Everything Austen Challenge #5 and #6

I'm really loving Librivox, which is allowing me to listen to great works of literature while I'm working including "Emma" and "Pride and Prejudice."

"Emma" was really well read by a Brit whose only flaw was a major emphasis on the "t's" at the ends of words and even a greater emphasis if, heaven help us, there were two t's together. I love the story of Emma Woodhouse and the cast of eccentric characters that surround her. Having children nearly the same ages as Emma and Harriet Smith, I'm surprised to find that not much as changed, since Austen's time, in the way young people view their world. Twenty-year-olds are never as bright as they think they are. Girls still try to hook their friends up with the "right" guy. And young people still think they are more worldly than their elders.

"Pride and Prejudice" on Librivox was something of a disappointment. The reader did a fine job, better as the book went on, but there was a sense that she was reading it in a closet and a bit of a background hum throughout the reading. Fortunately, I love this book and was more than willing to live with this if it meant getting to listen to the story while I was working. The sparring between Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy always brings a smile to my face. And, let's face it, Mr. Darcy is pretty much too good to be true. He's rich, admits when he's wrong, and has no parents, thus no in-law problems for his wife.

Technically, I could now call this challenge completed since the goal was to complete six Austen-related things. But I have yet to crack a book and I'd feel as if I cheated if I didn't read anything. Besides, I have three books lined up to read and I'm always game to reread any of Austen's six completed novels. So, I'm calling this the half way mark.

Friday Favorite

My favorite read this week is Alice Walker's "The Color Purple." This is primarily the story of Celie, a poor Southern black woman, struggling to escape degradation and abuse at the hands of the men in her life. The story is told through letters: Celie's letters to God, her letters to her sister Nettie, and, ultimately, Nettie's letters to Celie. Celie's trouble's really begin when she is raped, repeatedly, by her stepfather who then sells off the children Celie bears. Nettie runs away to avoid the abuse. The stepfather then marries Celie off to Albert, who Celie refers to simply as "Mister." 

Celie is helped along the road to salvation by two strong women: Sophie, who refuses to be taken advantage of by any man (including Celie's stepson) and Shug, an independent singer, who Albert loves and Celie soon comes to love. When Shug discovers that Mister has been hiding Nettie's letters to Celie for years, it unleashes a fury in Celie that leads her to finally declare her independence. The story has an authentic folk tale feel while also being intensely emotional and poignant.

The book was quite controversial, when it was published, because of it's portrayal of black men. The book also deals with racism and touches on homosexuality. Despite the controversy, the book won the Pulitzer Prize.
In 1985, Steven Speilberg turned the book into a movie starring Whoopie Goldberg as Celie, Oprah Winfrey as Sophia, and Danny Glover as Albert. The casting created a stir of it's own, but both Winfrey and Goldberg delivered splendid performances.

Whoopie Goldberg as Celie in the movie adaptation of The Color Purple

Heartfelt Award

Thanks to Mari at Bookworm With A View for my first ever award, the Heartfelt Award.

Do you reach for a cup of cocoa or tea when your relaxing, seeking comfort, sharing a plate of cookies with family and friends? You know the feeling you get when you drink a yummy cup of cocoa, tea, or a hot toddy? That is what the Heartfelt Award is all about, feeling warm inside.

The Rules for the Heartfelt Award are:
1) Put the logo on your blog/post.
2) Nominate up to 9 blogs which make you feel comfy or warm inside.
3) Be sure to link to your nominees within your post.
4) Let them know that they have been nominated by commenting on their blog.
5) Remember to link to the person from whom you received your award.

I'm passing this award on to:
1. A Comfy Chair and A Good Book
2. A Reader's Respite
3. At Home With Books
4. Gypsy Tree
5.Laura's Reviews
6. Book Chatter and Other Stuff

My Chicks would get the rest of the spaces (and then some!) because their blogs always brighten my day. But I'm keeping them to myself since they are largely personal blogs.

The Girl With No Shadow by Joanne Harris

The Girl With No Shadow By Joanne Harris
464 pages
Published April 2008 Harper Collins Publishing

This is the sequel to Harris' Chocolat which was made into a movie starring Johnny Depp and Juliette Binoche. It picks up the tale of Vianne and Anouk Rocherseveral years after they have moved on from the village of Lansquenet. They are now settled in to Paris, along with Rosette, the daughter Vianne was pregnant with at the end of Chocolat. Because of some previous misfortune, Vianne has given up on the magic she had previously used so effectively. Through a series of events, Vianne has opened a chocolaterie and is involved with the landlord of the shop's building. Business is not good, however, until Zozie comes into their lives. Zozie adds a brightness to their lives and soon has Anouk deeply under her influence. A delightful cast of characters begins to frequent the shop. But Zozie is not what she seems to be. Roux, the father of Rosette, makes an appearance again in this book.

Harris is brilliant at interweaving story lines and creating unique and charming periphery characters. The reader begins to get to the truth of Zozie long before it is revealed to Vianne and Harris builds the tension as Zozie begins to wreak havoc and Vianne realizes that hiding is no longer possible. The story is told from the perspective of Anouk, Vianne, and Zozie, a tool that really helped move the story along. I felt that Harris had made some minor changes from the original story to appease readers that may have only seen the movie and not read Chocolat. I also felt that Vianne's current beau was something of a stereotype. Overall, I found the book well-written and a satisfying read.

Sunday Salon

I know, I know--it's Tuesday, not Sunday. That just goes to show you what the past few days have been like. I took a couple of days off of work for a much needed vacation. I took three books for a two day trip figuring I'd get a lot of reading done, especially when we were driving. No such luck--my husband wanted to chat the whole trip. Then we were off to an amusement park. I don't do rides but figured I'd get three or four hours of reading in. Again, no such luck. My daughter suddenly decided she didn't want to do any of the rides the guys were doing so I ended up entertaining her the whole time.

After four months out on his own, my oldest moved back home this weekend. I was not happy when he left home; I thought he was making a bad decision and it turns out I was right. I could be chanting "I told you so" right now but it's wrong in so many ways. I've got mixed feelings about having him back. I've liked him again since he's been gone and I want to keep liking him. And there's all of this stuff that has to find a home again. It's everywhere two days after landing back at my house and it's making me a little crazy. And it's really cutting into my reading time!

With so little reading time, I'm not making much progress on the challenges. I do have four of six things done for the Everything Austen Challenge but have yet to pick up a book for either the Random Reading Challenge or the Whitcoull's Challenge. The kids head back to school next week and once they're doing homework again, I'll be able to get back to it. At my kids' ages, that's one of the few things to look forward to with the return of the school year. That and football.

I Capture The Castle by Dodie Smith

I Capture The Castle by Dodie Smith
343 pages
Published 1948 by St. Martin's Press

The story of 17-year-old Cassandra and her family who live in a ramshackle English castle in a deep state of poverty. Cassandra chronicles her family's life in three journals as she hones her writing skills. Here she writes about her encounter's with the estates new, young and handsome American landlords, her sister Rose's marital ambitions, her father's writer's block, and her own dealings with first love.

This book has never been out of print in England and, when unavailable in American stores, it was one of the most requested books in used book stores. Clearly it is beloved. I picked it up because it came so highly recommended by members of Goodreads.

 It is charming, it is often witty, and I did enjoy Cassandra's voice. But I'm sorry to say that I just didn't enjoy this one as much as I expected to, as much as I wanted to. I just found it so annoying that no one in Cassandra's family seemed to want to do anything to alleviate their financial straits. Even more annoying that they were willing to live off the wages of a "hired" boy who they weren't even paying then had working for another man. And they were all more than willing to accept the largesse of their new landlords. I didn't really connect to any of the characters, either because I liked or disliked them, and that made it hard for me to care what happened in the end. That said, the end did surprise me and I was happy with the way that Smith ended the book. I thought, as I was reading this book, that I might be the only person on the planet that wouldn't have rated this 5/5 stars. So I was excited this week to see that Book Psmith felt much the same way.

"I Capture The Castle" was Smith's first novel and marked her crossover from playwright and was an immediate success. It's often hard to top such a successful freshman effort but twelve years later Smith followed it up with "The Hundred and One Dalmations" which certainly eclipsed the fame of "I Capture The Castle" once Disney decided to base two movies on it.

Everything Austen Challenge #4

The television was once again my aide in the Everything Austen Challenge, hosted by Stephanie of Stephanie's Written Word. I got lucky and caught "Emma, " starring Gwyneth Paltrow, just as it was beginning. I really quite like this movie version of the book, although it is not my favorite adaptation.

Both Paltrow and Jeremy Northam as Mr. Knightley are terrific. Alan Cumming as Mr. Elliott is also quite good as the character is written for the movie, but his character is very different from the character in the book. Toni Collete, a fine Australian actress, is completely miscast as Harriet Smith. For one thing, she doesn't remotely pass as a 17-year-old. On the other hand, Sophie Thompson, as Miss Bates, is brilliant.

This is one of those movies I will watch any time it's on t.v. Although there are some alterations to the story, they don't distract from the tale. All in all, a beautiful rendition of Austen's story of young Emma Woodhouse's misguided matchmaking attempts and ultimate personal growth.