Dracula by Bram Stoker [1897]

I don't think that I like this book as much as I liked it when I was fourteen. XD
Don't get me wrong, I didn't hate this book, I didn't even dislike it all that much. But there were a few things that bugged me a bit and a few other things I'm not sure how to feel about!
For things that I didn't like, first of all, way too melodramatic. I know that it's the 19th century and melodrama was about as in back then as stupid teen romance is in now. But I found many scenes that were supposed to be dramatic, well, I found them quite hilarious.

Now for the things I don't know how to feel about.
First off, this book has a lot of rather sexist tendencies. I know, and I know, 19th Century, product of it's time, blah, blah, blah. But riddle me this, Batman! If that's just how 19th Century female characters are, then how come The Count of Monte Cristo has so many varied and interesting ladies? Then again, maybe it's just the , and not the author, who are being unintentionally sexist. I mean, they are all very courteous and kind to the point of revering Mina. And Mina is one of the smartest characters in the book. I just lost it when a character made a remark about Mina being too frail and delicate in mind to help them in their monster-hunting work. Hello?! Jonathan Harker? He's a man, and he had a big ol' nervous breakdown towards the beginning of the book! Who's frail and delicate again?

Then there was the cavalier treatment of the Holy Eucharist. As a Catholic, (I know most of my readers probably aren't, but this is me explaining my issues with the book, and to do that I have to sometimes bring up Religious issues), I believe that the consecrated wafers used in Mass are in fact, the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. The way Van Helsing hands out consecrated communion wafers like Halloween candy for the others to use against Dracula, it made me think of a rather important question! Do Van Helsing and the others have actual faith in the Holy Items they are using to fight the monster or are they just waving them around the way you would use a magic wand? It kind of bugged me in a big way how casually they used the Holy Eucharist.

The Verdict: B-
Yeah, it was allright. I did appreciate all the Christian stuff in the book, aside from the possible irreverence. I liked this book MUCH better than Frankenstein, which I plan on Video Reviewing as soon as possible, but I don't know if I'm going to read this again any time soon.

Favorite Songs From Musicals #11: Drink With Me

Yay, booze. Just kidding, don't drink, kids.
Now why on earth would this low-key, uber depressing song make it onto my list? True, this song isn't the most impressive or memorable of the songs in Les Miserables, but I inexplicably like it. It's obviously bittersweet, as all the students are fessing up to the fact that they are very likely to die once morning comes. I like how it's not very dramatic, it's just a simple tune that sounds like something you might sing with your friends. If you're like me and my friends and like to sing a lot, that is. Hey, I don't claim to speak for other people.
And it was either Chinese subtitles or the short one from the movie that I know you guys don't like. ;)
Oh yeah, and the first verse is a little suggestive. Just thought I'd throw that out there as a warning.

Drink with me

To days gone by

To the life that used to be

At the shrine of friendship,

Never say die

Let the wine of friendship

Never run dry

Here's to you,

and here's to me.

Storage Room Throwback!: Blanket

Throwback is where I just do little flashback comics for Storage Room, with them all as cute, somewhat bratty 'lil kids. Today's Throwback concerns Rene and his Mom, who's doing the washing.

He still has his green hat. XD I should have made it super baggy on his tiny 4 year old head.

My Sibling's Halloween Costumes :D

[sniffle] I was taken ill this Halloween, so I didn't get to dress up and take my sibs out like I was hoping to, and Dad and my older brother took them out instead. Here are their cool costumes though, enjoy!

Here's Libby, she went as Emma Woodhouse, from the Jane Austen novel 'Emma'. :)

And here's Nick as Indiana Jones. :D And if you look carefully, you can see Libby and mum's reflections in the garage door window. XD
And no, he didn't go out barefoot. He was just too lazy to put on shoes for the photo shoot.

Storage Room: Hypochondria! (and blog anniversary!)

Anybody else a hypochondriac?
One of the best things about having a comic is that I can write a cartoon about my various anxieties and it slightly lessens the load and I feel like I can go think about something else.

 

Today is my blog's first anniversary, too! Time to celebrate!



That's how most parties I go to end.

Favorite Songs From Musicals #10: Final Lair/Down Once More

Whatever you want to call it, this is the Finale of The Phantom of the Opera, and it's amazing. I'm not such a big fan of the constant sing/shouting over each other that's supposed to pass for dramatic, but overall, this is a really good finale. Phantom of the Opera is my sister's favorite Musical, and I think her liking of it has been rubbing off on me because this part 'gets' me at the end too. I'm not saying that I approve of murdering people, but the ending is very bittersweet. And when they aren't yelling over each other and sounding generally chaotic, the music is just brilliant! So many of the previous themes are repeated, and I love that kind of dark reprisal. :)

You alone can make my song take flight

It's over now the music of the night

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen [1811]

Oh my GOSH, I've read all the Jane Austen books (except for the short stories, but shush), somebody give me a trophy. ;)
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.