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I have an Anne of Green Gables calendar pinned to the wall of my cubicle at work.
I bought it in P.E.I. last summer. I’m sentimental, I know.
It serves as a daily reminder of the dream-come-true holiday that my boyfriend (now fiance) whisked me away on… and that I’ll never ever forget until the day I die (and probably even afterwards).
I don’t know if you realize the importance of that trip, even if I spent a whole day trying to describe it to you. Let’s just say it was years and years and years worth of day-dreaming come true.
According to that calendar on my cubicle wall, almost twenty years, in fact. Twenty years since I fell in love with Anne Shirley of Green Gables fame.
And TODAY, it’s been one hundred years since that red-headed snippet was ‘born’.
June 10, 1908 – that’s the day that Anne of Green Gables was published.
At least, according to my “official” Anne of Green Gables calendar, that is. According to this article,
“She arrived on the Island on June 20, 1908, not in a carriage from the train station, but in a small parcel from the local post office, postmarked “Boston.” In it was the first copy of Anne of Green Gables [...]“
Whatever the actual date, the fact remains that Anne turns 100 years old this year. One hundred years of delighting girls and boys, women (and possibly even men) all over the globe with her enchanting ways and beguiling charm.
I, for one, have been fundamentally affected by the writings of L.M. Montgomery. Reading those books… living them… has, in no small way, defined the woman I am today.
It gave me great satisfaction to be able to tell Lucy Maud this last August, as I stood over her grave in Cavendish, P.E.I.
I like to think she knows.
At any rate, the evidence of it is in my heart.
I dedicate this month to Lucy, and to Anne.
I have much to say about both, so stay tuned.
Earlier this week I went with some gals to see Kite Runner.
Even if you haven’t read the book by Khaled Hosseini that this movie is based on, chances are you’ve heard something about it from someone, since it’s one of those books that everyone loves so much, they tell everyone they see to read it. (And we all know, word-of-mouth marketing is the best kind of marketing.)
I read it earlier last year on the recommendation of a friend and yes, I loved it. There are lots of reviews out there on it so I won’t spare you with my own. Suffice to say it was one of those books that, after you turn the last page, you sigh and think, that was a good story. It was thoughtful, emotional, fascinating and complete – and by that, I mean it all tied up nicely in a little bow at the end which you have to admit, no matter how much criticism that might ignite in some frou-frou literary types, is intensely satisfying.
It was also the first book that my book club picked when it formed a few months ago. It’s a great book for discussions since it’s rich but not too complex that you can’t follow the storyline or get confused about the characters, as sometimes happened in Love in the Time of Cholera (at least, for me).
So I was pretty excited to see the movie version.
Watch the trailer for the Kite Runner movie here or here
And what did I think?
Well, we all know what I’m going to say so let’s just get it out of the way: the book is soooooo much better than the movie.
No big surprise, there. In fact, in all my life I’ve only known one instance where that wasn’t true, and it was The Motorcycle Diaries. Incidentally, that is fresh in my mind since it was another one of our book club picks. We all agreed we’d rather watch paint dry than attempt to read that book again, but the movie has some gorgeous scenery.
It’s always interesting to see how closely your imagined version of a face, a house, a village or a scene relates to a director’s vision of it. In the Kite Runner movie, all five of us who went to go see it were shocked to learn that the movie takes place fairly recently, as evidenced by the funny 70s vests and Westernized clothing that the characters wore and by the more-or-less modern furnishings in Amir’s house. For some funny reason, all of us had a very different image of Afghanistan in our minds – a much older Afghanistan – with cloaks, beards and primitive housing. I’m not sure why each of us thought the same thing; then again, we’re all probably exposed to the same media portrayals of that country.
The movie clung fairly closely to the book as I thought it would. After all, it’s dearly loved the world over. I can imagine that the screenwriter who suggests replacing one of the characters or altering the plot line would have a hard time of it. Of course, certain parts were cut out, but that’s to be expected.
All in all, the movie was pretty much a faithful portrayal of the movie as far as facts go, but somehow, the magic of it was missing. Maybe it’s because it all happens so fast when you’re sitting in a movie theatre and you don’t get to savor each new chapter and spend time wondering what would happen next. I don’t know.
For those that don’t like reading, it’s still a good story so I’d recommend seeing the movie.
For everyone else though, definitely go with the book.
It will resonate in your heart for a lot longer.
I finally finished reading Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. It has been quite the journey. I feel like I’ve been reading this book for five years, and I’m exhausted.
I hadn’t finished it in time for our book club gathering in December (oops… sorry guys…) But I don’t like to leave things unfinished.
So I marched on stoically through the holidays and the two weeks that followed (even though I should have moved on and started reading our next book).
It’s hard to sum up a book like this in a few words.
It makes me think of the couple of times when I went away and lived in another continent for a year and when I came back, people asked me, “How was your trip?”
My trip? My TRIP?!?!?
“Oh, it was great!” I’d smile and shrug, as a million and one technicolor memories flooded my mind and jostled for attention. I didn’t have the patience or benevolence to even attempt to explain it to someone who who wouldn’t really understand and who didn’t really care, anyway.
That’s how I feel about this book. You have to read it yourself and then you’ll know.
One thing I will say, though, is this: Enjoy the journey. It’s winding and it’s meandering and it’s meant for you to simply enjoy the ride. If you’re looking for a story with a definitive beginning, middle and end, which will escort you rapidly and efficiently from one to the other with plenty of road signs along the way, then skip this book.
Which is why I was shocked to learn it’s an Oprah Book Club book. I tend to think her audience would prefer something that’s conveniently packaged and easy to swallow.
Ironically, our next book, Eat Pray Love, is also an Oprah book. I can honestly say our picking of it it had everything to do with the fact that one of the gals, Stephanie, had already read it and was raving about it (and that Kym told us it was available at Costco for $9.99) and nothing to do with its celebrity endorsement.
But what am I sitting here gabbing for? I better get reading – I’m already woefully behind schedule.
http://noonebelongsheremorethanyou.com/
How utterly delightful. If I didn’t know better, I’d think Amelie Poulain was behind this.
Canadian publisher Raincoast Books has just revealed the book jacket images for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the 7th and final book in the series.
Can’t wait for it to come out on July 21st – not only for the story but because it guarantees me at least 3 days of Rob reading, rather than watching TV, in bed (woo-hoo!!!).
By the way, is it just me or is Harry looking really… manly on this cover?
(Click on image to enlarge)
What you said