Sunday Brunch

Food: Memories of yesterday’s breakfast: what my mother and I fondly refer to as “the best omelets in the world” at a little diner we know.

Book at table: Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own. I picked this up at one of my favorite bookstores while on vacation.

Exams went well, and I even got to go on a minibreak, and I’m very happy to return and settle back in with some good reads.

Via the Bookslut blog, I read “Fired from the Canon” by The Second Pass, and in between bouts of wishing I could convey sarcasm and literary commentary as succinctly as they can, I had to agree with a few of their choices. The article lists about a dozen books that they would pick to oust from “required reading” lists, based on their poor quality or modern irrelevance. I mean, I really liked One Hundred Years of Solitude, but I understand how it can be a frustrating and time-consuming read.

If I could remove one book from my memories of required school reading, it would be The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros. It’s written in the typical “lyrical prose” of Serious Writers, or as we called it in high school, “What is this? Are they making us read more poetry?” Like James Frey modern writers emulating Hemingway, Cisneros uses short, clipped, repetitive sentences to bore the reader senseless to convey contemporary urban life.

The thing is, I don’t remember much of what happens in this book. I recall a surprising rape scene, thrown into the middle of the jumbled story and never referenced again. I recall some story about “Hairs.” In fact, I don’t think there’s much of a story to it at all. It’s just a sad, sad examination of an impoverished girl growing up amid racism, sexism, and every other sort of horrible thing you could throw at a teenage girl.

The English teachers at my high school really enjoyed teaching this book, but I don’t remember any students who enjoyed reading it. I didn’t feel there was much of a redeeming quality to the book; there is not a commentary so much on society, as there is on the fact that the small society surrounding this girl was really, really horrible to her. In the end, it was an unpleasant read, and I didn’t take anything away from it.

I imagine some people would pick Moby-dick, if their school taught that, though I would venture to say it’s a book I would heartily defend to remain on required reading. It probably helps that I didn’t read it until my senior year in high school, when I was wending my way through "the classics." We also had a teacher who was terrific and really knew how to teach the material, so it was easy for our class to get into reading that immense novel. It’s not even the longest book I’ve ever read by a long shot, but it’s a novel I feel accomplished in saying I read it, and I hope to read it again some day to get even more out of it.

So here’s the Sunday Brunch question for this week:

If you could remove one book from school (elementary, high school, or college) required reading lists, which would you choose, and why?

Look for some historical fiction news and reviews this week, and happy reading!

Temporary Blogging Hiatus!

I know I haven't been around in the last couple days, but the outside, contemporary world has been a bit busy for me. Summer Session midterms are this week at university, so most of my reading time has been taken up by extra studying time, I've been working more hours at my day job, and plenty of other fun (but time-consuming!) activities.

So I'm taking a week off from here, just to get some school stuff done, but I'll be back next week with plenty of reviews and news about historical fiction!

In the mean time, here's what I'm currently reading:

1. The Mauritius Command by Patrick O'Brian-- I love the Aubrey/Maturin series so much, but this one has a slow start and is taking me a ridiculously long time to finish.
2. Anna of Byzantium by Tracy Barrett-- I've read very little of anything that has to do with the Byzantine empire, but this is a very good YA novel so far.
3. His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novick-- I was vociferously recommended this book series very recently, and there happened to be a free download from Random House to promote it, so that's how it's on my eReader right now. This answers the question: What if Admiral Nelson had had dragons at his disposal in the Battle of Waterloo? In other words: this book is amazing.

Happy reading and blogging!

Yes we can! A Non-Historical Book Review.

Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us
by Seth Godin

Cover: I'm going to admit that I'm not crazy about the cover. From afar it looks like some sort of laboratory slide. Otherwise, it's just your typical informational, possibly do-it-yourself type of cover.

Summary: The modern world, largely due to the internet, no longer allows for traditional marketing to succeed. People are too stuck on status quo and following the old industry pathways and sabotaging themselves from success. In this short examination of modern successful leaders (and not necessarily ones making headlines), Godin shows us how we can "be the change we want to see" and find communities of like-minded people. According to this book, we all have leadership potential within us, and the potential to create entirely new, creative, and successful businesses, organizations, and communities.

My Review: I was recommended by a friend of mine to read this book since I've been into blogging (this isn't my first blog, after all) and I appreciated a lot of what Godin had to say.

The book is written in a very casual style. There isn't a strict, chapter-by-chapter breakdown on how to start your own breakthrough company from the ground-up. It's rather a collection of brief vignettes and success stories, along with various lists of common sense qualities that lie in good and creative leadership.

Godin writes significantly about blogging, and I think we bloggers would have to agree with his general truths: we thought about what we were interested in investigating and talking about, found a way to get a message out there, and looked for communities of people with similar interests. I think for the most part, though, that bloggers are naturally motivated to get their writing out in the open, rather than as calculating as Godin describes in his book. However, I believe he was writing more for general business and organizing, which might use blogging as a tool over a cornerstone, rather than strict blogging and blogging circles.

It's a quick read: I did it in about an hour and a half, but I think it was well worth it. As a soon-to-be senior in college, I'm already looking for jobs and future careers, and I came away excited about the dynamic future of business. In this tough economy, it's wonderful to read someone who sees opportunity (or as he calls it, "obligation") for growth and development.

Visit the author's blog

Buy this book on Amazon

Web Spotlight Wednesday: Entertainment Style

Continuing with the Jane Austen craze, I was perusing other people's accomplishments on the Everything Austen link page, and was delighted to read about Fuzzy Cricket's discovery. If, like me, the idea of coffee and a book to read is something like heaven for you, then I think you'll like this, too:

Dominic West reads the first Darcy proposal scene aloud, while you take a coffee break and enjoy.

It is put on by Carte Noire, a coffee company, and you may recall Dominic West from his roles as the creepy guy in 300, the Italian professor in Mona Lisa Smile, and star of HBO's The Wire. Basically, this is a good-looking British guy reading Jane Austen while you drink coffee... in other words, possibly the perfect website. If you look around, there is also Greg Wise, who played Willoughby in the Ang Lee version of Sense & Sensibility reading from that book.

I... have no more words, really. What a cute little marketing site!

Coming Soon!

Before I start talking about the book that has me so excited, I have a bit of a personal preamble:

When I read the news on her website about her latest release, I screeched happily until my roommate ran up the stairs to make sure I was okay. Whether or not I've loved every book she's ever written, I love many of the books she has written over the years, and some of them have become personal favorites. Whether or not I agree with every public action she has taken regarding her books, I understand that she is a private person who has led a very public life and that it cannot have been easy. What I'm trying to say is this: I'm so happy she has written another book in a style similar to that of her old work that I don't even care about any of that. I just want to read it. I'll be there the day it comes out to get my copy.

So here it is: Angel Time: A Novel, by Anne Rice, coming October 2009, just before Halloween.


The very slight blurb written by Herself says

"In keeping with my commitment to do Christian fiction in a variety of forms, I am developing a new series called Songs of the Seraphim. The first of these metaphysical thrillers, Angel Time, will be coming in October 2009. The second has already been written and the third is underway. I'm hoping for a long life for the series with many adventures for its hero. I continue to work on Christ the Lord, the Kingdom of Heaven, the third book in the Christ the Lord series. "

It's times like these that I wish I could get my hands on an advance copy immediately. It will purportedly involve "time travel" and "medieval madness" and everything else you ever loved about the original Anne Rice.

See the full press release here on the divine Ms. Rice's website

A Shorty, but a Goody. A Historical Story Review.

Pride and Prometheus
by John Kessel

Where to Get This: Pride and Prometheus won the 2009 Nebula Award, which is a big deal for excellence in Fantasy and Science Fiction. It comes from Kessel’s anthology, The Baum Plan for Financial Independence and Other Stories, and was made available as a free download by its publisher, Small Beer Press, here. I read off of a Sony eReader, so I downloaded the .pdf format, which is also good if you plan on reading off of your computer screen. It’s only 38 pages, so I think it’s definitely readable off of a computer.

Summary: It’s more than 8 years since Pride and Prejudice left off, and Mary Bennet is accompanying her sister, Kitty, on her season in London. Mary is 28 (which… I am too lazy to check the dating here, but I suppose that’s believable) and “off the shelf” in terms of marriage prospects. She is aware of her awkwardness, and feels a lack of proper society to satisfy her intellectual pursuits. Kitty flits around her season (she is 25, and I would have to conclude too old to be “introduced” into society as she is here) and Mrs. Bennet frets about marrying off her youngest daughter and everyone generally ignores Mary, which is not entirely to her displeasure.

While in London, however, Mary is introduced to the young, brooding Victor Frankenstein, who intrigues her with his talks of “natural philosophy” and life in Europe. Mary is disappointed that she and her sister must remove to Derbyshire for Kitty’s health and leave behind her new friend, but is quickly restored when she finds Frankenstein (and Henry Clerval) in town, as well, buying up supplies for scientific experiments. Frankenstein seems haunted, both figuratively and literally, and Mary wants to find out the truth before she, too, becomes involved in his dangerous world.

My Review: This story is terrific on many levels; let me number them for you:

1. The writing style is somewhat reminiscent of Regency formality, but it is not a complete copy, and definitely not a pastiche. It’s rather a modern continuation of the original, rather than trying to rewrite or glom on to the untouchable original. I thought this was respectful and welcoming to read.

2. The characterization is beyond believable. Mary’s personality here could easily have sprung from the sketch that Austen left us with, and while it has been many years since I last read Frankenstein, Or the Modern Prometheus, it touches well on Shelley’s characters, as well. I particularly enjoyed the description of Lydia and Wickham’s marriage; their bickering but mutual dependence is very much how I imagined it would be.

3. The plot is only slightly mysterious, but still acts as a great character study on Mary Bennet, and the kind of man she could fall in love with, and how it would happen. The plot, however, is neither trivial nor uninteresting.

4. The discussions of science during Regency times are very accurately dealt with. Scientific investigation was coming into vogue, but more conservative people such as Mr. Darcy would have shunned the topic entirely.

My only caveat on reading this story is that there is Austen character death. Be forewarned! I won’t tell you which one it is, but if you can’t bear the thought of one dear character coming to an untimely end, then you may want to skip this one!

In conclusion, this was a great short story. I haven't read a short in a while, and I know I should go back and read them more often. Pride and Prometheus was definitely enough to intrigue me to want to read more by John Kessel. And it's another delightful step toward completing the Everything Austen Challenge!


Buy the anthology on Amazon

*SWOON* Friday Film Review.

Pride & Prejudice (2005)

Director: Joe Wright

Cast: Keira Knightley, Matthew Macfadyen, Donald Sutherland, Rosamund Pike, Simon Woods, Dame Judy Dench, Jena Malone

Summary: I’m… not going to summarize this. If you’re reading a book blog, and furthermore a historical book blog, I think I have good odds that you know what the story is about.

My Review: As I’ve already stated, I love this movie. The book purist in me cringes at the cuts and changes they made to the storyline and various characters, but I love it regardless.

Thus, this is mainly going to be a gushy picture post.


I liked Keira Knightley as Lizzy a lot. I think that she comes off as an intelligent person on screen and she does a great character arc.

I did once read, however, a review that said she would have done better as Cathy in a production of Wuthering Heights, rather than P&P. They said, among other comments, that she wasn't quite charming enough as Lizzy, and anyway the rest of the cast was ready made for that movie. I do think that Matthew Macfadyen would also have been great as Heathcliff, and this picture:


could absolutely have been lifted straight out of a scene of WH.

Regardless. I like this cast together a lot, and I still love this movie. Also, this scene at the end, where Darcy walks across the field with his jacket billowing in the breeze? That's awesome.


Which brings me to Mr. Darcy himself. Look at that. He's all broody and judgey. He just wants a hug, and to get the hell out of that ballroom. Matthew Macfadyen was definitely worthy of taking on the role. But is he better than Colin Firth? I answer that question with another question: why do we have to choose? There's plenty of Darcy love to go around!


I also like most of the rest of the cast. I loved Rosamund Pike as Jane, particularly because now we could believe what all the characters say in the book: Jane is the fair, gorgeous Bennett girl, and Lizzy is the sharper, slightly less polished daughter. As for the other girls... they were fine. I can't tell if I didn't like Jena Malone because Lydia is such an infuriating character, or because I was jealous that she got to be in this movie and I didn't, or because I have traumatic memories of being forced to watch that horrible Stepmom movie where she plays the daughter. Either way, I could have done without her.


This is a very visually appealing movie. I know a lot of people didn't like the drabness of Lizzy's dresses and her giant walking coat, but I actually did. I feel like, given their family situation, they might not be wearing the latest cute fashions, or have clothes that fit them exactly, or have perfect hair.

I love the hair in this movie. Witness this picture. Getting my hair to look like this is on my list of things to do before I die. I simply feel that this movie is the way it might have looked to live in Regency England. Also, see the Ciaran Hinds version of Persuasion. Even the actors in that one look straight out of Regency. I don't know what it is, if there's a certain look or dress, but that's the feel I get from these two movies.


This is my favorite scene in the movie. Thiiiiiiis. This is subtle and gorgeous and so real, and more beautiful than the final kiss. This is actually one of my favorite movie scenes out of any movie.

So that's one item down on my list of things to do for the Everything Austen challenge. In fact, I'm enjoying this so much, I may just review a film adaptation of every major Jane Austen novel. We'll see next week!