REVIEW: The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

The Count of Monte Cristo
Author: Alexandre Dumas
Translator: Robin Buss
Kindle Edition
Challenges: Back to the Classics, Historical Fiction, Mount TBR

Goodreads synopsis: ‘On what slender threads do life and fortune hang’
Thrown in prison for a crime he has not committed, Edmond Dantès is confined to the grim fortress of If.  There he learns of a great hoard of treasure hidden on the Isle of Monte Cristo and he becomes determined not only to escape, but also to unearth the treasure and use it to plot the destruction of the three men responsible for his incarceration.  Dumas’ epic tale of suffering and retribution, inspired by a real-life case of wrongful imprisonment, was a huge popular success when it was first serialised in the 1840s.
Robin Buss’ lively translation is complete and unabridged, and remains faithful to the style of Dumas’ original.  This edition includes an introduction, explanatory notes and suggestions for further reading.

I have FINALLY finished The Count!!!!!!!  Hooray!

I enjoyed this very much.  Some spots were a little dry, but it was well-written and the translation was smooth.  In fact, for most of the book, I completely forgot that it was a translation.  The version I read had footnotes to explain some of the historical aspects when Dumas referenced certain events in history, which I thought was very helpful.  The one downside to reading this over such a long period of time (and especially with an almost 2 month gap of no reading it at all) was forgetting some of the details.  The only other thing that frustrated me with the story was the interchanging of names (first and last) and titles.  Once again, with a pause in reading I was a little rusty with which names and titles went together.

This is such a sad story of heartbreak, disappointment and most importantly, revenge. I tried to take notes while reading to remind myself of points I wanted to mention.  I ended up taking some notes in my earlier reading and none in the second “half” (using this term lightly, since I never actually broke it down in halves), so I may have more specific examples and things to say about the first half of the book, and will rely more on my memory for comments about the later parts of the book.  So bear with me! …

There is a profound sadness to Dantes elder, and it’s so heartbreaking to see his demise.  In truth, the whole Dantes family has such a crappy lot in life, and Edmond was the saving grace; until Villeforte decided he needed to make certain assurances for himself.

When Edmond discovered the plaster in his dungeon was soft enough to chip away, all I could think of was The Shawshank Redemption. Makes me wonder if this is where Stephen King got that idea?  I also remember The Count being mentioned in Shawshank Redemption. (“Shouldn’t this be filed under educational?” – paraphrasing of course!)

Edmond’s relationship with Abbe Faria was an interesting one, and it’s sad that it had to end the way it did.  At least they were each able to find some comfort and friendship during their incarceration.  And more importantly, Edmond got an education he would never have had otherwise.

The carnival in Italy sounds like a spectacle to behold.  I would love to witness something like it.  Though I bet seeing one nowadays with all the modern amenities may lose some of the old world charm. How descriptive and poetic is Dumas?!:

It was a veritable human storm made up of a thunder of voices and a hail of dragees, bouquets, eggs, oranges and flowers.

The moccoletti must have also been breathtaking to see.  To think, thousands of lights sent up into the night sky.  Dazzling!

(So I guess that’s end of my notes in the Kindle after all)

There are a lot of characters in this story and they all have hidden agendas.  They are all connected in some way and it’s the intricacies of their relationships that really move the story along.  Sometimes I wasn’t sure where the story was going, and especially starting up again after 2 months I had to remember who was who, who knew who, how they were related, etc. etc.  So I was a bit rusty getting back into it.

I had a feeling about everything going on with Valentine toward the end (I don’t want to give it away in case there is anyone out there who hasn’t read it yet, or is currently reading it!).  If it hadn’t happened that way, I would have been sorely disappointed, but then again I guess we would really see the casualties of revenge, no matter the intention of the avenger (revenger?).

The ending for Edmond and Mercedes kind of left a bitter taste, but I think that’s more because I have read a number of stories where everything gets wrapped up very neatly in a bow by the end.  The difference with this (and what I also think makes it better) is that it’s true human emotions, plotting, and in some instances downfall.  Life never has a pretty bow tied on it, and Dumas realized it and included it in this wonderful novel.

At one point, when the collateral damage began showing, I questioned whether The Count had gone too far, but it seems revenge is one of those things that can grow on its own, whether the avenger (revenger?) is prepared or not.  Clearly, aside from a single moment, he had no qualms about his path and truly believed he was God’s instrument to exact retribution.

All this talk of revenge makes me think of the TV show Revenge (which I thoroughly enjoy!)  And there are definitely some parallels to this story.  Anyone else watch it?

REVIEW: The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

The Secret Garden
Author: Frances Hodgson Burnett
Kindle edition

Goodreads Synopsis: A ten-year-old orphan comes to live in a lonely house on the Yorkshire moors where she discovers an invalid cousin and the mysteries of a locked garden. 

Burnett’s classic story of a disagreeable and self-centered little girl and her equally disagreeable invalid cousin is as real and wise and enthralling now as it was when it was first written over 75 years ago. The strength of her characterizations pulls readers into the story, and the depth inherent in the seemingly simple plot continues to make this sometimes forgotten story as vital to the maturation of young readers as Tom Sawyer and Little Women. Hague’s illustrations enhance the story beautifully, capturing as they do, both the old-fashioned and timeless quality of the tale. The charm, clarity, and muted tones of Hague’s paintings add dimension to each part of the tale. A reissue of an old classic to be treasured by a new generation of children (and their parents)!

This was the first time I ever read this book.  Amazing, right?  I had a soft cover version of the book when I was younger, but I don’t really recall reading it and I’m thinking it may have been a condensed version.

Anyway, I absolutely loved this book.  It really was just a lovely, enchanting story.  All of the characters had such great development and found what they needed, even if they didn’t realize there was something to need or want.

I really don’t have anything bad to say about this story except that I wish I hadn’t waited so long to read it!

If you haven’t read it yet, please do so.  If you have, please share your thoughts!

REVIEW: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Author: Robert Louis Stevenson
Kindle edition

Goodreads Synopsis: The gripping novel of a London lawyer who investigates strange occurrences surrounding his old friend, Dr. Henry Jekyll, and the misanthropic Mr. Edward Hyde. The work is known for its vivid portrayal of a split personality, split in the sense that within the same person there is both an apparently good and an evil personality each being quite distinct from the other…

Though I’ve heard this story, (or the general idea anyway), I had never read it until this weekend.  The description calls it a novel, but I’d be more ready to call it a novella, since it is so short.

Since I knew the general plot of the story, I was waiting to finally see what no one else knew yet (similar to how I felt about Dracula.  Vampires were a new concept when the book was written so I could understand people gripped in suspense, but to me I knew exactly what was going on and was waiting for the characters to catch up.  But I digress…)

It was a short and entertaining read and makes one ponder about our “other selves.”

 ”man is not truly one, but truly two” (p 78)

It is easy to see how this can be a scary story of good and evil because, let’s face it, we’ve all felt that there is a darker side to our beings, haven’t we?  (Not necessarily to the extent of murder but still another side that may have chosen the “wrong” path when faced with a situation but our morals overcome those thoughts…am I making sense?)

It is always interesting for me to read “science fiction” like this written back in the 1800s.  It’s really incredible to see what the imaginations of these authors were like way before any of the technology we have today.  And for some of the things to still be unavailable to us at this day and age is even more remarkable.  Just look at anything by H. G. Wells or Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, for example.

One thing I was disappointed in was not returning to Utterson after he read the explanations from both Doctors Lanyon and Jekyll.  He was the main character from the get-go, well the main point of view for the whole novel, so I expected to see some kind of reaction from him at the end. I guess I expected there to be more to the story.  The length was surprising.  It is such a popular and lasting one that I expected it to be much longer.  Though the last line is a really great, but sad, one.

REVIEW: Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie

Peter Pan
Author: J. M. Barrie

Goodreads Synopsis: It was Friday night. Mr and Mrs Darling were dining out. Nana had been tied up in the backyard. The poor dog was barking, for she could smell danger. And she was right – this was the night that Peter Pan would take the Darling children on the most breath-taking adventure of their lives, to a place called Neverland, a strange country where the lost boys live and never grow up, a land with mermaids, fairies and pirates – and of course the terrible, evil, Captain Hook. Peter Pan is undoubtedly one of the most famous and best-loved stories for children, an unforgettable, magical fantasy which has been enjoyed by generations.

The old favorite, newly repackaged-Wendy, John, and Michael Darling’s adventures in Never-Never Land with Peter Pan, the boy who would not grow up. (This one sentence was the whole synopsis for the version of the book I have, so I decided to find a better synopsis for a different version posted on Goodreads, which is what you read above).
Let me preface by saying that Peter Pan is my most favorite animated Disney movie.  I’m not sure why, but I just love the idea of having such a grand adventure.  Part of it may have stemmed from when my 5th grade class got to put on the play (I was the narrator).  We had so much fun preparing for it.  Another reason could be all the different movie versions I’ve seen.  I would be lying if I said my friend Krista and I had never acted out scenes from Hook before (during our sophomore year of college…just sayin’).

I took my niece to see the Theatre 360′s performance of Peter Pan, which was truer to the book than the Disney movie we all know and love, last year for her birthday when it came to Boston last fall.  Unfortunately, the crocodile scared her so we left at intermission.  (Also, Captain Hook did slit a guy’s throat right on stage, which was followed by “what just happened?” courtesy of the 6-year-old boy sitting behind me… I wish I could convey the tone of voice he used because it was hysterical).

So it took me two days to read this (but it could definitely be done in a day if you have the time!).  Anyway,  Disney definitely took some liberties/used artistic license when creating the cartoon.  I feel that Disney made Peter Pan more likeable than he was in the book.  As an adult reading about him, he seemed like a cocky little know-it-all (even though he didn’t know much).  The book was still very enjoyable, though.  There was more in the book than in the movie versions, though there were elements from the book in Hook. For example, in the book the lost boys pretty much forgot their parents and Wendy, John and Michael had begun to forget them.  In Hook, Peter’s son Jack has trouble remembering his parents the longer he stays in Neverland.  Also, the make believe meals were also the same in the book and Hook.   (and I definitely pictured Dustin Hoffman every time Hook appeared).

I enjoyed the narrator though, and how he described the lifestyle.  Especially, Nana.  To me, it seemed that Nana was described as a human in dog form, what with her abilities to take care of the children, etc.

The (half) play that I saw by Theatre 360 was definitely more in line with the book than with any of the movies.

Peter Pan is a fanciful story that I still enjoyed nonetheless.  I think it is one that everyone should read because, let’s face it, we’ve all had that moment (or two) where we wished we wouldn’t grow up.

REVIEW: The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Charles Dickens

Title: The Mystery of Edwin Drood
Author: Charles Dickens

Goodreads Synopsis: The main issue in the novel is the disappearance of Edwin Drood and the suspicion that he has been murdered. But as intriguing as this central plot are the startling innovations in Dicken’s work and the troubled elements lurking within the novel: a dark opium underworld, the uneasy and violent fantasies of its inhabitants, the disquieting presence of old ‘Princess Puffer’, of the quiet cathedral town of Cloisterham from which people have to escape in order to save themselves–and, at the centre, the menacing figure of Jasper.

I wasn’t really impressed by this book.  Maybe I just don’t get “it”.  But it took me a long time to get through it, considering it was less than 200 pages.  I didn’t really care for any of the characters at all.  There were some that did seem to have genuine interest in the younger people’s lives and affairs and maybe they had a bit more substance to them, but overall I really just couldn’t get into any of them.

At times, the writing seemed almost play-like; the dialogue was easy enough to get through, it was the description that really left me struggling. I tended to wander away and come back wondering what the heck I had just read.  Normally, I’m a very focused reader and can read in any setting with any noise around me (on a train, bus, plane, around television, radio, people, iPod…seriously, just about anything).  But I was very easily pulled away from this book and into conversations or television shows.

Since this book wasn’t finished before Dickens’ death, it is the ultimate cliff hanger with no real ending.  However, I have chosen “my” culprit.  I have yet to Google the book to really see what speculation is out there or if there is any particular character that most people lean toward, but from what I gather, it seems an easy enough guess as to who did the deed and I don’t think it’s the one the people of Cloisterham believe it to be.

REVIEW: Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw

George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion is the story of lower class flower girl Eliza Doolittle and her transformation into a “lady” of England.  Henry Higgins is a master of phonetics and can tell where a person comes from just by hearing a few spoken words.  He and an acquaintance, Mr. Pickering, decide to make a bet of whether Higgins can transform this low-class girl into a passable lady of speech and composure if not of actual means and station.

Overall, I thought these characters were pretty much one-dimensional.  I certainly did not enjoy the character of Higgins at all.  He struck me as an egocentric, “holier-than-thou” type person.   That he saw through everything and acted the same way to each person, not caring if it offended because it was how he treated everyone. Eliza and Mr. Pickering were more believable characters and I enjoyed them more.  Maybe I identified with Eliza more because she is a woman.

Generally speaking, the story itself was a light, airy one that provides entertainment more than anything else, I think.  Of course, Shaw’s feminism certainly plays a role in this story.   I’m glad the book ended the way it did and not necessarily what most readers would have thought or hoped for.   I don’t want to give it away in case any of you intend to read it.  But definitely post your thoughts and comments on it if you have any!

This was the first play I’ve read in a while.  I’ve determined that I enjoy reading plays because it is essentially all dialogue and the story seems to move much faster.  I’ve noticed that I tend to read them much faster as well.

After reading this (and reading the brief notes at the beginning of the book about Shaw), I am interested in reading more by Shaw.

Have you read Pygmalion or any other works by Shaw?  What do you think?  What do you recommend?

Challenges, Challenges

I’m big on details.  A lot of people might call me too detail-oriented (I can manage to make a 5 minute story 15 minutes long…I like details, so I assume others will too….see, I just did it again!)  I like lists and order.

I’m taking part in 3 challenges: Back to the Classics, What’s In a Name?, and 50 States Challenge. Each challenge has a list of categories.

Let’s go back to my earlier statement about lists.   My goal was to read the books in the order of the categories. As I joined more challenges, I decided that I would read one book from each challenge (obviously, the first category for each challenge, and then go to the 2nd category…but I didn’t need to tell you that, did I?)

HOWEVER, I’m currently reading Moby Dick and it is taking longer to read than I thought…much longer.  Because I set the goal above, I also feel like the book is dragging even more since there are other books waiting for me to finish Moby Dick and I am excited to start them.

Then comes my issue with the 50 States Challenge: I haven’t found a book for each state yet. My personal goal of reading all new books (aka first reads for me) makes it harder for me to find books for these categories as well. How am I supposed to start reading for that challenge without books for the first few categories?!  Ahhhhhhhhhh!

So, I’m throwing out my OCD for details, lists, and order and I’m going to read multiple books at the same time (which is what I normally do when not reading for a challenge) and I’m just going to start with the first state for which I have already chosen a book.  <gulp>

This post alone should be a testament to my detail craziness.   Do I need to explain the way I’m reading for these challenges? Nope.  But I feel like I have to.