Dickens and Conan

Abby: I love the Dickens characters. I think that's why I enjoy him so much. Why else would anyone read an author that can spend three pages describing a doorknob! His books are massive, like Clancy and Michener.

I don't really know why I enjoyed Great Expectations so much, but I suspect it had to do with my age. I read it as a teenager. I was reading a lot of gothic romances, which were somewhat spooky and romantic. They fed my dreams back then, I guess! I only got out of them what I was able to understand as a teen. I was also extremely fond of Jane Eyre, which I read again recently as an adult. I absolutely hated it this time around, even having read it three or four times before. I saw more in the relationship (as a married woman) than I ever could have as a child. I didn't care for Mr. Rochester at all this time. Their relationship was too dysfunctional. So, why did I love it as a teen?

But...oh, the characters are wonderful. Miss Havisham and Pip were favorites. If you get a chance to see the movie version (of which there are many), look for the old black and white version. The scene in the graveyard is just sooooo spooky! It's the best. When I came home after my first year at BYU, Dad and I read David Copperfield at the same time. That was a hoot, too. The aged aunt was a favorite of mine in that book. And I still think of Uriah Heep whenever I meet anyone who is intentionally meek and oily at the same time. Heep made my skin crawl whenever he was in a scene.

Spoiler ahead for those who have not read Great Expectations...Beccy and I burned my little cactus named Miss Havisham in effigy one Saturday afternoon. It was doing poorly and had literally gone gray. So we done her in! That's how enthralled I was with the story. I felt so sorry for anyone who had been jilted like her...again, the teen thinking...and could absolutely understand her reasons for never having left the room/house again.

I think Jasper Fforde was just being silly as usual. I just finished his Nursery Rhyme crime division book called Over Easy. It's about the death (murder?) of Humpty Dumpty who, yes, you guessed it, fell off a wall. It wasn't near as funny as the Thursday Next series. I was kind of disappointed.

Mim: I have a funny memory of Grandma Andersen's house. We (I know Matt was there...don't know who else) had gone upstairs to Freeman's room (was he on his mission then?) and into the very back of the closet. Someone showed us the top of Max and Donnie's wedding cake. It was old and moldy and hard as a rock. I always associate that memory with Miss Havisham! Silliness.

Beccy: I must confess that my dear man has read every one of the old Conan books! They were popular in the seventies. He swears they were good reads. I debate that point! The covers alone would keep them out of our house...but then, again, I read a lot of Tarzan novels and they were actually pretty well-written. They had notty covers, too. Maybe it was just to sell the books?

This is CONAN the LIBRARIAN. It made me laugh out loud! I found it when I was looking for the other little librarian picture. Sorry, had to share.

Hi Mim! Yes, you can play too! Today I talked with Mom on the phone and I told her about our "computer book group." She loved the whole idea and asked if I would print out our writings and read them to her when I visit. She commented that she hoped no one would change their style knowing she would be reading it. :) She was very sharp today and we talked almost an hour. Those moments are becoming few and far between, so I took advantage. Anyway, she says she would read every book we read, if she could.

Lulu, I remember seeing stories about Patty Hearst on the news. Hers is one of those many stories about which we may never discover the truth. With some people it seems more obvious when they are being dishonest, like OJ, or Pete Rose. But others? Like Floyd Landis? Still not sure on that one . . . And so much of what the media presents as "news" is doubtful. Anyway, I'll be curious to hear what you think really happened after you're finished. I love that when I picture you reading, I picture little Savvy too (probably nursing). I associate certain books with each of my babies that I read when nursing them. While nursing Kate I read a whole string of Jane Austen books--it just seemed appropriate since she was my first girl.

Abby, I can relate to your feelings about Great Expectations--ironic, given the title. I think when you read Dickens you have to just enjoy the journey and the intricacies of the plot. It stuns me to think that great authors of his time and before did not have computers, word processors or even typewriters. Imagine the paper shufflings and the annoying pens and refilling them with ink. I have wondered if they would have written more if they had our modern tools. Or what if Mozart had had a computer setup like mine for composing? Anyway, I wanted to say that a friend of mine wrote and produced a musical version of Great Expectations. She has an excellent youth theater group (Center Street Theater) that puts on one major production each year. It was fabulous--I've never enjoyed the story more. It benefited from a few catchy tunes and love songs.

Rae! I'm so glad you are taking a class from Don Norton! He's legendary at BYU. I took Personal History from him in about 1990 or so, and then stayed in touch with him off and on. Did you know that he wrote the style manual for the Church that I used when transcribing patriarchal blessings? He is often consulted by the Church, in fact I think he had a big part in the Encyclopedia of Mormonism. When I worked in Poli Sci, the professors often contacted him if they got stuck on a usage or style issue, and he always came through. His campus office looks like the aftermath of an atomic bomb. He is the original absent-minded professor. I loved his dry wit. He taught me much about honesty in journal writing. He introduced me to the concept of archival quality and got me into scrapbooking long before it was a big fad. It was in his class that I wrote the essays about each of my siblings. In fact, parts of the one I wrote about Matt were read at Matt's funeral by his former bishop, if you remember.

Sorry. This is a long post, but I don't get to blog often and have to comment to everyone at once. :0)

Great Expectations

Well, I finished! I'm not sure what to say about Great Expectations without giving things away for those who haven't read it...

Overall, I have to say I was a little disappointed. It wasn't as exciting to read as I hoped it would be. I loved the story and the plot, but it seemed to take a LONG time to tell for such a simple plot-line. Maybe I missed the point?

I do love Dickens' writing style. The way he phrases things made me chuckle more than a few times. I'm not writing him off by any means and will be interested to read more by him.

I think Aunt Rae is the only one here who's read Jasper Fforde's books -- how does he justify his portrayal of Miss Havisham? Or maybe he doesn't....and is just being funny?