30 Day Book Challenge, Day 13: Who is your favorite author?

I was really struggling to answer this question, so I asked my husband for help. "David, who is my favorite author?"


He didn't hesitate one second before replying, "Shakespeare."

"He's a playwright! Does that count?" I mused, aloud.

"He AUTHORED plays. I think it counts."

Hmmmmm. I wasn't so sure. So I decided to ask my son. "Graham, who is my favorite author?" Again, the response came in a blink of an eye: "Shakespeare!"

"He's a playwright! And a poet! But not a novelist! Do you think he counts?"

"He's an author. Of course it counts."

So, there you have it. According to those who know me best, Shakespeare is my favorite author. I do love the Elizabethan bard! He can turn a phrase better than anyone, he can be funny and silly or pithy and deep. The characters he creates are strangely real and relate-able. But as much as I do LOVE Shakespeare, I prefer to watch his plays than to read them. I have read them, every one. I studied the complete works of Shakespeare in college. And in studying them I gained a deep appreciation for his linguistic brilliance. But his plays were written to be preformed. If you want an taste of his genius, I highly recommend the 1993 Kenneth Branagh production of Much Ado About Nothing!

Apparently my favorite author is playwright.

30 Day Book Challenge, Day 15: What is a book you think should be on a high school reading list?

This is easy. I think that The Book Thief by Markus Zusak should be on the required reading list of every high school student. I recently blogged about The Book Thief here.

30 Day Book Challenge, Day 14: What is you favorite book by your favorite author?

Well, since I just established that my favorite author is a playwright who did not write any books this proves to be a rather challenging question! May I take the liberty of slightly modifying the question to read, "What is you favorite 'work' by your favorite author?"

My favorite Shakespeare play is "The Taming of the Shrew." it is the story of two sisters whose father wants to marry them off. The younger daughter, Bianca, is sweet and lovable and has countless suitors, but her father refuses to let her marry until someone agrees to wed the older daughter, Kate. Kate, however, is the complete opposite of Bianca--she is mean, quick-tempered, and prone to violence.

A classic Shakespeare comedy, The Taming of the Shrew is witty and full of twists and turns. Sadly, there is not a great film production available. I have seen this play live several times, and I have never been disappointed!

30 Day Book Challenge, Day 12: What is the first novel you remember reading?

I was a late bloomer when it comes to literature. My mom loves to read, and I remember her dismay when, as a girl, I found reading rather boring. Shocking, I know. It wasn't until my high school years that I started reading for pleasure. All that to say, I did not read treasures like Anne of Green Gables, Little House in the Big Woods, and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe until I was well into my adulthood. But apparently my mom did convince me to read a bit as a child, because a few books from my youth linger in my distant memory. One such book is called Beat the Turtle Drum, by Constance C. Greene.

A sweet but melancholy story, Beat the Turtle Drum is about a thirteen year old girl who loses her beloved little sister in a tragic accident. Joss, the care-free younger sister who everyone seems to love, is saving money to rent a horse for a week. Her older sister, Kate, is the steady, reliable child, who wants nothing more than to see her sister's dream come true. Joss and Kate have a sweet relationship, which is well-developed by the author.

I remember crying and crying as I read this book. Sadly, I don't remember much else about it!

30 Day Book Challenge, Day 11: What is a book you absolutely hated?

I have read many books that did not appeal to me. Some were for classes that I took, some were for book  clubs. But books that I do not like fade quickly from my memory, and so I am having a hard time remembering a book that I absolutely hated. And "hate" is such a strong word! Most books have some redeeming quality about them.

Nevertheless, I can choose a book for this category. It is a book that simply NEVER should have been written because it was impossible to succeed at  what the author set out to do: write a sequel to a classic long after the author of the classic has passed away. One of my all time favorite books is Gone With the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell. I am certain that this book will come up in a later category. The book that I despise is called Scarlett, and it was written by Alexandra Ripley. Ripley attempted to write a sequel to Mitchell's classic, and her attempt is a major disappointment!

First of all, who in their right mind would try to build on something as iconic as Gone With the Wind? Mitchell's one and only novel is a wonder, and it's tragic ending was completely perfect. There was nothing...NOTHING...that should have been added. After a thrilling 1057 pages, it was complete. THE END.

But Ripley couldn't just leave things as they were. The pages that she writes are somewhat of an abomination--beloved characters lose their defining characteristics, and the plot is so amazingly mundane I cannot even remember what Scarlett was about!

30 Day Book Challenge, Day 10: What is your favorite classic book?

For a Literature major, this is NOT a fair question. What type of classic? Among American classics, I LOVE Mark Twain, John Steinbeck, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Harriet Beecher Stowe. But then there are the Brits: Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, and C.S. Lewis to name a few! One must not overlook the ancient Greeks, as the Odyssey and the Iliad are practically the backbone of literature. And who can forget the Russians (Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky) the French (Hugo, Dumas and Verne!) and the Germans (Kafka and Goethe)?

Choose ONE classic? I don't think it's possible! One? That's like asking a mother to choose her favorite child! It simply cannot be done.

Okay, okay, okay! I'll pick something that I think everyone should read at least once. But if you have not ventured into the world of classic literature, RUN, don't walk to amazon.com and download some of those freebies toute de suite ! You are missing out on some serious greatness. While I have highlighted some fun books in this 30 Day Book Challenge, few can compare to classics like Emma, Of Mice and Men, The Scarlet Letter, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Around the World in 80 Days, Anna Karenina, or Uncle Tom's Cabin.

One of my favorite classics is Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens. Dickens is one of those authors who can create scenes and characters that absolutely come to life. You become intensely interested in the story, and you are sad when it is over.

Great Expectations is the story of Pip, a lovable young orphan who has been apprenticed to a blacksmith, but who longs for so much more. As he tries to figure out life, Pip is befriended by Joe, who is mentally slow (but emotionally wise); he becomes enamored with Estella (who wouldn't!); and, he struggles to figure out the mysterious Magwitch (an enigma of a character, if there ever was one!).

Great Expectations is rich with themes of love, forgiveness, and redemption. Dickens doesn't waste a word, and his works are thick with meaning. If you are new to Dickens, have patience. His writing style is somewhat dense and takes a while to appreciate. But I encourage you to persevere, before you know it, you will fall in love with his mastery of the English language and you will be amazed by the brilliance of his tales.

30 Day Book Challenge, Day 9: What is a book you thought you wouldn't like, but you ended up loving?

Life of Pi, by Yann Martel! One of the reasons I loved being in a book club is that I read books that I otherwise never would have read. One such book is Life of Pi. And no, it isn't about math!

Pi is a sixteen year old son of a zookeeper who is immigrating to the United States from India with his family. His father plans to open a zoo in America, and to that end, he has brought several exotic animals with him on their voyage. Whilst crossing the Pacific on a Japanese ocean liner, the ship goes down. Pi finds himself on a life boat with an orangutan, a hyena, a wounded zebra, and Richard Parker--a 450 pound Bengal tiger.

Richard Parker quickly devours all of the other animals, and Pi must depend on his vast knowledge of animals and his cunning intellect to survive the better part of a year on a tiny life boat with a hungry, seasick tiger.

The book has a wonderful ending with a twist that will make you want to start reading the whole book all over again just to see if you can discover the "truth." I picked up Life of Pi reluctantly, but finished it completely enchanted.