Last the best of all the classics...

 

I've read some really good classics this year, but I think The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy is my favorite. It's such a fun adventure! Set in 1792 during the Reign of Terror, the story takes place in England and in France, both places I'd love to visit someday. (Which is why I chose this book for my "Classic set in a place you'd like to visit" for Karen's Back to the Classics Challenge.)

Lady Marguerite Blakeney and her husband, Sir Percy, are at the heart of this novel. She's beautiful, clever, and French. He's handsome, wealthy, and English. But though they had a passionate courtship, "Now they had drifted quite apart, and Sir Percy seemed to have laid aside his love her, as he would an ill-fitting glove. She tried to rouse him by sharpening her ready wit against his dull intellect; endeavored to excite his jealousy, if she could not rouse his love...but all in vain. He remained the same, always passive, drawling, sleepy, always courteous, invariably a gentleman..."

Added to the events of their life together in England, are the daring intrigues of the Scarlet Pimpernel, the mysterious and dashing Englishman who has rescued countless French aristocrats from the guillotine. His brave exploits are the talk of London. But who is he? Lady Blakeney is about to find out. 

I loved this book! It's captivating, amusing, clever, and diverting. And it reads fast. Why couldn't I have read this classic in high school? I'm so glad I read it now. It's the best.

Happy Reading!

A Classic Play...

 

Who is Cyrano de Bergerac:

My nose is enormous...I carry it with pride, because a big nose is a sign of affability, kindness, courtesy, wit, generosity, and courage.

With whom I'm in love? Come now, think a moment: this nose of mine, which precedes me by a quarter of an hour wherever I go, forbids me to dream of being loved by even an ugly woman. You ask me whom I love? The answer should be clear to you! Whom else would I love but the most beautiful woman in the world?

Cyrano loves Roxane, but he knows she could never love someone as ugly as him. Christian de Neuvillette, on the other hand, is more than handsome enough for a woman like Roxane, only he is tongue-tied and dull-witted whenever he's around her. So Cyrano decides to pen the words for him to say to woo the lovely lady, words that come from Cyrano's own heart. 

Together, we can win her heart! ... Shall we complete each other? We'll walk together: you in the light, I in the shadows. I'll make you eloquent, you'll make me handsome.

The story of Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand, with the love triangle between Cyrano, Christian, and Roxane, is one I've long been familiar with, but I'd never read or seen the actual play. Then, last year, Sam @ Book Chase read and reviewed it, and put it on my radar. So when I saw that I needed to read a Classic Play for Karen's Back to the Classics Challenge, I knew immediately that I wanted to read this one. And it's a fun read; it has lots of wit and action and is very entertaining, though it also made me cry at the end. Cyrano is quite the memorable character. He writes poetry, fights, and gives no quarter to anyone. But it's his own words that describe him best:

I prefer to lead a different kind of life. I sing, dream, laugh, and go where I please, alone and free. My eyes see clearly and my voice is strong. I'm quarrelsome or benign as it suits my pleasure, always ready to fight a duel or write a poem at the drop of a hat. ... I may not cut a stylish figure, but I hold my soul erect. I wear my deeds as ribbons, my wit is sharper than the finest mustache, and when I walk among men I make truths ring like spurs.

I ended up really liking this play. And someday, I hope to see it performed onstage.  

Happy Reading!

 

 

The Silent Land by Graham Joyce

"If there are few moments in life that come as clear and as pure as ice, when the mountain breathed back at her, Zoe knew she had trapped one such moment and it could never be taken away.  Everywhere was snow and silence. Snow and silence; the complete arrest of life; a rehearsal for and a pre-echo of death."

Zoe and her husband, Jake, are skiing in the French Pyrenees when they are caught in an avalanche. Zoe is buried in snow, struggling to dig herself out. Then, like a miracle, Jake finds her. Together they make their way down the mountain. Only when they get to their hotel no one is there. The nearby town is deserted, too. Zoe and Jake can't figure out where all the other people went, or why. And every time they try to leave to get help, they find themselves right back where they started. Still, it's not too bad having this winter wonderland all to themselves. And they still have each other. But all is not right. Especially when Jake guesses the truth about their situation; something Zoe doesn't want to believe.

This novel by Graham Joyce ended up being a completely different kind of story than I was expecting. (Though I did guess the truth about Zoe's and Jake's situation before they did.) The Silent Land is not quite a supernatural fantasy, mystery or horror story, although it does have elements of all three. And it's that intriguing mix of elements, combined with a more introspective look at death and life and love, that makes this book such an interesting read. I wish I could tell you more, but I don't want to give anything away.  This is the kind of book every reader should discover for herself. I can't guarantee you'll like it, though I did, but I can say that it is one of those thoughtful books that will linger in your mind when you're done.

Happy Reading!

Another bookish gem...

I had almost reached the back of the room and was casting my eye over a display of cheap trinkets and ugly paintings on the walls when I saw it ... An eighteenth century pastel in its original frame, of a man wearing a powdered wig and blue coat. In the top right-hand corner, a coat of arms I couldn't make out. Yet it was not the coat of arms that grabbed me, but the face. Transfixed, I could not tear my eyes away from it:  the face was my own. 

The Portrait is another delightful read from Antoine Laurain. I love his books, especially The Red Notebook. Both novels are whimsical, subtle, and beautifully written. In this one, a collector of antiques sees a portrait at an auction that looks just like him. And he has to buy it.  But when he gets it home, his jaded wife can't see the resemblance. Her reaction makes Pierre-Francois Chaumont even more determined to learn the identity of the man in the painting. What he discovers is beyond anything he ever imagined. Once again Laurain spins an unforgettable tale of mystery and romance. And he does it in just 128 pages, making The Portrait a true bookish gem.

Happy Reading!

Other bookish gems:

The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa

A Rose for the Anzac Boys...

"It's hard to be a girl sometimes, stuck at school when there is such a great cause to fight for. We do first aid training here every Saturday and Wednesday, and bandage rolling Tuesdays, and making baby clothes for refugees on Friday afternoons. But it isn't like DOING something; it isn't glory or adventure." --Midge Macpherson

 With both of her brothers fighting in World War I, Midge wants to do more than study French verbs and embroidery in school. So when her two friends, Anne and Ethel, decide to start a canteen in France to serve cocoa and bread to the soldiers shipping out there, she goes with them. Together they offer a few comforts of home, and a smile, to tens of thousands of English, Australian, and French soldiers. It's not much. And, as Midge soon discovers, it's not an exciting adventure like she thought it would be. It's hard work, heartbreak, and loss. (And also love.)

Jackie French offers a view of World War I from the perspective of the girls who volunteered and fought and served alongside the men. There wasn't much glory in this war, but there were plenty of brave young men and women, each with a story to tell. This book is a tribute to them. As French writes in her author's notes: "This is not a true book, but it is made of true things...Every episode and character in this book is based on the words of those who were there, taken from their letters, diaries, the oral history collected years later...Midge's, Anne's and Ethel's stories are based on the tale of four schoolgirls who really did open a canteen in France."

This book doesn't take place on the front lines; it focuses on the aftermath. It's heartbreaking. And sad. But somehow still hopeful. Ethel, Anne, and Midge are great characters. It's mostly Midge's story, full of the letters she receives from her brothers, from her aunt who's working as a nurse tending to the wounded, and from the young Australian soldiers she meets at the canteen. I loved the way this story was told, even when it made me cry. (And it did make me cry--several times.) This novel is an excellent complement to all the other books written about this stupid and senseless war.

(Special thanks to Brona's Books for recommending this book. I'm so glad I read it!)

Bookish Serendipity

bookish serendipity - n. the happy accident of discovering 

an unsought-for but unexpectedly perfect book.

This summer I've been reading books from 1914, as well as a few written about that momentous year, so when I was at the library last week and spotted this book on the display shelf it felt serendipitous.

See what I mean?

Bookish serendipity at its best.

This novel, written by French author, Jean Echenoz, is only 109 pages long and begins in France on the first day of World War I. Charles and Anthime Seze, two brothers in love with the same girl, are quickly mobilized. Charles is positive the war won't last long; Anthime is not so sure. Echenoz paints perfect snapshot moments of what follows next for these brothers: in the air, on the ground, and in the trenches. There's mud, gas, shrapnel, and death; there's also survival, life, and hope. I love how Echenoz was able to show so much with so few words. This is a quiet and beautifully written novel. I'm so glad I stumbled on it so serendipitously.