It's Monday. What are you reading? 12 September 2011

It's Monday. What are you Reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Book Journey to outline what you have been reading and what you plan to read this week.









An entire week and not a single review. In fact not a single post! What is going on?! Well I have had a rather busy week. I had a ridiculously busy work week including the need for a 13 hour day, and to top it all off I had a cold so when I wasn't working I was sleeping :) And finally, the most important of all, the Rugby World Cup started on the weekend and I was lucky enough to be down on the Auckland waterfront to experience this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwOeEkrsb5k

Very happy to be a Kiwi and hosting such an awesome event. If you want to check out the opening ceremony at Eden Park just before the first game you can try viewing it here in high quality: http://tvnz.co.nz/rugby-world-cup/opening-edenpark-video-4393770 otherwise try it on youtube. They did an amazing job.

With all of that going on I read virtually nothing the whole week! But that's okay, some things are more important, like experiencing the largest fireworks display your country has ever put on :)

So this week I'll just be continuing to read The Amber Spyglass (Philip Pullman), the last in the Dark Materials trilogy. That's if I don't get distracted with some more rugby games ;)

It's Monday. What are you reading? 05 September 2011

It's Monday. What are you Reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Book Journey to outline what you have been reading and what you plan to read this week.









Last week I finished two books; Jane Eyre (Charlotte Brontë) which I LOVED and you can check out my review here and that was followed up by The Road (Cormac McCarthy) which I wasn't so fond of but you can see the full details in my review.





Next up I need something a bit lighter and more fun so I have picked an adventure tale and I'm reading The Amber Spyglass (Philip Pullman), the last in the Dark Materials trilogy and along with being a book lent by a friend which I really need to read so I can give it back to her is luckily also on my 100 book challenge list. I'm really looking forward to reading the end of this series.

The Road (Cormac McCarthy)

Title: The Road
Author: Cormac McCarthy
Publisher: Picador
Publication Date: 2006 
Pages: 307
Source: Book club borrowed
Genre: Literary Fiction
Goodreads | Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk

Wow, I spent part of my weekend reading this book and man it made me feel depressed. The Road is the story of a man and his son (we never learn their names) trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic world. We also never learn how or why the world has turned to ashes nor the location of the story and the book is almost a series of snapshots into this bleak world so we know very little about the characters themselves.

It was a short read which I am eternally grateful for as I fear I may not have been able to shake this depressive feeling if it had been much longer.

In that respect, I imagine the book accomplished its task; providing a bleak and troubled world where humanity may have long since disappeared. And don't get me wrong, I can see how the incredibly poetic and sparse prose has put this book in the top of many must read book lists but it simply wasn't for me. I am a varied reader and don't easily get spooked by difficult topics, however the hopelessness I extracted from this book means that I simply cannot put it in my 'like' pile.

Oh what a short and sweet review but you know what? It has to be as I simply can't get past the incredibly dire and depressive feeling from this book. I'm off to get a glass of wine. I feel like I really need one.

Confused?! Yep I am too. I just couldn't like it so it's thumbs down for me, but it is a unique and well written book so if you don't mind feeling depressed after reading a book then give it a go.

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

Order from Amazon.com| Amazon.co.uk

Jane Eyre (Charlotte Brontë)

Title: Jane Eyre
Author: Charlotte Brontë
Original Publication Date: 1847 
My Version Published By: Oxford University Press
Source: Own copy
Genre: Classics
Goodreads | Amazon.com | Amazon.co.uk

I think I can successfully sum up my feelings for Jane Eyre in three words. I LOVED it! Jane Eyre has quickly jumped to the top of my classics favourites list. I think a lot of that was due to the almost gothic elements scattered throughout the novel. It was unique compared to many of the other classics I have read.

For those that may not know the basic outline of the novel, Jane Eyre was published in 1847 under the pen name of Currer Bell and follows the life of Jane Eyre as she moves from her emotionally and physically abused childhood with her aunt and cousins, through her schooling days at the oppressive Lowood Institution and onto her time as governess of Thornfield Hall where she falls in love with her employer Edward Rochester.

For a classic I found it it reasonably fast paced and surprisingly suspenseful. There were parts of the book that even gave me the chills.

"Just then it seemed my chamber-door was touched; as if fingers had swept the panels in groping a way along the dark gallery outside. I said, "Who is there?" Nothing answered. I was chilled with fear. pg 147

"The head of my bed was near the door, and I thought at first the goblin-laughter stood at my bedside - or rather, crouched by my pillow" pg 147

I really enjoyed the section of the book on the relationship she had with Helen Burns at Lowood Institution, I was so touched by their friendship and definitely had a tear in my eye for this part of the book. I was fascinated to find out that many believe Burns to be based on Brontë's eldest sister, Maria.

I found a number of sections very prevalent to the social repression of the time and these are my two favourites.

"Women are supposed to be very clam generally: but women feel just as men fell; they need exercise for their faculties, and a field for their efforts as much as their brothers do; they suffer from too rigid a restraint, too absolute a stagnation, precisely as men would suffer; and it is narrow-minded in their more privileged fellow-creatures to say that they ought to confine themselves to making puddings and knitting stockings, to playing on the piano and embroidering bags. It is thoughtless to condemn them, or laugh at them, if they seek to do more or learn more than custom has pronounced necessary for their sex." pg 109.

"'Jane, be still; don't struggle so, like a wild, frantic bird that is rending its own plumage in its desperation.'
'I am no bird; and no net ensnares me: I am a free human being with an independent will; which I now exert to leave you.' pg 253

And I also couldn't get enough of some of the interactions with Jane and Mr Rochester. It was nice to see their relationship develop and change overtime. These are a couple of my favourite quotes.

"'Now go, and send Sophie for Adele. Good night, my ------' He stopped, bit his lip, and abruptly left me." pg 181.

"'Jane, if aid is wanted, I'll seek it at your hands: I promise you that.'" pg 204

I thoroughly enjoyed the progression Jane made herself throughout the novel and really enjoyed this excerpt when she meets again with her distant family and tormentors; The Reeds.

"within the last few months feelings had been stirred in me so much more potent than any they could raise - pains and pleasures so much more acute and exquisite had been excited, than any it was in their power to inflict or bestow" pg 229

Ultimately I found Jane Eyre a fantastic read full of love, suspense, mystery and social politics. If you haven't had a chance to enjoy this classic I highly recommend it.

P.s. I finally found my published version for the photo at the top of the post. That's the cover of the version I'm reading.

Jane Eyre was read as part of my 100 book challenge of must read novels 
(16 read. 84 to go!).

Jane Eyre by  Charlotte Brontë

Order from Amazon.com| Amazon.co.uk

Twenty Questions

 Spotted this at curiositykilledthebookworm who saw it at another blog. Quite enjoy these kinds of things.

1. Which book has been on your shelf the longest?
The Clan of the Cave Bear (Jean M. Auel). I read it when I was about 15 and fell in love with the series. I have kept my original books of the first 2 in the series ever since I first read them (about 15 years now).

2. What is your current read, your last read and the book you’ll read next?
I've just finished listening to Bossypants (Tina Fey) although my last 'read' was The Help. I'm currently reading Jane Eyre and next up I think I'll be reading The Road (Cormac McCarthy).

3. What book did everyone like and you hated?
This one is easy - A Million Little Pieces by James Frey. It did the rounds at my book sharing club and everyone loved it but me. I HATED the writing style; the repetition of words and phrases, the short sentences and the lack of speech-marks drove me crazy. That and even the plot was repetitive. He got up, he vomited, he talked to some people, he slept. He got up, he vomited, he talked to some people.... you get the picture. Grrr. It was one of the few books I never finished reading. It was just too painful.

4. Which book do you keep telling yourself you’ll read, but you probably won’t?
Lord of the Rings. I have previously started reading this mega book twice now and both times I gave up as I wasn't in the right frame of mind and thought I'll read it some other time. As yet I haven't managed it. I have read The Hobbit though and loved it so you never know... maybe one day....

5. Which book are you saving for “retirement?”
I don't think I'm saving any books. I want to read them all and I want to read them all right now!

6. Last page: read it first or wait till the end?
Definitely the end. I honestly do not understand people who read the last page first.

7. Acknowledgements: waste of ink and paper or interesting aside?
Acknowledgements aren't there for us, they're there for the author, so who cares what we think. I have never written a novel but I have written a thesis and the acknowledgements was my favourite page as it was so personal for me and allowed me to truly appreciate everyone who had helped me out along the way.

8. Which book character would you switch places with?
Probably Claire from Outlander (Cross Stitch) so I could see what 18th century Scotland was really like. But I definitely wouldn't want to stay there!

9. Do you have a book that reminds you of something specific in your life (a person, a place, a time)?
It's going to sound cheesy but The Baby-sitter's Club. It was my absolute favourite series as a kid/tween and I loved every single one of the girls. Any time I hear names like Kirsty, Claudia, Mary Anne, Stacey and Dawn I'm instantly transported back to my childhood days curled up with my nose in a book.

10. Name a book you acquired in some interesting way.
I so wanted some great witty story for this one but sadly I've got nada. The most interesting book acquisition was probably when I swapped books in Ios on the Greek Islands at an awesome hotel which was completely empty except for my boyfriend and I because it was the very end of the party island season.

11. Have you ever given away a book for a special reason to a special person? 
I gave The Hungry Caterpillar to my best friend's first child on his first birthday as it was my favourite book as a young child.

12. Which book has been with you to the most places?
I think it would have been Sarum (Edward Rutherford) which I took with me for my road trip through Europe. I was travelling for three months and I needed huge books so I wouldn't need to take as many. At 912 pages Sarum fit the bill. I think it lasted through England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, France and some of Spain before I finished it and swapped it at a hostel book swap.

13. Any “required reading” you hated in high school that wasn’t so bad ten years later?
I had to read The Shipping News (E. Annie Proulx) and I found it dreary and boring. But I watched the movie a few years later and found myself getting nostalgic over the characters so I re-read the book and really enjoyed it.

14. What is the strangest item you’ve ever found in a book?
A train ticket.

15. Used or brand new?
I love second hand books but they have to have been taken care of - mainly I can't stand if there's writing in them.

16. Stephen King: Literary genius or opiate of the masses?
You are all going to think I'm strange but I haven't read Stephen King so I can't say. I know crazy aye?! His books have just never interested me.

17. Have you ever seen a movie you liked better than the book?
About a boy. I LOVED the movie. It is still one of my all time favourite feel good movies. I then read the book and although equally enjoyable there were so many parts that I just wished I was watching the movie and so I just ended up replaying the scenes from the movie in my head as I read the book.

18. Conversely, which book should NEVER have been introduced to celluloid? 
I'm really glad that this question wasn't phrased 'movie seen' because I haven't actually seen the movie but the trailer for Water for Elephants was enough for me to know that it would never come close to matching such a brilliant book.

19. Have you ever read a book that’s made you hungry, cookbooks being excluded from this question?
Um.... no strangely. I think when it comes to food I'm a very visual person which is why I need cookbooks with pictures of every recipe.

20. Who is the person whose book advice you’ll always take?
One of my best friends is a book fiend like me and I have never been disappointed by what she recommends to me.