Cheerio! I'm happy, I shall meet a Brit in only two weeks!
Anyway, to "The Odyssey"...
I actually started to really get into "The Odyssey" this week. It's one of those books that start out kinda slow, up then really pick up speed. I also have decided Ulysses is my favourite character, and found myself wondering how his son could be so dull at times. Not that I don't like Telemachus. I do, but after book two, it basically was that he just kept meeting people and telling the same story about his dad and the suitors again, and again, and again.
Ulysses rocks, though. It must be something about the personality his character was given, but he was a "magnetic" type of person. I kept wondering what he would do next, and how. I even got worried about him sometimes. For example, when Neptune sent the storm to try and drown him, I was hoping Ulysses wouldn't drown. I was pretty sure he wouldn't, but hey, this is ancient Greek mythology.
My other favourite thing was how Minerva disguised herself as a little girl. I know in the grand scheme of things, it doesn't rank that high, but the scene it created in my mind was very sweet. It reminded me of this opera song Mozart wrote, called Ricette. It's about young girls bringing roses to a local countess, or in Ulysses' case, a young girl bringing him to a feast and house. I thought it was good that she gave him a fog covering. :)
The suitors, on the other hand, I love and hate. They cause so much drama in the story that keeps it flowing and suspenseful, but they are so awful. I just want to pick them up and throw them out!
All in all, I liked this part of, "The Odyssey". Can't wait to start reading it again.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Sunday, September 19, 2010
"Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. . . ."
This week I read the book "Jacob Have I loved" by Katherine Paterson. The book is about a girl named Sara Louise Bradshaw as she grows up on a small island in the Chesapeake Bay. Ever since she was a little kid, Louise's twin sister, Caroline, has been the favourite, and not just in the family. Louise tells her story from her late preteen years to adulthood as she attempts to break away from her golden sister's shadow.
I loved this book. It was sad and bittersweet. Sad because Louise has practically never gotten the many things that she wanted in life, like an everlasting friendship with Call, to be put first in the family just once, to be seen as pretty, and be loved. The bittersweet part was that in the end, Louise not only was loved, but she spread that love around and tried to make better lives for others like her (I shan't spoil the book by telling who she helped). My favourite character was Captain Wallace. Although he did pay attention to Caroline quite a bit, he also made Louise feel special. I bet he owned some kind of Dale Carnegie book (if those existed back then) that helped him help Louise. Or maybe he just had a ton of empathy. Either way, he was a wonderful character who was always sincere. I admire him greatly for that. My least favourite character was Louise's insane grandmother. She was deeply religious (not that that's a bad thing) and used her religious views to hurt others, like when she called Louise's mother a "scarlet woman" and called told the family Louise was evil since she "admired" the Captain (she did, but not in THAT way), and he "liked" her back (not in THAT way).
All in all, I thought "Jacob Have I Loved" to be a really good book. I recommend reading it. Also, I don't know if this post was supposed to be on The Odyssey or not, but if it is, I'll update it as soon as I know.
I loved this book. It was sad and bittersweet. Sad because Louise has practically never gotten the many things that she wanted in life, like an everlasting friendship with Call, to be put first in the family just once, to be seen as pretty, and be loved. The bittersweet part was that in the end, Louise not only was loved, but she spread that love around and tried to make better lives for others like her (I shan't spoil the book by telling who she helped). My favourite character was Captain Wallace. Although he did pay attention to Caroline quite a bit, he also made Louise feel special. I bet he owned some kind of Dale Carnegie book (if those existed back then) that helped him help Louise. Or maybe he just had a ton of empathy. Either way, he was a wonderful character who was always sincere. I admire him greatly for that. My least favourite character was Louise's insane grandmother. She was deeply religious (not that that's a bad thing) and used her religious views to hurt others, like when she called Louise's mother a "scarlet woman" and called told the family Louise was evil since she "admired" the Captain (she did, but not in THAT way), and he "liked" her back (not in THAT way).
All in all, I thought "Jacob Have I Loved" to be a really good book. I recommend reading it. Also, I don't know if this post was supposed to be on The Odyssey or not, but if it is, I'll update it as soon as I know.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
The Odyssey
Hey again.
I just finished the Odyssey, and I really don't know if I like it, or dislike it. I think it is one of those books that starts out slow, and then gets faster and more interesting as you go along. Telemachus seems like one of those people who brood over everything and don't really take anything in, but listen when something is important to know. I also like Minerva in this segment. Usually, I picture her as the goddess with a lot of mental toughness who's all, "suck it up dude," but she seemed to have sympathy and good advice for Telemachus in book 1.
So yeah, basically, as we get further into the book, I'll see what happens.
Tschus allah, Jenna Chambers.
I just finished the Odyssey, and I really don't know if I like it, or dislike it. I think it is one of those books that starts out slow, and then gets faster and more interesting as you go along. Telemachus seems like one of those people who brood over everything and don't really take anything in, but listen when something is important to know. I also like Minerva in this segment. Usually, I picture her as the goddess with a lot of mental toughness who's all, "suck it up dude," but she seemed to have sympathy and good advice for Telemachus in book 1.
So yeah, basically, as we get further into the book, I'll see what happens.
Tschus allah, Jenna Chambers.
My Summer Reading
This summer, went by so fast, it was amazing. However, due to a mixture of cross country, babysitting, road trips, tests to study for, theatre, and parties I didn't get in nearly as much reading as I wanted to. I still did some though. Here are my favourites.
The first book I read this summer was "Great Expectations", by Charles Dickens. I personally wasn't a big fan of the book. The only characters I really liked were Mrs. Joe and Mrs. Havisham, due to their eccentric personalities and background stories. Pip always seemed either insecure, lovesick, or naive. Estella on the other hand, was just plain nasty, even though I did feel a bit sorry for her in the end. I loved how the setting of Pip's childhood was described though. It was a tad creepy, but still comforting.
I also read "To Kill a Mockingbird", by Harper Lee. This was probably the best book I have read in a long time. I felt very nostalgic when reading about Maycomb, like I could picture the place. Another thing was I could totally sympathize with Scout on "growing up" with guys and then starting to grow apart as you got older. All in all, I felt very touched by the story. Not in a sobbing, teary-eyed way, but more gently.
As shamed as I am to admit it, the third book I read was Stephanie Meyer's "Eclipse". I thought that maybe Twilight's third book would be better than the first two (how wrong I was), and that it would give me important background info so I wouldn't be confused when I saw the movie. From what I read though (I quit halfway through), it was just the same. Bella was still a feminist's nightmare, Edward was controlling, and Jacob was nice and forgotten. Basically, the whole book was:
Edward: Will you, Isabella Swann, do me the honour of marrying me?
Bella: Yeah...
Jacob: Hey, Bella, wanna make out?
Bella: Yeah...
What a stupid book.
Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" was the fourth book I read. It was okay, but not anything I would recommend. Although the story was fun to analyze, read, and tragic, the story just didn't do it for me. Romeo was immature, and made too many rash decisions. Juliet, on the other hand, was the product of her time, even though she quickly matured as the play moved along.
The last book I read, and completely adored was "The Virgin Suicides" by Jeffery Eugenides. Although it was actually quite depressing, it was intriguing as well. Since the point of view was of the teenage boys observing the mystery that was the Lisbon girls, it was refreshing, like a breath of fresh air. You knew what was happening in the book, but it was from someone who never knew the full story. I would recommend this book, but it has several very sensitive and dark subjects, such as gruesome mass suicide, and some self-harm.
Auf Wiedersehen! Jenna Chambers
The first book I read this summer was "Great Expectations", by Charles Dickens. I personally wasn't a big fan of the book. The only characters I really liked were Mrs. Joe and Mrs. Havisham, due to their eccentric personalities and background stories. Pip always seemed either insecure, lovesick, or naive. Estella on the other hand, was just plain nasty, even though I did feel a bit sorry for her in the end. I loved how the setting of Pip's childhood was described though. It was a tad creepy, but still comforting.
I also read "To Kill a Mockingbird", by Harper Lee. This was probably the best book I have read in a long time. I felt very nostalgic when reading about Maycomb, like I could picture the place. Another thing was I could totally sympathize with Scout on "growing up" with guys and then starting to grow apart as you got older. All in all, I felt very touched by the story. Not in a sobbing, teary-eyed way, but more gently.
As shamed as I am to admit it, the third book I read was Stephanie Meyer's "Eclipse". I thought that maybe Twilight's third book would be better than the first two (how wrong I was), and that it would give me important background info so I wouldn't be confused when I saw the movie. From what I read though (I quit halfway through), it was just the same. Bella was still a feminist's nightmare, Edward was controlling, and Jacob was nice and forgotten. Basically, the whole book was:
Edward: Will you, Isabella Swann, do me the honour of marrying me?
Bella: Yeah...
Jacob: Hey, Bella, wanna make out?
Bella: Yeah...
What a stupid book.
Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" was the fourth book I read. It was okay, but not anything I would recommend. Although the story was fun to analyze, read, and tragic, the story just didn't do it for me. Romeo was immature, and made too many rash decisions. Juliet, on the other hand, was the product of her time, even though she quickly matured as the play moved along.
The last book I read, and completely adored was "The Virgin Suicides" by Jeffery Eugenides. Although it was actually quite depressing, it was intriguing as well. Since the point of view was of the teenage boys observing the mystery that was the Lisbon girls, it was refreshing, like a breath of fresh air. You knew what was happening in the book, but it was from someone who never knew the full story. I would recommend this book, but it has several very sensitive and dark subjects, such as gruesome mass suicide, and some self-harm.
Auf Wiedersehen! Jenna Chambers
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)