I know that it has been awhile since I have posted a review. I got discouraged when I realized not many people read this and because of that I was not helping many people find their next great book or movie. Part of it was my fault I did not advertise as much as I should have. But I have recently moved to New York where I seem to fit and I was reminded by a friend how much I was helping her with my reviews and so I thought I would give it another try. Also I realized that what I want to do with my life is something having to do with books and reading. With that in mind my dad came up with the idea that I should make a book list entitled "books I've read so far...and I'm just getting started." With that in hand and a possible lead on a maybe contact in the publishing world my dad thought it would be good to beef up my book reviews on here. And so here I am about to embark on a new era of reviewing. Mostly books because I am doing a lot more reading these days then watching new movies, but I'll sneak a movie in every now and again.
I have decided, as a warm up, to talk about Jane Austen. I mentioned quite awhile ago that I wanted to read more of her before I dived into a review. I have now read all of her fully finished novels. Although I didn't love them all with the same passion as I felt for "Sense & Sensibility" I don't think there was one that I actually disliked. Although "Northanger Abbey" leaves something to be desired and "Mansfield Park" was one of the weaker stories, I found myself falling more and more in love with Jane Austen as an author. She has become one of my favorites and one that I greatly respect.
Jane Austen was very controversial for her time as we all know. She believed in making her own path, and strong women believing what they want to believe. Her writing was fresh and witty and had a certain flair to it. Every time I opened one of her novels I got excited about what world she was going to draw me into this time. I found myself, at times, wishing I lived in Jane Austen's world she made it seem romantic and even fun at times. The more I read her the more I discovered that she had this ability to take simple stories of everyday life and pull them and twist them until they bloomed into amazing tales.
My favorites were "Sense & Sensibility" and "Pride & Prejudice" which when read are extremely similar. That may get a lot of negative comments but it's true. They are both beautifully constructed love stories that after many twists and turns end as happily ever after as Jane Austen lets things. Each novel is well written tinged with drama and tragedy that just makes the characters that much more real and loveable. Something that I think Jane Austen was a wiz at. Both great books and both worth reading, just maybe not back to back.
My two least favorites were "Northanger Abbey" and "Mansfield Park." I think that with "Northanger Abbey" it was just a matter of it being her first novel she hadn't found her voice quite yet. It was a little flat but it hinted at the greatness she had within her. In "Mansfield Park" the character of Fanny Price was weak and a little pathetic. I didn't enjoy that she just let everyone walk all over her. And maybe it was because I didn't really like the story or any of the characters but I felt as if the book went on for forever.
Now I think that my all time favorite book of hers, as much as I consider "Sense & Sensibility" and "Pride & Prejudice" my favorites as well, is "Persuasion." There is something about the simplicity of it and the reality of the whole thing that just makes it undeniably loveable. It's one of those books that if I can find a really gorgeous copy I'll buy it and have it to read again and again. If you have never read an Austen this is a great one to start with because it is one of her shorter ones but it shows how amazing she truly is.
That just leaves "Emma" Austen's 'comedy' in my opinion. I know that this isn't her most popular novel but I actually enjoyed it. I found it amusing and sweet and I thought that the quirky characters were refreshing and lively. Emma herself got to be a little annoying at times but I'm not entirely sure Austen didn't intend that to be the case. And as much as I enjoyed it, it was a little difficult for me to read because I have seen the movie "Clueless" enough times that I can pretty much play the movie in my head from the opening credits to the last kiss. "Clueless" is the modern day retelling of "Emma." So reading the book the movie started playing in my head. For the first half of the novel I kept seeing Alicia Silverstone, Stacey Dash, Brittany Murphy and Paul Rudd running through my mind acting everything out. But once I got into the story I was able to enjoy the book for the book.
Jane Austen was a truly amazing writer and what she left behind is a set of novels that can truly be called classics. Books that I feel everyone should get at least an introduction to. I truly believe that you can't call yourself well read unless you have read at least one Jane Austen novel. I think that they are that good and that important.
Well there we go, my first review in quite a long time. I don't really have my stride back just yet and I was a little unfocused tonight. Also I still haven't found quite the right formula for reviewing more then one book at a time. But at least I did it. And I'm going to try and review at least one book from my list a day. Maybe more then once a day if I have the energy. I really am looking forward to this project and I intend to put the same energy and enthusiasm into it as I did the Academy Award project. Wish me luck and keep reading.
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