The 306 Greatest Books #31 - Pride and Prejudice

I am going back and posting all of my previous book reviews so that they are listed on my site in chronological order. The reviews are dated for the time when I read the book, hence the reason many of them will be listed for times before this website existed. 

The next up on my reading of the 306 greatest books is Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. This book can be found on the Sybervision, Norwegian, BBC, and My Book Lists. 

During the early part of the 1800's there was a series series of books written that could generally be classified as romantic time period pieces. Many of these books were written by women who remain as popular today as the day they were written, especially Jane Austen, who is possibly the most famous of them all. The first of Austen's novels that I dove into, Pride and Prejudice, is possibly her best, if not her most famous novel. The story follows the lives of several socialites, all of varying social classes, trying to woo each other. Austen's writing style is full of whit and satire, and although it is incredibly intelligently written it still remains easy to read, a feat many authors fail at. She manages to take a variety of people, all with various attitudes and mannerisms, and involve them in a believable, yet very funny, series of verbal confrontations ranging from topics of marriage, money, and social class. This is definitely a book on my must read list and my favorite of her works.

The 306 Greatest Books #30 - Great Expectations

I am going back and posting all of my previous book reviews so that they are listed on my site in chronological order. The reviews are dated for the time when I read the book, hence the reason many of them will be listed for times before this website existed. 

The next up on my reading of the 306 greatest books is Great Expectations by Charles Dickens. This book can be found on the Sybervision, Norwegian, BBC, and My Book Lists. 

Great Expectations was one of Dickens' last novels, and by far one of his best. The novel follows Pip, a street orphan, as he is saved by a convict and eventually grows up to find love. While reading through the story it can be a bit slow at times but overall the story is well written and easy to follow. This book, along with most of Dickens' other works, also suffers from the eternal optimism that is a hallmark of Dickens writing, however it flows much more easily in this story than in others where it often feels forced. The story tackles many themes including wealth versus the poverty we see Pip start out with, love and rejection, and good versus evil. It is definitely a story with a warm heart at its center, as can be found usually with Dickens. 

The 306 Greatest Books #29 - A Tale of Two Cities

I am going back and posting all of my previous book reviews so that they are listed on my site in chronological order. The reviews are dated for the time when I read the book, hence the reason many of them will be listed for times before this website existed. 

The next up on my reading of the 306 greatest books is A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. This book can be found on the Sybervision and BBC Book Lists. 

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." This is perhaps the most memorable opening to a novel in the history of literature (except perhaps Moby Dick), but it is also a novel that seems to have faded from my memory over time. I have found Dickens himself becomes a bit drab to read. He likes to pull his punches in his stories, so in the end they don't have as much of an impact as they could otherwise have. The book itself was a rather enjoyable book though about London and Paris (the aforementioned two cities) during the time of the French and American Revolutions. It is a romance showing how far people are willing to go for the ones they love during times of crisis. The story ended up being rather confusing at times and it is definitely not Dickens' best work, but an enjoyable story nonetheless. 

The 306 Greatest Books #28 - The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

I am going back and posting all of my previous book reviews so that they are listed on my site in chronological order. The reviews are dated for the time when I read the book, hence the reason many of them will be listed for times before this website existed. 

The next up on my reading of the 306 greatest books is The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. This book can be found on the Sybervision Book List. 

Although The Adventures of Tom Sawyer was written first and is really the first book in the pair (with The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn), I'm sure I am like most people now-a-days having read Huckleberry Finn first. Mainly because it was required for school, but also because it is just considered a better book. The two books are not so reliant on each other that you even have to read Tom Sawyer. So, having finally delved into Tom Sawyer I was really disappointed by it, especially given how much of a hallmark Huckleberry Finn is in modern American culture. The book itself is good on it's own, but in the shadow of it's more successful sequel, it definitely pales in comparison. While Twain seemed to be trying to make a political satire with Huckleberry Finn, much of that is lacking in this story, causing the book to have a much more "for kids" feel about it. The gist of the story is mainly about Tom manipulating everyone to get what he wants done, then having some minor adventures around town. The most interesting parts of the story for me though were when some aspects this story reappear in Huckleberry Finn.

The 306 Greatest Books #27 - Frankenstein

I am going back and posting all of my previous book reviews so that they are listed on my site in chronological order. The reviews are dated for the time when I read the book, hence the reason many of them will be listed for times before this website existed. 

The next up on my reading of the 306 greatest books is Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. This book can be found on the Sybervision and Observer Book Lists. 

There are many stories on this list that quickly fade from memory. Upon looking at a synopsis I can often regain what the story was about and some plot details but many are just unremarkable. Frankenstein is not one of those books. I recall this book in vivid detail, despite writing this 15 years after initially reading the book. The story is very well known by this point in our history. A doctor keeps experimenting, and eventually succeeds, in bringing someone back from the dead. Actually a lot of someones, since the monster is essentially an amalgamation of a bunch of different parts. But the story itself brings up a very unique quandary. Should humanity attempt to play God, and what happens when it occurs. It is a very short read, having read it in only two days. And the writing itself is not that great. I found the book felt "unpolished", for lack of a better word. But the concept is what keeps Frankenstein in the social conscious. Many movie adaptations lack the essential part of the book, which is that the monster is not only self aware, but a fully intelligent individual intent on discovering why he was created by his master, otherwise known as his God. The book is written as a series of journal articles, a method not commonly done back in those times, however is remarkably similar to Dracula in that way. Through this method you get inside Doctor Frankenstein's mind as he works his way through his creation. A very clever book indeed, and one that I'm sure will stick with you through time.