Book Review: The Winters Tale

Title: The Winters Tale
Author: William Shakespeare
Page Count :
How I received it:
Actual Rating: 4 out of 5

I actually have read this book 3 times with different additions to try and compare and contrast. I really enjoy seeing different interpretations and the spin on the story it has.

This is one of the more challenging plays in my opinion.  It's at least the most daunting one if it wasn;t for my intro to Shakespeare class I would have picked it up last. Don't get scared, this is pretty normal with a play. The look better and actually show more emotions.

In classic Shakespeare fashion, there is a wide variety of conflict taking place. Which creates a wonderful amount of interest. This is a super sad play, and winter is perfect for that because everything is already dead outside.While I am not an expert I can not figure out if this is a tragedy or comedy. There seems to be an even mix. It doesn't really matter but I am curious. This is also close to the end of this playwriting, so he had mastered the art of plays at this point.  I really believe people need to put this on a required reading list, seems to be missed by many.

The play is complex and had many different conflicts and different scenarios.

Of course, many people might not enjoy or be interested in these classics. Remember just because you don't read classics or play don't feel bad. Everyone likes their own thing. If someone makes fun of you, just ignore them and dive deeper into your story.


Links to purchase: AbeBooks // Alllbris // Amazon //  Barnes & Noble // Book Depository // / Better World Through books // Hallf.com // Kobo //

Goodreads Description: 

Completely re-edited, the New Folger Library editions of Shakespeare's plays put readers in touch with current ways of thinking about Shakespeare. Each freshly edited text is based directly on what the editors consider the best early printed version of the play. Each volume contains full explanatory notes on pages facing the text of the play, as well as a helpful introduction to Shakespeare's language. The accounts of William Shakespeare's life, his theater, and the publication of his plays present the latest scholarship, and the annotated reading lists suggest sources of further information. The illustrations of objects, clothing, and mythological figures mentioned in the plays are drawn from the Library's vast holdings of rare books. At the conclusion of each play there is a full essay by an outstanding scholar who assesses the play in light of today's interests and concerns. 

Book Review: 1984 (Classics)

This is a series that involves spotlighting interesting classical literature that I read. In an effort to be a more well-rounded reader. I also am participating in a classic literature challenge Feel free to check out the series here. Below is a running list of each post in this series. 

Title: !984
Author: George Orwell
Page Count: 328 pages
How I received it: I believe I have had it since middle school
Genre: Classic, Dystopia, Science fiction, itature  


Actual rating: 5/5 Stars

I have read this book so many times. I am surprised the pages haven't fallen out. This was one of my first "me" books. It was a book that I had earned, so I decided to just work on reviews instead. My first introduction to Orwell was not always my favorite author. He sort of had to earn that title. And as I get older and re-read his books, I realize how truly gifted he was.

The first time I read this book I thought the government was out to get me. I struggled showering because I might have run into someone bad. I eventually grew up and realized all of that was super silly.   have this love affair with this mans work and at this point, I don't remember how to fix it with out deleting my data.

This book is super dark and depressing. I believe it's even scarier because we can see some of these things by ourselves. The one thing that always stuck with me was War is peace, freedom is slavery, and ignorance is a strength. I do not ever wish we got to know more of the main characters and they would actually take pictures with her.

This book shares a very interesting view of utopia. One that is sort of not a utopia. They live in a country that has a totalitarian system. This really changed my mind set because it is where we are going somewhat. I am super anxious and what not, even though big brother isn; 't that exciting.

I hope you give this book a chance!

Goodreads Description:  

The year 1984 has come and gone, but George Orwell's prophetic, nightmarish vision in 1949 of the world we were becoming is timelier than ever. 1984 is still the great modern classic of "negative utopia" -a startlingly original and haunting novel that creates an imaginary world that is completely convincing, from the first sentence to the last four words. 


No one can deny the novel's hold on the imaginations of whole generations, or the power of its admonitions -a power that seems to grow, not lessen, with the passage of time

Book Review: Sapphira and the Slave Girl

Title: Sapphira and the Slave Girl

Author:  Willa Cather

Page Count: 320 pages

Where I received: Purchased from my college library

Actual Rating:  4 out of 5

This book was written in 1940, and things have changed quite a bit since then. This is a tough read given the current events unfolding in 2017. I don't agree with how the author uses racism in this book. I winced at the racist protagonist and somehow hoped there would be a change or moral to the story which seemed to never come to fruition. While I enjoyed the story, there were stereotypes that were hard to ignore. This is not one of her best works in my opinion, but in the context of when it was written, this is not too bad of a read.  

This is a book which takes place in the pre-Civil War South. The main character is a woman named Sapphira, she is the wife of a small town miller. She is a troubled but well-rounded character. She is disabled and suffers from dropsy, which is an older term for edema, which is when fluid builds up in your legs and feet. She is cared for by a slave girl. Sapphira brought about twenty slaves with her to the marriage. Which I found to be an interesting fact. She is jealous of her maid named Till, the daughter is an attractive, mixed young woman. This daughter is named Nancy, her job is to care for the millers, bedroom and occasional office. Due to Sapphira's life confined to a wheelchair, she has every opportunity for easy dropping and casual gossiping. When she overhears a conversation linking her husband's name with Nancy, Her world begins to spin out of control at her own doing.  More trouble happens when the nephew of Sapphira decides to pursue a relationship with sweet Nancy. 

It is important to remember this was one of Willa Cather's last novels. This story is a fictionalized version of a story Willa Cather was told as a young girl. Because she uses such dated and derogatory language,  I think modern readers are turned off. I believe Cather had a purpose in exploring the book's theme of racism, she was trying to create an outline as to who the southern slave owner thought. How did their beliefs shape who their slaves were treated? How did the way treated affect their self-esteem? How did people think in such ways? I honestly believe Willa Cather was trying to create a dialog pertaining to racism. 

A sweet story, filled with real deep issues. A good read for anyone. 

Links to purchase: Amazon //

Goodreads Description: 


Originally published in 1940, this is Cather's last novel, a retrospective portrait of a society and conditions that have vanished forever in the Old South.

 The stain of slavery is seen through the relationship of Sapphira Colbert to her black maid, Nancy. Sapphira presides over her Back Creek Valley property with disciplined resolution; her husband, Henry, runs the Mill and sleeps there too, their marriage a formality.

 By 1865 Sapphira is one of the few Virginians who still owns slaves, a policy Henry finds increasingly difficult to countenance. Sapphira's life is an arid one and, confined to a wheelchair, she has ample opportunity for speculation. When she overhears a conversation linking her husband's name with Nancy, that speculation festers and the horrific potential of Sapphira's power is unleashed . . .

My 2017 Classic Bingo Plan ( In progress)

2017 Classic Bingo Plan: In Progress

This year I have decided to play bingo alongside the wonderful people on Goodreads. The group Catching up on Classics (and lots more!) does this every single year. This year's bingo seems quite fun. It was created by Kathy. I have been trying to add in more classics into my reading patterns. I have loved the ones that I have recently read. Now onto how all this bingo stuff really works. 

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Duration: 2017

Bingo Level: I'm going to aim for Blackout but start from Level 1 and work towards Level 4. 

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My Plan for this fun challenge

B1: Written by Nobel Laureate- 

B2: Classic Comedy or Satire

B3: Classic Tragedy- Anthony And Cleopatra by William Shakespeare

Description: Freshly edited text based on the best early printed version of the play
Full explanatory notes conveniently placed on pages facing the text of the play
Scene-by-scene plot summaries A key to famous lines and phrases
An introduction to reading Shakespeare's language
An essay by a leading Shakespeare scholar providing a modern perspective on the play

B4: Classic Made into a Film/TV- The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler 

- I love the Philip Marlowe series. My dog is even named Marlowe!

B5: Winner of a Foreign Literary Prize

I1: 20th Century Classic :  The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Notes: I have always wanted to read something by F. Scott Fitzgerald. I feel like this was good choice to start.

Description: THE GREAT GATSBY, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s third book, stands as the supreme achievement of his career. This exemplary novel of the Jazz Age has been acclaimed by generations of readers. The story of the fabulously wealthy Jay Gatsby and his love for the beautiful Daisy Buchanan, of lavish parties on Long Island at a time when The New York Times noted “gin was the national drink and sex the national obsession,” it is an exquisitely crafted tale of America in the 1920s.

The Great Gatsby is one of the great classics of twentieth-century literature.

I2: New-to-You Author 

I3: Classic Play - A Midsummers Night's Dream by Willam Shakespeare 

Description: Shakespeare's intertwined love polygons begin to get complicated from the start--Demetrius and Lysander both want Hermia but she only has eyes for Lysander. Bad news is, Hermia's father wants Demetrius for a son-in-law. On the outside is Helena, whose unreturned love burns hot for Demetrius. Hermia and Lysander plan to flee from the city under cover of darkness but are pursued by an enraged Demetrius (who is himself pursued by an enraptured Helena). In the forest, unbeknownst to the mortals, Oberon and Titania (King and Queen of the faeries) are having a spat over a servant boy. The plot twists up when Oberon's head mischief-maker, Puck, runs loose with a flower which causes people to fall in love with the first thing they see upon waking. Throw in a group of labourers preparing a play for the Duke's wedding (one of whom is given a donkey's head and Titania for a lover by Puck) and the complications become fantastically funny.

I4: Classic of More than 500 Pages - Bulfinch's Mytholgy by Thomas Bulfinch 

Notes: I am deciding to go with another mythology for this one. I am really excited about it.

 

Description: Can’t keep all your gods and goddesses straight? Wondering about mythological references in classic literature?

 Bulfinch’s Mythology offers approachable accounts of ancient legends in a compilation of the works of Thomas Bulfinch, banker and Latinist. This volume includes all three of Bulfinch’s original titles: The Age of Fable, The Age of Chivalry, and The Legends of Charlemagne. Bulfinch states his purpose for the book clearly: “Our work is not for the learned, nor for the theologian, nor for the philosopher, but for the reader of English literature . . . who wishes to comprehend the allusions so frequently made by public speakers, lecturers, essayists, and poets, and those which occur in polite conversation.” 

This compilation was widely used as the authoritative text on mythology in schools for over a century

I5: 18th Century or Earlier Classic: The Art of Happiness by Epicurus

N1: South American Classic
N2: Short Story Classic
N3: FREE SPACE
N4: Poetry Collection
N5: European Classic

G1: 19th Century Classic
G2: Bokklubben (Norwegian Book Club) World Library List Book
G3: Classic Non-fiction
G4: Group Read
G5: Classic Recommended by a Friend

O1: Literary Prize of Your Country/Region-

O2: Classic Folklore or Mythology- The Odyssey by Homer

- This classic is a book that I have always wanted to pick up. I own two copies of this book so that it will be fun finally read it. It was the first mythology book that came to mind.

O3: Asian Classic - The Home and the World by Rabindranath Tagor

O4: Classic Romance - Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte 

- I have meant to pick up Jane Eyre for awhile now. This challenge will finally give me a reason to. I find that I want to read classic romance but never get around to it.

O5: Prize-Winning Female Author - Scarlet Song by Mariama Ba

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