Book #4

The Elegance of the Hedgehog

Muriel Barbery

Hello, readership of..... TWO!! Hooray! Thank you! Welcome! It's a huge deal for me that you are following, second reader. Thanks a heap!

Before I write about the book, a comment on my surroundings: I'm at the Starbucks in Union Square, writing a blog post while drinking my grande iced chai latte. I'm feeling pretty cool right about now.

So the book. It took me a very, very long time to get through this 325 paged novel. I couldn't read it before I went to bed, just because it's not the type of book you read before getting your forty winks. It's this deep book, filled with the characters philosophizing and ruminating at every opportunity. Heavy stuff before hitting the sack. But I eventually got through it, and it was good. The main characters were interesting and well developed. From the outset, Renee and Paloma are individuas, and after the first chapter you get a sense of their personalities. Unlike many novels that progress from a boneless, boring character to a full-blown hero or herion, the characters are already somewhere along their journey. I enjoyed that. They weren't "blank slate" characters. They each had quirks and ideas about the world that over the course of the book were broken down and analyzed and in the end, changed. If there is one word to describe this book as a whole, it would be analytical. Renee and Paloma, and later on Mr. Ozu are the deepest people out there. Its hard to be inside their head, and thats one of the reasons it took me so long to read it, but its also very enjoyable. They think great thoughts, and notice the most minute details of their lives, and the lives of those around them in their building, 7 Rue de Granelle. And the book is very french. I loved that. Who doesn't enjoy a book that takes place in an upscale apartment in Paris?

I read this book for my book club. For the past five years, I have been a member of a very exclusive book club of two. It's members are me and my friend named Zahava, and we like it that way. We started the book club to keep in touch with each other when she moved to LA, and it worked. Now we're both living in New York City, and when we finish a book we go out to eat and discuss it. Some of our past books have been "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman and "The Marriage Plot" by Jeffrey Eugenides. The most recent book we read was "Cloud Atlas" and that was amazing. I really loved that. After we go out and discuss it, I hope to write a part two of my review of "The Elegance of the Hedgehog". Zahava always has interesting thoughts on the book, and our discussions get really intense sometimes. We cheated a little this time and spoke about it and she hated it. So that should be interesting!

It's my turn to choose the book for our club. Any recommendations? Preferably something short-ish, considering I am only on book four of a hundred and it's already March. Eep. So... Any thoughts, readership of two?

Book #3

Sense and Sensibility

Jane Austen

Before I even start, how weird is the cover? This is the exact book cover of my book and I really tried to not judge it, but I don't understand it. I think the dissected, bald skull/head is referencing Elinor and her sense, and the tie-dye heart is referencing Marianne's sensibility. I have no clue who that picture is of... It's a very odd cover. 

Anyways, I finished "Sense and Sensibility" a couple of weeks ago, but I haven't had the chance to sit down and write about it until now. I can't remember my exact feelings and criticisms that I had when I finished it, but maybe blogging about my overall feeling now is more valuable than the immediate reactions that I had for the book. 

I am trying to go through all of Austen's novels, and "Sense and Sensibility" is my second of the six. I read "Pride and Prejudice" first, and loved it, as usual. This is the first time I read "Sense and Sensibility" and I did not really enjoy it. I thought it was unnecessarily  long, and filled with unimportant details. The plot did not move very quickly or evenly, and the passing of time was confusing. I also did not like many of the characters. The way I rate my characters is if I would want to be friends with any of them, or have any of them in my life, and the answer to both of those questions for "Sense and Sensibility" was no. I think that is what it comes down to. I did not enjoy the characters, and could not relate to them, so their lives and struggles were not very engaging. Another factor was that everything was too extreme. You either have Elinor, who shows no emotions, ever, or you have Marianne, who is too emotional, always, at every point in the plot. Why can there be no middle ground? And the men! I did not like any of them! 

Although I was not such a fan of the book, I am a fan of Austen, and her writing makes me happy. I think "Emma" is next on my reading list, and I hope I enjoy that more than "Sense and Sensibility." It's ok to not love a book, even if you love the author. "Sense and Sensibility" was not my favorite, but I'm glad it's number three on my list for 2013.

(I'm excited to watch the film adaptations of the book! Maybe I'll like those better, though I dont think that's possible. Movies are never better than the books, says the girl who has a blog devoted to them.)