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