Moll Flanders by Daniel Defoe

[Karin]

Moll Flanders is not only a classic, but is is the tale of a strong, resourceful and resiliant woman from her youth until she is 70 (First person POV novel), and it became obvious fairly early on why the afterword of the edition I read was by a feminist author. I had no idea Defoe was such a proponent of strong women. Even as a child, she manages to get herself to stay in the home of a "good" family and to not be put into service, so she is raised like an upper class lady, and when push comes to shove, she manages many things to stay afloat, although much of it involves activities of nebulous moral character, including a dozen years as a rather accomplished thief. She lives in the colonies twice as well.

The reason this isn't 5 stars is because, quite frankly, the parts where Defoe details her belongings and wealth were boring to me as a contemporary reader, but given when it was written I am sure it makes sense. Also, like Robinson Crusoe, there are no chapters, so you just have to find your own stopping places if you're not going to read

[Jason]

I'm torn with Defoe, his writing is so compelling but boring at the same time. I can't even explain it. Adding to TBR.

[Book Concierge]

This is one of those books that my high school English teacher foisted on us .... and I used the Cliff's notes to make my way through that class.