Anyway! I really like this one. I know that there are a lot of people who like the adaptations better, and I may or may not be in that camp, but as brilliant as the '95 adaptation was, it didn't ruin the book for me at all.
So. I'm going to be really self centered and say that I related a TON to Marianne, and maybe that's a big reason why I was so invested in the story. I understood her character (and have done pretty much everything she has, except get dumped and almost die), and some of the things she said were things that I've thought! I know it's really stupid and ego-centric to go on about that, but that's what happens when you read a lot of books! It doesn't take long for you to start finding characters that you really connect with. Not every book has them, but it's a lovely feeling when you find some character and think "Wow, I've felt the exact same way!" I know that the more book I read, the more I get that feeling.
But let's not forget Elinor, because she is such a terrific character! The way she is described in comparison to Marianne you'd think that she's a robot, but Elinor is so witty and clever! I actually laughed out loud at some of her lines, like the following exchange between her and Margaret...
"Oh Elibor!" she cried, "I have such a secret to tell you about Marianne. I am sure she will be married to Mr. Willoughby very soon."
"You have said so," replied Elinor, "Almost every day since they first met on High-Church Down; and they had not known each other week, I believe, before you were certain that Marianne wore his picture round her neck, but it turned out to be only the miniature of our great uncle."
"But indeed this is quite another thing. I am sure they ill be married very soon, for he has got a lock of her hair."
"Take care, Margaret. It may only be the hair of some great uncle of his."
And I admire the way she can hold back what she's feeling and not go on rampages, that's such an admirable trait. But Elinor is by no means perfect (though when Marianne is going on an emotional spell it's quite easy to think that!) She gets secretly jealous sometimes, and occasionally thinks slightly uncharitable thoughts sometimes. Elinor is a very well rounded character, and I enjoyed the book a lot because of her.
The two male leads of the book were pretty good. A lot of people think that they are kind of bland, but I liked them. Colonel Brandon is certainly more interesting that Edward Ferras though. By a lot. The thing that I like about Colonel Brandon's character is that he's a pitiable character who's had some rough times, but he's not written all like: "Aww, wook at this poor widdle guy, coddle and feel sowwy for him!".
As per usual, the writing was top-notch. I won't lie, my eyes did sort of glaze over during some of the London bit, but the rest of it was just fine. And there is a very thought-provoking bit towards the end, concerning Willoughby, and how they go about forgiving him for what he's done. It was very interesting, and I wasn't expecting it!
The Verdict: A
Point deduced because I think that Elinor's romantic complications were solved a little too conveniently. Just a little bit. But we can talk about that later, all I know is that I really liked this book, and will definitely be reading it again sometime.
I find Colonel Brandon much more interesting than Edward Ferrars too, and I kind of spend a lot of this book wishing Brandon and Elinor would get together, possibly because I see a lot of myself in Elinor and I personally like Brandon better, so I think she should too, hee.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on having read all of Jane Austen's novels! I was in my 30s before I accomplished that.