My Filofax Week #1 & #2

I'm getting a late start on Paperlovestory's Filofax week blog posts, so I'm combining Week #1 & Week #2.  We are into week #3 already, but I'll be posting it probably Saturday as that's when I've got time next.  You can CLICK HERE for her first week (which is awesome, by the way!).  You can also still join in with this Filofaxish fun by CLICKING HERE.  Lots of us are joining in so you should, too!  If you want to check out some others who have joined, see the list here.

So why did I decided to join you ask?  I thought this would be a fun and interesting way to keep my blog updated weekly and let everyone see a bit into my personal life (but not too much, notice the smudged out parts.)  So, here are my first two weeks (as I said, I was behind), with a special glimpse at my monthly calendar, too!

[caption id="attachment_207" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Filofax-January 2013[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_208" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Filofax, Week #1[/caption]





[caption id="attachment_210" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Filofax, Week #2[/caption]





So, you probably noticed that I have LOTS of decorative tapes, stamps, etc. filling my filofax.  Why?  If I have a slower week (or I forget to write in my filofax *gasp*), I fill up the empty days with my stamps and washi tapes.  It gives me something pretty to look at and makes me happy, and there are days that's a very good thing, especially if I've had a particularly long or rough week at work.

So, I hope you've enjoyed my first (and second) My Filofax Week Posts!

Armchair BEA

After this week, I'll be off for the summer and I'll finally get to some of the reading & blogging I've put off these last few months. So, how am I going to kick off my back-to-blogging summer?  With Armchair BEA! What is this I speak of you ask?  It is a virtual book blogging convention that follows Book Expo America & the Book Blogger Convention.  Obviously, since I won't be off work until the end of the week I can't attend the real convention in NYC, so this is perfect.

There is an official agenda for the virtual convention bloggers beginning on May 23 to May 27.  There will be daily themes, interviews with bloggers, giveaways, and more.  So if you're a book blogger, check it out!  Make sure to keep checking back on Coffee & Literature for updates and my contributions to the daily posts!

-Kristy

The Jane Austen Project, Part 2

Before the end of 2010, I had planed to read Austen's six novels-Emma, Mansfield Park, Northanger Abbey, Pride & Prejudice, Sense & Sensibility, and finally, Persuasion-and her unfinished seventh novel, Sandition, that has been published posthumously after it was completed by another writer.  I had also planned to read the inspiration for this challenge, Karen Joy Fowler's The Jane Austen Book Club.  Well, 2010 turned out to be not the best of years by the end, so this and my other challenges went by the wayside.  I managed to read The Jane Austen Book Club and Pride & Prejudice, but that was it.  I started Emma but never really got into it.  So, what is my purpose in telling you this?  Well, I've decided that I'm going to try it again.  Yes, that's right.  I'm going to try to read Austen's six novels once more.  I am also including in this challenge reading at least one other Austen related book that has been written by another author.  Right now, I'm leaning toward one I already own, but haven't read, called Writing Jane Austen: A Novel by Elizabeth Aston.  We shall see how this goes, but since I'm actually starting it in January, I think I'll be able to do it this time.

I'm also inviting anyone who would like to participate in this challenge to please do so, too.  For more information on the challenge, please visit The Jane Austen Project, Part 2 page.

Monday Musings: NaNoWriMo is Finished & I won!

I can't believe it!  I actually was able to write a 50,000 word novel in less than 30 days!  I kicked NaNoWriMo's butt!  Ok, well not exactly since there were several days I didn't write anything, but I still persevered and made it through 30 days of crazy noveling.  My novel is still quite rough, but at least I now have something I can work with to make it better.  To give a short synopsis, my novel is about a girl who moves to a small Tennessee town and discovers she has a deep rooted connection to it.  It's sort of like The Crucible meets The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane meets Gallows Hill meets a typical ghost story.  People always say write what you know, and ever since I was little I was fascinated with the supernatural.  I was the one who was addicted to the R.L. Stine Fear Street series and the Christopher Pike books in junior high.  I loved anything about the Salem Witch Trials after reading The Crucible in high school.  I remember writing a short story in junior high and I wrote it about a lake where people were haunted and then died.  Morbid, I know.  But I promise I'm not a weird, recluse-type of person.  To look at me you would have zero inkling that I loved books, movies, and TV shows about the supernatural.  I would have liked to have written a chick-lit sort of book or a good funny romance, but honestly, I don't know how to write that stuff.  So, for National Novel Writing Month, I wrote what I knew--ghosts.  I think the book is a good read.  Once I get through editing over 50,000 words and 256 pages, I will probably be the typical first-time novelist who self-publishes it only to be struck down by the hardest critics, but hey, if one person enjoys my book, then I'll be happy.  I'll try to keep you updated on my editing of the novel, and if it ever does happen to be published you all will be some of the first to know.

Now, on to the business of books.  I can now start reading and reviewing again!  Yay!!! I'm about half way finished with On Writing by Stephen King, so that will probably be one of the first I review.  I've also got a few books by up and coming authors that I will be reviewing at their request.  One is Being Light by Helen Smith.   It looks to be a good book, and I'm anxious to get started on it.  So, be watching for new review posts and of course I'll get back with my reviews of other things as well as my "Whats in Your Bag?" posts that seem to be enjoyable.  So, I hope everyone has a good end of November, and I'll see you in December!

Happy Reading!

Monday Musings: NaNoWriMo Update

Well, I'm trucking along in my quest to write 50,000 in 30 days.  As of right now, I have a little over 12,000 words written in my book, which has yet to be titled.  To keep up with my daily count, I need to write around 1667 words per day.   Honestly 50,000 is not a lot for one book, and I'm expecting that I will continue to write for a while longer so that I can turn out a decent amount of words and so I can tweak what I've already done.  I will give you a short synopsis of the book in a "back cover" type of style to hopefully get a few people interested:

Katharine Archer moves to the small town of Wisdom Point, Tennessee, to take part in the elite graduate program at Dayton College. She seems to fit in perfectly and loves the small town life; she even meets a great guy and some good friends. But what Katie doesn't know is that her new love of Wisdom Point runs deeper than just feeling like she's at home in the small town. She'll discover that she is connected to the places and people of Wisdom Point more than she could ever imagine.

The book is actually a supernatural mystery/thriller mixed in with a little twist on history, too.  I've categorized it as a Mystery, Thriller, & Suspense Novel on NaNoWriMo.  A little more of a teaser, here is a short excerpt from the novel so far:

            Katie opened her laptop again so she could get started with some work.  A few minutes into typing up her research on the house, the waitress walked over to refill Katie’s tea.  She placed a napkin next to the glass.  Katie noticed that the napkin had some writing on the underside.  She turned it over.  Welcome home, Katie.  She looked up.  The waitress was going on about her business.  Katie assumed she didn’t write it.  No one else in the restaurant looked as if they would have either.  Katie walked up to the counter.  “Excuse me,”  she called to the waitress.

            “Yeah?”  She sounded a bit annoyed.

            “Um, you put this napkin on my table.”  She handed the napkin to the waitress.  “Can you tell me who wrote that?”

            The waitress read the message.  “No.  Sorry.  I just picked it up from the stack there.”  She pointed to the supply of napkins.  “Maybe you’ve got an admirer,” she winked.

            “Yeah, maybe that’s it,”  Katie lied.  She wasn’t sure what the message meant, but she was fairly sure it wasn’t from an admirer.  For some reason, Katie felt like this was an ominous message from someone.  Why would the napkin say Welcome home of all things?  And who would know her name?  Alex was the only one she’d seen in the café that she knew, and she’d watched him pay and leave.  No, it couldn’t have been him.  Katie sat back down at her table.  She took out her planner and folded the napkin so it would fit in the pocket.  She finished her meal, all the time constantly thinking about the strange message.  She packed up her things, paid, and left, walking toward number three Oak Street.  When she reached the house, she still had no idea what to make of the napkin and its strange message.

            She dropped her satchel on the couch and went into the kitchen to make a cup of tea.  While the water was heating to boil, she sat down on the sofa chair in the family room.  Welcome home, Katie.  The message kept running through her mind over and over.  The strange handwriting.  It was written in ink.  It wasn’t modern block print or even cursive.  It looked like the handwriting she’d seen on the old documents she’d used when researching her undergraduate thesis at Harvard.  Welcome home, Katie.  As the kettle whistled in the kitchen, Katie still couldn’t get it out of her mind that this message wasn’t welcoming her at all.

So, there you go.  I think that is one of the better parts I've written so far.  What do you think?  Constructive criticism is always welcome!

Happy reading & writing!

Pride & Prejudice

Pride & Prejudice is probably one of my favorite books of all time.  I hadn't read it in a little while, but since I am teaching it to my honors sophomores, I reread it, as I always do with any book I'm teaching.  Some I always tend to enjoy more than others, and this is one of those books.  There are several different couples in the book--Jane & Bingley, Lydia & Wickham, Elizabeth & Darcy--but the most intriguing and arguably one of the most famous couples in literary history would have to be the last couple.  Elizabeth & Darcy are, in my opinion, years ahead of their time in their actions and their character.  I think what draws me to this book is the fact that they remind me of the way my husband and I act toward each other.  Being from the South, "ladies" and "gentlemen" are expected to act a certain way sometimes.  And, well, sometimes I'm not a perfect lady and my husband isn't always a perfect gentlemen.  Elizabeth and Darcy are so similar in personality that they end up together.  Their relationship pretty much throws out the old saying that "opposites attract."

Having read Pride & Prejudice again, I would say that my opinion of it hasn't changed since I read it several years ago to when I reread it recently to now, the most recent time I've picked it up to read.  I personally think that this is probably one of Austen's best works if not the best, and I know that that's also the popular opinion, but it's true.  How can you not like Elizabeth Bennet's spunky personality that is years ahead of her time?  Ladies, how can you not be almost drawn to the snotty Mr. Darcy?  There is just something about him that is attractive!  And let's not leave out the other characters.  If you're like me, you love to hate Mrs. Bennett, Miss Bingley, Lady Catherine, and Mr. Collins.  They are some of the most despised characters in any piece of literature I've read.  They are quite fun to dislike, actually.  In fact, all of the characters you can either love to love or love to hate.  

Comparing Pride & Prejudice to other novels of Austen's and to more modern novels, I think it can stand with the best of them.  It is a novel that you can read just for pleasure when you want a good love story or when you want to look for some deeper literary themes.  Coffee and Literature gives Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice an A.  

Monday Musings: NaNoWriMo

Wait...what?  What in the world is NaNoWriMo?  Many of you know that I'm a high school teacher and book critic by day and an aspiring writer by night.  Ok, maybe not many of you, but at least some of you know this.  Today I began my first book, and it was because of NaNoWriMo.  Ready for me to explain what that means?  Have I kept you in suspense long enough?  Alrighty then.  NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month.  From November 1st to November 30th, I will be writing my first ever novel of at least 50,000 words (that's about 175 pages to non-writers).  Sound like an unattainable feat?  Really it isn't.  On the first day, today, I've written a little over 1900 words in less than two hours.  Now, I'm not saying that this is going to win the Pulitzer or even get published, but I'm pretty darn proud of myself to say the least.  I've written poems and a short story or two, but I've never tried to tackle a novel or novella before.  With working full time, I'm probably going to hit the 50,000 mark actually on November 30th, so I'm definitely not expecting much more than that.  But the fact that I'm actually doing it means a lot to me.  So, I'm going to try to keep my readers updated with my progress by blogging after I finish each day's count so that you know what's going on.  I'll be making a special page where I'll link back to all the posts that I make concerning NaNoWriMo and my novel, which doesn't yet have a name.  So, I hope you enjoy my delving into madness in trying to write a book in 30 days!

Monday Musings: Reviews, Writing, & Resolutions

I've been able to finally relax a little this weekend with the short "fall break" that I had from work.  I was able to finish both Ariel and To Kill a Mockingbird and post reviews on them.  I slacked off a bit on the two books I'm reading that I'm also teaching to my students, Into Thin Air and Pride & Prejudice.  I had hoped to finish them this weekend and then go back and skim to make notes to use in class.  If any of you are teachers, do you agree that it is much harder to read and make notes on a book at the same time than to read simply for the sake of reading or for pleasure?  I love both Into Thin Air and Pride & Prejudice, but re-reading them in order to teach them makes it so much harder!  Maybe it's just me!

On another note, I'm hoping to being work on a short story or two soon.  I'm hoping I will eventually be able to get them published, but I will just be glad to get one written that I deem presentable in my own mind.  I've got several good ideas for some stories, so I hope they turn out well.  We shall see!

Change of pace for a second here...  I want to talk a bit about resolutions.  I, like so many others, always make New Years resolutions.  Losing weight, being more organized, reading more, etc.  How many of us actually stick to those?  How many times have I said, "Yep, this is it.  I'm going to lose those pounds" or "I'm going to read X books this year"?  Of course, I didn't stick to them like I wish I had.  But I'm also one to make resolutions in the middle of the year or late in the year, too.  Right now, I've got several that I'm sharing with you...(1)  To read more, review more, and post more.  This one is actually three meshed into one.  I feel as if I slack off on my reading because I am too busy or I feel too stressed, when, in reality, reading helps me calm down and relax a bit.  You'd think I would learn! (2) To write more.  I'm a self-declared writer and journalist, so why don't I write more?  Even better...why don't I try to get stuff actually published?  Good questions, right?  I thought so. (3)  The never-ending resolution:  To lose weight and exercise more.  I'm not what you'd call a good-bodied person.  Nope, not at all.  I've tried many times to get with the program, but I'm trying a bit harder this time.

So, those are my three mid/end year resolutions.  I hope they make me a better reader, critic, writer, and person.  What are some resolutions you'd like to make?

Banned Books Week 2010

Today begins Banned Books Week 2010!  I love this week in the literary year.  In my opinion, no book should ever be banned.  Yes, that's what I said NO book should ever be banned.  Almost all books can be treated as literature in some shape, form, or fashion, and that should be respected.  I guess that's why I think having a Banned Books Week is so important.  I have always thought that it is quite interesting that most of the books on any "banned books list" are one or more of the following:  classics, books you are expected to have read before entering college because professors will refer to them, or books that are frequently cited on AP exams (e.g., Beloved).  Personally, between my husband and me, we own several banned books.  We even have two or three copies of some of them.

As I was researching the different banned books, I find it quite interesting as to why some of the books were and are banned.  Most of them are banned for language, political reasons, or explicit sexual content.  I think that many people will see one or two "bad" words, scenes, or characters in a book and assume that because of that, the book has zero literary value.  That is simply not accurate.  While I don't agree that books have to contain explicit language or sexual scenes, there are times that a reader has to hunker down and deal with something so that he or she will become more educated.

Ok, enough of my rant about why books get banned!  So, what are you doing to promote Banned Books Week 2010?  I will be blogging about it frequently this week, and I hope to read several "banned books."  Here is my list that I will try to get through, hopefully by this week, but at least by the end of the year:
1.  To Kill a Mockingbird (I have read this book a few times, but I thought since it is often banned and the 50th anniversary was just celebrated, that it deserves to be #1)
2.  Beloved (I have read Toni Morrison's classic once, but I think I would like to try it again.  This book is required reading for most AP English classes.)
3.  Song of Solomon (This is one of Morrison's that I've not read, but it was praised in How to Read Literature Like a Professor so I'm going to assume it is a good book.)
4.  The Harry Potter Series (J.K. Rowling's best-selling novels have been some of my favorites in recent years.  I have read #1-4 SEVERAL times, and #5-6 a couple of times, and #7 once.  Since the first installment of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows will be out this fall in theaters, I thought I'd re-read them all again.)

So, that's my list.  Technically, there are 10 books on the list, which is why I said it might take to the end of the year.  The Harry Potter books are the ones that will take the longest since there are so many, but I think I will thoroughly enjoy reading my "banned books."

What are you going to do for Banned Books Week this year?

Project 365 (Day 5 & 6)

I happened to forget to post yesterday so I'm combining days 5 & 6 in one Project 365 post.  So far, I'm quite enjoying my little project.  I don't have the most exciting photos, but hopefully I'll be able to get more later.  Anyway, here are days 5 & 6:

Day 5 (8/5/10)-After the Rain

Yesterday it came a pretty big rain/thunderstorm, so I thought it would be nice to take a picture of the outside after the rain.  The trees and plants are always so pretty after being dampened by the rain.  I took the picture with my iPhone 4 and used the Camera+ app to edit it using the "miniaturize" feature, which is pretty neat.

Day 6 (8/6/10)-English Tea

Today while I was reading Emma, I decided to get in the Jane Austen "mood" by making a cup of Twinings Earl Grey Tea to drink.  It actually did help me set the scenes and get more in the Victorian mood while reading.  I took the picture with my iPhone 4 and edited it with iPhoto & Gimp.  I thought it turned out quite nice.

I hope to get some more interesting pictures in the days to come.  I'll be starting school and being out and about more.  Hopefully you are enjoying this until I can get some more reviews posted!

Project 365 (Day 4)

I've spent most of today working at school, so the one thing I thought of to take a picture of was my computer.  I spend a ton of time on my computer anyway, so it will probably show up more than once in this project.  I love my 13" MacBook Pro!!!  The background on my computer is a café in Italy I believe.  I've never been there, but I would love to go one day.  I always kid my husband that that is where I am going to retire.  I'm going to sit and drink coffee and wine and read all day long!  And the café on my desktop background sort of "takes me away" to Italy when I look at it.  Enjoy!

Day 4 of Project 365.  I have pretty much worked on my computer all day. Taken with my iPhone 4 using Camera+ app.

Project 365 - Day 3

To keep it short & sweet, I did not feel well today, so most of the day was spent in the bed.  How do you document staying in bed resting all day?  Honestly, that wasn't hard.  I had my iPhone in the bedroom with me so I could still communicate with the outside world; therefore, I had complete access to a camera!  Oh, and I had access to nifty apps to edit my picture.  That being said, there were not many interesting things to take pictures of in the bedroom, so what you get is my view from the bed.

No, that's not a picture of a flying saucer.  That is the ceiling fan in my bedroom.  Playing around with the Camera+ app on my phone, I actually thought this ended up being a neat picture.  I made it look like a Polaroid in black & white.  So, that is Day 3 of Project 365...

Project 365-Days 1 & 2

In addition to reading books, I love taking photos.  Although I'm not a professional photographer by any stretch of the imagination, I thought doing a Project 365 would be pretty nifty, so I decided to do it.  I thought that some of my followers and readers might enjoy seeing one, too, which is why I'm adding it to my blog.  In addition to putting it on here, you can also see my photos at the following places:

• 365Project.com
• Facebook Album

Since I didn't get a chance to upload photos yesterday of Day 1, I'm combining today's post using Day 1 & Day 2.

Here we go...

Day 1:  Impromptu photo shoot of Sophie, my Yorkie.  I decided to snap some photos of my adorable Yorkie, Sophie Belle.  This is one of the results.  Taken with a Kodak EasyShare Z1012 IS.

Day 2: Most of you know I LOVE the "What's In Your Bag?" stuff, so there will be plenty of these in there.  I'll try to make them different than the What's In Your Bag? Tuesday posts.  Today I carried my Roots Small School Bag since I needed my computer, and I really didn't want to carry my big hobo bag.  This was taken with my iPhone 4 using the Hipstamatic app. 

I hope I can stick with this because I think it will be really cool to look back in a year and see what was going on in my life.  I hope you all enjoy it, too!

Weekly Update

Time for another weekly update!  Reading has taken a back burner for the past couple of weeks due to trying to get ready for school to start.  Hopefully when school starts I will be able to review the different books that I will be having my students read.  Most of them will be classics, but there may be a few "modern classics" thrown in there, too.  Of course, I'll still be working on my Jane Austen challenge throughout the rest of the year, as well.

Sorry for the short post, but I'm going to try to get some reading done before bed! Have a great week, everyone!

Weekly Updates

There isn't much to update this week so far.  I'm currently reading Jane Austen's Emma, which I'm enjoying, but it has been tough for me to sit down and read this week for some reason.  Hopefully I'll have a review posted for it soon.  My Austen readings are also part of my Jane Austen Project, as well as the few challenges I've signed up for in 2010.

I've also added a "blogging schedule" to my sidebar.  Hopefully I'll be able to stick to this schedule so I'll have more posts about different things relating to literature.  Right now my schedule is: 

Sunday: Reviews

Monday: Monday's Musings

Tuesday: Teaser Tuesdays

Wednesday: Weekly Updates

Thursday: Poetry Thursday

Friday: Reviews

Saturday: Short Story Saturdays

Of course, this could change due to any randomness, but I hope to stick to it.  It will become harder as I get back to teaching in the fall, but as far as that goes, I'm going to try to review books and stories that I'll be teaching to my students.  Maybe some of you will enjoy that!

The only other update I have is that I will (hopefully with fingers crossed) be doing a semi-techie review tomorrow after 10:00 on the new iPhone 4.  I didn't pre-order one, and I'm going to wait outside tonight up to tomorrow morning so I can hopefully get one at a retailer.  AT&T has decided not to release any to walk-in customers tomorrow, so I'm having to find another retailer to go to.  I know I'm probably nuts for waiting outside a store for what could be hours for a phone, but it is sort of exciting.  So if any of you are techie people or just want to hear about the new iPhone, stay tuned to see if I get one!  Until then, happy reading!

-Kristy

Another Austen Challenge

So, I keep finding these Jane Austen Challenges to sign up for on some of the blogs I'm following.  I figured, "Why not?"  I'm already doing my own "project" to read Austen.  I'll join in on these, too.  Here is my newest Austen Challenge I'm signing up for.

The Everything Austen II Challenge hosted by Stephanie's Written Word.

This challenge is pretty neat, actually.  You read, watch, or whatever anything dealing with Austen.  I'm already reading so I'm going to continue with that.  So, here are my six Austens I'll be reading & reviewing:

1.  Emma by Jane Austen
2.  Sense & Sensibility by Jane Austen
3.  Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
4.  Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
5.  Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen
6.  Persuasion by Jane Austen

The challenge will run from July 1, 2010 to January 1, 2011, so I've got plenty of time.  Stay tuned for reviews of the six Austens.

Happy reading,
Kristy

The Jane Austen Book Club

I have finished the first book in my Jane Austen Project and two of the challenges in which I'm participating.  As promised, I'm going to review both the book and movie The Jane Austen Book Club.  To really be fair, however, I'm really doing more of a comparison, so I'll separate the book & movie and then bring them together at the end in a final statement or two.  So here we go...

The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler
I think Fowler's intent with this book was to write an entertaining fiction that uses Jane Austen as its influence in that the characters each have their "own" Austen.  Each character's Austen becomes evident in the book club discussions that each hosts, which is actually how the book is broken up--each month's discussion is the book's chapter, so the "chapters" end up being roughly 30 to 50 pages long.  In my opinion, this is a mistake on Fowler's part if she was attempting to aim to please the typical reader, who likes to read average chapters one or a few at a time and then take a break.  However, I surprisingly enjoyed the way the book was formatted on this part.  Actually, let me explain it a little better...I liked the fact that the book's sections dealt with each discussion.  I didn't, however, like that we are given so much background information on each character during the sections.  In Bernadette's section, which is aptly titled "Chapter Five in which we read Pride & Prejudice and listen to Bernadette," there is entirely too much information given about Bernadette, her former husbands, and even childhood.  The other chapters that contain characters' background information give just enough to help us understand the character.  But the placement of the information comes randomly throughout the discussions of the books, similar to what a flashback would be in a movie.  At times, this proved to be confusing while reading since I was trying to read for pleasure and not necessarily for "thinking" if you know what I mean.  We did need the background information since what the book is really about is how each character's Austen played a part in each of their lives, but it could have been placed in a better way.  I did enjoy the ending of the book where the club meets for the last meeting and then the true ending where they meet for the last time.  It was good, and I do wish they had included pieces of it, such as the Ask Austen ball (I'll let you figure that one out), in the movie.  Another redeeming quality of the book is that included after the text of the novel is a "reader's guide" containing sections with a synopsis of each of Austen's books discussed, responses from Austen and her family & other authors on her novels, and then questions for discussion that come from the characters in the book club.  Overall, I am going to give the novel a "C."  I liked it but didn't love it, and I would recommend it for anyone who just can't get enough of Austen.  On to the movie review!

The Jane Austen Book Club the movie
Thinking back, I don't really even remember this movie being advertised.  In fact, I'd never even heard of it until I happened to flip the channel to Lifetime.  The station was showing the "television premiere" of the movie, and I caught it in the middle of the movie.  Rarely do I continue to watch a movie I've never seen if I'm only getting to it as it is in the middle, but this one caught my attention.  It wasn't too far into it, so I watched it and actually really liked it.  So much in fact that I TiVo-ed it the next time it was on.  My husband sat down and watched it, too, and we both would tell you that it (along with You've Got Mail & Letters to Juliet) is one of the few "chick flicks" that we both like.  In fact, he even bought me the movie, and we have both watched it several times since then.  Back to my review...

The movie, The Jane Austen Book Club, is MUCH more enjoyable than the book.  I mentioned before on the background information and its placement in the book.  During the movie, we are given small snip-its of information on the characters, how they relate to each other, and how the book club came into existence, but these are all worked very well into the plot of the movie.  The movie, surprisingly, was very close to the book with the exception of a few things that obviously work better in movies (such as characters breaking up, getting together, and things of the like).  I especially like how Prudie was portrayed in the movie much better than in the book.  I will say that she is not my favorite character, but her story in the movie makes for a better character than in the book.  Her marital woes with her jock husband Dean (I can relate to this one since my own husband was a football player and is hooked on ESPN, but at least he is much more receptive to the feminine aspects of life than Dean is), her dislike of her mother's hippie antics, and her almost affair with a student make her an interesting character.  The marital discourse and the mother issues definitely make her a real character as well.  I also enjoyed how Bernadette seemed to be an Austen in her own right in the movie.  She seemed to be the one who could answer the question, "What would Jane do?" with a look or a statement.  She subtly helps each character in her own way.  I give the movie an A.

Verdict:
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed The Jane Austen Book Club movie much more than the book, and that is saying quite a bit since I normally find things I dislike about movie versions of books even if I really love the movies (e.g., the Harry Potter series).  For once, I'm going to (believe it or not) recommend the movie over the book.  Not that everyone shouldn't read instead of watching so much TV and movies, but this time, make an exception.  You'll be happy you did.

Jane Austen Challenge

Since I'm already doing my Jane Austen Project, I thought to myself, "Why would it hurt to participate in the Jane Austen Challenge that another blog is doing."  So, I signed up.  I'm doing the Jane Austen "Lover" level.  The requirements for that level in the challenger are reading 4 books by Austen plus 4 re-writes, prequels, sequels, or spoofs (by other authors). 


Since I'm already doing my Austen project, my list adds two more Austen novels.


Here are the books that I'll be reading:
1.  The Jane Austen Book Club (Karen Joy Fowler)
2.  Emma (J.A.)
3.  Sense & Sensibility (J.A.)
4.  Mansfield Park (J.A.)
5.  Northanger Abbey (J.A.)
6.  Pride & Prejudice (J.A.)
7.  Persuasion (J.A.)
8.  Writing Jane Austen: A Novel (Elizabeth Aston)
9.  Murder at Longbourn: A Mystery (Tracy Kiely)
10.  Jane Austen Ruined My Life (Beth Pattillo)


I almost put the apparantley popular Pride & Prejudice and Zombies on my list, but I still cannot bring myself to read it.  The others I picked looked pretty good, so we'll see.  I'll also be reviewing them on my blog.  The challenge itself runs to December 31, 2010, so I have plenty of time to read the last three books and review them.  You can keep up with my progress by going to my 2010 Challenges page on the blog.  Hopefully, this might just inspire some of you to read some Austen yourself!


Happy Reading!
-Kristy