Tag Archives: classics

The Man Who Was Thursday, by GK Chesterton

Posted on April 13, 2009 by Thistle

I have no idea what to say about this book. This is the first thing by Chesterton I’ve read, and I can’t tell if I’m overthinking it, or if it’s much smarter than I am. I’m not convinced that it … Continue reading →

Posted in 2009, Adult, Prose | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen

Posted on April 8, 2009 by Thistle

It would be nearly impossible for me to try to describe the plot of this book without spoilers, so I’m not going to describe it at all. It’s an Austen novel. It goes without saying there will be a romance … Continue reading →

Posted in 2009, Adult, Prose | Tagged | 2 Comments

Vanity Fair, by William Makepeace Thackeray

Posted on April 1, 2009 by Thistle

Appropriately subtitled: A Novel Without a Hero. I am so, so glad I’m done with this. I’ve been reading this book for weeks. That isn’t to say it’s a bad book, it’s not necessarily, but it really wore on me. … Continue reading →

Posted in 2009, Adult, Prose | Tagged , | 2 Comments

The Epic of Gilgamesh, by Anonymous

Posted on March 28, 2009 by Thistle

Most of today I’ve been practically an invalid, and have had to leave off reading Vanity Fair because it’s too heavy to carry in one hand. So, I pulled Gilgamesh off the shelf for a short, lighter read while I … Continue reading →

Posted in 2009, Adult, Poetry | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas

Posted on March 7, 2009 by Thistle

Oh finally! I’m done. I suppose I’ll just say right off that while this book is certainly well written, I didn’t enjoy it very much. It wasn’t the length or anything, though I wish I’d have chosen the abridged version. … Continue reading →

Posted in 2009, Adult, Prose | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Shadows on the Grass, by Isak Dinesen

Posted on February 21, 2009 by Thistle

I read Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen (pen name for Baroness Karen Blixen) about a year ago. It was an interesting book, a memoir about Blixen’s experiences in Africa. She lived there nearly two decades, and had much interaction … Continue reading →

Posted in 2009, Adult, Prose | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Around the World in Eighty Days, by Jules Verne

Posted on February 15, 2009 by Thistle

In summer of 2007, while visiting my brother in Chicago for his graduation, my dad told me that each time he traveled, he read this book. My dad’s a meticulous sort of person, just like the main character here, Phineas … Continue reading →

Posted in 2009, Adult, Prose | Tagged , | Leave a comment

The Good Earth, by Pearl S. Buck

Posted on February 11, 2009 by Thistle

Minor spoilers. Rather than post a plot summary of this book, I’d rather take you through my thoughts about the story as I went along. This book blew all my expectations out of the water, simply put. I expected to … Continue reading →

Posted in 2009, Adult, Prose | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

An American Tragedy, by Theodore Dreiser

Posted on January 31, 2009 by Thistle

I read this book the first time in 2001, and finished it within a few days. It made a strong impression on me, which makes rereading it for my book club now a little more difficult. It was not a … Continue reading →

Posted in 2009, Adult, Prose | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

The Red Pony, by John Steinbeck

Posted on January 29, 2009 by Thistle

Okay, today I had to take a break from rereading Dreiser’s 900-page An American Tragedy. Steinbeck’s short 100-page novella was a good afternoon diversion. The Red Pony is a set of four stories about a young boy named Jody Tiflin … Continue reading →

Posted in 2009, Adult, Prose | Tagged , | 1 Comment