Herland is nearly 100 years old, but the fantasy-adventure story of three men discovering a country of women still has some relevance. In some aspects, its age shows, but I’m glad I reread it ten years after my first read so I could get a fresh perspective.

I’m also willing to send you my twice-read, still-in-good-condition, ten-year-old Dover Thrift Edition so you can read it for yourself.

I had issues, good and bad, with Herland that I didn’t have when I read it at age 18 or 19. Certainly, I am more aware of feminist issues. Having read a little bit more Victorian literature, I am more familiar with the era from which Gilman was raised in, and I feel that knowing the Victorian perspective is important going in to it. (Although Herland was published in 1915, which was after the Victorian era, Gilman’s feminist perspective is based on her specific experiences in the 1890s.) That said, some of the things Gilman suggests through her novel made me a bit uncomfortable. While Gilman didn’t really come across as a man-hater, her perspective of the perfection of an all-woman society was just as inaccurate as the Victorian men’s perspective of woman’s abilities. In the end, I consider Herland a dystopia that would be just as dreadful to live in as More’s Utopia (reviewed here).

In the novella, three adventuresome men hear of a land of only woman and go seeking it, hardly daring to believe in such a paradise. Of course, when they walk into the uni-sex society of Herland, they are stunned to find

They were not young. They were not old. They were not, in a girl sense, beautiful. (page 16-17).

Although the woman do not allow the men to leave Herland, they do teach them and learn from them. The narrator of the novella is, conveniently, a sociologist, so he’s able to accurately capture the society he observes.

This is the Dover Thrift Edition I'm giving away (see below)

The women of Herland have the ability to spontaneously reproduce by choice, and thus their society has reproduced for 2000 years. It is a land that is of course without poverty or inequality. It is a land that improves its teaching methods with each generation, and mutually decides on how to use their land (the country is the size of Holland, so space is at a premium). It is a land where women choose careers and succeed in them. (Imagine that.) To the astonishment of the men, the woman’s organized and clean society is far superior to the male society they had come from!

Above all else, it was a land of mothers, as all the children are raised by the villages collectively. The ultimate plot-driving conflicts between the men and the women go back to the “nature of the [marriage] relation” (oh, how many euphemisms are in this text! It’s so amusing.). The women struggle to understand the necessity for sex beyond “fatherhood” and “motherhood.” In fact, the entire race appears to be asexual. On the other hand, the Victorian men struggle to realize that the women have rights over their own body. Women, to the surprise of the men, are not property simply because they are their wives.

This contrast between the Victorian male and the “liberated” female is, I think,  the most important aspect of the novella. Herland is a series of contrasts between what Victorian men (in stereotype) believe and what a particular Victorian woman (Gilman) believes. Gilman captures her own utopia of women being in charge. In her Victorian and Edwardian world, she may not have had the opportunity to experience such a world, and I can only imagine (from the brief introduction in my edition of the novella) what her relationship with her first husband must have been like to prompt such a utopia.

However, the book is dated, in terms of a modern utopia for women today. (Herein begins my personal ramble.) I am certainly not a man-hater, but I’m also not a woman idealizer. So for me, this other extreme seems almost as inappropriate as suppressing woman’s talents. In Herland, the women all got along, and while they not all mothers, they all celebrated it and wished they could be mothers. They were also ugly and manlike in all descriptions.

I sincerely believe that if a society of all women existed, there would be economic inequality and political rivalry. Some women would be more feminine than others. Some would be more motherly than others. I personally feel women as a whole are generally more inclined to negotiation, compassion, and nurturing than men as a whole (see my thoughts on Dee Dee Myer’s social history/memoir). BUT. I don’t think women, as a whole, are perfect, and I certainly don’t like the idea of stereotyping women into a “mother” role. Women need the opportunity to choose which type of women they will be. We come in all different ways, and each strength needs to be celebrated.

When I read Herland a decade ago, I recall thinking, “I don’t think I got that book. There is something in it I missed. I need to revisit it sometime.” I’m so glad I finally took the chance revisit this book! According to the introduction to my copy (Dover Thrift Edition), Gilman was largely forgotten after her death until the woman’s movement in the 1970s. What a tragedy, since her near contemporaries probably would have appreciated it very much.

What is your idea of a utopia?

Have you read Herland?

If you would like me to send you my good condition, used copy of Herland (Dover Thrift Edition), please mention it in the comments. I’m willing to send it anywhere in the world. I’ll select a winner this week from the comments. If no one is interested, I’ll list it at Bookmooch. Giveaway ended.

[Chosen specifically for the Women Unbound for obvious reasons]

[A Year of Classics]

• Flatland by Edwin A. Abbott
• Utopia by Thomas More
• “Used” Books Giveaways Poll
• Founding Mothers by Cokie Roberts
• The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
• A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf
• The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
• Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
• Why Women Should Rule the World by Dee Dee Myers
• Carmen by Prosper Merimee

Although I am glad I had a second experience with Paton’s South Africa, I still much preferred the first novel. I’d be happy to send you my lightly used copy of Too Late the Phalarope. See below for giveaway information.

Cry, the Beloved Country

When I read Cry, the Beloved Country as a teenager, it was on my mother’s suggestion. She loved the message of hope it portrays, and thought it would be one I’d enjoy. I recall that I did enjoy it, and while I remembered the basic plot and themes, I didn’t remember the details.

When I returned to it this year, I was a bit taken aback at first because the language is so difficult: it is in a Biblical style (I can’t think of a better way to describe it) and that adds a layer of complexity to the story. Dialogue is offset with only a dash at the beginning of the paragraph, so I was often confused where the dialogue ends and thoughts begin. This adds a surprisingly realistic feel to the man’s daily experiences in an overwhelming city.

To be honest, I didn’t like the writing style at first. As I mentioned, I did like the novel as a teenager, but this time, it really threw me off. I couldn’t read over breakfast or lunch or as my son played: I needed strict concentration – just me and the book – in order for the events and language to sink in. As I focused on the book, though, it gave back to me.

Cry, the Beloved Country is about two fathers, one white and one black. Stephen Kumalo is the Reverend of the very poor native community in the valley of Ndotsheni, and James Jarvis is the white farmer on the High Place above the valley. When Kumalo travels to Johannesburg in search of his son Absalom, the lives of the two men are inevitably brought together.

That sounds vague, as I don’t want to “spoil” the book. In some ways, Cry, the Beloved Country is about the dichotomy between being black in South Africa and being white. It is about rural life versus city life. It is about hatred versus forgiveness. As the black man and the white man come to know each other, they learn what it means to live and serve each other. They aren’t so different after all.

Alan Paton wrote Cry, the Beloved Country in 1947, and it was published in 1948, the year apartheid, the legal separation based on race, was made law in South Africa. It therefore portrays the country before whites were given legal permission to discriminate against the blacks. And yet, the traditional separation in the culture is obvious and heart-breaking. I believe that Paton’s purpose in writing the book is to illustrate how similar the two men (white and black) really are. Both are fathers, struggling to have a life full of purpose.  Ultimately, Cry is about the hope for the future if only the other people in the country could have the same realization of equality among the human race.

I reread Cry, the Beloved Country specifically for my book club and we had a great discussion about the themes in the book. Most enjoyed the book, although two people disliked it and found it depressing.  I personally wasn’t really crying throughout the book, but my throat kept getting all tight. It was painful to read. But I think it was necessary for me, because it helped me see the hope that comes from loving one another in our communities, even a community that is so full of inequality. It was a hopeful book to me.

One further note: I read most of a book of commentary and criticism (edited by Harold Bloom). While much of the criticism focused on the religious aspects and the symbolism, I found that many of the arguments felt like a stretch to me. Yes, this book is obviously intended to be a religious allegory: the writing style and the names, for example, hearken to Biblical elements. But for me, reading this book was about the hope I got from the character’s interactions, not about the symbolism.

Too Late the Phalarope

Alan Paton’s second novel, Too Late the Phalarope, has a different feel. It, too, has a Biblical tone to it and the dialogue is confused with thoughts. But I did not like the narrator, the spinster aunt Sophie, and writing style seemed affected and a little tedious. I’m not sure why the writing affected me in this novel, as it seems similar to the other. But the subject matter wasn’t as appealing to me either: it was not about hope.

Pieter is not just an Afrikaner lieutenant in the South African police corps, he’s also a star rugby player, husband and father, and once a star student. His father is pleased with his well-rounded son, but he has a little bit of reserve, since his son is too tender: he loves too much. Pieter, too, wishes that he, like the others around him, shrank away from black people and saw them as less than he is. But he cannot. Pieter loves people, regardless of race.

Ultimately, Too Late the Phalarope is about love. Pieter’s thoughts on love are complicated by his relationship with his wife, who is cold and distant to him. He loves her, and yet there is something missing between them. And Pieter’s deepest secret is that he is attracted to a black woman, which may be a capital offence in 1950s South Africa.

Too Late the Phalarope is not a happy book. Since Paton wrote it after apartheid had been made law, it seems he himself realized the backwards direction that the country was going: no longer is there the hope for a better future that he wrote about in his pre-apartheid book.

That’s not to say that a sad book isn’t good. It was good: it brought a painful issue to the forefront of political consciousness then, and there is relevance today as one looks at the issues of love it addresses. It just wasn’t my favorite book, and I don’t intend to reread it.

Would you like my lightly read copy of Too Late the Phalarope? Let me know in the comments.

I received this paperback used from a giveaway at Maw Books Blog more than a year ago, but it is in very good shape, with just slightly bent cover corners. This giveaway is open until Saturday morning, 4 December 2009. It’s open to anyone around the globe. If you are a regular reader (i.e., you have left a comment on Rebecca Reads before today), you get an extra entry in this giveaway.

A note on the title: A phalarope is a rare South African bird. I was very curious myself.

Have you read Alan Paton? Did you enjoy the writing style?

What books have you read with difficult or different writing styles? Did the writing style change your enjoyment of the book?

• A Meme, A Farewell, and A Giveaway Winner
• The Help by Kathryn Stockett
• The Book That Changed My Life, edited by Roxanne J. Coady and Joy Johannesson + Giveaway
• November in Review + Reading Journal (2 Dec)
• Victorian Second Helpings (The Moonstone by Collins and North and South by Gaskell)
• Beloved by Toni Morrison
• God’s Bits of Wood by Sembene Ousmane
• Reading Journal (4 Nov): Reading Progress and Library Loot
• My Antonia by Willa Cather
• Anthem by Ayn Rand + A Giveaway

I wanted to write a post with the BBAW meme, among other things, but I just spent more than two hours going through Google Reader and reading and commenting on blogs. Instead of staying up later, I’m going to dispense with the meme for now and give you a winner.

The winner of Like Water for Chocolate is….

Brittany of Deckled Edges!

I’ve sent you an email; please send me your address and I’ll get that to you this week.

• BAFAB Week Winner
• A Meme, A Farewell, and A Giveaway Winner
• Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel + Giveaway
• Winner of Anthem + Swamped
• Harry Potter Giveaway Winner
• Google Reader Overload! + Blog Thoughts + Memelet
• HTR&W Winner + BAFAB Week
• Recent and Upcoming Bookworms Carnivals
• My First Year of Blogging: A Contest with a Giveaway
• Blog Miscellany

Sentimental Thoughts on Blogging

The first site I found in the book blogging world was Maw Books, followed by Dewey’s Hidden Side of a Leaf. I copied Dewey’s blogroll so I had a place to start, and from there I’ve branched out into hundreds of blogs. (I am subscribed to more than 200 book blogs now.)  When I first started blogging, I joined the memes (especially Booking through Thursday and Weekly Geeks) on a regular basis.

Then I found myself reading at least three times more than I did prior to blogging. I began struggling to keep up with the reviews from the books I’ve been reading, and I am still struggling. Maybe this is a phase of blogging that will pass: I am usually about three to six books behind in my reviewing! I personally think this means I need to stop reading quite so much.

At any rate, that first month, I had an average of 10 visitors a day. (Trish was my very first visitor.) Now I average between 200 and 300, with more than 130 subscribed to my feed. And I keep writing and posting my posts because I want to hear your thoughts: I love discussing books.

But I also write my posts for me. I want a record of my feelings when I read this book this month. Each time I read a book the experience is different. I want to remember the impression each book left with me. I want to learn from my reading. Rebecca Reads is helping me do that; thank you for your encouragement with each comment.

A Contest with a Giveaway

Would you like any one of the books I’ve reviewed in the past year?

I’d like to giveaway any one of the books I’ve reviewed – a new copy from Amazon shipped to anyone in the world.

Here’s the riddle:

There is a post on Rebecca Reads that is viewed over all other posts. It is about a book that is searched for more than any other book. In the keyword searches, this book shows up in nine of the top ten slots in various different keyword combinations. The post about this book has had the top number of views every single month since the day I posted it.

What book is it?

You can search my Reviews by Title database or the general archive. Please submit your first guess in the comments. If more than one person gets it, I’ll select a winner using random.org. If no one guesses it, I’ll select a random winner using random.org.

I will send the winner a new copy of any one of the books I’ve reviewed on Rebecca Reads. If you want, you can mention in the comments which book you’d like to get if you win. But you don’t have to choose now: you can simply be thinking about it as you browse the archives!

The deadline to enter your guess is May 22.

• Blogging Goals for the Coming Year
• Spooktacular Hachette Book Giveaway (USA) and Dracula Giveaway (non-USA)
• Blogging as Storytelling and Blogging Tips from an Unprofessional
• Like Water For Chocolate Winner!
• A Holiday Challenge Poll + Giveaway at Sophisticated Dorkines
• This Is NOT Goodbye
• Harry Potter Giveaway Winner
• Blogging Goals, Reading Journal (January 15), and a Winner
• Thoughts on Blogging and Reading + HTR&W Giveaway Reminder
• A Meme, A Farewell, and A Giveaway Winner

From the beginning, however, I’ve found Bridget to be annoying. While I loved Elizabeth Bennett, Bridget just seems whinny. Besides, with a large prevalence of crude language, this really is not my type of book. Further, I often have found that modern day “chic lit” stories are more entertaining as 2-hour movies, not as 300-page novels. There have been some amusing references to Darcy and Pride and Prejudice but I don’t think I can stomach any more of this novel in order to get to the happily ever after. If I ever feel curious again, I’ll watch the movie.

There are too many copies on Bookmooch for me to get it off my shelf, and I’m sure there is someone out there that wants to read it, crude language and annoying, whining Bridget notwithstanding. Therefore, I’m happy to send it to a randomly selected person.

Leave a note in the comments if you want to be entered for the drawing. I’ll select a winner in a few days.

Have you read this book or watched the movie? Does the crudity bother you? Why or why not?

• Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
• Reading Journal (21 Oct): Victorian Second Helpings + Giveaway of an Abandoned Book
• Abandoned Book (for Now): Dante’s Inferno + My Books to Read Before 40 List
• The Joy of Audiobooks
• My Life, According to Literature
• Abandoned Book: Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
• The Book That Changed My Life, edited by Roxanne J. Coady and Joy Johannesson + Giveaway
• The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
• The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde
• Jane Austen: A Biography by Carol Shields, a Quote Book, and a History of England

Florey’s tone is personal throughout the book – she reminisces of her own first experiences with diagramming, first when she visited a friend’s school while in fifth grade, then in sixth grade in her parochial school, where Sister Bernadette put the “barking dog” sentence on the board. Florey recalls why she liked diagramming so much, and throughout the book, she throws in geeky humor. It felt like she was trying to be as funny as, say, Mary Roach was in Stiff (thoughts here). But it kind of reminded me of me: I try to be funny but don’t always come across as funny. Florey’s “funny” was kind of distracting sometimes. She was also incredibly critical of George W. Bush’s grammar time and again, without mentioning many other politicians. I don’t personally like George W. Bush (grammar or politics) but it still got very exhausting to hear repeatedly about how dumb he is, especially for such a short book (150 pages).

But despite (or perhaps because of) the overall geekiness of sentence diagramming, I enjoyed reading Sister Bernadette’s Barking Dogs. It caused me to reminisce on my seventh grade class, when Miss Canning first put a diagramed sentence on the board. I liked diagramming because English suddenly became dividable and measurable, like math but still with words. There was a place for each word of the sentence, and it was a tricky assignment to get it right. I enjoyed it very much.

Florey does go beyond reminiscences. She details the birth of diagramming (Reed and Kellog), some very general rules of diagramming, and modern writer’s opinions of diagramming. She debates whether or not learning to diagram helps improve writing, and shares diagrams of the sentences written or said by various writers and politicians. Then she delves in to why sentence diagramming is no longer in fashion. She even visits a junior high class room today that is diagramming sentences: it sure sounds like fun to me! (Why, oh why, don’t kids do it anymore?!

My paperback copy of Sister Bernadette’s Barking Dog is used; one or two pages have some pencil writing in the margins. But the cover is fully intact and it looks (and feels!) like a new book.

Does this book sound like one that might interest you? Did (or do) you like diagramming? I’d like to send Sister Bernadette’s Barking Dog to someone interested in sentence diagramming.

To be entered into the giveaway, tell me at least one of these things:

• Who taught you diagramming that first time? (Who was your “Sister Bernadette” or “Miss Canning”?)
• When or where did you first learn diagramming?
• Why do you like diagramming (or the idea of diagramming)?

I’ll randomly select a winner next week.

If you have reviewed Sister Bernadette’s Barking Dog on your site, leave a link in the comments and I’ll add it here.

• Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov + Giveaway
• Childhood Reads
• Eats, Shoots and Leaves by Lynne Truss, the illustrated version
• A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf
• Stories by O. Henry (and Another BBAW Giveaway)
• March in Review
• The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
• The Book That Changed My Life, edited by Roxanne J. Coady and Joy Johannesson + Giveaway
• Rose, Where Do You Get that Red? by Kenneth Koch + Reading with Kids Challenge
• Chicago, Chicago!

I loved reading Vladimir Nabokov’s short stories a few months ago because his control of language is so powerful, although I did feel that some of his stories were rather odd. Nabokov’s novel Pale Fire is similar in that it is both odd and powerfully written. It is a masterwork of creation: who but Nabokov would have thought to write a book like this? In fact, Pale Fire is so odd, I have a hard time calling it a novel.

Pale Fire has two main parts. One part is a 999-line poem (about 30 pages) by the recently deceased (fictional) John Shade. The other part is (fictional) Professor Charles Kinbote’s commentary on the poem (about 185 pages). Nabokov has expertly woven a completely unrelated commentary in with a fairly coherent poem. Trust me: it is funny, in a subtle way.

In his forward, Kinbote carefully explains that we should begin with reading his commentary, and only reference the poem on occasion. Kinbote believes his commentary shares the real meaning of Shade’s poem.

I did not trust Kinbote’s instructions for reading the book, just as I didn’t trust most of what he said. And yet, there is a humor behind his conceit and pride. From the beginning of that forward, the reader began to suspect that something was not quite right with Kinbote and his commentary. Kinbote has his own story to share, all about his native country of Zembla, and he sees everything through that filter. Kinbote’s conceit got on my nerves to some extent. Others in my LibraryThing Group Reads group seemed to think it was laugh-out-loud funny. I laughed out loud a little, but by the end I was a bit tired of Kinbote’s long-winded discourses on Zembla.

I think the true genius behind this story is how the poem and the commentary do coincide. They don’t coincide in the ways that Kinbote wants them to, but there are influences of Kinbote on Shade’s text. I think it was a clever idea for Nabokov to “misinterpret” his own poem (since, of course, he actually wrote all the writing and created all the characters). It seemed to me that Nabokov is, in a sense, mocking all who analyze poetry too much: he’s showing a completely distorted “interpretation” of a poem.

But I think the deeper purposes behind this book are beyond me. On Wikipedia, there are some speculations on Nabokov’s actual meaning behind Pale Fire, including a quote from Nabokov. (The article has spoilers so I’ll avoid quoting them here.) I thought Pale Fire was making fun of people who look for hidden meanings, so I have a hard time believing in Nabokov’s own declared hidden meanings. I think he’s making fun of us there, too. But then again, I was one of the people in the group read who didn’t look up every unknown word (there are lots of them in “Kinbote’s” erudite sentences). Maybe I’m just not looking hard enough; Pale Fire, I thought, didn’t need all that much looking.

In the end, I am torn between thinking Pale Fire is genius because of how Nabokov set it up and being completely annoyed by Kinbote’s self-conceit and cluelessness. I do ackowledge that it was a fascinating concept and somewhat amusing to read, albeit irritating at points.

I read Pale Fire for the 9 for 09 Challenge (“Used.”) I purchased it for $2.50 at a used book store in November. This soft-cover, 1968 copy has a fully intact cover (albeit ugly), all the words, and yellowing pages. If you are interested in reading Pale Fire, I’ll send it you. Let me know if you are interested; I’ll choose a winner Friday.

If you have read Pale Fire, did you think it was serious or a joke? I’m leaning toward the joke myself.

Other Reviews:

• 5-Squared (Amanda)
• Rose City Reader

If you have reviewed Pale Fire on your site, leave a link in the comments and I’ll add it here.

• Stories by Vladimir Nabokov
• A Meme, A Farewell, and A Giveaway Winner
• Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
• Poetry Friday: If by Rudyard Kipling
• March in Review
• Sister Bernadette’s Barking Dogs by Kitty Burns Florey + Giveaway
• A Poem in Your Pocket: Introduction to Poetry by Billy Collins
• Milton in May: Comus and Lycidas by John Milton
• Reading The Iliad by Homer, trans. by Robert Fagles
• Milton in May (erm, and June): Paradise Lost, Books 10 to 12 + Two Reading Aids

It’s All Greek to Me

Worthwhile Books enjoyed reading Aesop’s Fables, saying “not just for kids!”

A few people read Homer. I reviewed Fagles’ Iliad and loved it, and ChainReader also reviewed Fagles’ Iliad, saying it was a 4/5 enrichment factor.

Tuesday in Silhouette read the Fitzgerald and Chapman versions of The Odyssey at the same time, enjoying them both but for different reasons. (I, alas, am still working on Fagles’ Odyssey. My recent move did me in.)

I also reviewed the play Hippolytus by Euripides, which was my first experience with Euripides’ plays – and one I hope to repeat.

Roman Holiday

Tuesday in Silhouette visited Virgil’s Aeneid, but found the Knight prose translation to be “stiff cardboard.” So sorry!

Really Old English

The Curious Reader found Le Morte d’Arthur by Sir Thomas Malory to be nearly impossible to finish, not just because it was 900 pages long but because it was in Old/Middle English. But finish it she did. Way to go, Jeska!

Tuesday in Silhouette was “pleasantly surprised” by the modernity, obscenity, and variety of The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer (Glaser trans.).

Becky at Becky’s Book Reviews (and Operation Actually Read Bible) loved reading Wycliffe’s New Testament.

Spanish Conquest

Becky at Becky’s Book Reviews made it through 1,200+ pages of Miguel de Cervantes’ Don Quixote (Putnam translation), saying “Did it live up to my expectations? Was it everything I wanted it to be? Yes. And then some.”

A Winner

Not counting my own, there were eight entries. I submitted them into a random integer generator. and the winner is……..

8. Becky of Becky’s Book Reviews

Congratulations! I have sent you an email. In addition to your address, let me know which book (any book, up to $15 not counting shipping) you’d like me to send you.

The Really Old Classics Challenge is half over, but that just means there are still five months for you to keep reading and reviewing – and linking to your reviews on this post. I hope that the reviews of the other challenge participants got you excited for your next “Really Old Classic.”

There may be another mini-challenge of some kind in the coming months, so watch for it!

• Really Old Classics Challenge Retrospective
• Really Old Classics Mini-Challenge + Giveaway
• Really Old Classics Challenge
• Really Old Classics Challenge
• The Odyssey by Homer, trans. Robert Fagles
• 35th Bookworms Carnival: Really Old Classics
• Reading The Iliad by Homer, trans. by Robert Fagles
• The Iliad by Homer, trans. Robert Fagles: Love and Hate But Mostly Love
• My Really Old Classics Choices
• The Iliad by Homer: The Story

How about a mini-challenge (with a giveaway) to remind you?

The Really Old Classics Challenge runs from October 2008-July  31, 2009. We’ve had three months to read, and there are seven months left. To join the challenge, remember, you choose how many really old classics (pre-Shakespeare) you want to read between now and July 31 and then you read those books.

For those who have joined the challenge, how are you doing with your challenge goals?

Other books have been beckoning me, so I’ve only finished 2 out of my goal of 5. Never fear! There is lots of time left; The Odyssey is waiting for me this month.

I guess it’s time I give you some motivation to get a least one of your books read. This is a mid-challenge mini-challenge to get at least one of them read by the end of February, which is the halfway point of the challenge.

To give you a little motivation to remember the really old classics, I’d like to giveaway a book of your choice. It can be up to $15 value, and I’ll cover the shipping. It also doesn’t have to be a really old classic — it can be any book that you want.

This is a giveaway for someone who is participating in the Really Old Classic Challenge and that is reading and reviewing the books. If you don’t have a blog, you can leave a your thoughts about the book in the comments to the reviews post.

To enter the giveaway, first you must join the challenge. Visit this post for how to do that. If you’ve already joined, you already are half way there. Then, read at least one really old classic and review it by February 28, 2009. Come back and leave a link to your review on the reviews post, so I know you’ve reviewed it for the challenge. The more really old classics you review by February 28, 2009, the more entries you’ll get for the random drawing. (If you’ve already posted a review link, you’re already entered.)

On March 1, 2009, I’ll randomly select one of the participants that has reviewed a really old classic (and left me a link so I know about it). That person will be the winner of the book of their choice.

I’ll give another reminder in February. In the mean time, I certainly hope you enjoy reading your really old classic(s)!

• Really Old Classics Mini-Challenge Round-Up
• Really Old Classics Challenge
• Really Old Classics Challenge Reviews
• Really Old Classics Challenge
• Really Old Classics Challenge Retrospective
• Martel-Harper Challenge Reviews (2009 2nd Quarter)
• A Holiday Challenge Poll + Giveaway at Sophisticated Dorkines
• Challenges, A Personal Challenge, and a Giveaway!
• Martel-Harper Challenge Reviews (2009 1st Quarter)
• Reminder: Giveaway for Really Old Classics Reviews

The Book that Changed My Life is a collection of essays by writers, and since I don’t often read modern fiction, I didn’t expect to recognize many of the authors highlighted, much less did I expect such a variety of classics and modern classics highlighted as favorites. Yet, both fiction and nonfiction authors share the books that influenced their life, from Julius Caesar to Mary Higgins Clark.

I loved the short insights into other’s lives. It reminded me of the blogging world: we all have different upbringings, different histories, and different lives, and so we all are influenced by books in different ways. I appreciated most what Billy Collins said (in what I thought was the best essay of the book):

The opportunity to single out a book that “changed my life” makes me realize that no book leaves us unchanged, for better or worse. Why read otherwise? Even to be bored is to be changed. (page 51)

This is how I feel about reading. I love the experience, even when the books bore me!

In the end, I added five books to my “To Reread” pile (because some deserve rereading again and again) and 23 to my “to be read” pile (seven or eight were unofficially already on my list because of various awards). Did I really need that? *Sigh.*

I read The Book That Changed My Life for the Dewey Decimal Challenge and for the Dewey’s Books Challenge.

The Book that Changed My Life

Beloved by Toni Morrison

I must have been 14 or 15 when my mother, an English post-grad student, shared Beloved with me. Reading Beloved changed my life. After reading Beloved, I was convinced that I didn’t need (or want) young adult novels anymore.

For the first time, the characters in a book I read were confusing and complex. The plot was intricate — and it all meant something so grand that I couldn’t put into words. It was painfully violent to read, and yet I wanted to keep reading. I loved the characters and cried for Beloved and for Sethe. I related somehow to Sethe’s pain. The cruelty of slavery seemed real to me in a way that nothing in a novel had ever seemed.

This is not a story to pass on.

I wanted to keep this powerful novel to myself. Reading it, I wanted to absorb it all at once. And yet, I couldn’t. I needed to talk about it, to dissect it, to read it again and again. And I have.

It’s now been four or five years since I discussed Beloved in a college setting and wrote [pretty poorly written] essays about it. It’s been so long since I’ve reread it that I have a hard time recalling specific plot details. And yet, I know that it was Beloved that changed the course of my reading away from the easy, young adult fiction and toward reading that sometimes feels like a “difficult pleasure.” I loved the fact that reading Beloved was difficult! It showed me a new way to read. And that, by extension, is a new way to live.

Now I feel I must reread it.

What book changed your life? If you want, answer this question on your own blog (like a meme). Link back here (or let me know), and I’ll include a link here.

• Possession by A.S. Byatt (Amanda)

Giveaway

I have a like-new copy of The Book That Changed My Life that I’d like to give to a reader of Rebecca Reads.

If you’d like chance to win a copy, please tell me in the comments. I’ll select a winner randomly next week.

ETA: Giveaway has ended.

Other reviews of The Book That Changed My Life:

• Age 30+ A Lifetime of Books
• The Hidden Side of a Leaf
• Things Mean a Lot

If you have reviewed The Book That Changed My Life, leave a link in the comments and I’ll add it here.

• Really Old Classics Mini-Challenge + Giveaway
• A Stop in South Africa (Two Novels by Alan Paton) + Giveaway
• Reading Journal (21 Oct): Victorian Second Helpings + Giveaway of an Abandoned Book
• The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
• Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman + Giveaway (Used Book)
• Beloved by Toni Morrison
• Stiff by Mary Roach: A Change Your Life (or Rather, Death) Book
• The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
• TBRs and Other Lists
• A Meme, A Farewell, and A Giveaway Winner

Equality 7-2521 lives in a dark futurist dystopia in Ayn Rand’s novella Anthem. He has no words for love or self, and being alone is a crime. Yet, as do characters in countless other dystopian novels, he still finds moments to write his story of discovery.

By itself, Anthem is slim – just 100 pages – and quick to read. I enjoyed the story of Equality 7-2521′s literal self-discovery and I love the concepts within it: What is joy? What is pleasure? What is self?

Anthem has its faults, notably a complex ideology that Rand obviously hopes to impart to the reader. For me, this philosophy seemed to overshadow the story of Equality 7-2521 a bit too much. But, because it is a slim story, it was still a worthwhile reread for me.

Rereading this novella reminded me of the need to reread the classic dystopian novels: Animal Farm, 1984, and so forth. From my dim memories, Rand’s dystopia most reminds me of the dystopia in The Giver, for, like Jonas, Equality 7-2521 learns of what life was like before the dystopia, which in Equality 7-2521′s case is called “the Unmentionable Times.” The difference is that in Jonas’ world, the high councilmen (can’t remember what they are called) have kept a person that has those memories (called The Giver); in Anthem, even the memories are gone and all must be rediscovered.

In some respects, I found Anthem to be much more compelling than The Handmaid’s Tale, another dystopia-tale I read recently, because the narration made sense in Anthem. If Equality 7-2521 doesn’t have a word for something, he uses words he does have. Tense don’t shift. It is written in one chronological time frame, although he does share some flash backs of his life history as he writes in his journal. (It still bothers me that I can’t explain how the handmaid in Atwood’s novel told her story since the tenses were so “off.”) That said, Anthem is a completely different story than The Handmaid’s Tale and it has a different agenda. While The Handmaid’s Tale looked at religion as totalitarian disaster, Anthem does not. This dystopia is godless and religion-less, as is Equality 7-2521′s ultimate escape. The only god in Anthem is the individual. And that is to what the novel sings an “anthem” to.

This also reminded me of Ella Minnow Pea, silly as it was. In that novel, once or twice Ella mourned the day the “I” would fall off of the memorial and she’d no longer be able to express herself: “I love you.”

And celebrating the power of “I” is also Rand’s goal in her writing. My volume has a 10-page introduction and a 10-page appendix discussing Rand’s philosophy and how Anthem is a precursor to her further philosophical treatises/novels (Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead). Rand developed her own philosophy, called objectivism. I’m sorry to say, reading this novel and the front and end matter has only confused the issue of “objectivism” in my mind. It seems quite complicated. But the gist seems to be that no overarching power – government or religion – is more powerful than each individual; by extension there is no god and there is no faith because truth is given power only through reason. For more information on objectivism, visit Wikipedia’s entry, The Ayn Rand Institute, or the user-created Objectivism Wiki.

As one who believes in God and faith, though, I didn’t find Rand’s political agenda to be remarkably or annoyingly atheist, however. I believe celebrating the individual can go in harmony with religion and Anthem was an appropriate “hymn” to that individual.

Martel-Harper Challenge

In reading Yann Martel’s letter to Stephen Harper about this book, I have to say, he gave up the entire plot. Although his letter is amusing and sarcastic, don’t read his letter until you read the book. I’d be annoyed if I were Stephen Harper. Sometimes I really hate spoilers! (Other times I read the last page first.)

A Giveaway

My copy of Anthem has the most recent publication of the novel as well as a facsimile of Rand’s edits to the original 1938 U.K. publication. (Publishers in the U.S. would not publish Anthem until 1946, apparently for political reasons.) I’ve read the novella twice; the first time was for a book club, so I marked two or three passages with pen in the margin. Other than that, it’s in excellent condition.

I’d like to giveaway my copy. (Remember my poll about giving away used books? This book is used and does have pen markings in it. If you don’t want it for that reason, I understand.) If you would like to be entered into the drawing, tell me in a comment below. I’ll select a winner next week.

NOTE: GIVEAWAY IS OVER.

What is your favorite dystopian novel? I’m in the mood to read some more of them.

Have you read Ayn Rand’s masterpieces? What are your thoughts on objectivism within those books? Is the plot overshadowed by philosophy?

If you have reviewed Anthem on your site, please leave a link in the comments and I’ll add it here.

• The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
• We by Yevgeny Zamyatin
• Winner of Anthem + Swamped
• Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar by Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein
• Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984) by George Orwell
• Herland by Charlotte Perkins Gilman + Giveaway (Used Book)
• The Stranger by Albert Camus
• My Antonia by Willa Cather
• A Stop in South Africa (Two Novels by Alan Paton) + Giveaway
• Utopia by Thomas More

I enjoyed reading The Planets: it was a quick and naturally paced overview that gave me increased appreciation for the science that decorates the sky. I’d highly recommend her book for people looking for a popular (non-technical) approach to the subject.

Because I’m also watching a Carl Sagan program on the same subject, I felt like Sobel’s book was lacking. Both Sagan and Sobel impart of their own passion for the cosmos, but while Sagan’s seems full of facts, Sobel’s for some reason seems superficial – although it’s clear she’s done extensive research (and she includes a bibliography at the end).

In the end, though, Sobel’s book is probably just right for a general, easy-to-approach book (and a fast read) about a fascinating part of our life: the night sky.

Each planet Sobel discusses has some interesting aspect that is associated with it and discussed in greater detail.

• The Sun: Genesis (an evolutionary look at creation in the most beautiful terms I’ve ever read*)
• Mercury: Mythology (a look at the ancient myths relating to the night sky)
• Venus: Beauty (Venus is female in most traditions and therefore a common subject of poetry)
• Earth: Geography (an examination of discovery and discussion of our knowledge of our earth)
• The Moon: Lunacy (superstitions abound when the moon is considered)
• Mars: Science Fiction (stories of Martians have flourished since the late 1800s, and life once existed on Mars)
• Jupiter: Astrology (a history and explanation of some basic aspects of astrology)
• Saturn: Music (Saturn and its rings has been most commonly associated with music)
• Uranus and Neptune: Night Air (Uranus and Neptune are inseparable, and studying the sky mathematically helped determine the existence of Neptune)
• Pluto: UFO (Pluto’s status as a planet has always been in question)

*While Sobel maintains a mix of creationism and evolution, it’s neither overly religious nor overly scientific; both are in harmony.

credit: Jeff Barton and Josh Walawender

My favorite planet is and always has been Saturn. There is something about the rings that I find absolutely beautiful. I also appreciated Sobel’s discussion of “music” as associated with Saturn because I also love music. The chapter on Venus also fascinated me.

I’ve also read Galileo’s Daughter and Longitude by Dava Sobel, which likewise approach science from a non-technical, easy-to-read format. Many thanks Heather at Age 30+: A Lifetime of Books for this review which prompted me to read this book.

Happy Thanksgiving + A Giveaway

I’m going to be out of town for a week for the Thanksgiving Holiday. I will have Internet access, but I don’t want to worry about automatic posts while I’m eating turkey and visiting with family, so I’m not going to post again until I get back. I will check comments and delete any spam; I may or may not respond to comments.

In the meantime, I’d like to giveaway my lightly used copy of The Planets to a reader of Rebecca Reads.

(The book itself is gorgeous: while it is paperback, the cover has a cool die-cut of Saturn peeking through. Each chapter also has a gorgeous full-page, full-color illustration of the heavens.  I almost want to keep it just because it’s pretty. But, I’ll share.)

This giveaway is open to anyone in the world; it ends Tuesday, December 2, 2008 at 11:59 p.m. CST.

If you are interested in winning The Planets, please tell me what your favorite planet is (or the sun or moon). Why is it your favorite?

I’ll let random.org choose a winner Wednesday, December 3, 2008.

Have a happy Thanksgiving or a happy week (depending on where you live in the world).

If you have reviewed The Planets on your site, please leave a link in the comments and I’ll add it here.

• Age 30+: A Lifetime of Books
• The 3R’s: Reading, ‘Riting, and Randomness

• Two Neuroscience Books (Proust was a Neuroscientist by Lehrer and Sacks’ Musicophilia)
• A Meme, A Farewell, and A Giveaway Winner
• November Month in Review and December Reading Journal
• Dune by Frank Herbert
• Author Spotlight: Margaret Wise Brown + Giveaway Winner
• Christmas Countdown: Music Collections I Love
• Surely You’re Joking, Mr. Feynman by Richard Feynman
• The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
• Bookworms Carnival: You Are Never Too Old
• A Stop in South Africa (Two Novels by Alan Paton) + Giveaway

I loved reading everyone’s posts for the R.I.P. challenge and I’d love to read everyone’s “Happy Holidays” book selections. (I didn’t join the R.I.P. challenge because I didn’t think I liked “scary” books; silly me, I loved reading Irving’s, Hawthorne’s, and even Poe’s stories for Halloween this year.)

I would keep the Holiday challenge to just one to three books, running from November 15, 2008 to December 31, 2008.  But maybe I’m crazy: I know the holidays are crazy-busy.

Please let me know what you think by joining in this poll.

A Giveaway

Sophisticated Dorkiness is having a 100^th post giveaway. Kim started blogging just about when I did. She’s a grad student in journalism and she has great posts that get me thinking about books and reading in a different way.

Visit here for more info (and add her RSS feed to your list!).

A Donation

In honor of Blog Action Day 2008, I sponsored comments from October 15 until the end of the month: I’ll donate 10 cents to the World Food Programme for every comment. See my post on Blog Action Day here.

At 197 comments, that comes to $19.70. I’ve donated $20 to fighting world hunger. Thanks for reading and commenting on Rebecca Reads!

• “Used” Books Giveaways Poll
• Winner of Anthem + Swamped
• Really Old Classics Mini-Challenge + Giveaway
• Challenges, A Personal Challenge, and a Giveaway!
• Martel-Harper Challenge Reviews (2009 2nd Quarter)
• My First Year of Blogging: A Contest with a Giveaway
• Martel-Harper Challenge Reviews (2009 1st Quarter)
• Spooktacular Winners
• Really Old Classics Mini-Challenge Round-Up
• Spooktacular Hachette Book Giveaway (USA) and Dracula Giveaway (non-USA)

Lisa at Books Lists Life!

Natasha at Maw Books Blog!

Jupiter at crazy dumbsaint of the mind!

There was one winner of the international giveaway of Dracula, courtesy of me.

Myrthe of The Armenian Odar Reads!

I’ve emailed all of the winners. Thanks for reading Rebecca Reads.

• Spooktacular Hachette Book Giveaway (USA) and Dracula Giveaway (non-USA)
• My First Year of Blogging: A Contest with a Giveaway
• Blog Miscellany
• A Holiday Challenge Poll + Giveaway at Sophisticated Dorkines
• BAFAB Week Winner
• “Used” Books Giveaways Poll
• Book Blog Search (Beta) and Other Non-Book Review Stuff
• The Planets by Dava Sobel + A Giveaway
• Winner of Anthem + Swamped
• Book Blogs Rebecca Reads and Appreciates

Update: Contest closed.

I have been trying to figure out what I can do to celebrate Halloween on this blog, since I don’t often read horror novels or stories. Well, Hachette Book Group USA has solved that for me. They’ve offered me some boxes full of books for USA readers of Rebecca Reads. These are their “spookiest” books in honor of Halloween.

To add some fun for the non-USA readers, I’m also giving away one copy of Dracula by Bram Stoker to a non-USA resident.

USA Contest: Spooktacular Hachette Book Group Giveaway

Hachette’s box of books is only open to a USA address, no P.O. Boxes accepted. The winner will receive a box of all of these books:

1. THE HERETIC’S DAUGHTER By Kathleen Kent $24.99, 0316024481 Also available as an audiobook
2. ISOLATION By Travis Thrasher $13.99, 0446505544
3. THE 13 BEST HORROR STORIES OF ALL TIME By Leslie Pockell $21.99, 9780446679503
4. THE MONSTERS: Mary Shelley and the Curse of Frankenstein By Dorothy Hoobler , Thomas Hoobler $14.99, 9780316066402
5. THE MYRTLES PLANTATION: The True Story of America’s Most Haunted House By Frances Kermeen $7.99, 9780446614153
6. GHOSTLY ENCOUNTERS: True Stories of America’s Haunted Inns and Hotels By Frances Kermeen $7.99, 9780446611459
7. THE TERROR By Dan Simmons $14.99, 9780316017459 Also available as an audiobook
8. DRACULA By Bram Stoker $10.99, 0316014818 Also available as an audiobook
9. WHEN GHOSTS SPEAK: Understanding the World of Earthbound Spirits By Mary Ann Winkowski $24.99, 9780446581189
10. THE HISTORIAN By Elizabeth Kostova $9.99, 9780316067942 Also available as an audiobook

I’ll select one winner for every ten entries, up to five winners.

Non-USA Contest: Dracula by Bram Stoker

Since I was recently out of the USA for more than a year, I know what it’s like to miss out on giveaways like Hachette’s! I really can’t send you all ten books out of my own pocket, but I do want to offer you something.

When I look at the list, the book I most want to read is Dracula by Bram Stoker. I’ve decided to send a lucky non-USA resident a copy of that book, from Rebecca Reads to you.

Rules

To enter, leave a comment indicating which contest you’re in (Hatchette USA or Dracula non-USA).  That’s really all you need to do right now.

But you know what I really want you to do? Find another post on Rebecca Reads and leave a comment.

For the rest of October, I’ll donate 10 cents to World Food Programme for every (non-spam) comment I receive on any post of Rebecca Reads. See most post on Blog Action Day 2008 here. I’m also donating any proceeds from my Amazon Store. Spread the word: more people will visit Rebecca Reads, comment, and thereby I’ll donate more to the World Food Programme.

The deadline for this contest is Friday, October 24, 2008, 11:59 p.m. CDT. Winners will be selected via random.org and announced on Saturday, October 25, 2008 on Rebecca Reads.

• Dracula by Bram Stoker
• Spooktacular Winners
• My First Year of Blogging: A Contest with a Giveaway
• A Holiday Challenge Poll + Giveaway at Sophisticated Dorkines
• Reading Journal (23 Sept): The Classics Circuit
• Harry Potter Giveaway Winner
• Book Blogging Community
• Reading Journal (May 27): Distraction
• October in Review
• Book Blog Search (Beta) and Other Non-Book Review Stuff

Book Dads!

Book Dads, I can’t give you Flo Powder; you’ll have to hang on to your gas guzzling car a little longer. I hope Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and a Harry Potter bookmark is consolation!

I will email you; if I do not get a response with an address within in three days, I’ll have to select a new winner.

• Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling (and BBAW giveaway)
• “Used” Books Giveaways Poll
• Like Water For Chocolate Winner!
• Abandoned Book and Giveaway: Bridget Jones’ Diary
• A Meme, A Farewell, and A Giveaway Winner
• Reading Journal (May 27): Distraction
• Winner of Anthem + Swamped
• HTR&W Winner + BAFAB Week
• My First Year of Blogging: A Contest with a Giveaway
• Reminder: Giveaway for Really Old Classics Reviews

After reading, in the past months, the short stories of Turgenev, Chekhov, Maupassant, James Joyce, and Hemingway, I found O. Henry‘s stories to be remarkably different. They were refreshingly delightful, poignant, and easy to read, and yet, I was struck by the inferiority of O. Henry’s actual writing in comparison to the others. In the end, though, I think everyone should read some of O. Henry’s stories: they are enjoyable.

O.  Henry’s stories are full of irony. Like Maupassant‘s stories, his stories focus on the base aspects of human nature: poverty, crime, dying. However, while Maupassant’s stories focus on self-interest, O. Henry’s stories focus on self-improvement and the “love your neighbor” aspects of human nature. The characters in O. Henry’s stories were loving, and the endings were poignant and “tender.” On the other hand, as I mentioned when I read Maupassant’s stories, some of those characters were cruel and uncompassionate. Both writers seemed to accurately portray human nature, but I must say that Maupassant’s take was more amusing!

O. Henry was born William Sidney Porter and became O. Henry after a few years in prison, during which time he turned to his writing. I’m glad he did write because I really enjoyed his stories! My favorites were these (links to public domain etexts):

• The Gift of the Magi. $1.87 is all she had on Christmas Eve, and yet she wanted to buy her husband a Christmas gift.
• The Cop and the Anthem. A homeless man wants to be arrested so he can be in jail all winter.
• The Last Leaf. She knows she will die when the last leaf falls from the vine.
• The Ransom of Red Chief. Two criminals need $2,000, so they determine to kidnap the son of the richest man in town and hold him for ransom.

The Writing

Reading James Joyce and Ernest Hemingway before reading O. Henry may have been a mistake, simply because I was distracted by O. Henry’s writing. His writing is perfectly acceptable: it’s probably a style issue for me. O. Henry is a down-to-earth writer, and his writing seemed to have a more conversational aspect. For example, in “The Gift of the Magi,” the woman begins to cry in the first paragraphs. Then,

While the mistress of the home is gradually subsiding from the first stage [sobs] to the second [sniffles], take a look at the home.

Now, there is technically nothing wrong with addressing the reader. But James Joyce was careful to develop a scene and Ernest Hemingway never would use so many words to describe something, so for me it was just a surprising, jarring sentence to read.

Also, along the same line, O. Henry told his stories, but none of the characters seemed developed. Even after finishing “The Ransom of Red Chief,” for example, I barely know about the two kidnappers and the young boy; they remained stereotypes in a clever story. On the other hand, while Joyce seemed long-winded in some respects and his stories were somewhat depressing, the characters and settings were so beautifully created that I didn’t mind reading it.

Has reading Joyce and Hemingway and the other authors recommended in HTR&W made me a “snob” for concise yet beautiful descriptions and carefully developed characters? I don’t know. Maybe if I’d waited a few days after Hemingway, O. Henry’s writing style wouldn’t have seemed inferior.

I suppose noticing writing, instead of just stories, is progress. After all, one of my goals in attacking a reading list like HTR&W is to learn to read well, instead of just turning pages. The other night, I picked up a less-than-100-page collection of O. Henry to read and I read it one setting: wouldn’t that be reading to “just turn pages”?

But, as I said, I really enjoyed O. Henry’s stories, and after my disappointment in Hemingway, I really needed to “just turn pages.”

Have you read O. Henry? What was your favorite story? What have you read lately when you just wanted to “turn pages”?

If you want to read some “tender” (and, yes, I admit, somewhat cheesy) “love your neighbor” stories, you should really give O. Henry a try. Read his stories online in the public domain at Project Gutenberg; most are fairly short.

If you don’t want to read online, I’d love to send you my collection as a BBAW giveaway! It’s The Gift of the Magi and Other Short Stories by O. Henry, a Dover Thrift Edition in good shape. If you’d like it, please let me know in the comments. I’ll send anywhere in the world, and I’ll select a winner Sunday.

• Stories by Vladimir Nabokov
• Stories by Ernest Hemingway
• Stories by Flannery O’Connor
• Dubliners by James Joyce
• Stories by Guy de Maupassant (Introductory Thoughts)
• How to Read and Why: Short Stories Retrospective
• Father Brown by G.K. Chesterton
• Aesop’s Fables with Introduction by G.K. Chesterton
• The Student by Anton Chekhov: A Perfect Short Story
• Lord of the Flies by William Golding

However, when I mentioned this to my husband, he thought that was a strange idea. After all, these are used books. Some of them are Dover Thrift Editions (brand new and in great shape but very generic and ugly) and some of them are older. But, some are hardcover. (See my Deathly Hallows giveaway.)

Do you, as readers, care about a “thrifty” binding? Do you care how “used” a book is? I know, I prefer a nice hardback myself, but….

I’ll take a survey so you can be anonymous if you want. Only one choice, because I want to know your first preference or expectation when you join a blog giveaway. Feel free to make an anonymous comment, too. (I will delete spam.)

• Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling (and BBAW giveaway)
• A Holiday Challenge Poll + Giveaway at Sophisticated Dorkines
• Book Blogging Community
• Abandoned Book and Giveaway: Bridget Jones’ Diary
• Doomsday for My Book Sources
• LibraryThing versus Shelfari versus ?
• Why ARCs?
• Harry Potter Giveaway Winner
• Judging a Book By Its Cover Again
• Reading Journal (March 3): Swapping Books

In honor of Book Bloggers Appreciation Week, I’m giving away my copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. For more BBAW giveaways, visit here and here.

My Thoughts

Most people in the blogging world have already commented on this series. But, nevertheless, I will add that I enjoyed Rowling’s amazing creativity in writing this series, although I think her writing was pretty generic and nothing special; especially in the later volumes, Rowling could have fine tuned the novels a lot more. The fact that publishing deadlines and impatient readers affected the quality of the writing was regrettable. To me, Rowling is an example of an marvelous creative writer, not necessarily a great writer. (If you disagree, please don’t attack me. To each his own!)

My favorite books were Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. I thought the first (Sorcerer’s Stone) was the most well-written and clever (it wasn’t too violent and yet all three major child protagonists had a significant role in the resolution). I thought Prisoner of Azkaban was the cleverest resolution. I disliked how violent the entire series got by Deathly Hallows, but I still enjoyed all of the series.

I’m sure I’ll read these books again, especially when my boy gets older.

A BBAW Giveaway

For now, I’m giving away my copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, along with a Harry Potter bookmark. The book is the hardcover British (Bloomsbury) edition and has only been read two times, so it’s in great shape. (My other Harry Potter books are the American versions, and I only got the British version this time because I was living in Australia last year.) I’m willing to ship it anywhere in the world.

How to Enter

To enter this BBAW giveaway, please leave a comment with what you loved most about the magical world of Harry Potter. In other words, what magical thing do you wish you could have in your life? Quidditch? Flo Powder? Dumbledore’s putter-outer? Diagon Alley?

For me, I really wish I had a time turner. I can always use more time!

Giveaway ends September 19, 11:59 p.m. CDT, but you can still comment on the post after that! The winner will be selected by a random number generator. Only one entry per person.

• Harry Potter Giveaway Winner
• “Used” Books Giveaways Poll
• Reading Journal (May 27): Distraction
• The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling
• Stories by O. Henry (and Another BBAW Giveaway)
• The Complete Tales of Beatrix Potter
• BBAW Meme + Thanks for the Nominations
• May in Review
• On Writing by Stephen King
• Really Old Classics Mini-Challenge + Giveaway

For the rest of you, I’m sorry I can’t buy you all a book. Happy reading, all the same!

• HTR&W Winner + BAFAB Week
• Like Water For Chocolate Winner!
• Winner of Anthem + Swamped
• A Meme, A Farewell, and A Giveaway Winner
• Harry Potter Giveaway Winner
• Recent and Upcoming Bookworms Carnivals
• Blog Miscellany
• Author Spotlight: Margaret Wise Brown + Giveaway Winner
• Blogging Awards
• Call for Poetry Posts: Deadline Extended!

HTR&W Giveaway Winner

Seven people (Nicole, Kim, Care aka Bkclubcare, Ahava, Rose City Reader, Susan, Susan L.) indicated their interest in reading the HTR&W works. I’ve been intimidated and excited by the list this weekend, and I’m excited that others are similarly interested in reading the works on it.

Using a random number generator, the winner of the giveaway is commenter number 4, Ahava! I’ll send you a copy of HTR&W.

I’ve purposely made this challenge open-ended for me: I want to make sure I’m reading to read, not to cross the work off a list. I’m going to read them all, mostly in order (although I may do some of the novels out of order to begin with), however long it takes me. For those of you who are also reading the works, you can make your personal challenge however you want: read x books in a year; read all the books in x time period; read all the books except ____; read in whatever order; etc. You decide. There are no “challenge police,” as someone once told me.

In a moment of wasting time, I designed some buttons for this challenge. I’ve based these on the book cover(s).

Or, you can continue to use the full book cover (as above).

I’ve also started a Shelfari HTR&W discussion group. Even if you won’t be reading all of the HTR&W works, come join our discussion there!

BAFAB Week

It was so much fun giving away a book this week that I am going to do it again. It’s Buy A Friend A Book Week. If you leave a comment on my blog, you’re my blogging friend! But I can’t buy you all a book.

To promote the HTR&W works, I’d love to giveaway a novel, play, collection of stories, or collection of poetry from the HTR&W list to anyone; you don’t have to have “committed” to the HTR&W challenge. If you want to be entered into a drawing to win one of them, leave a comment on this post, telling me which work on the HTR&W list you’d really like to read.

Next Sunday, I’ll randomly select a winner and send him/her that novel or play or the collection of short stories or poetry. This is open to anyone who can receive a shipment from Amazon.com, which I believe is the entire globe. (Please correct me if I’m wrong.)

Happy reading!

• BAFAB Week Winner
• Winner of Anthem + Swamped
• Challenges, A Personal Challenge, and a Giveaway!
• Like Water For Chocolate Winner!
• Thoughts on Blogging and Reading + HTR&W Giveaway Reminder
• A Meme, A Farewell, and A Giveaway Winner
• Harry Potter Giveaway Winner
• Call for Poetry Posts: Deadline Extended!
• HTR&W Preface and A Challenge
• How to Read and Why: Short Stories Retrospective

Reminder: On July 5, I’m drawing a name from those that are joining the HTR&W challenge. (Let me know by commenting on that post; I’ll wait until it’s July 5 in the USA to draw the name.) I’ll send the winner a copy of HTR&W; if you already own HTR&W, I’ll substitute another book or collection (poetry/short stories) on the HTR&W list valued under $20. I’ve added all the works from HTR&W to my Amazon store so you can find them in one place.

If you want to join with a caveat (such as, “I’ll read all the works except Proust’s 7-volume novel” or “I won’t reread any that I’ve already read”), I’ll still enter you in the drawing.

Why Do I Read?

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about why I read. Part of my questioning stems from reading Harold Bloom’s essays on reading, and part stems from my book blogging. When I first found the book blogging cyber-world a few months ago, I was so excited to have found dozens (no, hundreds) of other readers out there sharing their thoughts about books. I’ve enjoyed being a part of the book blogging community.

By reading blogs, I find more books I want to read. I’ve even dabbled in graphic novels (well, the two or three my local library has!). As a blogger, I find myself neglecting other priorities (cleaning my house) to get a book read (“I need to blog about it!”).

There are some good things about my new habits, but there are also some not-so-good things. For example, the kitchen floor really needs to be mopped. Instead, I’m writing this blog post.

Two things this week alerted me to the fact that something needs to change.

Incident 1

I sat in the doctor’s office Wednesday and opened my next book: In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. I’d finished a book that morning, and I was at the doctor’s office without my son. I could read!

I’ve wanted to read Capote for a long time. Then I read Katharine Graham autobiography and she was good friends with him. Then I read two or three fellow book bloggers’ reviews of In Cold Blood. I bumped In Cold Blood up my list; my library had it.

As I read, I was impressed with the writing. It was well-written and would be engaging. Ten pages later, it hit me: I don’t want to read about murder this week.

My mind tried to debate that (“You need to read it now because it’ll be due at the library!” and “You need to blog about it!”) but eventually I decided I’m not going to read it. I’m sure it’s good. But I’m not going to read it just to read it.

Incident 2

This week, I’ve been reviewing the HTR&W reading list. I have the goal to read all of it, and there are some really long books on the list! I found myself wishing I could be done with Proust so I could get to Faulkner and Toni Morrison. Then I realized that that is not the point of my goal to read the HTR&W works. My goal is to read the works slowly and determinedly. I am not meant to rush through this, turning pages just so I can cross it off a list. I’m meant to learn what it means to read well.

As soon as I realized that, I got very excited about each work. Next up: Chekhov’s stories. Which translation is best? Is there a “best?” I made a special trip to a library 30 minutes away to get the translation highly recommended on Amazon.com instead of reading the Project Gutenberg version. This is my chance to really embrace Chekhov’s stories. I’m going to do it right.

I’m likewise excited about many of the works on the list, even Proust. I’m also going to start now on the first novel, Don Quixote, even in the midst of the short stories. When I started wondering about translations and researching translators for Don Quixote, I decided not to: I can read Don Quixote in Spanish. Yes, I have lost my mind.

Just to clarify: while I did take a years of Spanish in college and I lived in Boliva for three months one summer break from college, I’m not actually fluent. I’m going to struggle through it with a dictionary, but I want to do it. If I’m going to read such a long book, why not really read it? As it was written. That will be a “difficult pleasure.” (We’ll see if I survive.)

My Resolution

I know I will read more graphic novels when I’m near a library that has them: they are interesting. I know I’ll read non-award-winning fiction, especially during weeks like last week when my son and I are both sick and I didn’t feel like doing much. I’ll keep reading Pulitzer-prize winners and Nobel prize-winning authors (a few a year), and I won’t give up my nonfiction. But I need to slow down again. I need to stop reading a book just so I can blog about it.

This post is my official resolution that I’m going to step away from the computer, stop compulsively checking Google Reader, and start reading again.

• Challenges, A Personal Challenge, and a Giveaway!
• HTR&W Winner + BAFAB Week
• Blogging Awards
• Blogging as Storytelling and Blogging Tips from an Unprofessional
• How to Read and Why: Short Stories Retrospective
• Comfort Reading
• Blogging Goals, Reading Journal (January 15), and a Winner
• Reading Journal (14 Oct): Blogging Burnout
• Google Reader Overload! + Blog Thoughts + Memelet
• My First Year of Blogging: A Contest with a Giveaway

I have been hesitant to sign up for challenges because I’m a perfectionist. While I know there are no “challenge police” coming to check that I’ve finished my reading, I can’t bring myself to say “I’ll read these books” if I don’t think I’m going to have time. (And I barely do these days.)

That said, I have signed up for a few challenges in the past two months that I’ve been blogging, I’ve started my own personal challenge (which I’d love for you to join if you want!), and I’m giving away a book in the coming weeks.

The Pulitzer Project

The Pulitzer Project is an ongoing challenge to read the fictional winners of the Pulitzer Prize. For myself, I’m also reading some of the nonfiction, biography, and history winners. I’ve read four Pulitzer Prize winning books thus far since I started blogging in May (three count toward The Pulitzer Project).

Read the Nobels

Read the Nobels is an ongoing challenge to read works or speeches by winners of the Nobel Laureates in Literature or information or biographies about the Laureates. I’ve read two works since I began blogging. I really like the fact that we can read information about the Laureates for this challenge as well as reading their work. I’m looking forward to “getting to know them.”

Nonfiction Five Challenge

The Nonfiction Five Challenge is a May-September 2008 challenge to read five works of nonfiction. I’ve read three books for the challenge so far, but you can see from my Genre list in the right sidebar that I love nonfiction. Visit here to see all the nonfiction I’ve reviewed since I’ve begun blogging. I mostly joined the Nonfiction Five Challenge because I loved the idea of sharing with others what I’ve read and I want to read their reviews too!

Graphic Novels Challenge

The Graphic Novels Challenge is one that I never would have considered until I read a review by Dewey that convinced me this was something I had to try. It runs for the whole year: read six graphic novels. Because I started late in the year, I only have to read three. I’ve already read two graphic novels and two more are on reserve at the library right now, waiting for me to pick them up. So far, I’m really enjoying this new medium for books! I think I’m going to read all six after all (although I still have never been invited to actually join the Graphic Novels Challenge blog, hint hint, despite asking to be invited…).

HTR&W Challenge (A Personal Challenge) and a Giveaway

I’ve also given myself a personal challenge for read all the works (short stories, poems, plays, and books) on the How to Read and Why list. I talk about the HTR&W Challenge here. I’d love to invite anyone else to join me in reading these works (it is a good list!). There wouldn’t be any “Challenge Police” to come after you; I’d just want to compare notes with you and follow your thoughts on your blog (if you have one). I think it’s a great list and a nice idea, but I know lots of people already have dozens of challenges and these books aren’t exactly recent best-sellers.

Now, I’m a new blogger, so I don’t know how to tell people about this personal challenge I’ve created. I also don’t know how many people are interested in reading the works featured in this book.

Nevertheless, I’ll send a copy of HTR&W to a randomly selected person interested in joining me in the HTR&W Challenge. Leave a comment on the HTR&W post or the reading list telling me that you are interested. I’ll extend the date until 5 July.

I’m excited to have found the book blogger community, and I look forward to our continuing book dialogues!

• The What? When? Where? Why? and How? of Challenges
• Ongoing and Personal Challenges – 2009
• Thoughts on Blogging and Reading + HTR&W Giveaway Reminder
• HTR&W Winner + BAFAB Week
• Lists and Challenges Updates
• Graphic Novels Challenge
• HTR&W Preface and A Challenge
• May and Milton in May in Review + Challenges Update and Reading Journal
• Nonfiction Five Challenge
• December in Review