bookloversnest’s Comments (group member since May 01, 2015)

bookloversnest’s comments from the Tea and Tales with Cate and Allison group.

I'd love to know where Lyndsay got the inspiration for the Punjab/Sikh storylines. Those were great!

Chandra wrote: "I think the only question I would have for the author is how she came up with this! Clearly from her love of Jane Eyre (I'm guessing). I wish I had a better question but feel at a loss without know..."

Do it!! *one of us, one of us*

Stacey (wanderlustforwords67) wrote: "Oh the judge. Yep he was yucky. And the thug, well you break in and you get what you get."

Texas law. ;)

Stacey (wanderlustforwords67) wrote: "Catie wrote: "Stacey, I thought Munt was absolutely loathsome! What a horrible man and character. I did not feel bad about his death at He actually felt a little like a Dickens character to

/i>

..."

The Judge, definitely.

Catie wrote: "LOL! You guys are too funny!

I definitely did think it was quite humorous how easily Jane was able to murder in the book. But, she clearly saw a real threat with each of the men she did kill. Did ..."

I think what really struck me is that Jane kills people who won't be accountable for their actions to the law. So while murder may be extreme, it kind of feels like a "reasonable option." I mean, who's going to care that some poor woman is getting beaten by her husband? Or that a judge is going after a prostitute's daughter. I think Jane targets those people who think there are no consequences for their actions.

Stacey (wanderlustforwords67) wrote: "What parts of Jane Steele's personality did you think were like JE and which were different?"

I think JS and JE are very similar and very different. Both have a sort of quiet confidence, which I think is critical to who they are. They know who they are and what they want, but they don't have to be loud and pushy about it.

JS is obviously much more willing to flout societal normals than JE is. I mean, JE runs away a the suggestion that she become Rochester's mistress. JS isn't as ruffled by things like this.

Stacey (wanderlustforwords67) wrote: "bookloversnest wrote: "Catie wrote: "Since we are talking about the murders my first question I wanted to discuss is:

Jane is convinced from the day she kills her cousin that she is irredeemably e..."

Haha, so true! Murder seemed to be her answer for everything! This isn't working, so he/she's got to go!

Chandra wrote: "I think her cousin was an accident but I think she wasn't as appalled as she would've been had she not had a tendency towards the dark side (for lack of better words right now). I think it definite..."

I agree! The fact that she wasn't appalled when she killed Edwin is pretty telling.

Catie wrote: "Since we are talking about the murders my first question I wanted to discuss is:

Jane is convinced from the day she kills her cousin that she is irredeemably evil. Do you agree with her that she "..."

Great question, Cate!

I think this is difficult to judge in part because Jane is operating from a 19th century British understanding of murder while we're operating from a 20th century American understanding. Edwin's murder definitely borders on accidental or maybe even self-defense, so I don't view it as a straightforward murder.

While I don't think that Jane is irredeemably evil, I do think that there is something about her that enjoys the macabre and sort of "shameful" part of life (i.e. sex, the gallows confessions, swearing, etc.). So I think she'd probably still kill people if she hadn't caused Edwin's death at the beginning.

Catie wrote: "Yes! For some reason, before reading this, I heard that the book was modern. I was so glad to see it was a period piece.

Also, were you under the impression that it was a re-telling of Jane Eyre?..."

I totally went in to Jane Steele thinking it was a retelling. Kind of like Pride & Prejudice & Zombies (which I actually haven't read). But I like that the book references JE a lot and pulls a lot of inspiration from it while remaining an original work. I agree that it was so much better than a retelling. I think it would have had to be modern if it was a retelling, and I loved the 19th century setting!

Chandra wrote: "Oh hiii it's Chandra. I liked this a lot. Never read Jane eyre but didn't feel like I missed anything because of it. Reminded me a little of Dexter :)."

It totally reminded me of Dexter, too! Especially since Jane's murders have a reason (i.e. they're not just out of the blue).

Stacey (wanderlustforwords67) wrote: "Oops didn't give thoughts. I liked it, but having just read Jane Eyre for the first time right before, I didn't like it nearly as much as JE. It was ridiculous in parts which made me laugh. And, I ..."

It definitely was so ridiculous in parts - I think that gave the book so much charm!

Hi Chandra! Hi Stacey! Glad you both could join us tonight!

Hey everyone! Allison here. :) I can't wait to discuss Jane Steele with you all!

Like last time, when you hop on, please post your name and a few thoughts about the book.

I'm Allison (duh!), and I enjoyed this book! It was a fun, slightly macabre take on Jane Eyre, and I had a great time reading it!

Hey everyone!

For May, we'll be reading When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi. This came in second on our April poll, and Cate and I thought it would be great to mix things up and try nonfiction/memoir. I hope you all enjoy this book - I've heard nothing but great things about it! Stay tuned for when we announce our live discussion for When Breath Becomes Air.

Happy reading!

Allison

Hey everyone! Wow, this conversation was great! Though Cate and I can't believe the time flew by. We're going to go ahead and wrap things up here, but feel free to keep chatting if you'd like (we just won't be around to moderate). We'll post the rest of the questions from the reading group guide tomorrow, so feel free to answer those if/when you get the chance.

Thanks for an awesome live discussion! You made this such a success!

Kirstie wrote: "Hay there sorry for popping in late to the discussion, actually thought I would miss it when I realised what time it was at its 3:21 AM where I am but I guess luckily the Stephen King I was reading..."

Welcome Kristie! I hope we don't keep you up too late! So glad you popped in! We're all over the place, so feel free to just jump in!

Tange wrote: "I think the education definitely equipped Melanie...otherwise she may have just been like those other little 'hungries' at the end...not able to reason and deduct."

Totally agree! And I think her ability to spend time with and form relationships with the teachers, mainly Miss J, was crucial to her behavior once outside the base. If she hadn't had the sort of human contact, I don't think she'd felt as bad about eating humans.

Here's the next question from the reading group guide:

3. Education is a theme of the novel, with questions raised about the value of education, what we choose to teach our children, and what that choice says about society. Does Melanie's education equip her for the world she lives in? Do you agree with the choices that her teachers made?

Tange wrote: "I am curious how this new species will survive though...they are definitely meat eaters."

Good point! I wondered that, too!