Rita’s Comments (group member since Jul 23, 2010)

Rita’s comments from the Unlocking Books group.

I haven't read the second book yet, but I liked the plot very much. The author did an excellent job of presenting a mystery that I couldn't wait to solve.

The passive voice and the telling got to me in this story. I was reading it as an audiobook, and I remember rolling my eyes a lot.

The other thing that bothered me was the way that the MC (wasn't his name Thomas) stepped in and solved the mystery. That just seemed to convenient.

But on the other hand, I really think this author has so much potential. I'm hoping he grows and develops his craft because I'm looking forward to what he comes up with next.

I just read a Catherine Fisher book (Incarceron), and I was greatly impressed with her world building. The beginning was a bit confusing because the prison Incarceron is a vastly different concept than anything I've read before. It took me some time to figure out that the prison was it's own world rather than a building. So those who were standing outside were still inside the prison. Once I understood that, the story came together. I think the ending needed a little more to tie it together, but there's a sequel and I'm hoping the sequel will give me the answers to my questions.

I don't often reread books. I don't have the time, but Hunger Games and its sequels will definitely be rereads for me too.

Jeanne wrote: "Classic books are those that have stood the test of time. They are meaningful to one generation after another.

How do they manage to appeal to people hundreds or thousands of years after they were..."

The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare was one that my mother recommended to me. She said, "I read this one when I was young and I still remember it to this day."

Of my parents, my mother was NOT the reader. She's more artsy, where my dad is more analytical and is proud of his word-prowess. He was the reader.

But because of my mom, I picked up that book, and because of my mom, I have recommended that book to my own daughters. It's a beautiful story that I've never forgotten.

S.M. wrote: "Let's add Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit to that fantasy list. Gulliver's Travels.... Oh so many!"

Gulliver's Travels was a blessing to me. I was going through a dark time in my life--typical college stress plus I had health issues--and I was having nightmares every night.

Then I picked up Gulliver's Travels. Such a joy to read. I hadn't laughed so much and it completely dispelled the dark clouds and stress. In fact, I had some of the most beautiful dreams after reading that book, including one where I danced with an elephant.

Sorry for the reminiscing tangent.

That's an excellent definition, Paige. I remember reading A Separate Peace in high school, and one of the things that I still remember from that book is the depth of character. Depth of character would the 3rd thing I'd add to your list.

Is a book labeled as a classic just because it's old? Or is there something about it that calls to generation after generation?

In the books of today, what qualities do we look for that would make them become classics?

I heard about this book from Renee. The story of a young boy dealing with abuse in his family. I'm adding it to my to-read list.

Mark Twain is one of those people from history that I deeply respect. His quotes on work are words I live by:

"What work I have done I have done because it has been play. If it had been work I shouldn't have done it.

Who was it who said, "Blessed is the man who has found his work"? Whoever it was he had the right idea in his mind. Mark you, he says his work--not somebody else's work. The work that is really a man's own work is play and not work at all. Cursed is the man who has found some other man's work and cannot lose it. When we talk about the great workers of the world we really mean the great players of the world. The fellows who groan and sweat under the weary load of toil that they bear never can hope to do anything great. How can they when their souls are in a ferment of revolt against the employment of their hands and brains? The product of slavery, intellectual or physical, can never be great.

- "A Humorist's Confession," The New York Times, 11/26/1905"

Which of Mark Twain's books did you enjoy most? What did they mean to you?

Bernadette wrote: "I think pairing a classic and a modern YA book would be an ideal practice in the classroom - they could be paired by theme, genre, setting, etc."

Bernadette, that sounds like an awesome way to handle it. I've set up a poll for book reads for the month of December. I tried to pick 3 for older teens to choose from and 3 for younger teens to choose from. When the poll is finalized, maybe we can find a similar classic to read along with it.

Sharon wrote: "True story: I got the chance to play my favorite character when I was in high school.

Mercutio.

I was built like a boy until I was 16, LOL."

How funny. When you think about the boys playing the female roles in Shakespeare's day...

Jeanne wrote: "Speaking of fools, how about King Lear?"

When I think of King Lear, I am reminded of a fairy tale I once read about a king who asked his three daughters for a valuable gift to prove their love. The youngest gave her father a dish of salt. Angry, he banished her.

Years later, the reknown of a certain chef filled the land, and the king just had to have this chef in his castle. The first meal served by this chef was horrible, and the king demanded the chef to explain why the food was awful.

The chef revealed that she was the king's long lost daughter and that she had cooked without salt because he had spurned her gift. The king quickly changed his mind and restored his daughter to her place.

A much happier ending than King Lear.

That is awesome. I'm looking forward to reading what you write about those books.

Bernadette wrote: "Rita wrote: "Bernadette, are you a teacher? Grade shool or high school?

I think Speak would be a great book to discuss in a classroom. Good for both male and female students to understand what rap..."

Bernadette, that's very interesting how Egypt differs from here. So what kind of literature books are covered in the high school classrooms?

Jeanne, you would have been an awesome homeschool mom. Your children have been so blessed to have you.

My favorite play is As You Like It. Though I've never seen it performed, I've read it many times. But I think Much Ado About Nothing is a very close second.

My favorite character is the fool from Twelfth Night. Shakespeare was a master at making wise fools and foolish wise men. Twelfth Night is probably the best at showing both of these roles.

When I was 15, my parents moved to a Bible college where my parents were professors, but it wasn't designed like most colleges. The teachers and students all live together. More of a discipleship program.

One of the students had been a drama / music major in college, and she was into sci-fi & fantasy movies and books, and she loved Shakespeare. She read Hamlet with me after I had to read Romeo and Juliet for school. I was quickly addicted to Shakespeare, and by 10th grade, I had read most of the most popular plays and several of the more obscure ones too.

That branched into other areas of literature. So for my birthday, someone bought me Les Mis & Vanity Fair. Then I started getting interested in collecting old books.

By the way, Jeanne, I added a Classics folder for book discussions. If there are any books you'd like to add, you can start a thread for it.

When I was a teenager, I read everything Shakespeare I could get my hands on, and it has served me well over the years as it brought me and my husband together. Our first "real" date was to see The Tempest at the Cincinnati Shakespeare Company in downtown Cincinnati.

We have since seen Much Ado About Nothing set in a hippie commune, Taming of the Shrew as a western, Comedy of Errors as a campy sci-fi, and Hamlet set in the WWII, all of them with the original language in tact.

I love Shakespeare, especially the comedies, so I am hoping for some great discussion.

What's your favorite play? Do you prefer the comedies, the tragedies, or the histories? Who is your favorite character?

I read a lot of the classics when I was a teenager--Tess of the D'Ubervilles, Silas Marner, The Mill on the Floss, Vanity Fair, A Tale of Two Cities, Les Misérables, The Count of Monte Cristo, Emma, Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, The Fountainhead, Atlas Shrugged... I also read more by Jane Austen, Hardy, Dumas, and Hugo, plus everything by Shakespeare I could get my hands on. And none of these were assigned reading.

But so many of these books were depressing, and I burned out reading them by the time I was a senior in high school. I think that's why I couldn't like The Great Gatsby when I read it in college.

Jeanne wrote: "Have you read The Red and the Black? Well, it's very naughty -- a French classic. Nope, better wait until you're a bit older. It might give you naughty ideas. ;-) "

Now there's a challenge if I ever heard one. Did you intend for a 17 year old of the male species to be able to resist that? Or are you slyer than I expected?

So is this the book The Red and the Black? Would you be able to write a review for me? I would include it on our blog.

Bernadette, are you a teacher? Grade shool or high school?

I think Speak would be a great book to discuss in a classroom. Good for both male and female students to understand what rape is all about. It's good for girls to know that it's okay to speak up if this happens to them.

It's good for boys to understand what girls go through. Some day, these boys will be men with wives who may have been abused or with daughters that need to be protected.

I don't believe in banning any book, but this book in particular makes me so angry when I hear about people wanting to ban it. This is an important book to educate our young people on a topic that all young people face, whether personally or in watching a friend deal with it.