Review: Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad

Wow...can we all just point at me and sigh (or mock and laugh at me derisively) because my reviews are so behind?  Like...months behind?  Heart of Darkness....I read this last year!  

 

Actually, scratch that...my reviews aren't behind.  Well, they are...but the only reason why they're behind is because I've been procrastinating on the other posts?  And I like to alternate them?  The posts just take so much time....ugh.  Well, summer is here!  I've got time!  Plenty of time!

Review: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Read: November 8-17, 2016
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Format: hardcover, 172 pages

Publication: June 1996 by Scribner Classics

Genres: classics, historical, romance

Blurb from Goodreads:

"The story of the fabulously wealthy Jay Gatsby and his love for the beautiful Daisy Buchanan, of lavish parties on Long Island at a time when, The New York Times remarked, "gin was the national drink and sex the national obsession," it is an exquisitely crafted tale America in the 1920s that resonates with the power of myth. A novel of lyrical beauty yet brutal realism, of magic, romance, and mysticism, The Great Gatsby is one of the great classics of twentieth century literature."

I had....super duper high hopes for this one.....and maybe that's why my rating is so low. I had friends who never read books read it, and tell me that it's a beautiful book. And the romance in this book was lovely. I. Got. None. Of. That.

Review: The Crucible by Arthur Miller

Read: Nov. 2-8, 2016
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars (although I'm tempted to give it 4)

Format: Paperback, 152 pages

Publication: October 1976 by Penguin Books

Genres: classic, play, historical fiction

Blurb from Goodreads:

"Arthur Miller's classic play about the witch-hunts and trials in 17th century Salem is a searing portrait of a community engulfed by hysteria. In the rigid theocracy of Salem, rumors that women are practicing witchcraft galvanize the town's most basic fears and suspicions. The ruthlessness of the prosecutors and the eagerness of neighbor to testify against neighbor brilliantly illuminate the destructive power of socially-sanctioned violence. Written in 1952, The Crucible famously mirrors the anti-communist hysteria that held the United States in its grip."

Okay, okay, so....

I realize that this is a....classic and it has a reputation for being a really great book.....

I also realize that there are many people who have reviewed this book and talked about all the significance and symbolism of this book....

So, because I read this book for pleasure and not school...I will "review" this as such.
Meaning, these are purely my rambling thoughts and nothing else.

Two Really Short Reviews

Peoples, I have here, two very short reviews.  Why am I choosing to combine two reviews, you ask?

Because they are very short.  That's why.  Don't think too much of it.

This first one was a classic, and kinda short....not that interesting...so...short review.  The next one....I really only thouroughly read a few pages of, so...also, short review.

Let's begin.

Review: Oedipus Rex by Sophocles

Read: October 31-November 1, 2016
Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Format: Paperback, 154 pages
Publication: May 2011 by University of Wisconsin Press
Genres: tragedy, classic, play, poetry

Blurb from Goodreads:

"Oedipus Rex is the greatest of the Greek tragedies, a profound meditation on the human condition. The story of the mythological king, who is doomed to kill his father and marry his mother, has resonated in world culture for almost 2,500 years. But Sophocles’ drama as originally performed was much more than a great story—it was a superb poetic script and exciting theatrical experience. The actors spoke in pulsing rhythms with hypnotic forward momentum, making it hard for audiences to look away. Interspersed among the verbal rants and duels were energetic songs performed by the chorus."

Guys! This is the first classic novel...wait, no...this isn't quite a novel....it's a play!  I've given 4 stars to!

Celebrate with me!

I finally found a classic novel....that I appreciated!

Review: Equus by Peter Shaffer

Read: October 24-29, 2016
Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Format: paperback, 106 pages
Publication: October 1984 by Penguin Books
Genres: play, classics

Blurb from Goodreads:

"An explosive play that took critics and audiences by storm, Equus is Peter Shaffer's exploration of the way modern society has destroyed our ability to feel passion. Alan Strang is a disturbed youth whose dangerous obsession with horses leads him to commit an unspeakable act of violence. As psychiatrist Martin Dysart struggles to understand the motivation for Alan's brutality, he is increasingly drawn into Alan's web and eventually forced to question his own sanity. Equus is a timeless classic and a cornerstone of contemporary drama that delves into the darkest recesses of human existence."

Hm.

This is actually the first play I've read....that isn't Shakespeare. And....surprisingly, it went pretty smoothly.

Review: The Awakening by Kate Chopin

Read: Sept. 23-Oct. 13, 2016
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
Format: Hardcover, 272 pages
Publication: December 1992 by Everyman's Library
Genres: Classic, historical fiction

Blurb from Goodreads:

"When first published in 1899, The Awakening shocked readers with its honest treatment of female marital infidelity. Audiences accustomed to the pieties of late Victorian romantic fiction were taken aback by Chopin's daring portrayal of a woman trapped in a stifling marriage, who seeks and finds passionate physical love outside the confines of her domestic situation.

Aside from its unusually frank treatment of a then-controversial subject, the novel is widely admired today for its literary qualities. Edmund Wilson characterized it as a work "quite uninhibited and beautifully written, which anticipates D. H. Lawrence in its treatment of infidelity." Although the theme of marital infidelity no longer shocks, few novels have plumbed the psychology of a woman involved in an illicit relationship with the perception, artistry, and honesty that Kate Chopin brought to The Awakening."