The Great Gatsby - Thoughts On The Film

I wrote a review of this novel way back last year (which you can read here) where I said that the Luhrmann Adaptation was to be released (last) December - Boy did they move that date! It came out here on Thursday and on Friday to celebrate the end of my degree I went to see it - in 3D no less!

First off I'll just say that I hate Toby Maguire  can not stand him in anything, so this film was always going to be a challenge for me as he is cast as the protagonist Nick Carraway, and...he wasn't good, I'm sorry if you're a fan, but really his confusion and awkwardness throughout just made him so unnatural to me. I know Nick was the perpetual outsider in the novel but, ugh, I don't know, I just felt like he was there only to support Jay and Daisy, whereas in the book, that's the first feeling you get, but then Nick becomes a main character in his own right through his way of thinking and his calm understanding. I know that it's hard to turn that kind of character into someone big on-screen, but Luhrmann found a way to convey Nicks thinking through his typing up his memoirs, and he still wasn't believable for me. I just think different casting could have improved the film so much, in terms of Nick anyway.

Leonardo Dicaprio as Jay Gatsby, was pretty darn perfect. I didn't think anyone could get away with saying "old sport" so many times in 140 minutes, but he did! And he did it without being repetitive which is surely enough to merit praise in it's own right. For me, Dicaprio just nailed the act of the cool slick city gentleman, simmering with desire and complicated thoughts under the surface. Within his mysterious first few half appearances, you just knew the character was going to be the man you'd read about - and that's all I wanted. I also really loved the way Luhrmann kept taking us back to that green light and cementing in that hope that kept Gatsby going, it was such a nice way to implement his desire without giving him unnecessary dialogue or making him in anyway un-Gatsby through thoughtful monologues or anything twee like that.

Daisy was Daisy. Carey Mulligan played her well enough but she always was the least important character in the novel, it was Gatsby's infatuation of her that was important, not really the character herself.

The other lead females did well enough though Elizabeth Debicki was just beautiful as Jordan Baker, but she kind of lacked that spunkiness from the novel that makes her so memorable.

Isla Fisher as Myrtle was quite despicable as she should be, but again lacking. I think it's because so much was missing, smaller story lines were taken out so that the film could focus on this "bromance" between Carraway and Gatsby, which to me was not even one of the most important themes from the novel. I know that books are not always one sided and we each take from them what we will, but I just don't know what made Luhrmann and Craig Pearce, who was the other screenwriter, take this friendship to be the most important thing to show on screen.

Not that all of this means I didn't enjoy the film; far from it, it was good, it just wasn't a great adaptation. Probably the best thing about this film is just watching it, because Luhrmann as many know makes theatre production of films, and what better show to put on then one of the American Dream - the books ultimate theme. This gorgeous setting of a changing city free from prohibition and out to loose morals have a damn good time was just perfect for him to blow up on the big screen. The film truly is a visual delight, and especially in 3D, where you truly feel the magnificent splendour of a Gatsby Party. Another great thing about Luhrmann is the way he mixes modern music into these tales of long ago, (I'm sure we all remember Romeo's entrance to Radiohead's Talk Show Host *shivers*) and this is done well in Gatsby. The soundtrack is on-point and makes you wonder what else could possibly of been played during Gatsby's parties if not Beyonce overs or Kanye West.

Go and see this film, see it if you haven;t read the book and you'll probably come away more satisfied than if you have, but even then, it's still worth a watch just t better imaging that world where men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars.

The Silver Linings Playbook - Matthew Quick

I saw the adaptation of this book at the cinemas a while back and bought the book not long after. I started reading but ran out of steam about halfway through and put it back on the shelf, not starting again until a few days ago when I quickly got through it.

The Silver Linings Playbook is the story of Pat Peoples, a thirty something man who is just being released from a mental institution into his parents care as the novel begins. Pat is in the institution for a breakdown of mental health resulting from the dissolution of his marriage to College sweetheart Nikki. Pat and Nikki are having "apart time", a time for Pat to work on his body and mind so that he will be a better husband to Nikki once "apart time" is over, Pat's way of justifying a restraining order. While in the care of his anxious mother and stone-faced, sports obsessed father, Pat meets Tiffany - a similarly aged divorcee. Pat has a kinship with Tiffany who is also thought of as mentally unstable, and the two find a solace in one another that they cannot seem to get from other relationships. This is basically a story of recovery and discovery, letting go of the past and learning to see the silver linings in life, no matter how unlikely they may be.

The book is nothing like the film really, so if you weren't impressed by the adaptation please give the book a chance. In the book Pat reads Plath's Bell Jar which he at first is annoyed by and does not understand, but I see this book as a sort of modern, male version. Though it's not a memoir, and by all accounts not based on anything "real life", Pat's journey really does seem honest and like Pat says about "Esther" when he reads the book, he just wants to comfort her; that's what he ends up taking from it, and that's a very similar feeling to the one I got from his character.

I loved the style of writing, and being tied to Patrick and his emotions. There was a huge sense of things being hidden from him by the other characters and they were hidden from us too - the journey of this novel was a great one because we were so in-tuned to the protagonist in this way.

This is Quick's first novel which I think explains the very slightly "scattered" feeling of the narrative, but considering the subject matter I think this actually works really well and is probably one of the reasons the book was published. To me anyway, this is one of those rare books that deal with mental disorders that don't sound like they are coming from a "now-healed" mind, rather it's like we're seeing Patrick's world as he really feels and observes it during his recovery.

One Day - David Nicholls

One of those charity shop books that you buy because you went into the shop with high bookspectations (I'm coining that) and were let down. Basically, I wanted to buy something, and I'd heard of this. Let's just say I'm glad I got it cheap because I don't think it's worth its printed price.

One Day is the loooong and arduous story of Emma and "Dex" and their friendship as they grow from students into middle age. When I first started reading this I was actually quite caught up as the first chapter takes on the pairs graduation night, and I myself am rapidly approaching that phase of my life. But, it all went downhill from there.

The most important thing in a novel for me will always be the characters and their development, because if I don't care about the characters then why am I reading the book? I'm not emotionally invested and therefore nothing that happens can make me care, and unfortunately this book really lacked good characters.

Strangely enough, I did quite like the character of Emma at times, though I did feel the author made her a little too confused and that she lacked direction. I say strangely, because the author is male, but; in this book anyway, he seems to make a much more relatable connection with his female characters. The character of Dex is one of the worst I've ever read. He had no redeeming qualities whatsoever and I actually really wanted something awful to happen to him just so there'd be some development. Sadly though, he stayed his awful, aggravating self throughout the whole of the novel, and - *SPOILER ALERT*, Nicholls kills off the wrong character. He ends Emma's time in the novel at about 3/4 of the way through, just as the couple finally decide to be together romantically, which I just can't understand. I thought at that point that this was going to be the point of Dex's character progression because he's have to adjust without the emotional crutch of his best friend and lover, but no; HE STAYED THE SAME. Did you get bored halfway through writing Nicholls? I mean, I honestly can't understand why this book got published. (And became a bestseller?!)

I have however seen this type of story done well. Cecilia Ahern's Where Rainbows End has this same type of story arc: two young friends who grow older and are separated by thousands of miles, other relationships, family hardships, and still manage to come together in the end. If you ever consider buying One Day, please put it down and seek this out instead - you'll be much happier when you turn the last page, trust me.

I know there's an adaptation with Anne Hathaway but I don't even think she could redeem this story for me, we've gone too far together now.

Time to take a seat on the director's chair! If you could turn one of your favourite books into a film, who would you cast?

I have always, always said that I would love to see Chuck Palahniuks Haunted adapted because I think it would make an amazing series. There are so many stories, revelations and plot twists, I think it would be great. Who would I cast? I have no idea, I'd just love to watch it!

The Island Of Dr. Moreau - H.G. Wells

I'm sure the story of this book is known vaguely by a lot of people, at least I had some knowledge of it prior to picking it up, but I hadn't gotten around to reading it until I read a review on a book called The Madman's Daughter a few weeks ago.

The Madman's Daughter is a sequel of sorts to Moreau, though penned by a different author, it tells the story of Moreau's daughter and her quest to find her father. The review made it sound like such a great read, but I thought I had better start off with the original, which I've just finished.

Without saying too much, The Island...is the story of Pendrick, a man who survives a shipwreck and is saved by another boat, only to be thrown from that one when it makes it's next stop to allow fellow traveller Montgomery to disembark to an island.
On this island, Montgomery introduces Pendrick to a Dr. Moreau, a secretive man, and they decide Pendrick will have to stay, as boats do not often pass by them.
Pendrick is unable to leave the mysterious of the island alone, he is too curious and oddly disgusted by the other inhabitants of the island, dark faced people with strange gaits, and what is all that screaming coming from Moreau's "room"...

As I've said I already had some vague ideas as to what the book was about, and because of that the pulp of the story was not a surprise to me. I think these kind of stories, especially by Wells, rely on that shock factor, that moment where the audience and the protagonist's thoughts align as they come to the big realisation of the story together, but I missed out on that having already known or guessed what the inhabitants of the island were.

Saying that though, the writing and the pace are fantastic, and the amount of mystery, and wells decision to unveil slowly rather than one big "Ta Da!" in the climax works really well and balances the story on a precipice  so that even in the last few pages, you're wondering if something's going to change to tip the story the other way.

I'm not a big sci-fi reader really, but I'm embarking on the challenge of writing a dystopian script right now so I felt this book could only help!

Have you read this book, or it's "sequel"? What did you think?

Girl, Interrupted - Susanna Kaysen

Not at all what I was expecting from this little book! I took this to Uni with me the other day as I had a late afternoon tutorial and a few hours to kill after an earlier meeting. I managed to get about 3/4 of this finished in that few hours, and read the rest in about half an hour at home, so a short read, but quite a good one.


So Girl, Interrupted isn't a novel, but more of a memoir of author Susanna Kaysen's time in McLean Hospital in the late 60's. McLean is a psychiatric hospital which boasts a list of several well known previous residents such as Sylvia Plath, and Ray Charles. Kaysen began having recollections of her time at the hospital while writing another of her novels, and then began researching her time there. Her findings and memories are the basis for the book.

Something I really like is that there are copies of Kaysen's files from the hospital in the book, which is of course proof that she was there, but also really solidifies the horror of her situation.

Kaysen herself was admitted for a "Borderline Personality Disorder" which is as broad as it sounds, and basically something that allowed girls who really needed simpler help to be institutionalised. Other girls on her ward are there for reasons spanning from eating disorders, to promiscuity. One thing his book really does is make you appreciate the world we live in now. These days, you can sleep with more than three people without being locked away, you can openly discuss your problems with family, friends, charities or even doctors, without the fear of either being deemed a social pariah, or locked away. I think that's why I'd say this is a rather important book, for girls of a certain age especially, because Kaysen really goes into depth in terms of her thoughts and feelings, what she thought made her "crazy",  but are really just (mostly) normal thoughts we all go through at that point of growing up and choosing our own path, sadly for Kaysen, bringing these thoughts up landed her in McLean, but today, something as simple as knowing someone else has gone through what you have is help enough.

I know a lot of people have seen the film adaptation of the same name and though I think it's a really great film, the book is very different and a little deeper. The character of Lisa, played by Angelina Jolie in the film, is really different, as is Brittany Murphey's character Daisy. There is also a kind of switch up of the happy ending. In the book, Kaysen (played by Winona Ryder) is deemed "cured" and leaves the institution, but all of the other girls stay helplessly inside. In the book there's a little more resolution with the characters and of course with Kaysen herself, as she clearly has been successful and is now a writer.

Like I said, I feel it's quite an important read, so pick it up if you can. For girls, I think this is definitely a great coming of age that is almost on par with The Bell Jar. Happy Reading!

The Crimson Petal And The White - Michael Faber

It has taken me a while to finish this book. I think this is a combination of my recent wish to do absolutely nothing, and the fact that this book is damn long. I finished last night at about 4am after deciding enough was enough, and finally pushing myself to get to the end. Despite all this though, I did really enjoy this book.

The Crimson Petal takes place in 1800's London, and is primarily about prostitutes (If you're thinking 'Ugh, another Ripper novel?' Then worry not, it's before his time.) Fanciful cuckold William Rackham, though long since a man, is still of a mind of a University student. He refuses to take over his fathers perfumery and soaps business  preferring instead to scribble meaningless prose in hopes of one day being published and announced the greatest writer that ever lived. Poor Williams life is troubled, in that he refuses to accept in life anything other than the social construct of "normal", unlucky then considering his "mad" wife Agnes who is a constant source of aggravation and worry. William, however has a lucky run in with a prostitute named Sugar, who is not only a match for him in wits and knowledge, but has the utmost faith in him and his abilities. With Sugar's backing, William takes over his fathers company, is awarded with more riches than he could of dreamed, and is in the high graces of the majority of the London gentry. A happy ending. Well, not quite.

The Crimson Petal...was adapted a few years ago by the BBC, starring Romola Garai and Chris O Dowd.

You see, this story is not William's or Agnes's, but Sugar herself's. Forced into prostitution by her mother while only a child, Sugar is rightfully dissolusioned with life, which she tries to make justifiable by using her 'experiences' for the basis of a novel, which she believes will shine a light on the true life of a prostitute. William however offers Sugar a way out. By taking her as his paramour and installing her securely in his life, Sugar is no longer the girl to be spat at and propositioned in the streets, but a lady. A place in life she'd rather die than loose.

I think what I like best about this book is that it was written by a male, as it contains so much contempt for that sex. Men in this novel are cruel and snivelling little beasts, who take what they want and throw away whatever possession is no longer deemed useful, even if that 'possession' is a human being.

You are rooting for Sugar the whole way through the 800 or so pages, and although the story veers for her in a way you'd not imagined, the ending is so clear to the reader and you sit, devouring the words with baited breath, praying for this characters happiness, in whatever way, even if you feel like a traitor to the rest of the story for accepting one so quickly as it's clearly such an unlikely turn of events.

I'm rambling but I really don't want to give anything away because the ending is just so lovely. Please read this book if you get the chance.

Candy - Luke Davis

As I mentioned in my mini haul last week, I bought this book on eBay after seeing it for a ridiculously cheap price, sometimes it can be really hard to get imports over here, especially for Australia, so when I saw this for sale without the huge shipping rates attached, I had to get it. Candy, I thought for a long time, was just a movie; a little indie Heath Ledger flick about drugs and love, but when I first saw the book a few years back, I thought it might be something I'd really enjoy and I was right!

Candy is a story of a love triangle between the unnamed male narrator, his wife Candy, and their mutual vice; Heroin. The story is part fiction part memoir, and recalls Davies own past and history with the drug and his then wife Megan Bannister, and reading the book you definitely realise there is truth to the authors words. Davies way of describing his all consuming, selfish, bright hot lust for the drug is so realistic that it can't be fiction, it's first hand experience with loosing everything and becoming only about the heroin, and that's what makes it such a great read because you're really experiencing something with the narrator as you read.

This isn't the first book I've read about this kind of addiction but I think it's definitely the most authentic and truthful, when I compare the novel to another well know piece of fiction about this addiction, Trainspotting, Candy just sits a rung above it, because of the narrators honesty. Though we as an audience are internally screaming at him every time he gives up the detox and injects the drug once more, this is what makes him and his experiences real, that this drug has such a hold on him that noting can make him stop, not even for a happy ending  now when you look at Trainspotting, it seems Renton gets off a little easy, he fails detox once  then suddenly he's free from the grasp of the drug in enough time for us to see him sort his life out. In Candy, life is much less hopeful.

Candy is a really great book. It takes you through the dizzying heights and unexplainable blissful bouts of euphoria, and then hurtles you to the other side of the drug, the deep desperation of the human soul when it is grasped by a lover so cruel it will strip away everything but need. If you can get your hands on this I'd definitely recommend it.

Into The Wild - Jon Krakauer

Into The Wild, though written by Jon Krakauer is about a young man named Christopher McCandless. The book originated as an essay Krakauer wrote for Outside magazine entitled "Death of an Innocent". Though I'm really not a sports fan in the slightest, I do have a thing for these non-fiction books about men embarking on sporting adventures, such as this and 127 hours. I'm not normally a non-fiction reader, in fact I could probably count on one hand the non-fiction books I actually own, but I really, really do love Into The Wild.

It reminds me so much of On The Road, because Christopher, so like Dean Moriarty is travelling the road on the search for something...more. He doesn't know what he's looking for, but it's more than an average life. The brief blurb on the front of the book reads:

"In April 1992, a young man from a well-to-do family hitchhiked to Alaska and walked alone into the wilderness north of Mt. McKinley. His name was Christopher Johnson McCandless. He had given $25,000 in savings to charity, abandoned his car and most of his possessions, burnt all the cash in his wallet, and invented a new life for himself..."

“The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun.”

But that is just the beginning of the story. McCandless travels through America, climbing and hiking. On his travels he adopts the name "Alexander Supertramp" and meets several people who become huge characters in the book and who Christopher forms real attachments to. My favourite parts are the connections he forms with other people on his travels which show him to be a genuine and likeable person and also the ending where he is so sadly betrayed by his own want of self sustainability.

Christopher McCandless in front of The Magic Bus

This is another one of those books I really don't want to write too much about, even though we find out McCandless's fate within the first two sentences of the book, because It's just such a beautiful thought provoking read and I think it should be experienced first hand.

"Happiness is only real when shared."

The book has also been adapted into a fantastic film by Sean Penn, with Emile Hirsch starring as McCandless, very much worth a watch, but I wholly recommend the book to all.

Jane Eyre (2011) Film Review

I have wanted to see this version of Jane Eyre for...a long time. When it came to cinema's I think it was during a "low-funds" point, so I never got to see it there, and since then I've looked for it all over the internet (I even got a useless Netflix account) to absolutely no success  so when I finally got the DVD this year for Christmas, I was very pleased indeed!

The film in a word, is lovely. Everything about it. And for once, I really feel like this is a story about Jane. In every other adaptation the focus of the story seems to be on Bertha, or Adele, or Blanche and Rochester etc, but this one is all about Jane. There's not as much focus on her childhood, none of Mr. Reed dying or lots of instances of cruelty, that part of the story is compressed into a few moments with not much dialogue  but enough emphasis to give the story a backbone. In fact the film doesn't even begin with Jane's childhood, we see instead her heartbroken escape from Thornfield the morning after her "wedding" as she desperately tries to outrun her thoughts.

Michael Fassbender's portrayal of Edward Rochester is beautiful. He plays the broken man who has finally found a connection in his lost world so well, and he isn't a cocky Rochester which is great because liking him as a character is so much easier. He's just kind of desperate, and he seems like the one more attached in the relationship which gives Jane the power, an asset she has in print that makes her one of my favourite literary heroines; she doesn't realise just how strong she is. (It also doesn't hurt that he's downright gorgeous, seriously.)

As for Mia Wasikowska herself who plays Jane, just; bravo to the casting department because she is perfect. Quick and smart, and she brings a braveness to the role that always comes through in the novel but I have yet to see on screen. Her scenes with Fassbender are beautiful, and she is so unguarded around him that the relationship seems heavy and natural, a real force, rather than an infatuation as I've seen it appear so many times before.

The chemistry between Jane and Rochester on screen is just mesmerizing. This is probably one of  the most, dare I say it...*sexy* adaptations of a classic. The scene after Rochester's bed is aflame is beautiful, the way they react to one another is so powerful, it's really beautiful to watch. Also when Jane is gone from Thornfield and living with the Rivers, she hears Rochester calling for her from the air, it's like she can feel his spirit; so beautiful to watch.

As for the rest of the cast, they're just as wonderful. Dame Judi Dench as Mrs. Fairfax is great, and Jamie Bell is a convincing St. John (There's even a sneaky appearance from Georgiana Darcy!)

Overall, just a beautiful film, and one I can see coming very close behind my beloved 2005 Pride & Prejudice as favourite classic adaptation. If you've not seen this version yet I definitely recommend you do so.

Finally a book post! If Only It Were True - Marc Levy

We've all been in that place where Russian literature, dystopia and other highbrow subjects are just a little too much and we need our minds to turn off a little while we read. This is what I thought I was getting with Levy's If Only It Were True. I picked the book up in a charity shop for something ridiculous like 50p because the name struck a chord and that's usually how I buy my books. When I got home and looked up the title and author I realised it was because had seen the Hollywood adaptation, which from the book is a big leap. The film I'm talking about is Just Like Heaven, a noughties rom-com staring Mark Ruffalo and Reese Witherspoon. Witherspoon is a ghost and they fall in love, all very Patrick Swayze with the pottery table. I can only assume that they changed the title of the film so that the could play The Cure song of the same name so many times throughout and get away with it. If you've seen the film you're probably thinking, "wait...that is just a story you can tune off with" bear with me! I swear the book has more depth.

"A young San Francisco architect returns to his apartment after an exhausting day. Relaxing in the bath, Arthur hears fingers snapping in time to the music on his radio. He traces the noise to a closet, where, to his surprise  he finds an attractive young woman. Thinking she's part of a practical joke, he asks her to leave. But Lauren, stunned to discover that Arthur can see and hear her , reveals the extraordinary truth. Six months earlier; she was in a car crash; her body now lies in a hospital bed, in a coma. Initially sceptical, Lauren finally proves to Arthur that what she had said is true. But when the Doctor's decide to turn off the machines keeping Lauren alive, Arthur must find a way to save her. For it is only her that can save him..."

Okay, that actually sounds a little too...fairytale (how on earth did I buy this based on that blurb?!) but I promise, the story is better. It's written in 3rd person which is not my favourite but I think fits with the other worldly, supernatural themes of the story. The characters are likeable and well written and by the end you really are invested in their relationship - whether its real or what we're used to or not.

Levy is a French writer and the book was translated into English but I never really get a "translated " feel which I sometimes do - the words aren't stunted and everything flows really nicely which is great because at only 216 pages, it's not a book you really want to be reading over a long period of time.

A perfect comfort novel for this winter-y festive season, and OK yes I'll admit it, this book is something I claim to never like; a love story - a real sickening emotional love story - but hey, If I can like it then I'm sure it must be one of the good ones.

That's (probably!) me away from this screen until after the 25th! I want to do nothing but watch Christmas films, read comforting books and to eat, eat, eat this week, but should I (I have a sneaking suspicion that I will...) get any books for Christmas, I'll do a little haul post on them sometime after. Merry Christmas everyone and thank you all so much for reading my little corner of the blogosphere, I've had over 3000 page views now and every single one of them means so much. Have a happy holiday one and all!

Wuthering Heights - Emily Brontë

“I have dreamt in my life, dreams that have stayed with me ever after, and changed my ideas; they have gone through and through me, like wine through water, and altered the colour of my mind. And this is one: I'm going to tell it - but take care not to smile at any part of it.” 

I thought I'd finally tackle writing about this book, though I'm sure I won't do it justice! As I've said countless times before - Wuthering Heights is my favourite and what I consider to be the best love story ever written. A lot of people write that they studied the book in school but I was never that lucky, Shakespeare and Of Mice & Men were our class books, so the first time I came across this book was in my own time. My mum's a huge British classics advocate and I can usually count on her to have any classic novel I fancy reading, this was the case for Wuthering Heights. My first copy, from her, was an old yellowed paperback, whose pages fell out after the first reading, since then I've acquired a newer copy, and an old leather bound copy I'll never read, everyone should own this book. There are "spoilers" below because the beauty of this book doesn't really come from the plot twists and turns - you know the tale is doomed from the beginning, plus it might make someone want to pick it up if they get the gist of the story!

WH is the story of Catherine Earnshaw and her Heathcliff, and the twisted, cruel, love they share. Heathcliff is brought to The Heights, the Earnshaw's home, by Cathy's father after a visit to Liverpool. A young gypsy boy, he doesn't fit in with the airs and graces the other children; Cathy and her brother Hindley are being taught to posses. Hindley gathers a growing hatred for Heathcliff as his father's love for the boy grows while young Cathy finds a kindred spirit. As the children grow older and the family suffers loss, Cathy and Heathcliff become inseparable  and Cathy's wild temper and outlandish manor seem to be only tamed by Heathcliff, despite these flaws being mirrored in his own personality.

“If he loved you with all the power of his soul for a whole lifetime, he couldn’t love you as much as I do in a single day.” 

In a childish afternoon, as the two are spying on The Height's gentile neighbours; the Linton's, Cathy suffers an injury that separates the pair, Heathcliff back to the Heights to worry about his missing half, Cathy to the Linton's home; The Grange, to get well and unbeknownst to her family, to be forever changed. While at the Linton's, Cathy begins to fancy herself a lady, no longer the free-spirited wild girl running the lush greens of the moors with her gypsy. On returning home, she is embarrassed by Heathcliff, accustomed to the fineness of her new friend, dashing young  Edgar Linton. One of my favourite parts of the book comes at this point; Edgar proposes to Cathy, and in a confused rush of conversation with Nelly, The Height's housekeeper, she admits she is going to accept, not realising Heathcliff is privy to the exchange, departing at once upon hearing her news, and therefore not hearing her words about him, about what he is to her.

"Whatever our souls are made of, his and mine are the same; and Linton's is as different as a moonbeam from lightning, or frost from fire."

Time passes, Cathy and Edgar marry and still Heathcliff has made no return. Hindley has let the heights fall into a dire state, a drunkard after the loss of his wife Frances after the birth of their only child. The boy, Hareton, is not treated as family, and all care is left to Nelly, he is further led away from the path of a gentleman with the return of a figure not seen for three years at The Heights, a man with a refined face, new clothes, and many riches, Heathcliff is come back. Staying at The Heights, he slowly claims the house as his own, Hindley mortgaging it to him through many drunken bets, Hareton becoming no more than his servant.

Cathy is elated at the return of her Heathcliff, though Edgar is less than pleased. Determined to have his revenge on Cathy, Heathcliffe announces his love to Edgar's younger sister; Isabella, and the two elope, breaking the hearts of both left longing at The Grange. Isabella becomes, like Hareton  no more than a servant, trapped inside The Heights before finally breaking free and fleeing the north.
Cathy, heartbroken and despondent to Edgar, falls into a sickness of both the body and mind as she prepares for the birth of her first child. After a final visit from Heathcliff where he damns her for all she has done to separate them, Cathy gives birth to a daughter, named for herself, and passes.

"You said I killed you--haunt me then. The murdered do haunt their murderers. I believe--I know that ghosts have wandered the earth. Be with me always--take any form--drive me mad. Only do not leave me in this abyss, where I cannot find you! Oh, God! It is unutterable! "

After years, things have changed greatly at The Heights. Hareton is now a man, as is young Linton, Heathcliffe's sickly son from departed wife Isabelle. In a final act of revenge, Heathcliffe kidnaps young Cathy, the perfect image of her mother, and brings her back to The Heights, forcing a marriage between her and Linton before he dies. Trapped inside the house are the four; Heathcliff, Nelly, Hareton and Cathy, and it is at this point the story begins; with a lodger for the abandoned Grange staying at The Heights until weather permits him leave to his new home. While at The Heights, this man witnesses the past and future of the house, from Cathy and Heathcliff to Hareton and young Cathy, through Nelly and the ghosts of The Heights, the cruel tale of a soul split into two bodies, then split again away from one another is lived again.

There is nothing I don't like about this story, no it has no happy ending, and because of this many people refuse to class it as a love story, but why should all love stories be about happiness? No one ever questions Romeo & Juliet's genre classification as a love story and that similarly ends in tragedy, which suggests that death and tragedy only work to inflame the theme of love.

"My love for Linton is like the foliage in the woods: time will change it, I'm well aware, as winter changes the trees. My love for Heathcliff resembles the eternal rocks beneath: a source of little visible delight, but necessary. Nelly, I am Heathcliff! He's always, always in my mind: not as a pleasure, any more than I am always a pleasure to myself, but as my own being. So don't talk of our separation again: it is impracticable..."

I love the character of Hareton, especially his interaction and relationship with Heathcliff. Hareton becomes a character so like Heathcliff in his youth, thoughtful and wild, treated as a lesser man and never thinking himself good enough, yet Heathcliff treats him with no compassion, perhaps because he so hated the way he was and the way Cathy treated him when he was of such a temperament, that he cannot stand to see himself in that way reflected in the young boy, and in turn ends up treating Hareton in the way Hindley did to him.

If you haven't read this book, please do. It is one of the best examples of classic literature being relevant in today's world and will always be a firm favourite of mine. Also, if you're interested in seeing an adaptation, the early 90's film with Ralph Finnes as Heathcliff is fantastic, as it the ITV adaptation from 2010 which stars Tom Hardy. I would however stay away from the recent 2011 adaptation with Kaya Scodelario, as I feel it's too far away from the story, Heathcliff is so wrong, and it feels like a modern, indie remake, which I'm far from keen on.

“I gave him my heart, and he took and pinched it to death; and flung it back to me. People feel with their hearts, Ellen, and since he has destroyed mine, I have not power to feel for him.” 

What do you all think of Wuthering Heights and Cathy and Heathcliff's relationship?

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Two Most Anticipated Books For 2013

I'm going to assume that this prompt means anticipated as in, books you're waiting on being released, but personally I'm not so good with the shall we say "new releases". I very rarely wait for a book to be released because I tend to have so many titles on my "to read" list that have been out for a while. I think this past year I bought two books on or near their published dates, which were; A Dance With Dragons - George R.R. Martin, and Damned - Chuck Palahniuk (which I actually think I pre-ordered.) Getting down to it I think there's only one new to be released book I'm waiting for this coming year and it's (absolutely no surprise here)...

The Winds Of Winter.

Shocker right! Yes, book six is (hopefully) going to be released in 2013, which I am more excited about then I can eloquently say, as I presume, a lot of us are. (If you've not read the sampler on Martin's website you can find it here.) I do fear I'm being a bit optimistic with this choice, and in all likelihood the book won't be out next year at all, but dammit, I can hope!

And again, (I see a pattern here) I'll most likely be awaiting Palahniuks new novel which is said to drop next year and is a sequel to Damned. I really tried to think of a couple more titles but I can't! I have a pretty hefty list of book to get through at the minute anyway, so this is probably a good thing.

Also, I really like the look of new movie; The Silver Linings Play-book, (and if you follow Brett Easton Ellis on Twitter, you'll know he hasn't stopped raving about it being one of the films of the year) has anyone read the novel it's based on?  I had a sneaky peek at a few pages and it looked interesting, let me know!

My Take On The Erotica "Boom"

I've read so many articles on this subject recently and have wanted to chip in with my two cents. I've been wondering whether to write this post for a while because it's not a review and I don't want to offend anyone that's either under-age or has read the books I want to talk about and enjoyed them. If that's the case with you, I'm sorry, I really don't want anyone to feel uncomfortable or like I'm preaching or saying what they enjoy is ridiculous so if you don't want to read this post that's completely fine, I have lots of other posts on this blog so please read and enjoy one of those instead.

There's been a huge boom in the literary world of late surrounding a trilogy of books about the BDSM community, the books I'm talking about are of course 50 Shades Of Grey. I'll start out with saying that I have not read these books but have read a lot about them on other blogs and articles on various web sites, so I feel well informed enough to write this post. I had a lot of problems with these books to start out with but they came to a head the other day when I was shopping in a supermarket. I was browsing the book isle, which isn't that great and usually only stocks best-sellers,  when I came across a book entitled: "Jane Eyre Laid Bare". No, your eyes did not deceive you, someone has actually re-written the classic tale of Jane Eyre and turned it into an erotic novel. The blurb reads:

"When an eager and curious Jane Eyre arrives at Thornfield Hall her sexual desires are instantly awakened. Who is the enigmatic Rochester whom she instantly feels attracted to, what are the strange and yet captivating noises coming from the attic, and why does the very air she breathes feel heavy with passion? Only one thing Is certain. Jane Eyre may have arrived at Thornfield an unfulfilled and tentative woman, but she will leave a very different person…"

My first problem; How unbelievably lazy for this author, Eve Sinclair, whose bio on her publisher's site paints her as a huge classics fan:

"Eve Sinclair first fell in love with the novels of Bronte and Austen at an early age and later went on to study English Literature at University. She has since worked as a copy-writer, journalist and editor and now divides her time between her shared passions of tending her English garden and travelling extensively abroad."

I bet she travels extensively! All she had to do was add a few passion filled sentences and mention Jane's burgeoning womanhood and hey presto! Pan Macmillan have well and truly cashed in on the erotica trend sprung up by 50 Shades, already selling nearly 10 million copies worldwide. I must state here that it's not the genre I have a problem with, if a person wants to read erotica that is completely up to them and I see no harm in it. Neither do I have a problem with the books being so prominent at the minute, no one should be ashamed of their sexuality and I think this trend has brought to the forefront that women are just as sexual as men and that it's finally being accepted without women being deemed as "sluts" for embracing their sexuality. The thing I have a problem with is that the books that are the most famous and started the trend, 50 Shades of Grey, are quite probably some of the worst examples of writing to be published in a long time.

 There are so many errors in the books you've got to wonder if they were copy read at all; the publishing house is staffed by 3 proof readers and 11 editors, but where the hell were they when this manuscript was brought to their office? I have read about mistakes ranging from a complete and utter lack grammar; 

"He’s tall, dressed in a fine grey suit, white shirt, and black tie with unruly dark copper coloured hair and 

intense, bright grey eyes that regard me shrewdly."

To misspelling;

 "sandles" 

And some fantastic one liners including;

"his eyebrows widened" 

"a glass of white Pinot Grigio" 

And 

"I'm not interesting in that."

As well as the writing being unbelievably repetitive; Characters "Murmur" 199 times in the first book alone, They "Clamber" 21 times, The female protagonist says "Holy Cow" 82 times, "Jeez" 81 times,  frowns 124 times and blushes 124 times. Someone send this woman a thesaurus. 

I really do wonder how this book has sold over 36 million copies when it's writing is so lazy, I also have to mention the fact that the story was originally written as Fan Fiction for the Twilight books, does that not creep anyone else out? That this woman sat and wrote erotica about minors and then managed to publish it by changing only the character names? Again, how lazy! Does no one write their own plots any more? Or have these writers just lost all of their integrity and decided re-writing is the way to cash in?

Another problem I have is that the books claim to be about the BDSM culture and many articles and views from readers say that the books have brought this culture into the open and made them want to try new things. Firstly I think we should all remember here that the author is not a member of the community herself and is said to have done all of her research on the internet, therefore her depictions of acts may not be correct or safe. Secondly, from my understanding the couple in the book participate in being tied up and spanking. Tied up and spanking. And that's BDSM? Also the girl who takes on the role of the submissive in the books is constantly leaving, crying, or pulling out of her "submissive" role, I can understand how people who are actually participants in the community are so annoyed by this depiction of their lifestyle as it's treated like a fantasy or a whim, when for them it's something their lives revolve around.

It's recently been announced that the books are to be adapted into a film. Brett Easton Ellis was one of the writers who put themselves up as candidates for the screen play, and at reading this news I thought "Well, thank god, if they have a decent writer it might turn out okay, more of a satire, something with a little more depth". But did Ellis get the rights? Despite the fact he has just written The Canyons with Lindsay Lohan and Porn actor James Deen, and therefore would have some experience in this role, the rights have gone to Kelley Marcel; a Brit who's never written a feature before! 

To everyone who has read and enjoyed these books; like I said I don't mean to offend, these are just my opinions. To those who haven't read them; the erotica industry is huge and I'm sure if you look harder than the Amazon recommendations you'll find something that has a lot more depth and a lot less mistakes.

Juli at Universe in Words has written a post on the collection of essays "50 Writers on 50 Shades of Grey" which is well worth a read if you'd like to read more on this topic.

On The Road - Thoughts On The Film

I've written quite a few times now about how excited I've been for the 2012 adaptation of Jack Kerouac's 1940's classic On The Road, well today I finally got to see it!

I think I read somewhere that this adaptation by Walter Salles was "respectful" and I totally agree. I got a really good feeling from the film right from the start from the use of old country songs and the background music which is primarily lonely jazzy bass and fits in perfectly with the era. Sam Riley (Who you may have seen in the Joy Division biopic Control) as Sal Paradise was, I thought, a really great casting choice. Like the character of the narrator in Palahniuks Fight Club, the film adaptation for this novel had to have one thing: a really great voice. We read the novel in "Sal's" voice all the way through and thankfully we get to watch the film in the same way; narrated by the gravelly old-world tones of Riley.

I also thought Tom Suttridge as Carlo Marx (Allen Ginsberg) was wonderful and so endearing! He was perhaps one of my favourite things about the film and his interactions with Dean (Garret Hedlund) were just as wacky as I'd imagined. At the start I thought Hedlund himself was maybe a little overdone as Dean Moriarty but by the end I was convinced he was the perfect choice for Dean and his portrayal was excellent.

So many people have criticized Kristen Stewart lately due to her affair with Snow White & The Huntsman director Rupert Sanders, and have taken that criticism with them while watching this film which is I think what has marred reviews on her performance. Stewart plays Mary-Lou, Moriarty's 16 year old wife. She is naive and in love and like all the other characters in the book is just looking for the wonder in life, and at doing that I think Stewart does well in the role. She, like Marx was portrayed very endearingly and I thought she was very likeable in the role, in fact I think I liked the film Mary-Lou more than the novel one.

It took around an hour for me to really feel like I was submerged in the story but at many points I smiled fondly at the pages coming alive in front of me, and at seeing characters in action who I have known for years in paper forms. Overall I really enjoyed the film. At 2 hours and 15 minutes it can be a bit of a heavy watch but as I said so enjoyable and definitely respectful. If you love the book I don't think you'll be disappointed.