Classics Considered

August is RACING by.  (I guess I say that every month.)  I've finished a couple of books over the weekend, but I don't know when I'll get to writing proper reviews.  Till then, here's a quick post for Top Ten Tuesday! Characters I'd like to be best friends with, classics and otherwise: Much from BBC's Robin Hood.  This guy gets a lot of flak from the other members of Robin's gang (and Robin himself), but it's not fair... he does pretty much all the cooking and worrying for everyone.  If we're friends, I'll help with the cooking (even though I don't like it) and back him up when they start picking on him.  Being my friend, he will be loyal to a fault, but also give me constructive criticism when I need it. Miss Marple.   Poor Miss Marple... I just want to protect her from all the creepers and psychos she encounters (not that I am capable, heh).  She really needs a friend. Lucian Gregory from The Man Who Was Thursday .  Ok, mayb...

Ok... what follows is rather an eclectic list, and many of them are not classics!  But I so enjoyed reading some of you guys' lists for this week's Top Ten Tuesday topic , it made me reflect on the books I read long ago and which influenced my childhood. 1. The Children's Book of Virtues An interesting collection of fairy tales and poems, some well known ("St George and the Dragon") and others more obscure. To this day, I can still hear my dad's voice reading some of these stories.  I'm also pretty sure I'd start bawling if I re-read " Why Frog and Snake Never Play Together." 2. Dragons, Ogres, and Wicked Witches I really hesitate to put this one on the list, because these European fairy tales were pretty heavy reading and perhaps not very good for small kids.  (I'm not quite sure how we acquired the book...Costco?  Either way, my mom later got rid of it.)  I've always had an inordinate fascination with fantasy monsters, ...

This week's Top Ten Tuesday is a page-to-screen freebie.  I've talked before about my favorite costume dramas , so I thought I'd go with Jana's take on this topic and share some books that really need to be adapted! Also, some of these have been made into films already, so if it's on the list, it means I haven't yet seen the "perfect" one (subject to my picky opinion, of course). 10.  The Heir of Redclyffe by Charlotte Yonge Yonge's novel may have faded out of popularity (or even recognition), but there are plenty of cinematic moments in this one: feuding family members, a shipwreck, and a haunting graveyard scene. Actually, forget the movie - I have plans to turn this into the next blockbuster musical.  Only half-joking... 9.  The Complete Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle I can hear critics' howls of protest..."not ANOTHER Sherlock Holmes movie!"  But hear me out: Jeremy Brett (sadly enough) was not able to...

In honor of the day before Singles Awareness Day Valentine's Day, here's my favorite romantic relationships from literature (in no particular order):

Haven't participated in Top Ten Tuesday in a while, but I'm excited for this week's topic: top ten platonic relationships from books.  Families, friends, and mentors - classic literature is chock-full of great examples! Davey Balfour and Alan Breck Stewart from Kidnapped (Robert Louis Stevenson) - I have to reread this book every so often.  I just love the complex dynamic between two friends who have such different backgrounds, views, and goals. Gandalf and Pippin from The Lord of the Rings (J. R. R. Tolkien) - Another duo who don't get along too well at the beginning - Gandalf, the no-nonsense wizard, and Pippin, who is just a bit clueless.  Nonetheless, when push comes to shove, they're on each other's side and find common understanding. Mudpuddle, Jill, and Eustace from The Silver Chair (C. S. Lewis) - Probably my favorite group of characters from the whole Narnia series!  I admir how they're all three loyal to each other and their quest.  M...

This week's Top Ten Tuesday challenges us to come up with to-be-read books by our favorite authors... 1. Nathaniel Hawthorne: The Scarlet Letter Yes, I probably sound like a broken record, but I still haven't read this one. 2. Joseph Conrad: Nostromo 3. Franz Kafka: Diaries Diaries...that's a little awkward.   4. Jules Verne: From the Earth to the Moon 5. Agatha Christie: The rest of the Poirot series It's been over a decade since I read it, so I might just start over. 6. Charlotte Bronte: The Professor and Emma 7. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle: The Firm of Girdlestone This is getting obscure, but Doyle's lesser-known works rarely disappoint. 8. J. R. R. Tolkien: The Fall of Gondolin 9. Fyodor Dostoyevsky: Crime and Punishment 10. Soren Kierkegaard: The Concept of Anxiety My biggest takeaway from this list is that, barring Dostoyevsky and Kierkegaard, I've scarcely discovered any new favorite authors in the past 6–8 years.  Pretty sad. 

It's only taken me several days, but I think I've come up with a good list for this week's Top Ten Tuesday : 1. The Kill , by Émile Zola Making an exception in my "no more reading challenges" resolution - I plan to read The Kill for Fanda's Zoladdiction event next month.  It's one of Zola 's shorter novels and, from what I hear, an interesting one! 2. Ben-Hur , by Lew Wallace (re-read) I just started Book 2, so I have a ways to go yet.  :) 3. North Korea's Hidden Revolution: How the Information Underground Is Transforming a Closed Society , by Jieun Baek How do people share information that's illegal, and what information would a person risk their life to access?  This topic appeals to me for both historical and universal reasons. 4. The Accusation: Forbidden Stories from Inside North Korea , by Bandi "Bandi" is an author in North Korea, whose short stories from the 80s and 90s were smuggled out and published recently.  Saw this whi...

This Top Ten Tuesday theme is about books that have been on the TBR list the longest.  It's been a busy week, but the topic appealed to me so much I didn't want to miss out, even if late. Here's what I have, according to Goodreads: 1. The Federalist , by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay At one point in high school, I had started this and even intended to write thoughts on each section.  I think I will read it someday, but now I'd like to start with Democracy in America or Common Sense (which are as equally embarrassing to have not read). 2. The Mark of Zorro , by Johnston McCulley One of my favorite film scenes is the duel between Basil Rathbone and Tyrone Power.  I'm sure this is a book I'll enjoy, but somehow I keep forgetting to read it.   3. The Tenant of Wildfell Hall , by Anne Brontë With Charlotte's The Professor , this will be the last Brontë novel for me to read.  I've been remembering it lately, so hopefully in the next year o...

Alice...one of the toughest and bravest "strong heroines" nobody talks about.  She's only seven-and-a-half exactly. A day late, but better late than never, right?  This week's Top Ten Tuesday focuses on books that have "touched your heart and left you feeling SO thankful that it was written."  Narrowing this down to ten classic fictional books has been even more difficult than it should probably be...but here goes! 1.  Alice's Adventures in Wonderland , and Through the Looking-Glas s, by Lewis Carroll, illustrated by John Tenniel For as long as I can remember, Alice is a character I've identified with, in her search for home and logic in a place of strangeness and illusion.  Carroll's witty silliness has forever influenced my own sense of humor and indirectly helped me become the "literary techie" I am.  Let's not forget Tenniel, either, whose illustrations bring it all to (sur)reality! 2. The Secret Garden , by Frances Hodgson Bur...