Jane Eyre

Movie:  Jane Eyre
Like/Don't Like:  A solid adaptation

It's hard to be objective with a story that I know so well as Jane Eyre.  I have read the book countless times and have seen every film adaptation.  I am always hesitant when a new one comes out because I wonder what more it could possible add to what has already been said.  But I'm pleased to say that this one held its own.  And if all it added was more fuel to my already enormous desire to run reckless across the Yorkshire moors then job well done.

It was beautifully gothic and moody.  Most scenes were shot nice and tight so it added to that trapped and mysterious feeling you should get with this story.  It was quite faithful to the book. Obviously, considering the time, several elements had to be edited or cut out completely but what was left held true to the heart of the story.  And any liberties that were taken added rather than distracted.

Sitting across the aisle from us was a group of girls who must have come into it without any prior knowledge of the story.  This seems shocking to me.  But it ended up being adorable because they gasped at every revelation.  One of them even shouted out "NO WAY!" when the big mystery was revealed.  (Now that I know that there are actually people out there who don't know what happens, I wouldn't dream of telling you.)  It reminded me of the first time I read the book oh, 20 or so years ago, and had no idea of what was coming and just being completely enthralled with the whole thing.  There is a reason why they keep making new movies of it.  It's just that awesome.

Eat, Pray, Love

Movie:  Eat, Pray, Love
Like/Don't Like:  don't

It wasn't that this movie was particularly bad.  It just didn't resonate at all.  It seemed to be a collection of self-help aphorisms and pretty pictures.  Very pretty, really.  I silently wept into my pillow as they showed scenes from Rome because I miss my gelato guy.  Julia Roberts' character was difficult to relate to, and sometimes difficult to like, and the side characters, Richard Jenkins especially, seemed a lot more real and compelling but were only on for about 20 minutes each. It didn't motivate and it wasn't particularly entertaining.  But Jarvier Bardem in nice to look at and it inspired me to eat more pasta just for the joy of it.

Princess Academy

Book:  Princess Academy
Author:  Shannon Hale
Like/Don't Like:  Like

Hey, who's taking the day off of work to watch the royal wedding?  Who will be throwing a party complete with tiaras and crumpets in honor of it?  Yeah, it's me.  Because I love royalty.  The pomp, the jewels, the scepters, the delusional sense of entitlement - it's all just so grand!  And you just know the Queen is going to be wearing a marvelous hat. In my heart I know that the Queen and I would be best friends if she would ever accept my invitation to join my book club.

So, the Queen - yes.  But princesses?  No.  I blame the marketing department of Disney for their ubiquity, and therefore my distaste for them.  Why does every girl want to be the princess when the queen is where all the real fun is?   It was this distaste which led me to putting off reading this book, even though several friends and the Newberry people have all recommended it.  The title gave me a false impression that it would be all about tulle and etiquette.  But it actually had a lot more depth to it.

It's set in a mining village deep within the mountains.  Miri is 14 and not allowed to work in the mines with everyone else and because of this feels like she is not accepted by her community.  A royal proclamation arrives saying that all the teenage girls must attend a princess academy because it has been prophesied that the prince would marry a girl from their village.  This is where the tulle and etiquette come in, but only as minor scenes and mainly as jumping off points to touch on classic YA themes of acceptance and relationships.  It was not what I expected at all and I was quite pleased with it. 

Side note:  This was fantasy-lite - which is just my type.  I have no problem suspending reality but one of the reasons why I don't read too much fantasy is because the worlds that are created are more often than not over-created and lose any sense of familiarity.  This actually felt like a place that could exist, even though they could talk to each other over great distances by singing to rocks.

Ella Minnow Pea

Book:  Ella Minnow Pea
Author:  Mark Dunn
Like/Don't Like:  Liked.  Clever.

Most of the time it's the story that carries a book.  Sometimes it's the characters.  This book is carried almost entirely by the style.  Normally I would roll my eyes at this but it was so well done that I didn't mind it at all.

The story is told through letters about a fictional island nation off the southeastern coast of America that was founded by the (made up) originator of the sentence, "The quick red fox jumped over the lazy brown dog."   In the center of town is a monument to the man with the sentence underneath, each letter having it's own tile.  When one tile falls off the island council determines it's a sign from the man that they should stop using that letter, and attache punishments for people who use it.  This proceeds until nearly all the letters have fallen.

Since the story is told through letters between several people, all under the restriction of not using certain letters, the writing becomes pretty creative.  You'll need a dictionary. 

While it was clever and pretty fun to read there were some drawbacks.  The story and characters are lacking.  Most of the emphasis is put on the language so you miss out on back story, character development, important things that generally make a book worth reading.  Which is why I found it so successful.  Once I got into it those usually essential items became secondary to the fun of just reading along.

Utah Blaine

Book:  Utah Blaine
Author:  Louis L'Amour
Like/Don't Like:  Like.  Mostly for circumstantial reasons, but enjoyable all the same.

My grandpa loves Louis L'Amour and has a vast collection of his books.  So a few months ago when he moved and had to get rid of his books I made sure to snag one - for sentimental reasons.  I've never had any interest in the genre.  But I've been in a reading funk and when I get this way I will pick anything up in the hopes of finding something worth my time.  This did the trick.

The plot is just like any western movie you've ever seen.  There are bad guys and good guys and one really good guy and some ladies who are mostly just lips and hips.  And there are shoot outs and saloons and horses and fist fights.  There's lychin' and fightin' and ridin' and shootin' - because everyone drops the g, ya' cityslicker.  There are men described as, "short and blocky with a beefy red face."  Is there a better description than beefy?  I doubt it.  How about this one, "He was a hatchet-faced cowhand."  And it even teaches you how to challenge someone to a fight, "Come on, you big lug, stack your duds and grease your skids.  I'm goin' to tear down your meat house!"

Pretty fun stuff.  As I was reading I could feel the funk liftin'. 

A Flaw in the Blood

Book:  A Flaw in the Blood
Author:  Stephanie Barron
Like/Don't Like:  Nah.  Not much.  Sigh.

Is it me?  Or is it Winter?  Is it my reading ennui that has tainted everything I pick up?  Or is it just plain mediocre writing?  Because it's been ages since I've enjoyed a book.  And I specifically picked this one up because I love Stephanie Barron's Jane Austen Mystery series.  They're fantastic reads.  But this one?  It was like hearing a sad trombone while eating unbuttered toast.

The plot centers around Patrick Somebody (it's been a few weeks since I've finished.  It's all pretty hazy.), an Irish barrister living in London, and Some Girl Whose Name I Can't Remember Because She Was So Underdeveloped Even Though She Was a Central Character, and Queen Victoria, of all people.  Prince Albert has just died and the Queen is a wreck, and Patrick and the Girl have some clues to Albert's death that Victoria doesn't want the public to know of so she sends some German henchman out to kill them.  They must unravel the mystery before that happens.

The plot sounded interesting and I've always thought that Barron was a gifted writer when it comes to pacing a mystery. But this was was pretty weak all around.  It switched between several POVs (a pet peeve, as you well know) and it just didn't go anywhere.  Sure, it traveled all over London and the Alps but the story just dragged without any real revelations until the very end and by that point it didn't seem so revelatory or earth shattering as it should have. 

There's supposed to be a new Jane Austen Mystery (and I really do recommend them, which is rare because I don't normally sign on for knock-offs of classics) and I'll have to give that a try to get this one out of my head.

The Graveyard Book

Book:  The Graveyard Book
Author:  Neil Gaiman
Like/Don't Like:  I wanted to reread it as soon as I finished

I would like to state for the record that it is a great comfort to me that Neil Gaiman exists.  More to the point, that he exists and writes.  Everything I've read of his has been an absolute delight.  I could stop right here by saying he wrote Good Omens and be done with it.  Because my love of that book is fairly well documented.  But that wouldn't be very fair to The Graveyard Book - which is masterful.

No, I mean it.  Masterful.  It felt like a master class in writing.  It is a solidly crafted book.  He has such a handle on giving you characters and stories that feel like they've been around forever - that feel like they've already been formed and written and he just plucked them out for you and gives them shape and form.  Which is saying something because this story is composed mostly of ghosts and ghouls and other things that aren't alive.

It opens with a baby, later named Nobody Owens, who barely escapes being murdered by toddling into a graveyard and gaining the protection of the ghosts who live there.  He is taken in by a ghostly couple and given a guardian, Silas, who is neither dead nor alive and who teaches him the ways of the world as best he can despite all the dead people wandering around.  The story goes along in several vignettes over the first 14 or so years of Bod's life that all wind together in the end that is both a little sad but also very hopeful and exciting.  Which is such a satisfying way to end a book.