Reading Update, Life Update, Summer Plans, Oh My!

For the last few months of the semester I had ZERO time to do anything beside school so I took a little blogging break. I didn't stop reading, but my reading slowed down a lot. I thought I would just update you with the reading I've done in the past few months, the end of my semester, and some things I want to get up on the blog this summer. 

Reading Update:

So since my last review on the blog I've finished four things: a play, a middle grade novel for school, a murder mystery, and a reread. I'm way behind on my Goodreads challenge, so hopefully I can catch up this summer but I'm not too worried about it. 

 

I listened to Lady Windermere's Fan on audio while driving back to my apartment from my parents house and of course I loved it. I have written about my love for Oscar Wilde many times. This play is witty, laugh out loud funny, and a great social commentary. I highly recommend picking up one of Wilde's plays if you have not yet. I gave Lady Windermere's Fan 5/5.
I picked up The Opening Night Murder because I knew I needed something light I could read for ten minutes and then put down for two days because of school. This one takes place in the reconstructed Globe Theater and revolves around a single mother main character. This one started off a little slow with a lot of set up, but it was enjoyable and the characters were likeable so I didn't mind. I have another one in this series on my shelves that I might get to this summer. I gave this one 3/5.

 

I read One Crazy Summer for my teaching literature class and thoroughly enjoyed it. I loved the historical setting, 1968 America, and the Civil Rights themes in this one along with the humor and mother- daughter and sister relationships. Highly recommend you check this one out. I gave this one 4/5.

Lastly, I reread Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets because I have been itching to ever since reading the illustrated first novel in December. I picked this one up when I was feeling a little down and it was the perfect pick me up. I love these novels and it has been a very long time since I have reread them, particularly the first few in the series. I cannot put into words how excited I am for all of the illustrated editions coming out. Of course, this reread got 5/5

End of the Semester Chaos:

The end of the semester was packed with papers and projects and I am so glad to have it all done! If you remember earlier I mentioned I was writing a paper on women codebreakers in WWII at Bletchley Park (for more on these ladies see the interesting links post and interesting books post) and I am happy to say that my paper won the best 300-level history paper for the 2015-2016 academic school year! That was a really great honor and I loved studying this topic and learning more about these amazing women. I know I will be reading everything I can about them for the rest of my life. 

Summer Plans:

I am taking a summer class and have three certification tests to take this summer, so it will be a working summer for me. I'm still thinking (and hoping) that I will have lots of time to read and blog. I would like to get up an average of three posts a week, it's just a matter of me getting organized and scheduling ahead. I have lots of posts that I have been wanting to write up for ages but haven't had the time to. I want to get up more of my lengthy series posts including poetry spotlight and literary look, and of course I want to read and post more for the Classics Club's Women's Literature Event as I haven't had much time to do anything with that this semester. 

What have you guys been reading? Are you on summer break? How was the last few weeks of the semester for you?  Any posts you want to see?

What I'm Reading This Semester (hold onto your hats because it's all over the place)

A new semester has started, so of course I have a new (and large) list of required reading. I thought I would share some of the things I will be reading, as I like to share and hear about what you guys are reading or have read for school.

This semester I have two literature classes, two history, and one education so I am ALWAYS reading for one class or another, I'm obviously only going to mention the exciting reading material, I wouldn't bore you guys with textbooks.

British Literature Part 2
For this class I will be rereading Persuasion by Jane Austen and Tess of the D'urberville's by Thomas Hardy. I will also be reading Frankenstein by Mary Shelley for the first time which I'm very, very excited about. We are reading lots of the romantic poets in the first half of the class as well as some excerpts from Charles Dickens, I'm not sure what the second half of the semester's reading schedule looks like yet, but I'm really excited for the readings in this class.

 

Teaching Literature
This class is interesting because we will be reading these works as teachers preparing to read and teach them with a class. We are reading three books, one of which I have read before, and all of which I think would be great to use in a classroom. We are reading Lord of the Flies by William Golding, Macbeth by William Shakespeare, and One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia.

History 300- Writing a Research Paper
For this class, I am writing a paper on women codebreakers in WWII so I have to do a lot of research. I have found that most of the research that exists on this subject has been printed in book form, so I have quite a few books I want to either read in full, or partially read for this paper including: The Debs of Bletchley Park and other stories, The Bletchley Girls: War, Secrecy Love, and Loss, and the Secret Lives of Codebreakers. I will also be reading/ watching interviews and hopefully memoirs from the actual women as well. I will definitely update you guys on the reading I am doing for this class if I find anything interesting!

What are you reading this semester? What was your favorite and least favorite required read?

What I'm Reading for School This Semester

As usual, I've got a full reading schedule for my newest semester of school. I'm reading some really interesting non-fiction and some early American Lit. so I thought I would share it with you guys!

Women in Global Activism:

Aman: The Story of a Somali Girl

Summary from Goodreads:

This is the extraordinary first-person account of a young woman's coming of age in Somalia and her struggles against the obligations and strictures of family and society.  By the time she is nine, Aman has undergone a ritual circumcision ceremony; at eleven, her innocent romance with a white boy leads to a murder; at thirteen she is given away in an arranged marriage to a stranger.  Aman eventually runs away to Mogadishu, where her beauty and rebellious spirit leads her to the decadent demimonde of white colonialists.  Hers is a world in which women are both chattel and freewheeling entrepreneurs, subject to the caprices of male relatives, yet keenly aware of the loopholes that lead to freedom.  Aman is an astonishing history, opening a window onto traditional Somali life and the universal quest for female self-awareness.  

Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide

Summary from Goodreads:

With Pulitzer Prize winners Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn as our guides, we undertake an odyssey through Africa and Asia to meet the extraordinary women struggling there, among them a Cambodian teenager sold into sex slavery and an Ethiopian woman who suffered devastating injuries in childbirth. Drawing on the breadth of their combined reporting experience, Kristof and WuDunn depict our world with anger, sadness, clarity, and, ultimately, hope.

They show how a little help can transform the lives of women and girls abroad. That Cambodian girl eventually escaped from her brothel and, with assistance from an aid group, built a thriving retail business that supports her family. The Ethiopian woman had her injuries repaired and in time became a surgeon. A Zimbabwean mother of five, counseled to return to school, earned her doctorate and became an expert on AIDS.

Through these stories, Kristof and WuDunn help us see that the key to economic progress lies in unleashing women’s potential. They make clear how so many people have helped to do just that, and how we can each do our part. Throughout much of the world, the greatest unexploited economic resource is the female half of the population. Countries such as China have prospered precisely because they emancipated women and brought them into the formal economy. Unleashing that process globally is not only the right thing to do; it’s also the best strategy for fighting poverty.

Deeply felt, pragmatic, and inspirational, Half the Sky is essential reading for every global citizen.

I have started both of these already, and they have both sucked me in. As you can tell, the reading for this class is quite heavy and not light-hearted, but it is quite interesting and inspiring. Both novels contain the stories of strong, brilliant, and resilient women, and really call for action from the reader. 

Early American Literature:

The Lamplighter, Maria S. Cummins

Summary from Goodreads:

A female Bildungsroman, The Lamplighter tells the story of Gertrude Flint, an abandoned and mistreated orphan rescued at the age of eight by Trueman Flint, a lamplighter, from her abusive guardian, Nan Grant.

We are only reading one novel for this class, although this one is quite the doozy, and the rest of our reading are short stories, dramas, or poems. 

Some authors in the anthology include:

Christopher Columbus 

Anne Bradstreet

Jonathon Edwards

Judith Sargent Murray

Phillis Wheatley

Washington Irving

James Fenimore Cooper

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Edgar Allan Poe

Fanny Fern

Henry David Thoreau

Walt Whitman

Herman Melville

Emily Dickinson 

Which Adaptation is Right for You?- Romeo and Juliet

It's always exciting to finish a book you've been meaning to read forever just so you can watch the adaptations! But sometimes the adaptation options can be overwhelming. So, with this series I'm hoping I will be able to assist in finding the right adaptation for you, whether you have read the book or not. 

Previous Which Adaptation is Right For You:
Pride and Prejudice

Romeo and Juliet is my favorite Shakespeare play. I know that's not a very out-of-the-box answer, but it is true. I love the drama and the more political themes that can be found in the play. I have read the play and seen the adaptations so many times that I have most of the play memorized. Therefore, I'm a little hard to please when it comes to adaptations, but I've got a few to recommend to you, and I hope to help you find the one that is right for you. 

Romeo and Juliet (1968)  
Directed by: Franco Zeffirelli 
Staring: 
Romeo: Leonard Whiting
Juliet: Olivia Hussey
Run Time: 138 minutes
I remember watching this in black and white, but it look like it has sense been redone in color.

Watch the original trailer here

This is the first adaptation of R&J that I watched. I remember renting it from the library and watching it with my mom. I was a freshman in high school and had just read the play in school for the first time. This one is a little dated, but it's a great and faithful adaptation of the play. 

Both Romeo and Juliet are beautiful; the tight pants and puffy shirts are ridiculous (as they should be), and the teen angst is intense. This adaptation was very popular when it was released because it was one of the first film adaptation to use actors close to the real ages of the characters.

I have really fond memories of watching this movie, and I would really love to watch it again, but this might not be the best version to start with if you are unfamiliar with Shakespeare or this play. I could see how those who are not already Shakespeare fans could find this version a little boring and outdated, but if you are a fan of R&J and Shakespeare, I highly recommend it.

The balcony scence

Act V

Juliet and her Romeo 

Romeo and Juliet (1996)
Directed by: Baz Luhrman
Staring: 
Romeo: Leonardo DiCaprio <3 <3
Juliet: Clare Danes
Paris: Paul Rudd
Run Time: 120 minutes
Watch the trailer here

This is one of my favorite movies of all-time, so it's obviously my favorite R&J adaptation. I am in love with Leo (like for real, marry me already) so that gives this adaptation bonus points, but I really love the over-the-top and outrageous style of this movie. Luhrman mixes Shakespeare's original script with modern (well 90's) California beach. There are gun fights, Romeo and his buds play pool, and a church choir sings Prince while Leonardo DiCaprio runs around in an unbuttoned Hawaiian shirt. What more could you ask for?

Clare Danes and Leo have great chemistry, and Paul Rudd comes out of left-field to be the perfect, dorky and undesirable Paris. I love all of the religious imagery and intense colors that are in this movie; it is such a visual experience. It's so modern but faithful to the original play, and the characters are extremely developed and the acting is phenomenal. It can be a little jarring to hear Elizabethan English with guns and cars, but it's such a cool idea, and Lurmen pulls it off greatly! The drama of the play is captured really well, as well as the emotion and infamous lines. I recommend watching the trailer to see if it's your taste before watching the movie. (But really it has Leo in it, so trust me, it's your style)

If you are a Shakespeare newbie, or aren't usually a fan, you may enjoy this one because it's not as "boring" as the more traditional adaptations. I promise it is so different from anything you have ever seen before! But it does seem to divide people between love and hate.

The first Kiss 

The Ball 

This aquarium scene is one of my favorite scenes of all time 

If these pictures don't convince to watch this version, I don't know what will. 

Rome and Juliet (2013) 
Directed by: Carlo Caelei (has also directed Dowton Abbey)
Staring:
Romeo: Douglas Booth
Juliet: Hailee Stienfield
Tybalt: Ed Westwick
Run time: 118 minutes

Watch the trailer here

This is the latest adaptation of R&J I have watched, and I must say I am not all that impressed. I will say that this Juliet is the closest in age to the real Juliet I have ever seen cast in a movie (Juliet in the play is thirteen, the actress is fourteen) so that was really cool to see. The scenery is also quite beautiful, but other than that, the film seems a little lackluster. The movie keeps the plot of the original play, but not the dialogue, which is a big check in the negative column for me because I am very attached to the original play, and as I was watching, I was cringing every time a line was changed or left out. I also felt that the political themes were a little washed out and lost in this version, while the romance took the front seat.

The bed scene was my favorite scene of the movie, but the changes were just too much  and too unnecessary for me. So, if you do watch this version, be warned of these changes. I still enjoyed this movie, but not nearly as much as the first two on this list!

R&J

The death scene 

Tybalt

RECAP:

First Time Watchers: Romeo and Juliet (1996) or (1968) 

Those Who Enjoy Looking at Beautiful Men: Romeo and Juliet (1996)

R&J and Shakespeare Lovers: Romeo and Juliet (1968)

Casual Shakespeare Consumers: Rome and Juliet (2013)

I would love to hear which of these you have seen, which is your favorite, or if you have any other versions for me to add to my list. I would love to see this play preformed live someday, so I could add it to my list of adaptations I have seen!

"For never was a story of more woe, than this of Juliet and her Romeo." 

What's in my Amazon Cart?

Here's what is currently sitting in my Amazon cart, waiting to be purchased. What did you guys think of these reads? Should I buy them, get them from the library, or skip them altogether?

This Shattered World by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

Hamlet by William Shakespeare

The Game of Love and Death by Martha Brokenbrough 

The Classics Tag!

I was tagged by Jess to do the Classics Tag, which is right up my alley of course! Writing this post is my excuse to take a break from a history paper so I couldn't be happier to be talking about my love of classic literature!
Okay, let's get started!

An Over-Hyped Classic 

People are CRAZY about this Shakespeare play but I did not like it one bit! And I know a lot of people love the film version of this play, but I did not like that either. 

Favorite Time Period To Read Classics from

I love modern classics- specifically anything 1920's onward! I love the Lost Generation and Modernism and anything that was a result from WWII. 

Favorite Fairy Tale 

My favorite fairy tale Blue Beard was a recent discovery. This fairy tale is so strange, violent, and disturbing, but it is so curious and puzzling that it really intrigues me. I also love how often it is alluded to, retold, and reworked in modern fiction. 

Most Embarrassing Unread Classic

I need to read Frankenstein ASAP! I loved Gris Grimly's graphic novel adaptation, and ever since reading that I have been itching to read the original.   

Top Five Classics I Want to Read Next

 

 

Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams, Sylvia Plath

Tess of the D'urberville, Thomas Hardy

Sense and Sensiblity, Jane Austen

And Then There Were None, Agatha Christie 

A Room with a View, E.M Forster 

Favorite Modern Retelling

I love that both Pride and Prejudice and Bridget Jones' Diary make me laugh out loud! Bridget is such a great character, and so is Lizzie. If you love P&P I highly recommend reading Bridget Jones! Plus, Collin Firth is in the movie adaptation of Bridget Jones! (Swoon!)

Favorite Adaptation 

 

I just read Emma not that long ago, and I loved matching up the plot and characters to Clueless! Please don't get me started on the timelessness of Jane Austen again, because once I start, I can not stop!

Least Favorite Adaptation 

This one takes the cake for the scariest adaptation for sure! If you have not seen this, or didn't even know it existed, it is the single weirdest thing I have seen in my entire life. My fourth grade teacher showed it to us and I'm still recovering. Dorothy is in a mental institute receiving shock treatments because the adults think she is crazy for talking about Oz. No, I'm not kidding you. 

Beautiful Editions

I would give my future first born child for a collection of the Penguin Deluxe Classics, or any of the special edition classics that Penguin puts out. They sure do know how to publish a beautiful book!

An Under-Hyped Classic 

The End of the Affair by Graham Greene caught me off guard. It was my first Greene novel and I am so glad I started with this one. The writing is beautiful and this book has so many layers and huge themes to it for such a short book. Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton is one of my all-time favorite books ever, and it is not talked about enough! Ethan is such a vivid character and the symbolism of the pickle dish is one of the greatest examples of symbolism I have ever come across in all my reading. 

I Tag...

Literature Frenzy!

The Pursuit of Happiness

And You! If you read and discuss classics on your blog, please do this tag and leave me a link to it!

I am always on the hunt for new blogs that talk about classics. 

Books Every Woman (man, child, and dog) Should Read

As I have gotten older and become a more alert reader, I have been really interested in reading pieces that deal with feminist themes, classics especially because women authors were kept out of the literary cannon for so long. So today, I am here with a list of literary pieces that I have read and think that every woman should read as well. But these pieces are so great, that I think every reader should read them, not just women readers, but women readers will connect to them more easily. Later in the week I will be making a list of books that I think every woman should read that I have not yet read myself.

If you have any recommendations, please let me know. All book tittles link to my review of the piece if there is one.

A Room of One's Own, Virginia Woolf

This is a nonfiction essay by Woolf that started out as a lecture she gave to women students. I would have loved to hear this lecture. Woolf's writing is powerful and full of sass and authority in this essay and I love every minute of it. This essay looks at the troubles faced by women artists and scholars and the attitudes that men have towards the mind of women and anything they create. This essay is relatively short and highly worth the read. 

The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood

This book blew me away. I still think about it quite often and really want to reread it very soon. Atwood is such a powerful writer, and this book is so scary but so important. It's realistic, it's possible and plausible, and it's scary. This is the only work by Atwood that I have read so far, but I think that a lot of her works will make future lists similar to this one. This is a very important book.    

The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath

This is one of my all-time favorite novels and one that I will never tire of rereading. I love everything Plath writes, and I highly recommend her poetry as well. I love how themes cross over from one piece to another of hers. This novel is perfect for any girl feeling the pressures and uncertainty of being a student or what comes after being a student. Plath's writing is so honest and blunt and Esther is so relatiable, her fears and problems are our fears and problems.  

The Awakening, Kate Chopin

I love Kate Chopin! Her short stories are great- some of the best I have ever read- and her novella The Awakening is amazing too. Everything she writes is packed with powerful ideas of gender expectations and equality, and her heroines are so fierce! She's an author who really struggled to get into the cannon and get the respect she deserved, so I love to share how amazing her work is and urge people to read her. If you are just starting to become more aware of gender expectations and issues as a woman, than I highly recommend The Awakening, you will be nodding your head in agreement with and in encouragement for Edna the entire time. 

Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen

Or any book by Jane Austen for that matter. Her heroines defy their time period, tradition, and societies and never settle for a life that is anything less than they deserve. The love interests in her novels are romantic, and respectable. If I could give young female readers one book to read, I would pick an Austen because her books are such great examples of healthy, well-matched romances. If you're not a big fan of romance or contemporary novels, but you need something a little swoon worthy and sweet, I highly recommend Austen. I've also read, reviewed, and loved, Persuasion.   

Trifles, Susan Glaspell 

This is a one act play which was adapted from a short story in 1916. I haven't wrote anything about my thoughts on this play yet, so I thought this was a perfect time to share them. I really enjoyed this play. It is so quick to read, and the plot is so simple, yet it provokes so much conversation and thought. The irony is so biting, and the women characters are so clever. I highly recommend checking this one out, even drama isn't usually your cup of tea. This one is quick and so very good. 

You can also check out my list of Women Authors if you want some more girl power in your reading line up, and of course, let me know what you thought about these if you have read them and leave me your recommendations.

I also made a list of Books Every Woman (including myself) Should Read

Recently Reread: Romeo and Juliet-- What to Look for While You Read

Author: William Shakespeare
Genre: Classic Play- Tragedy
Publication Date: 1597 approx.
Rating: 5/5

Other Shakespeare Posts:
An English Major's Thoughts on Shakespeare
Macbeth No Fear Shakespeare Graphic Novel

I'm here with my first reread of the year! I'm taking a Shakespeare class and this was the first play we started with. I read this play for the first time my freshman year of high school, and I really enjoyed it the first time around, and this time around was no different.            

So for this review I thought I would make a few comments about the play, and list some elements that you should keep your eye out for while reading the play.

Everyone knows the plot of this play, so there is no need to give a synopsis. This is one of Shakespeare's most readable plays, and it is a great place to start if you are new to Shakespeare. It also has quite a bit of humor in for a tragedy. Romeo and Mercutio certainly act like teenage boys, and there is an abundance of sexual innuendos in the play.

I like this play because of its many elements. I know that on the surface the plot may seem simple enough as well as the themes, but this play has so much going on; it is so much more than just a tragic love story. And of course this play has so many great and infamous lines! This play is a very beautifully written play that is also highly entertaining. The drama is so over-the-top, and is highly comparable to the drama seen on T.V. and movies nowadays (which is probably why this story is still being adapted to this day). I think that the dramatics of Romeo and Juliet's love and relationship are meant to mirror the dramatic and ridiculous feud between the two families.

Elements and Themes to Watch for While Reading:

Fate: This is a huge theme in this play, after all Romeo and Juliet are "Star-crossed lovers." Fate is a really interesting idea to me, and it's really interesting to read this play with the mind-set that the events of the play were fated to happen, they were unavoidable because the Universe stated that they must happen. R&J become sacrifices in order to end the feud, and fate would say that this was the only way to end it, so the young lovers had to die.

Individual Wishes vs. Society/ Peer Wishes: To me, this is the biggest conflict and theme of this play. Everyone in the play must decide to do what makes them happy or what will make society happy, Romeo and Juliet especially. The wishes and expectations of society are what sets this play up to be a tragedy in the first place. Is this play meant to be a warning about putting individual happiness over the good of the group? Let me know what you think.

Foreshadowing: This play is full of foreshadowing. I really enjoyed going through and picking out all the examples of it on this second read. (Yeah, I know I'm weird- I'm an English major, what can I say?)

Foils and Parallels:  This is another elements that Shakespeare does in a lot of his plays, along with foreshadowing. See if you can pair of the foils (opposites) and the parallels (characters who mirror each other) while you read the play.

I'm hoping to make a post about Romeo and Juliet movie adaptations very soon, but there is one more that I have to watch before I write that post- so be on the look out for that. Let me know what your thoughts are on R&J, Shakespeare, movie adaptations, or anything else down below!