I think?

I had a lot of trouble getting through the first half of the book, hence why I got behind on my reading. My approach was to compare the book to the movie, noting when lines were given to different people and where scenes were combined. There were a lot of characters introduced in the first half of the novel. I almost started a list to keep track of them. It seemed like half of those characters were hardly seen again, or were just in the background regularly, but did not say or do anything.

I loved getting more of Darcy’s side of things, particularly in the last half. I got a better sense of who he is and why he acts the way he does. You get a bit of his motivations in the movie, but mostly when it comes the reasons why Elizabeth won’t marry him. In the book there are points where he is walking with Elizabeth explaining himself to her and answering her questions. There is also a lot more ridiculous blushing.

Would I recommend it to others?

If you like the various movies based on the book, you should read it. If you don’t like them, then you probably wont like the book. I give it 3 stars. 

Book Three: The Country of the Pointed Firs and Other Stories. Sarah Orne Jewett 

Background: Jewett was born in South Berwick, Maine in 1849, where she spent most of her life. She wanted to become a doctor, like her father, but ill health prevented it. She turned to writing, with her first story being published when she was eighteen. Going on rounds with her father, along with the walks she took for her health, lead to her love of nature and the region. Jewett is particularly known for writing stories about the region and its landscape. She continued writing until she was in a crippling carriage accident in 1902. 

Brief Synopsis: The Country of the Pointed Firs is about a female writer who travels to Dunnet Landing, a town on the Maine coast, to write. There is no real plot, rather a series of interactions with the people of the town and her observations of life there. Most of the interactions are with Mrs. Todd, the woman the narrator is boarding with, and her family members. The women of the town are the main focus, with few male characters appearing in the book. 

What did I think?

I will admit that I am not a fan of most American literature. My darling sister has been trying to convert me to her way of thinking. She is an American lit fan, while I am a Brit lit kind of girl. This book is one of the many she has lobbied for me to read in an attempt to change my mind. I really enjoyed it, though I am not about to declare my love for all American literature.

The Country of the Pointed Firs is the kind of book I had to read under certain conditions. It is the perfect book for a quiet, sunny afternoon. The pace of the book is like the pace of life in Dunnet Landing, slow and steady. This pace, along with the way the narrator talks about the town, gives a sense of isolation from the world and of an older way of life. The absence of modern life and young people and children, outside of the occasional comment, emphasizes the isolation. It makes you sad that the way of life is vanishing after getting to know the different characters. It is hard to imagine Mrs. Todd without her herb picking and selling herbal remedies out of her kitchen or the men without their fishing.

Within the isolated community, there are people who isolate themselves. There was a woman named Joanna who went to live on an island by herself and refused to see visitors. I was drawn to her, partly because we share a name, but also because I can understand the desire to just go it alone. She did it because of a broken heart; I would because I was just fed up with people. I don’t think I could live out my life like that though. It was interesting to see how people responded to it; there is a sense of understanding and loss.

My favorite thing about the book is how Jewett describes people as nature and nature as people. At one point she even describes someone “who was nothing if not botanical” (Jewett 103-04). Odd people are like plants that grow where they shouldn’t and the nature of trees is used to describe the nature of people. Some trees have different personalities; some are more prone to bad spells, just like people. I am sure I could keep going, but I don’t want to bore you.

Would I recommend this to others?

Yes. I know it might not be some people’s thing, but I really liked it. I give it five stars I guess. I really need to come up with criteria for my stars.

Book Two: The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity, and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary. Winchester, Simon.

Background: Simon Winchester was born in London in 1944, but currently lives in New York. He has written over a dozen non-fiction books as well as one novel. Winchester started out in journalism and still contributes to several travel magazines. He entered Oxford University to study geology and worked in the field for several years. While working in Africa, he was inspired by James Morris’s book, Coronation Everest, and contacted the writer for advice. Morris urged Winchester to give up geology and become a writer, advice he clearly took.

Brief Synopsis (hopefully short, but not boring): Winchester tells the entire seventy-year history of the OED along with the histories of two men who made the dictionary possible: Professor James Murray and Doctor W. C. Minor. As definitions were collected and quotations were compiled, editor Murray discovered that one man, Dr. Minor, had submitted more than ten thousand definitions. Little was known about the American doctor until the overseeing committee decided to honor those who most contributed to the great undertaking. It was then they discovered the shocking truth that Minor was an inmate of an asylum for the criminally insane.

What did I think of it?

I feel the need to preface this with the fact that I am a big dork with an English degree.

I loved this book. I don’t really know what else to say, partly because I have neglected this entry for too long. I learned a lot of new and interesting things. Winchester artfully intertwines the histories of the three main figures with background information on the history of English language dictionaries, the Civil War, and mental health treatment without being boring or irrelevant. Though that could just be because I found it all interesting. Winchester clearly knew a lot about his subject matter, but handled it with wit and a great deal of sympathy for the people he discussed. He clearly has a great deal of sympathy for Minor and is able to make the reader feel the same.

Winchester practically oozes dork when he talks about the OED. An appreciation for the history as well as the aesthetics of the dictionary is clear. It was hard not to indulge in the same dorky glee, but that could just be me. I couldn’t help but giggle every time he wrote about the predicted completion time for the dictionary just to follow it with how long one letter took the compilers to complete. Winchester also brings just the right amount of emotion to his discussion of the Civil War and the punishments for desertion. I felt appropriately horrified and could imagine the impact it might have had in Dr. Minor. Not all writers can emotionally connect the reader to historical facts and keep them interested in a topic that could be very boring. In my opinion, Winchester does a great job of keeping things interesting, but it would just be the big dork in me talking.

Would I recommend it to others? I recommend the book to any OED fan or literary dork, or well, anyone else who thinks it sounds at all interesting. I give it 5 stars.

Book One: The Catcher in the Rye, Salinger, J. D. (A), American.

Background: Catcher in the Rye was originally published for adults, but quickly became popular with teens for the themes of teenaged angst, confusion, alienation, and rebellion.  The novel has been translated into almost all of the major world languages. Modern Library lists Catcher in the Rye as one of the 100 best English- language novels of the 20^th century and Time Magazine included it in their 2005 list of the 100 best English-language novels written since 1923.  Catcher in the Rye is a frequently banned book in libraries and schools and was the most censored book in the United States between 1961 and 1982. Common reasons for banning the book are profanity and the portrayal of sexuality and teen angst.

Brief Synopsis: The book follows sixteen- year- old Holden Caulfield through the forty-eights hours he goes rogue. Holden has just been kicked out of yet another school for poor grades. He spends an evening bumming around the dorms, visiting teachers and complaining about all the ‘phony’ people at the school. The stream of consciousness style provides the reader with both the encounters of the evening and his thoughts and memories of his time at the school. Holden decides to leave school for New York in the middle of the night to take a break before heading home to face his parents.

What did I think of it?

Well… maybe if I were a 16-year-old boy I would have found it transformative, as I am told many find the book to be. Most of the time I spent reading the book I was also asking myself why I am embarrassed I haven’t read this.  I understand why the book is often banned; you certainly cannot make it through a page without obscenities. Holden often talks about his sexiness or sex in general, but not explicitly. I mostly found Holden annoying. The sheer number of times he mentions his red hunting hat… again, maybe if I was a guy.

I can understand the literary value of the book. The stream of consciousness style and the focus on an angsty teen were remarkable for the time. I also understand Catcher in the Rye has influenced literature and film since its publication, but like my sister, I would rather read the books Catcher in the Rye influenced than read it again. I feel like I should have more to say, at least as someone with an English degree, but all I keep thinking is “why”?

Would I recommend this to others?

I found it boring, my parents found it boring, and only one person I talked to didn’t. I might suggest any 16 year olds I know read it. If you want to read it, go for it. If you find it transformative or inspirational, great, I applaud you. If not, at least you can say you have read it.

As requested: How many stars would I give it? umm… maybe one.

For those of you that have read Catcher in the Rye, What did you think of it?