I recently finished The Woman in White and Wide Sargasso Sea. The paperback editions of each had dreadful covers of television or movie adaptations. How, I ask you, am I supposed to take books seriously that look like this:
or this:
?
I think I’m to be commended that I recognized the value of both books in spite of their covers. I’ve only seen one photo tie-in cover that I ever liked, The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje:
I watched Lady from Shanghai last year on TCM, but it is much better on the big screen. In noir tradition, there is a big lug of a guy with dodgy morals (Orson Welles), the femme fatale (Rita Hayworth), the smart, irritating man (her husband), and an incomprehensible plot. No matter, for the style is mesmerizing, as is the closing scene in the house of mirrors. Welles was married to Hayworth at the time. Is the movie a metaphor for his powerlessness in the wake of her beauty and fame?
My old book group had Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys on their “to read” list for ages, and it never was selected. I’ve been meaning to read it since I first read Jane Eyre a couple years ago, and finally have. Rhys has imagined the backstory for the character of the first Mrs. Rochester. It’s a slim, deceptively difficult novel to read. Set in Jamaica, the narrative has the vagueness and heat of a fever dream. Many things are mentioned as matter of fact, and I had a continued unease that I didn’t understand the text, or they wouldn’t be explained, though nearly all of them were further into the book.
Antoinette is the daughter of a former slave owner and his beautiful Creole (white West Indian) second wife. The unrest in the islands leads to early tragedy in her family that never loses its hold. She is the narrator of the first section.
Seeking security, her family marries her off to young Mr. Rochester, new to the islands and barely recovered from fever. He narrates most, but not all, of the second section–though I haven’t seen this noted in most analyses, there is one departure that is told from Antoinette’s point of view. He is the second son of a wealthy English family, so he has no prospects of fortune of his own. He receives a large dowry, and the marriage starts off well enough. Rochester is young and paranoid, though, and the gossip about his wife and her family history make an impression on him. The marriage falters through several ugly incidents, until Rochester plans to leave.
The third section is narrated again by Antoinette, who Rochester now calls Bertha, because he likes the name. She is a prisoner in his home, and drifts in and out of lucidity as she moves toward her place in the narrative of Jane Eyre.
This is not an easy, or enjoyable, read. It is often hard to follow and understand. It is haunting, though, as well as provocative, disturbing and tragic. It looks at unpleasant truths about family, slavery, sexism, and racism. I will read this book again; I feel certain that it will yield more the second time around. Next time, I will read the annotated Norton Critical edition. I’d like to find out more about the history and world politics of the time.
Wilkie Collins’ Woman in White is another link in my book chain that’s followed The Thirteenth Tale. Along with Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights, Woman in White is mentioned several times. Like T13T, WiW is a fun, engaging thriller, with many odd and humorous characters. A young art teacher helps a woman one night, and finds himself tangled up in her destiny, which has a wide reach. There’s thwarted love, mistaken identity, dire secrets, and one of the best, most entertaining villains I’ve encountered in a long while, and he doesn’t even appear until 200+ pages in. Count Fosco, as he would undoubtedly tell you himself, is an astonishing character. Villainous, hilarious, and so fascinating to imagine that I wouldn’t want him to be dramatized in a movie–a real actor could not do justice to the many descriptions and characteristics of this vain, vile, large and tall man.
The tale is told in sequential narratives by different characters. This is done very well–events are not repeated, but expanded on from the point of view of another character when they overlap. The narratives are all well distinguished in the voice of their character. The mystery and its resolution unfold up to the very end, and I was happily engaged with this book for its 600+ pages.
At some passages, I raised my eyebrows:
The rod of iron with which he rules [his wife] never appears in company–it is a private rod, and is always kept upstairs.
Indeed. Ahem.
Other passages, especially ones by villains or lesser characters, made me laugh out loud:
Creaking shoes invariably upset me for the day. I was resigned to see the Young Person, but I was NOT resigned to let the Young Person’s shoes upset me. There is a limit to my endurance.
By the end, in fact, I was rather bored with the two main characters; they were comparatively dull, and largely overshadowed by the larger, more complex and entertaining cast. I think, though, this was intentional. In all, it was a “thumping good read.” I tried and failed to confirm the origin of this phrase (is it the book award?), but it means a book that is enjoyable for its story more than for its literary art, much as I felt about The Thirteenth Tale.
I enjoyed the new version of Persuasion on PBS last weekend. It kicked off The Complete Jane Austen. My enjoyment, though, may be because it’s been some time since I’ve read the book. Additionally, I never saw the 1995 version that many book bloggers, like Book Moot, champion. I thought Sally Hawkins was realistically pretty. And while Rupert Penry-Jones can’t really be called realistically handsome, I am able to overlook that in an Austen leading man. Heh heh. The story was shrunk very small to fit into 90 minutes. I didn’t care for Anne Elliott’s meaningful looks to the camera. I did very much enjoy Anthony Head’s turn as Anne’s vain father, though.
I plan to seek out the 1995 version after I’ve re-read the novel, most likely in the summer, when PBS’s spring of Jane has finished.
The first of Take-up’s Monday Night Noir series, So Cool So Cruel, at the Parkway was Double Indemnity, one of the best early film noirs. The style or genre of noir is American, and got its name from the series of French translations, Serie Noire, of American writers such as Raymond Chandler, Cornell Woolrich, and Dashiell Hammett.
Fred MacMurray’s slick insurance salesman is seduced by the sultry Barbara Stanwyck into plotting her husband’s demise. Some of Billy Wilder and Raymond Chandler’s excellent dialogue is so dated that the audience can’t help but laugh, which is too bad, because we miss the next zinger. MacMurray’s sexual banter with Stanwyck is exhilarating, but more intriguing are his interactions with his co-worker, the claims investigator he’s trying to fool. Terms like love and close friends are tossed about as if they’re ironic, yet with an emphasis that points to something more real.
If you plan to check out other films in the So Cool So Cruel series, go early. The lines for tickets and popcorn were long and labyrinthine. The movies and theater I recommend, but the popcorn–not so much.
January 21, 2008 The Lady from Shanghai (1947)
January 28, 2008 Underworld U.S.A. (1961)
February 4, 2008 Our Man In Havana (1959)
February 11, 2008 Night and the City (1950)
Semicolon hosts the Saturday Review of books. I found this through Mental Multivitamin, and I enjoy the community of reviewers. It’s interesting to read differing and similar views of books I’ve read, and check out reviews of books I want to read.
Today is the birthday of M. Giant, the author of the very funny Velcrometer. Almost six years ago, M. said to G. Grod and me, “Hey, I started a blog. Check it out.” I did, and thought, “Hey, I can do that. Not nearly as hilariously, but still, it probably won’t completely suck.” So if you occasionally enjoy this weblog, you have M. Giant to thank for it. And if you hate the blog, well, I really don’t understand why you haven’t clicked away by now, but don’t blame M. All responsibility accrues to me for that.
I noted earlier this week that M Giant wants us to pre-order his book from amazon to spike his rating. I’m off to do just that. Happy birthday M, and happy weekend, all.
I don’t have much time to devote to last night’s show, “On Garde.” There were a few surprises, one of them the designer who was auf’d. Also, how is Ricky’s teflon butt escaping being kicked out each week? Mostly, though I’m left with the question of whether Jillian and Victorya have one emotion, between them? They’re not women, they’re FEMBOTS! The only time I saw V. look animated was when Team Fierce won, and it was almost as if her processor told her, “You are human, yet must be a good loser. Look happy when others win.”
Why did she look happy then, and as if she were sucking lemons the whole rest of the time? And why did the design seem so much of J, and so little of V?
Oh, how I wish I’d been on the couch chez Project Rungay.
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Your Personality is Very Rare (INFP) |
 Your personality type is dreamy, romantic, elegant, and expressive. Only about 5% of all people have your personality, including 6% of all women and 4% of all men |
Link from Pages Turned. SFP is the vile temptress who lured me to this quiz.
OK, I’m in for The Sarah Connor Chronicles. Lena Headey is Sarah, filling the huge shoes of Linda Hamilton from Terminator 2. She seems a little too pretty and fine boned for the part, but I heard no trace of her English accent, and she did a more-than-capable job–believable and likable right away. The music was straight out of Battlestar Galactica. Thomas Dekker as John is a little more of a problem. Not necessarily the actor, but his meek, mother-smothered character. Do I really believe that this is the kid that the delinquent of T2 turned into? Not sure.
According to the press, the show takes place after T1 and T2, and T3 is largely ignored. Like many a dodgy sequel, T3 isn’t factored into continuity. The premiere of T:TSCC was a huge hit, though it’s not like it had any significant competition, given the strike. The pilot was a good, solid show. Entertaining, and a decent segue from T2 to TV.
I hope that Dean Winters as her former boyfriend sticks around. He was entertaining on both Rescue Me and 30 Rock as Dennis, the Pager King. But he’s not listed in the cast on imdb, so either I’m mistaken that it was him, or he’s certainly not sticking around.
In the car, friends and I were enjoying U2’s “Where the Streets Have No Name” on the radio. All three of us were shocked when the DJ’s post song comment was that The Joshua Tree’s 20th anniversary was to be marked with a re-mastered deluxe, 2-disc re-issue. Twenty years? We goggled. How could it be that long? We each recalled what our life was when the album came out. I was in college. I bought the cassette at Ohlsson’s Books and Records on Wisconsin Ave. in DC. I listened to it with friends on the commute to distant work sites like Burke, Virginia. We alternated it with Erasure’s The Innocents, and usually were smoking cigarettes in the car. When I think of the particulars, twenty years doesn’t seem so outlandish.
I think Joshua Tree is U2’s best album. It’s thoughtful without the preachiness that marred Rattle and Hum, or the egotism and flash of Zooropa. My husband, G. Grod, asserts that their best album is Achtung, Baby. How about you? Does Joshua Tree’s reiusse bring back 20-year-old memories? And what do you think of it compared to Achtung, Baby?
Queen and Country vol. 8 Operation Red Panda collects issues 29 to 32 of the Oni Press comic-book series, which is taking a break while author Rucka focuses on other projects.
Tara Chace is Minder 1 for Britain’s S.I.S., or MI6, which deals with international affairs. She’s a tough, smart, savvy spy who has seen far too much tragedy in her years of service. Operation: Red Panda finds her returned after a mission gone wrong, and pressed back to service quickly, without time to recover mentally, emotionally, and physically. The new mission is an unauthorized one, so even if it succeeds, it will cause trouble. In an interesting twist, though, Chace and her partner encounter trouble that could not have been anticipated.
Rucka has written two Queen and Country prose novels as part of this series. If you like international spy novels, and enjoyed the television series MI5 or the Jason Bourne movies, this is a good series to check out.
The best place to start is with the Whiteout graphic novels, where Chace is introduced. They’re good stories, told well in words and art.
PBS’s Masterpiece presents Sundays with Jane during the first four months of 2008. Small screen adaptations (some new, some previous) air each Sunday, with subsequent reruns throughout the week.
January 13, 2008 (and this week): Persuasion
January 20, 2008: Northanger Abbey
January 27, 2008: Mansfield Park
February 3, 2008: Miss Austen Regrets
February 10, 17, and 24: Pride and Prejudice (1995, with Colin Firth as Darcy)
March 23, 2008: Emma (1996 with Kate Beckinsale in the title role)
March 30, April 6, 2008: Sense and Sensibility
Consider reading all the novels. I finally did so last year, and enjoyed them a good deal.
Me to 4yo Drake: Would you like to go outside?
Drake: No
Me: Would you like to call G-G (great grandmother)?
D: No
Me: What would you like to do?
Drake: (Pause) Do we have a hose?
The author of Velcrometer, M Giant’s birthday is this Friday, the 18th of January. He knows what he wants:
Pre-order my book. No, not yet!
My birthday is Friday, January 18th. On that day, let’s say in the afternoon, I would love it if as many people as possible would go to Amazon and preorder my book, A TV Guide to Life. You may think this is a poorly veiled ploy to artificially inflate my Amazon ranking for a brief moment. Nothing could be further from the truth. It is in fact a bare-ass naked ploy. You want in?
I’m thinking 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Central Time will be the ideal window. I’d love to just say 3:00 p.m. straight up, but I don’t know how many of you have Amazon blocked on your work computers.
M. is a funny, fine writer, and a good guy to boot. Consider buying his book this Friday.
Twin Citians, Take-Up Productions presents Monday Night Film Noir at the Parkway theater, at (NB, this has been corrected to) 7:30pm. Tonight is Double Indemnity. The Parkway is a great, old theater and serves delicious popcorn with real butter.
Noir film is a growing interest for me, in response to Ed Brubaker’s excellent ongoing comic book, Criminal. Furthering my interest was a piece from last year, “Rerunning Film Noir” by Richard Schickel at The Wilson Quarterly (link from Arts and Letters Daily), which had some interesting insight into the aims of noir.
Traditional scholarship on this mostly American style of film said that the dark mood was a response to the discomfort of peacetime after WWII. Schickel proposes alternate interpretations that I think have a great deal of merit.
Noir films, with their greatly intensified visual style and their stress on perverse psychology, weren’t reflecting our misery in a peacetime economy….Instead, their aims were quite different (don’t forget, they were meant to entertain). For one, they were trying to give the traditional crime film a new lease on Âlife–Âparticularly in the way it represented the city’s place in the postwar world. Somewhat more originally, they were placing a new stress on the power of the Âpast–Âsomething most of us thought we had Âburied–Âto reach out and twist our fates when we least expected that to Âhappen.
Semicolon hosts The Saturday Review of Books. It has a good community of readers; check it out.
Henry James’s Turn of the Screw was the first thing I wanted to read when I finished The Thirteenth Tale.
…the book is a rather silly story about a governess and two haunted children. I am afraid that in it, Mr. James exposes the extent of his ignorance. He knows little about children and nothing at all about governesses. –Hester Barrow, The Thirteenth Tale
I’ve seen Turn of the Screw referenced many times, but had not yet read it. It’s a short novella, with a strange introduction, in which nameless people tell tales at a house party. The story becomes the read-aloud narrative of a governess with two children in her care. She believes they see ghosts, but her reliability as a narrator is continually underscored. Most analyses say that the intrigue of the novel lies in its tension between whether the governess is imagining things or the children are seeing ghosts. I prefer to think it’s not either/or, and instead is both. The governess uses vocabulary that implies an excited state–”erect” and “intercourse” among them. Further, I think there is the potential for an implied impropriety between the “boy” (whose age is never named) and the governess, in whose arms he dies. It’s a short novel that’s packed with possible interpretations–an intriguing read.
For other books I’ve read, see my library at Gurulib.com
My gripe is not with lovers of the truth but with truth herself. What succor, what consolation is there in truth, compared to a story? What good is truth, at midnight, in the dark, when the wind is roaring like a bear in the chimney? What you need are the plump comforts of a story. The soothing, rocking safety of a lie. –Vida Winter
The Thirteenth Tale is a great story. This is not the same as great literature. It’s an homage to the love of reading, specifically gothic novels of the 1800s including Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, and The Woman in White, all of which get multiple shout outs in the text. I found The Thirteenth Tale hard to put down, and a joy to re-read. It has a significant reveal that makes re-reading a particular pleasure, since I knew from the get go of this read what the secret was, and could note the hints of it as I read.
The book has heavily influenced the next books I hope to read. Check out my TBR shelf in my library at Gurulib.com to see where it’s leading me.