Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

I've always found that I love the classics, so why not read one of Jane Austen's most famous, especially since Pride and Prejudice is one of my all time favorites? Let me tell you, all you book lovers out there, there's a reason why Jane Austen's novels sell just as much now as when they were first written, their massive sales only comparable with those of vampire thrillers (confirmed by multiple Barnes & Nobles and Borders employees).

I think part of the reason I'm such a fan of the classics is because I love the language and descriptions writers of older times use; though some may deem it boring I find myself transported back in time with descriptions of lavish parties, elegant dresses, spotlessly kept households, and perfectly mannered ladies, well, maybe not always that last one. I get a thrill of the old fashioned love story and I almost wish I lived in those days sometimes; they don't necessarily seem to be any simpler than today by some standards but I can just totally picture myself being completely content in one of Jane Austen's or other classic writer's stories. Maybe I'm getting ahead of myself, but it may just be Austen's glorification of the time that makes me fall in love with the novel, not want to put it down and realize I'm back in the 21st century, just until I have a moment of time to pick up that book again. And another plus about this novel is that the chapters a very short making the book a quick but extremely enjoyable one.

Let me take you back briefly so you can experience the time for yourself. Here we are in the late 1700's to early 1800's and we live in the world of Elinor and Marianne Dashwood, sisters yet worlds apart in so many ways. The girls talk in a proper manner and amongst their days of learning the trade of being a woman during this time they each come to fall in love with men as different as they themselves even though Elinor states early in the novel that, "the more [she] knows of the world, the more [she] is convinced that [she] shall never see a man that [she] can truly love. [she requires] so much!" However the ladies' loves soon face obstacles when they discover their beloved men may have already met their matches. Care to discover for yourself what ladies of this time will do in a situation of the sort? Get yourself a copy ASAP!

Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

Let me begin by saying that this book is not for those who do not consider themselves fans of historical fiction, for it can be considered a bit slow at some points, especially for those who dread vivid descriptions of past events. Brooks' style is very elaborate in a sense and puts you directly in the shoes of main character, Anna Frith, who to put it mildly, has had a bit of a tough life. Living in a small village in england during the time of the plague Anna's husband dies due to a mine collapse, then a man she becomes close to staying in her home comes down with the plague and ends up on deaths door as well, then as if things could get much worse the terrible plague continues to spread around the village, robbing many of their lives, including friends and loved ones, even her two young sons dying in her own arms. You can feel the sadness that comes upon the village but hope is restored through their priest's sermon, summoning them all to stay as this plague is a test of God's. Anna lets her compassionate and hardworking sides shine through with the obstacles she overcomes throughout this treacherous time. This book also evidences the role of faith in the daily life of europeans in the 16th century; their faith was their only source of answers. Make sure if your not a history fan, you think about reading this book, but it's a great source of info about the time period if you need to write a report or anything of the sort. However, if your looking for a quick read this one is a bit tricky to fly through, but worth the wait.

Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf Continued

Along with detailing the thoughts and feelings of Mrs. Dalloway, the unhappy couple Septimus and Rezia, Peter Walsh, the novel follows the thoughts of the Dalloway's housekeeper, who considers the Dalloways, "from the most worthless of all classes-the rich." We see the bitter side of their housekeeper Mrs. Kilman as she converses with Elizabeth Dalloway and makes rude remarks to herself. We trace along with Peter Walsh as he walks through the lovely parks of London and tries to figure out what it is he so happens to be attracted to about Clarissa and then decides he must attend her party and bring her something special as he is planning to confirm his love to her. After all, "it is a thousand pities never to say what one feels." At home preparing for her party in the evening Mrs. Dalloway gets an unexpected visit from her husband Richard before he leaves to attend a committee that Clarissa mixes up the name of. He comes bearing roses, and how she loves him so for it, but her only desire is that he would be able to say he loves her, but she decides she can see he is trying to say it and that the words themselves are not entirely necessary. She ponders to herself if she should have married Peter for there is such a difference in her and Richard's relationship to that of her and Peter; her and Peter would converse and perhaps argue, but with Richard there was nothing to argue about, as the other ladies said she was spoiled because he listened to whatever she said, but was there a certain passion missing Clarissa wondered? Septimus doesn't seem to want to have children and because it is all Rezia desires, she takes Septimus to a doctor who confirms there is nothing physically wrong with him, but that he is in a phunk and must be institutionalized. Elizabeth Dalloway's teacher takes her to the market and Clarissa seems to have doubts about the sanity of the woman. All this is so much to take on upon the eve of her famed party.

Woolf somehow portrays Clarissa is a woman with much character and an amazing spirit, though she considers party giving, "her gift. Nothing else had she the slightest of importance; could not think, write, even play the piano. She muddled Armenians and Turks; loved success; hated discomfort; must be liked; talked oceans of nonsense: and to this day, ask her what the equator was, and she did not know." Curious to find out if Peter Walsh will proclaim his love to Clarissa, how Septimus will fare in the institution, how the rest of Elizabeth's life will turn out, and just how successful the party will end up being? Don't wait to find out.

Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf

Mrs. Dalloway chronicles the life of a very vibrant woman named Clarissa, throughout a single very important day, during which she is supposed to be hosting a party of her own. At first I found the novel a little challenging as it is not broken up into chapters, so some ideas seem to flow into others without breaks, causing the lines between character thoughts and certain events to be blurred. However the reader does catch on to the acclaimed Virginia Woolf's style to writing literature; she frequently changes character perspectives and locations in periodic intervals throughout her work. This is helpful in giving the reader a sense of multiple character's views about various occurrences. Though a bit hard to understand when first reading the novel, this style helps keep the novel interesting and flowing well.

Throughout her day of preparing for the party Clarissa is confronted by those from her past, including Mr. Peter Walsh. The two have not seen each other since he left for India years ago, and last Clarissa heard he was engaged and to be married to some woman he met on the ride over. She was utterly shocked by his visit and he clearly still illustrates he has feelings for the girl he has known since early childhood days. Although he tries to cover up these feelings by pretending he is "in love again" he dearly wishes Clarissa had not married Mr. Richard Dallowy in the years past. Clarissa recalls at this time the way she and Richard met, how they were a perfect pair, despite her first few incorrect introductions of him. When Clarissa is speaking with Peter Walsh her daughter unexpectedly enters the room and she introduces her little darling sweetly with a mother's admiration, yet it somehow seems to anger Peter the way she does so. The novel also follows a couple of whom the wife has become increasingly unhappy as she has had to move to Enlgand which she hasn't come to fancy and their marriage is falling apart. She uses the excuse that her fingers are too thin to wear her wedding ring, but her husband is not fooled. Mrs. Dalloway decides to invite Peter to her gala that night as he is abruptly leaving her home. Care to see how the events of the day will unfold for the multiple characters present in this novel? Will an old flame reappear or die out for good? To find out pick up a copy of the famous author's work that inspired the hours. You'll certainly end up enjoying it.

The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown

I previously mentioned Robert Langdon had come to the realization the certain someone who tricked him into comming to Washington D.C. is Peter Solomon's captor. Robert, the CIA, and capitol police decipher an encoded message tattooed on Peter's severred hand that leads them all the way into the Senate's sub-basement, a long-unexplored area beneath the capitol. Upon entering the room of the captor's instructions, the team discovers a Masonic shrine containing a pyramid, supposed to decipher the ancient mysteries that this captor desires with the help of a package Solomon gave Langdon to protect. However when Langdon begins to try to crack the pyramid's engraving, Warren Bellamy, the capitol architect, enters suddenly and knocks Langdon's CIA and capitol police companions unconcious. The duo then make their way to a safe refuge inside the capitol reading room to discuss the prestige and power of this pyrmaid, as Bellamy is a masonic brother himself. While this side of the story is unfolding the captor is up to his tricks once again, yet this time with Katherine Solomon; fooling the scientist into thinking he is her brother's therapist she invites the man to join her at her research lab, but who he actually turns out to be from her past and what he does to wreck all her work is unimaginable. Langdon and Katherine are united midway through the book and embark on a journey with the common goal of saving Peter by decoding the Masonic messages of this pyramid and package. Along the way they encounter many other Masonic brothers, learn a great deal about Peter's past and the power of the ancient mysteries among modern men. Care to see how the duo will eclipse the captor's sly ways and save Peter? Want to find out just what this pyrmaid says for yourself? pick up a copy today.

The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown

If you've read Dan Brown's other novels The Davinci Code and Angels & Demons, you'll love his newest work featuring beloved character and Harvard Professor, Robert Langdon.

One day out of the blue Robert Langdon receives a phone call from the office of his good friend and high-ranked mason, Peter Solomon. Peter's assistant informs Langdon that Peter is hosting a dinner for the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C., which he is very involved in, but unfortunately their speaker dropped out at the last minute and Peter thought a speech Langdon had given on television a few years back would be perfect. Of course, Langdon agrees to help out his dear friend and is flown by private jet to D.C. that evening. However, upon his arrival to the capital building where the event is supposed to be held Langdon realizes things have gone terribly wrong and he has fallen into a tricky trap; when he can't find the location of the dinner and hears the scream of a child coming from the rotunda, Langdon rushes to the scene and finds out he has made a terrible mistake by going to D.C. that night. Peter's so-called "secretary" was not a secretary at all, but his captor for reasons beyond Langdon's understanding. This clever and creepy captor uses the symbols of the ancient mysteries to guide Langdon, the capitol police, and the CIA on a quest for Masonic secrets he believes are uncover-able based on information he got out of Peter. The cause of the child's screaming was the severed hand of Peter Solomon, with his Masonic ring still on his finger, pointing to the top of the capitol rotunda and tattooed with some unknown symbology. Peter's captor contacts him by cell phone and gives a choice: solve the mysteries of the masonic legends by the end of the night and share them with him or Peter and his sister will cease to see the light of day. The story tracks Langdon, Peter's Captor, the CIA, the capitol police, and Peter's sister as the events of the night unfold, leaving the reading aching for more.

Brown's unique style of alternating perspectives every chapter makes the novel interesting and easy to read, just like two of his very popular others. Though I have to say out of the 3 Langdon-centered novels this extra captivating one is by far my favorite.

Care for find out more about how Landgon will deal with his options and who else comes into play throughout the novel? Pick up this newest edition to the Robert Langdon trilogy and you won't be sorry.

Quarter 1 Reflection/Quarter 2 Goals

After looking over all my blogs since the beginning of this quarter I have noticed that I usually discuss more about the book's/author's writing style than the plot, which I mostly give a brief but informative synopsis of. In the majority of my blogs I included quotes that I particularly liked from the books or thought showed evidence of a repeated theme. I also realized that I often like to compare the books I have read to other books or even different types of media such as movies or television shows. The book blogging experience is a very unique one; it is different than just writing a summary of your independent reading book because it allows you to really include your specific take and perspective on the literature, which I quite enjoyed because of being able to voice my own true opinion.

As a blogger I would like to accomplish gaining a greater understanding of the books I have read and will read through my blog by perhaps asking questions I have about the book or character's actions to help me grasp main points and maybe get some advice from anyone who might become a follower of the blog. I could probably work on making my blog a little clearer and including more about the plot and characters in my entries for the next quarter. I have found that if I am blogging about a book I really enjoyed then I tend to be very interested in what I have to say, however not so much if I have to blog about a book I didn't quite like as much. I might feel differently about these books if I looked for more positives while writing my blogs. Overall I enjoyed writing independent reading blogs for the first quarter and am excited to continue it for the next marking period.