Ah, the problems of eighteenth century women, how plentiful they are. Luckily, though I hate to spoil it for you all, everyone ends up with a husband. So that’s nice.
Imagine a world in which all books are banned. Where all books are burned because they might contain conflicting ideas. Where thinking is actively discouraged in favour of accepting the simple truth presented by authority. In short, imagine the Bible Belt.
This is the setting for Ray Bradbury‘s dystopian novel, Fahrenheit 451.
I had already seen the movie, which I enjoyed, and I enjoyed the book as well. However, I would not go as far as Tom to suggest that it is better than Nineteen Eighty-Four or Brave New World. I enjoyed both of those far more whereas I cannot say I imagine myself re-reading Fahrenheit 451. Definitely worth reading though.
A friend recommended I read War Horse. I sounded quite a good idea at the time, because I thought they said “war whores”, and thus assumed it was about sex workers from 1914 to 1918. In fact, even when I found out there was a horse in it, I assumed it was just on the more risque end of the spectrum.
However, it turns out that it is actually a story about a horse that goes to war.
The book was good, though I imagine the stage production is far more moving.
I had a lot of optimism when I started reading Lord of the Flies. I was hoping for a fascinating exploration of the dark side of human nature through the story of what would happen if a group of boys found themselves alone on an uninhabited island. A primitive, savage society arranged around its leader, the lord of the flies.
However, it turns turns out that the lord of the flies is just a pig’s head on a stick.
Still, at least I know never to reveal that my childhood nickname was “piggy”. So it was not a complete waste of ten hours of my life, even if the author, William Golding, somewhat missed the point.
Rinsewind. Two Flower. The Counterweight Continent? What more could you really want from a Discworld novel? There was even a Dibbler-style character, not to mention a great horde of rather ageing hero barbarians! Good read.
Through the Looking-Glass is a sequel to Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
It was certainly strange, though I didn’t enjoy it as much as the original as it didn’t read quite as much of interesting nonsense. Some of it seemed to drift off into James Joyce style ramblings that seemed a little out of place in what is really a children’s book.
When I read the Wikipedia page on this novel, it described it as being on of the greatest works of literary nonsense ever written. High praise indeed.
The title is often shortened to Alice in Wonderland, which lets be honest, is a far snappier title. Though not technically a correct one. The film adaptation released a few years ago also chose to shorten the name.
As a children’s book, it was a relatively short read and kept the pace moving along at a good pace so even I didn’t get too bored any any point. It does leave you thinking that real life is rather boring though.
Having been watching the TV series, I’ve also been reading the book as well.
It’s not been a bad read, but I really think it speaks highly of the TV series that actually includes most of the details.
Sadly, I can’t think of a better example than Harry Potter. But if you take Harry Potter, the novels are great because they contain large story arcs and extra details that are entirely missing from the films. I didn’t find this to be the case with A Game of Thrones – the TV series has covered pretty much all the book.
As I’ve said, that isn’t really a fault of the book though, which was definitely worth a read.
Elina recommended I should read some more of the British classics, and it was only until an hour into Pride and Prejudice that she began commenting on what a terribly boring book it was.
I found Jane Austen, as a writer, to be a bit stunted in the variety of vocabulary she employed. Everyone in the novel was handsom, and all actions were either boasting or lacking in civility. Everything was civil. She simply couldn’t get enough of the word.
Despite this though, I actually found myself engrossed in a story that only grew more captivating as it developed. Far from the bore Elina had suggested it to be, I found the story strangely captivating – perhaps because it appeals to the common experience of growing up and trying to find a rich husband (to which I have yet to manage).
I’ve been reading Philip Pullman’s trilogy, His Dark Materials, starting with book one for obvious reasons – Northern Lights.
I enjoyed it, but it felt very much like a children’s book. Obviously that is because it is, but if you take the example of a series like Harry Potter, that has caught the imagination of many adults too, and I don’t feel Northern Lights has the same power.
