The Count of Monte Cristo

Alexandre Dumas created a masterpiece. This is officially my second favorite book of all time- the first being Victor Hugo's Les Miserables. The depth, growth, plot complexity kept delivering. I love the message from this book - forgiveness, hope, love, So beautifully written.  I love these words: 

“There is neither happiness nor misery in the world; there is only the comparison of one state with another, nothing more. He who has felt the deepest grief is best able to experience supreme happiness.”

My favorite line from the Count:

 “[U]ntil the day when God will deign to reveal the future to man, all human wisdom is contained in these two words,—‘Wait and hope.’”

The Three Musketeers

I enjoyed this book. It seems a popular theme in this era is a beautiful villainous, French male writers seemed to love this concept. The Three Musketeers incorporates romance, action, and mystery. There does not seem to be any real moral purpose to this book, though. Good does not necessarily overcome evil, and even the love stories seem fickle. The most moral character seems to be Athos, who has encountered deep heart ache in his younger years which has shaped his view of women and general wisdom. Ironically the characters who seem to triumph and make moral choices in the end have no lovers. This may have something to do with Dumas view/interpretation of women. He seems to be the voice of Athos, who distrusts all women. I wonder if his other books have similar trends. Overall an enjoyable read but little depth.

Thomas Hardy Books

& Far from the Madding Crowd

Thomas Hardy seems to have a theme of messing up the lives of beautiful women. All of his books seem to have a pattern of unfortunate events for women. The women aren't even bad women just foolish and sometimes vain. He is a very interesting writer- though somewhat predictable after you have read one of his novels. Fun summer reads though- more like a snack or desert than a full meal. 

The Lord of the Rings

Well I'm now a believer in the Tolkien world and magic. The Hobbit didn't get me there but this book surely did. I love that each hobbit had a special heroic moment and the one who saved them all was the least among them- Samwise the simple farm servant, not even Froto's friend at the beginning of the journey. I think Tolkien is pointing out there is a heroic side to all of us if we put aside our selfish pursuits aside for the good of the quest, for the love of our friends, and for the good of all. Aragorn, the King of Rohan, Gandolf, and so many others showed the mark of a true hero and selflessly and bravely fought for good. It was interesting contrasting these heroes with characters who chose power and greed. Ultimately Tolkien was pointing out the all too common pride cycle and how the simple hobbits are the ones who were least effected by this due to their humble nature. We may not have rings of power in real life but we do have a human need for power and wealth. We may not need to go on a quest to destroy a ring but we all make our own quests to "put off the natural man" and destroy our human need for power, wealth and pride. The example of Samwise the simplest of the hobbits shows us that love is the answer. Loving our fellowmen above ourselves and putting off our selfish desires is the ultimate act and key to a heroic life.

The Hobbit

The Hobbit was a charming book. It didn't have the depth I expected with Tolkien and was slightly predictable and the plot resolved too easily but I did enjoy it. Fantasy has never been my thing but I had fun hearing about dragons, and treasure deep in the mountain. I remember watching the childrens movie with my brother when I was a kid and not liking the ending because it just seemed sad, but I didn't feel that way reading it. My favorite line was Thorin's last words to Blbo:

“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.”

– Last words of Thorin Oakenshield, King under the Mountain

I think Tolkien and the English have something with their tea time, and rules of hospitaltiy, and enjoyment of good food. In fact this quote inspired me to have more good food and music in my home and just enjoy. It seems many English writers including Dickens emphasize this theme and are critical of the quest for power and wealth. 

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The Silmarillion

People say this reads much like the bible, and they are right. Tolkien definitely mirrors a creation story to the bible, and interestingly enough string theory. In the beginning the main god created demi gods who all created amazing music in 3 movements with one particular demi god trying to take over the music in his heart, so their is discordance. So the main god then says "behold your creation" and thus begins the beginning of middle earth, the creation of elves, men, dwarfs, nature, and life and death and the histories of these demi gods and creations. I don't think I would have made it through this book had I not listened to it in the car. That way I was able to tune out the historical dull and capture the interesting stories and answer some of my questions about Tolkien's world before embarking on The Hobbit, and Lord of the Rings. I have much more respect for Tolkien and his works. He created histories, languages, and light and darkness. I'm happy that light always overcomes the darkness in his works. One of my favorite stories was of Beren and Luthien- the Romeo and Juliet lovers of Tolkiens world, the only ones who dared to take on the demi god Morgath ( Saurans master) for the chance to be together in their love. I do think some of these stories would make an incredible movie, but we will see what Peter Jackson chooses to do. Tolkien definitely is descriptive and creative enough in his writing to inspire some pretty amazing cinematography- so it really could be an incredible movie. And I do have to admit I am quite excited to begin the quest of The Hobbit and then Lord of the Rings now. (Wow 19 year old self, can you believe how far you have come in your inner nerd!)

Dead Souls

First of all I can see why this made the "20 classics you have to read before you die" list. His use of imagery and description is memorable. The characters are humorous and his use of irony is intriguing. "Our hero..." is a symbol of those many people enticed by vanity and prominence. The most pivotal conversation when the scheme is found out and "our hero" faces banishment is the good man who says - instead of holding onto all of these dead souls, focus on nourishing your soul, "your living soul". Like many however, the repentant words do not create a lasting change and "our hero" escapes likely to continue his schemes. The question of nourishing a soul comes to mind. It doesn't seemed nourished or changed through temporal gain, though amusing and interesting. Nourishing a soul seems to have to do more with ones own communion with god and sense of purpose and identity- people with this truly have a sense of peace and a well nourished living soul. "Our hero..." unfortunately seemed to have a dead soul.