Nat's Book Review Blog

At first, i was put off by the size of this novel as it is a little bulkier than what i would normally go for, but reading it made me feel sooooooooooooo glad that i picked this one up. im also really glad that i am able to read it in the language it was written in: Spanish, so i was able to fully immerse myself in this wonderful love story :)

Most of the novel being a flashback, the author tells the story of the three main characters; the ‘heroine’, Fermina, her ‘lover’ Florentino and the other guy, Juvenal. due to this being a review and not a spoiler, i am not going to reveal who Fermina ends up with, but a death at the beginning makes it quite clear, though i really liked the fact that it was predictable. i really liked being able to explore how the characters changed from pubescent teens to mature adults (the story is throughout a whole lifetime) and how their lives have changed during the time they have been apart. the constant mentions of new mistresses (florentino) shows how he is tryign to get over his love and the arguement of fermina and juvenal ditto, which justo goes to show how much of a perfect match these two are, and how the love story seems much more real because of the exploration of how life gets in the way: expectation of society being a big one as it is set in the 19-20th century (ie the time of cholera!!). the eventual coming together of the couple at the end is really sweet but doesnt happen overnight as in modern love stories, but rather evolves and fermina accepts that she loves him: beautiful!!!!

i have to give this book a 9 out of 10, due to the sheer perfectness of the couple and how in tune the author was of the expectation of women during this time (the novel was written later) :D

Some reason, while reading some of the other books for the blog, i forgot that i hadnt actually reviewed this one, which is strange because this has been one of my favourites to date :)

Knowing vaguely what was going to happen, i went into this novel feeling a little apprehensive, but also excited to see if the characters fulfilled my expectations from having read a few reviews (and the wiki article :)). barely a few chapters in, i fell in love with Angel Clare even though Tess does not meet him properly until much later on, partly due to the fleeting moment which they catch each others eyes, but also because of the desciption of the numbness which she feels afterwards, which instantly lets us know what she is feeling. i knew that the rape seen was vague, but had i not known what was going on, i would probably have worked it out eventually by the appearance of Sorrow, which i liked, as it shows the consequences of everything dont all have to be negative. my favourite sections were definetly where angel and tess fall in love at the farm, and later on, when they are running away, though i became addicted at this point, and so also enjoyed reading where tess goes to a different farm etc purely because it was a change of scenery. even though this book is fairly long, it never dragged as other books do, and i really enjoyed how Tess as a character changes and develops and our opinions of other characters, such as Angel and Alec change as hers does, though i am a firm believer that Alec d’Urbeville had actually changed by the end, even if Tess doesnt!!

Loved the story, so glad im studying it next year!! im going to give this book a 9.5 out of 10! 

Another book on my to-read list, and being a fairly slim book i thought i would give this a go.

1984 is a relatively easy read, though there are some parts which require some thought, and the political aspects of this modern classic demand that you read through the lines when you are reading, especially when the sections of the book appear. i liked that the book began by describing what the different aspects of society worked etc as some dystopian novels expect the reader to figure it out. i really liked how the love story was sewn into the drama of the oppressive society, especially how originally Winston thought Julia was a member of the thought police :) even though it was inevitable that the couple would get caught, it was still unexpected and a little shocking and scary what happened, and the mindcontrol while imprisioned was a little unnerving, part of what makes this novel thought-provoking. i also loved the ending, as it was dramatic and totally expected, though not predictable, which i liked. this book kept me reading, and by the end, i couldnt put this down, so i would definetely recommend reading this :D

As i thought this book was practically a masterpiece, i would give this book a 10 out of 10 on literary merit, and a 9 on enjoyment purposes, as some sections do drag a little.

Another of the novels on my to-read list, i picked this book up at the local library, and being thinner than most books that i read, i thought it would be easy to read and follow as well as quick to actually read. i also need to know this book by heart for my english lit a level, so i thought that i might as well read it while i was in the mood for reading!!

Surprisingly easy to read, being classic and all, and it was clear from practically the start why it is considered one of the best amercian literature novels of the XX century, because the descriptions of the 20s are really, really good. though the characters are a little stereotypical of this era, i loved the love triangles and plots in t he novel, and actually really liked the ending (well, near the ending) when the main character dies and it is made clear that he was only wanted for his money, which is very representative of the era and makes for an interesting read, as it shows what people do for love :) more so that other classics that ive read, this has quite a lot of short dialogue, which if the descriptions are a little tedious or the vocabulary is a little difficult (which it isnt but there are a lot of twenties vocab which may need looking up), the dialogue sorts it out pretty quickly and also brings to life the characters, especially that of Daisy, Nick and Jordan. though Gatsby doesnt have a huge amount to say, the things he does in relation to others brings him to life perhaps better than other characters, and shows the two sides to him that an outsider wouldnt have seen.

Happily, i would give this book a 9 out of 10 (great, as im going to have to read this loads next year!) only marking it down by the length. the edicion that i read was only 200 pages and it seemed like the climax came pretty quickly after the lengthy introductions and groundings of what has been going on. i would also have liked to see some other aspect of American life, especially in New York, as the characetrs only seemed to go there to work and to party….

I picked up this book by recommendation from a friend, and thought i should read it after reading on the back that it had a love story *swoon*.

I rather liked this novel. though the vocabulary was a bit tough to plough through with a million and one similies and stuff, i did manage to get to the juicy part of the story, which turned out to be a mystery/crime with a little bit of teenage love thrown in the middle, even though it isnt the main focus of the plot, it is there, gradually growing while the two (marina and the main guy character) gradually become closer. i did like that the author used loads of literary stuff, because it makes a change, but it did become a little labourious at the beginning, especially since i needed to be looking at the dictionary for a few of the words and sometimes losing what the story was tryign to say when i couldnt be bothered to look anything up :P

For me, the novel was a little heavy on the crime/mystery aspect, as there was a lot of backstory and things like that, but it was interesting and a little change from what i would normally go for, which is the whole point of this blog :) overall, 7 out of 10

for my English Lit A Level i need to read this, so i though, since i already have it on my Kindle (part of my selection process, if i need to pay for a classic, i dont read it :() i have been told stories about this book; that its a work of art and that its boring and horrific, but being tempted by the potential love traingle and being ahead of my classmates, i cant wait to dip into this novel!!!

Before i start on the book, i need to say that im guessing that reading so many classics has made me get used to the language etc because reading NA was really easy to understand and get through, while WH was a little bit of a chore at first! this is good news because it means i will be able to read more demanding classics that are not necessarily romances (tho that will take some doing :)) without taking forever and actually being able to enjoy it from the start!

This being the first of Austen’s novels, it is much more light-hearted than expected which made it easy to read and at times, funny (i know, classics arent meant to be funny!). i really liked the change of scenery from Bath to Northanger Abbey as it gave a glimpse of life from both the city and country angles and we were able to see the characters flourish under different circumstances, the most prominent being Miss Tilney, as in Bath was little mentioned, but then later was featured very prominently. the reverse is true of Miss Thorpe, who is a key figure in Bath but later tails off, which i saw as a shame, as it is greatly implied that they are best friends. Miss Morland, later becoming Mrs Tilney eventually filled the role of heroine that is mentioned by the author in the first paragraphs of the novel. this direct narration is endearing, and adds to the book’s light-heartedness which i found refreshing and easier to read, especially for teenagers. it also reminded me of the narration of the ‘author’ in Jane Eyre by Bronte, which is one of my all-time favourite novels, and also made the plot easier to follow, though at no point was the storyline lost in chunks of text as it was clearly broken up and a pleasure to read.

Overall, i give this novel an 8 out of 10, as i enjoyed the humour and the characters i adored, but at times seemed a little too light-hearted for someone looking to improve their reading of classics, but overall a great beginning for someone not accustomed to classics.

This review has taken forever for me to write because i have been so busy recently going on holiday and all that, that i havent had a chance to read the book properly, but now the time has come :)

A few years ago, i attempted to read this book but found it laborious and found that not much of anything was going on, but to my surprise, i was fully drawn into the stiryline of the book and was throughoutly enjoying it and even looking forward to my next fix of Jane Austen by the time i was half way through. i fell in love with the characters, partly due to the excellent characterisation from the amount of dialogue in the book, which is rare in a classic but still has that traditional edge from the talk of regency england and marriage and all that fab stuff! i really liked Emma as a character, even though J. Austen said herself that not many people would like her, due to her spontaneaty but also due to the fact that even as a heroine, she makes mistakes and gets things wrong. i also really liked Harriet, mostly due to her putting up with Emma and being meek and mild; the same could be said for Mrs Weston which appears often to create a motherly figure in the novel. i was surprised by though Mr Knightley eventually marries Emma, there is very little mention of him being attractive or desirable, only mentiones of him being a friend, which makes the match a little abrupt and unbelievable, though it could be said that it adds to the charm of true love :)

I would give this classic novel an 8 out of 10 because having loved the characters, i found the Emma’s romance a little abrupt after seeing the development of the other love stories, and there are quite a few, which made the flow of the novel even more engaging and exciting to see who would fall in love next!!!

This isnt a review, but i just wanted to make a list of the books i fancy reading atm. these will slowly be appearing on my reviews but not as quickly as some other books as i dont have these at home right now :( im also looking to pursue an english lit degree at cambridge (i know, very ambitious) so i need to show a little variety :)

• The Virgin Suicides, Jeffrey Eugines (saw the film and loved it)
• The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald (going to study this at A-Level but will be good idea to read it before-hand)
• The Perks of Being a Wallflower, S. Chbosky (always on must-read lists)
• The Notebook, Nicolas Sparks (okay, so this isnt a literary heavyweight but i have seen the film countless times and i always think the book is better, so…)
• Tell the Wolves I’m Home, Carol Rifka Brunt (i was intruiged by the plot with this one)
• Love in the Time of Cholera, Gabriel Garcia Marquez
• Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier
• The Catcher in the Rye, J. D. Salinger (recommended to me by a friend and seems pretty cool)
• 1984, George Orwell (another must-read)
• Gone with the Wind, Maragaret Mitchell (a classic must-read love story)
• The Lord of the Rings (trilogy), J. R. R. Tolkein (have got half way through the hobbit a million times, so i need to see if i can manage TLOTR properly ;))

Obvious from the title, i have decided to read and review Emma by Jane Austen. another literary classic, i have this book at home but never managed to get through the first page, let alone the whole book. from my success of wuthering heights (see my previous post!) i thought i would try this out again to see if i could fall in love with the story as i did with Cathy and Heathcliff!!

This is my first review on my blog, so i thought i would start with a classic, so i chose one of the most well-known romances around: Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte.

I absolutely loved the story!! having read some other reviews whilest reading i found that i was really loving the character development of Cathy as well as the change of Linton, but my fav moment of the whole book has to be when Catherine and Heathcliff meet just before Cathy dies giving birth!! it was so passionate, that i kind of wished the whole book had been filled with moments like that! the descriptions in the book were not disracting, like some books but rather added to the stark nature of the plot and the evil surrounding the Heights. even though i absolutely adored the plot and the contrast between the two generations and the two love stories i have to say that i dont have a favourite character. usually in a romance, my favs are either the heroine or the hero, but Heathcliff was very malicious and evil for the vast majority of the book and Catherine was absent for much of the second half, and as a reader, some may say that we forget her a little, but not too much as after all, her daughter is named after her.

Out of 10, i think this book deserves a 9, because it was a fabulous love story that   is not predictable or happy-go-lucky; just right for someone who reads soppy chick lit all the time, but i would have to say i would have liked a few more romantic and passionate scenes from the two couples to really cement their relationship!