Austen in August...

Hosted by Roofbeamreader, Austen in Austen is a month long celebration of all things Jane Austen. Books, biographies, movies, whatever. Anything Austen goes! I decided to start off my month of Jane Austen by reading Lady Susan, mostly because it's the only Austen work I'd never read it before, and also because it's short--only 41 letters long. I've always enjoyed epistolary novels, and this was no exception.

Lady Susan herself was a bit of a surprise; she's such a contrast to Austen's other leading ladies. Known as "the most accomplished coquette in England", she still somehow manages to charm all the men around her. "...her countenance is absolutely sweet, and her voice and manner winningly mild. Unfortunately one knows her too well. She is clever and agreeable, has all that knowledge of the world which makes conversation easy, and talks very well, with a happy command of language, which is too often used I believe to make black appear white." Her sister-in-law despises her, and her own daughter is terrified of her. I found her to be almost a female version of George Wickham: eloquent in speech and lovely to look at, but deceitful, selfish, and scheming. And that's what made this novella so unexpected. And so much fun to read. My August reading Austen is definitely off to a good start.

Here are my goals for the rest of the month:
     1.  Reread Mansfield Park (because I haven't read it in quite awhile)
     2.  Check out Austenland on the Big Screen (to see if the movie is better than the book)
     3.  Read Jennifer Petkus' novel Jane, Actually about Jane Austen in the afterlife (because the premise is so much fun).

What about you? Got any amazing Austen plans for August? I hope so!

Happy Reading!

Summer Reading

Summer is my favorite time of year.  School is out.  The winter snow is gone.  And I am free to spend my time however I want.  Which means hiking some of my favorite mountain trails, traveling when I have the money, doing a little birdwatching, a little writing, and, of course, reading, reading, reading.

I have a stack of books by my bed just waiting to be read.  Some are the latest books from favorite authors, like Kay Hooper, Victoria Thompson, and Lee Child, that I haven't gotten around to reading yet; and some are favorite books like The Riddle-Master of Hed and Ysabel, that I've been wanting to revisit and reread.  Plus, I should probably tackle some of those 29 TBR books sitting on my shelves like The Moonstone, or Minaret, or The Odd Women.

During the summer I tend to gravitate towards fast-paced page-turners or fun, lighthearted romances -- perfect books to take to the beach.  (If only I were going to the beach this summer!)  With the summer sun shining, I'm usually not in the mood for anything too serious or scholarly.  But there are no rules when it comes to reading...or to summer.

So, go outside.  Enjoy the sun!  Spend time with friends and family.  Star gaze.  Play games.  Hike.  Laugh.  Have fun.  And let the summer reading begin!

What will you be reading this summer?

Two Pages a Day... A Bookish Goal

     Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville is one of those books I think everyone in America should read at least once.  I know I've been meaning to read it for a long time.  (It's been gathering dust on my shelves for years.)  So I pulled it out a few weeks ago, dusted it off, and decided that this year is the year I'm going to read it.  It's 703 pages long, and I figured out that if I read just two pages a day I can finish it by the end of the year.
     So far, I'm on track.  Two pages a day isn't hard, after all, and I've even managed to read more than that on more than one occasion.  (Which is a good thing because last week I accidentally skipped several days in a row.)  
     Democracy in America:   83 pages down;  620 pages to go.


     "Democracy extends the sphere of individual freedom; socialism restricts it.  Democracy attaches all possible value to each man; socialism makes each man a mere number.  Democracy and socialism have nothing in common but one word:  equality.  But notice the difference:  while democracy seeks equality in liberty, socialism seeks equality in restraint and servitude."     --Alexis de Tocqueville