Birdsong: did it work on TV?

In book form, I liked ‘Birdsong’ by Sebastian Faulks. His portrayal of the First World War in all its cold brutality impressed me. However as a whole, the book seems unbalanced, the 3rd time shift unneeded and irrelevant, the ending disappointingly plain.

The biggest change to the story in the BBC adaptation was the time frame. In the book it is episodic in its structure. However, in the TV adaptation Abi Morgan decided to run the affair and war scenes together, flicking between the serenity of pre-war France, and the hell of the trenches. It is skilfully done and the end result is beautiful and moving, perfect even, unless you have read the book.

The affair brings hope to the story and makes it more watchable, but at the cost of the books meaning? Abi Morgan has added beauty to a place where it doesn’t belong, even Eddie Redmayne, who acts the intense Stephen well, is too pretty for the war scenes. The bleak, cold, but most powerful moments in the book, lose their sense of hopelessness when followed by the beautiful Clémence Poésy.

This story was kept from the screen for so long because of its tricky time shifts. Abi Morgan solved the problem as well as she could, but  the First World War scenes suffer. The affair between Stephen and Isabelle takes up a small part of the book, but dominates the adaptation. As a result we don’t get to know the men in the trenches so well; their deaths are therefore meaningless to the audience. Even Jack Firebrace, who is a crucial part of the book, seems fairly minor to the plot in the adaptation.

A good attempt at a tricky challenge.

Great Expectations: The novel vs. The BBC

I read the book, so I could watch the adaptation without ruining my enjoyment of the book. I know I know, I should have read Charles Dickens by now, being into English and what not. But I hadn’t, and I’m so glad a new adaptation came out, not because it was good, but because it gave me the inspiration to start the book. Dickens had always intimidated me, but no more. I absolutely loved ‘Great Expectations’, I finished it and just thought, this is what a novel should be.

Unfortunately having just read the book, all the silly changes they had made to the BBC adaptation I noticed with irritation. Some seemed completely unjustified, others were unforgivable. But the biggest mistakes they made were with the characterisation, particularly that of Joe and Mr Drummle. I know the press focused on the overly pretty Pip and the too plain Estella, but in reality, whoever they casted would never please everyone’s interpretations.

With Joe however, I felt like perhaps they hadn’t even read the book. When I read ‘Great Expectations’, to me Joe was the real hero. Not blessed with the intelligence of Pip, but with the warmest heart and the greatest capacity for forgiveness. The real gentleman of the novel. He is meek and silent when his wife is on the ‘rampage’, but he continues to love her, as he continues to love Pip, even as Pip begins to feel above Joe. Joe also provides much of the humour in the novel. The scene in which he is taken by Pip to meet Miss Havisham, but insists on talking to Pip not her, not reveals the stark difference between Joes class and Miss Havishams, but it’s also incredibly funny. This is of course over looked by the BBC adaptation.

A more minor character, Mr Drummle’s interpretation still confused me. He is nicknamed ‘the spider’ in the book, bumbling, unable to control his emotions and rich. Yet in the adaptation he is a violent, powerful man, nowhere near resembling his character. I did however love Gillian Anderson’s interpretation of Miss Havisham. Haunting and terrifying, she was the highlight of the adaptation for me.

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury – read it!!!!

This book is amazing, I absolutely loved it! It’s small, but at the same time it is enormous. The premise for the story: books are illegal, is wonderfully handled. There are so many dystopia novels out there, it’s hard not to become sick of them, but this novel has something a little different. It is very obviously written by a man who loves literature and books from the bottom of his heart. He handles the plot magnificently, but what stood out for me, was his beautiful writing. Vivid descriptions and metaphors were dotted throughout the novel and make it the success it is. It is a book that appreciates books, literature about literature. The ending of the novel is so simple and magically done, you feel it’s obvious; this is Bradbury’s skill.

The character Clarisse stood out for me, her character epitomising all that is good and being lost in ‘Fahrenheit 451′. She is a free thinker, and that makes her scary to the likes of Mildred and Beatty, drones of society. Clarisse and Guy form a unique relationship which brings both characters alive, as she opens Guys eyes. We follow Guy on his journey of self awakening, spell bound until the very end.

The book is full of senseless death and futuristic machines, but it also has a familiar feel to it, and it’s this familiarity which gives it a plausibility that is truly chilling.

I seriously recommend this book!!

My top 10 novels. Of all time. Ever.

In no particular order, these are the 10 books I love the most:

. Watership down, Richard Adams

. The War of The Worlds, H. G. Wells

. Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell

. The Hobbit, J. R. R. Tolkien

. The Day of the Triffids, John Wyndham

. The Road, Cormac McCarthy

. Tess of the d’Urbervilles, Thomas Hardy

. Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë

. Great Expectations, Charles Dickens

. The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath

‘Watership down’ for its beautiful and devastating depiction of rabbits. I will forever remember Hazel and his sacrifices.

‘War of The Worlds’ for its beautiful apocalyptic imagery and it’s brutal but truthful depiction of human kind. H. G. Wells is one of my all time favorite authors, his imagination is truly incredible, consider that this novel was written only 7 years after ‘Tess of the d’Urbervilles’ in 1898.

‘Nineteen Eighty-Four’ for truly terrifying me with its predictions that year by year seem ever more possible.

‘The Hobbit’ for being the first novel I finished by myself, at the age of 9. Not the first book of course, but the first of any sort of intelligence.

‘The Day of the Triffids’ for being such an amazing story.

‘The Road’ for its beautiful imagery, similar to that by H. G. Wells. And its heartwarming tale written in a simple, stripped back style. A simple story of a son, and a man, who conquer and rise, proving humanity to be good.

‘Tess of the d’Urbervilles’ for being one of the most riveting stories I have ever read, a story which reveals the changing times Hardy lived in.

‘Wuthering Heights’ for being  incredible. One of the most tortured, dramatic and violent stories I’ve ever read, written by a women who lived her life secluded in countryside.

‘Great Expectations’, a book that truly embodies what a novel should be.

‘The Bell Jar’ for being so dark, and yet so accurate in capturing the American lifestyle and Plath’s feelings of hopelessness.

A Room with a View, E. M. Forster

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I have previously read ‘Where Angels Fear to Tread’ and found it enjoyable, but not memorable. It was a little slow paced and lacked the humanity that Forster has managed to capture in ‘A Room with a View’. The ingredient missing from ‘Where Angels Fear to Tread’ is romance, something ‘A Room with a View’ has in abundance.

The book is, like all Forsters’ work, a social commentary. He takes a certain delight in subtly pointing out the flaws in the stereotypical characters. The snobbery of characters like Miss Bartlett, Cecil and Mr Eager are contrasted with the warmth of the Emerson’s and Lucy, the protagonist.

The novel is in two parts, the first set in Italy, the second in Lucy’s family home in England. Forster structures the book around events: the murder in Florence, the kiss in the violets, the events near the pond and, of course, the room with a view. In fact rooms and nature throughout the book are contrasted, the events outside see Lucy at her most independent, whilst inside she is at her weakest and most constrained. The moment of passion in the violets, for example, is immediately followed by the scene in the carriage home where she agrees to pretend the moment never happened.

As well as being a novel encouraging passion, in 1908, Forster’s presentation of Lucy is very interesting. She is a women struggling with her formal and cold upbringing and her spontaneous, free heart. In 1908 the suffrage movement was beginning to gather momentum, making me curious to know what Forester’s view on women was. He seems to commend Lucy for her independence; however there are ever present reminders of society’s condemnation. When Lucy eventually follows her heart, her family refuse to acknowledge her marriage. Then there is Forster’s note on Lucy and George’s life after the novel finishes, written years later in a different post World War 2 world. Forster seems less positive about their happiness then before, perhaps a sign that while he encouraged the two characters spontaneity in 1908, he now has experienced its effects in the extreme, and is less sure of its benefits.

This book is said to be the most romantic of Forster’s novels, and it definitely is. Read for passion in Italy paired with a profound look by Forster at social expectations.

One Day, David Nicholls

This book was actually published in 2009 but seems to be having a new lease of life with the help of Hollywood. I’ve never seen the film, but I thought a modern book would be a nice relief after Chaucer! I don’t very often read modern literature, so this book quite surprised me.

Essentially ‘One Day’ is a love story, but in a way it also feels like tragedy. Dexter is definitely Emma Morley’s flaw. Nicholls has a knack for using time shifts to evoke a sense of enormity and (for me) tears. If you try this book with no idea of its ending, prepare to cry! The two main characters Dexter and Emma are both lovable, though the novel is more predominantly centred around Emma’s fate and feelings. It’s Emma’s bedroom the story begins in, it’s Emma who loves Dexter first from afar (though by no means is that to say Dexter’s love for Emma isn’t equally strong) and its Emma’s fate that signifies the end of the book.

This book gripped me in a way that’s rare. The novel grows from a simple love story to a book about life, ambitions, getting lost and finding your way again. I thought after reading the first few chapters I knew where the book was going, but I was wrong and to say this book is simply about Em and Dex is not true. In their adventures Nicholls introduces character after character in a way in which, even if we see little of them, like Sylvie the brief wife, we still feel like we know them well.  But Em and Dex, Dex and Em, are definitely what makes the book so readable, the reader loves them like old friends, willing them to succeed together. This book is relatively big, but it feels like no chore to finish it.

Epigraphs are used by Nicholls to allude to things to come. Several are even from ‘Great Expectations’, the other book I am currently reading. Nicholls uses epigraphs effectively and boldly in ‘One Day’, and they’re worth pausing to take in whilst reading this modern master piece.

The only flaw I found in this book was the structure, whilst it served its purpose in keeping the novel fresh, the time shifts mean that often Nicholls misses out important events. Most importantly for me, Emma and Dexter’s first night together, something that the whole book was leading up to, but was not documented. The time shifts mean that as you are absorbed in one event he cruelly fast forwards to a different time, leaving you feeling for a few paragraphs unsure if you still know the main characters you understood a moment ago. Sometimes the transitions are too abrupt and disorientate, but as a whole this flaw is overcome by the continuity of Emma and Dexter’s characters.

Absorbing, heart warming and heartbreaking, I thoroughly recommend this book.

For more discussion on the epigraphs in ‘One Day’: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/oct/28/one-day-david-nicholls-book-club

The development of the humble book

I watched a very interesting, very scary program on books on BBC1 (I think) a couple of weeks ago, and now it seems the issues of the program are haunting me. It was looking at the possible end of the physical book, and its replacement by the e-book. As discussed here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-12308374.

People seem to all have very different and often surprising views on the e-book. I for one, despise the idea of an all digital age. For me it takes the magic out of literature.

To me the book form is much more than just a vessel to hold information. A book holds memories and feelings within its covers. Separate often, from the story it also holds. An odd stain or a well fingered edge for me hold more allure and interest than a brand new, shiny, soulless book. I like to buy from charity shops and second hand book stores, which to me are like treasure troves. When I’ve chosen my book and taken it home, I look at it and to me it is full of memories and has already been loved, hated and cried on by others like me; this I find exciting. I then follow in their footsteps and create my own mark. Don’t get me wrong, I often buy new books. This sadly is a result of second hand book shops closing down and charity shops being less and less full.

With a new book, I have to be the one to start the story the book will contain.  I always carry a book around with me, and as I do it becomes full of memories of where I’ve taken it, the book becomes mine and linked to certain events and places. I took ‘Animal Farm’ to Paris; Joseph Conrad went to Norway, as did ‘Wuthering Heights and ‘Tess of the d’Urbervilles’. When I read those books again, or even hold them, I will remember where I was, what I was feeling and who I was with when I read each book previously.

I fear that without bookshops we will lose the ability to choose our own books. Take music. Now it is no longer really possible to browse HMV or any other music shops. (are there any left?) I now pick the songs I buy from the internet: Top 10 on iTunes, radio 1 introduces etc .etc., the fact is I’m now spoon fed music and have limited options on what I choose to buy as I can no longer search shelf to shelf looking for unknown, kooky little cheap CDs full of hidden amazingness. With books it will become the same, I will be unable to roam the bookshop and pick out the obscure. We will no doubt see some sort of top 10 appearing for kindle users, and for most it will be enough to just read those on the lists and ignore the new books appearing without the backing of huge agents. Stumbling across new books will become a forgotten art, because forgotten books will have been forgotten permanently. They will be lost in cyber space and eventually deleted.

There is something romantic about sitting in a park and reading a simple book. There’s nothing romantic or spontaneous about sitting and reading from a computer. I don’t care if it’s got anti glare or a button which makes turning the virtual page super easy. At the crucial moment you cannot begin to get pages ready to turn before they’ve been read, you cannot grip your book tightly in awe. Reading becomes robotic.

Hello, welcome to me.

2012 is going to be a big year for me. This September after (fingers crossed) passing my A Levels, I will brave the real world and go to university!  I’m 18 this month and feel as if I am on the brink of adulthood, well I do now. I know in reality an age change will not change me at all, but I am looking forward to the power to vote and drink.

I want to study English at university, but where is still up in the air. Unfortunately I will not know until March. Reading is my passion to the point of me occasionally being a bit of the geek. It’s probably not cool to be on first name terms with my school librarians… However I make no apologies for being over enthusiastic – it’s an age thing. I’m sure my enthusiasm will have faded by 30 and I will then regret its going. The reason I have decided to write a blog is simple. English as a degree sounds great but I’ve started to wonder, what will I do after?! Since I’m dead into books, I have decided that as I write continuously in journals and diaries about them, why not also post online? Hear somebody else’s viewpoint for a change. I’m not just going to book review; I’m going to write’ topical articles’ about things which have happened to me or crossed my mind. Well this is the plan anyway.