PRIDE AND PREJUDICE by Jane Austen | Review

Title: Pride and Prejudice
Author:  Jane Austen
Book #: Standalone
Genres: Classic, Romance
Publication: August 2009, by Penguin Classics
Pages: 339
Source: borrowed
Format: paperback
Rating: 

Goodreads 

“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.”

So begins Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen’s witty comedy of manners–one of the most popular novels of all time–that features splendidly civilized sparring between the proud Mr. Darcy and the prejudiced Elizabeth Bennet as they play out their spirited courtship in a series of eighteenth-century drawing-room intrigues.

Synopsis from Goodreads.com

ANIMAL FARM by George Orwell | Review

Title: Animal Farm

Author: George Orwell

Book #: Standalone

Genres: Adult, Classic, Science Fiction

Publication: May 20013, by Plume

Pages: 112

Author’s Website

Rating: 

Tired of their servitude to man, a group of farm animals revolt and establish their own society, only to be betrayed into worse servitude by their leaders, the pigs, whose slogan becomes: “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.” This 1945 satire addresses the socialist/ communist philosophy of Stalin in the Soviet Union.

Synopsis from Goodreads.com

“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”

Review

After trying for several times to write this review, I have decided that I will just write what comes to my mind right now and just keep it short, simple and sweet.

I was really taken by this book. There were moments when all I could do was stare at what was standing in letters right in front me and only think “What?… What the?… How?… How is this even possible?…” I have to say: “George Orwell, I take my hat off”. He managed to describe everything that is right and wrong in our society through describing an animal society. This book left me wondering how are we really different? Man and animal seems to be one and the same. Sorry if I’m becoming a bit philosophic here, but this book really provokes these kind of thoughts and questions.

It was also relatively easy to go through, as it was very small and also used a quite “easy” writing style. I have to say that I was really glad this book wasn’t longer, because even though I did appreciate all the thoughts and meanings of this book, it still was not exactly my kind of thing. I admit, I’m used to reading a lot of young adult and action packed books, so this one was very far away from my comfort zone. But I’m happy I gave it a try! It also feels nice somehow to read something completely different every once in a while.

First Line

Mr Jones, of the Manor Farm, had locked the hen-houses for the night, but was too drunk to remember to shut the pop-holes.

Mini Review

I “appreciated” this book, but didn’t exactly “like” it.
George Orwell is definitely a genius with a great imagination.
I don’t regret reading this in any way!

Recommend it for…

• Anyone who wants to read something thought-provoking
• Fans of 1984 by George Orwell

1984 by George Orwell | Review

Title: 1984

Author: George Orwell

Book #: Standalone

Publication: July 1950 by Signet Classics

Pages: 328

Author’s Website

Rating: 

Written in 1948, 1984 was George Orwell’s chilling prophecy about the future. And while the year 1984 has come and gone, Orwell’s narrative is timelier than ever. 1984 presents a startling and haunting vision of the world, so powerful that it is completely convincing from start to finish. No one can deny the power of this novel, its hold on the imaginations of multiple generations of readers, or the resiliency of its admonitions. A legacy that seems only to grow with the passage of time.

Synopsis from Goodreads.com

“War is peace.
Freedom is slavery.
Ignorance is strength.”

Review

This is a scary scary world! And the scariest thing about it is that this is the world we live in! Okay, I’m exaggerating a little.

1984 describes a world where everything is controlled by the government: living, working, talking, sleeping, procreating etc. If the government says that 2+2=5 then it is true. It doesn’t even occur to anyone to question it. You are not even allowed to think otherwise because Big Brother is watching you. Privacy is, of course, non-existent and if you do anything that goes against the government, you get arrested, killed, and deleted from every file. You “evaporate“. It’s like you never existed. Even the slightest change in your face expression can betray you, which will lead to your evaporation.

All of the above is, of course, not really a problem, because almost no one ever thinks about questioning what the government says. Ignorance is strength, and after all, Big Brother would never do anything that isn’t in the best interests of everyone. This sort of world is frighteningly familiar, because it is so similar to the way our world is turning into.

I could probably analyze this book by talking about it for pages and pages, but I don’t think there is a point in doing that here and now, so just know this:

1984 is a book that has changed me forever. And if there was one thing I loved about it, that would have to be the ending. Which was refreshingly, realistically, wonderfully unpredictable.

READ IT.

First Line

It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.

Recommend it for…

• anyone who is curious to read the first dystopian book ever written
• anyone wanting to read a thought-provoking novel
• anyone who has thoughts about the way our society has become

DRACULA by Bram Stoker | Review

Title: Dracula

Author: Bram Stoker

Book #: Standalone

Publication: April 2012 by Penguin

Pages: 440

Rating: 

The vampire novel that started it all, Bram Stoker’s ‘Dracula’ probes deeply into human identity, sanity, and the dark corners of Victorian sexuality and desire.

When Jonathan Harker visits Transylvania to help Count Dracula purchase a London house, he makes horrifying discoveries about his client. Soon afterward, disturbing incidents unfold in England—an unmanned ship is wrecked at Whitby, strange puncture marks appear on a young woman’s neck, and a lunatic asylum inmate raves about the imminent arrival of his “Master” —culminating in a battle of wits between the sinister Count and a determined group of adversaries.

Synopsis from Goodreads

“Listen to them, the children of the night. What music they make!”

There are so many vampire books out there, so I felt the need to read this book in order to find out what it was that started it all! The first vampire book with the original count Dracula myth! This is also the first classic I have ever managed to finish!

The whole book is written in the form of journals and diaries of several people involved in the story. The beginning of the book, was narrated by Jonathan Harker’s point of view as he visited Dracula’s castle in Romania. This was in my opinion the most interesting part of the book and I was immediately hooked. As I continued reading though, the point of view shifted from Mr Harker to his fiancé, Mina, in England and the story started growing slower and less interesting. This pace continued almost until the end of the book, sometimes becoming a bit faster, but in general pretty slow.

I did enjoy Mina’s character though. Keeping in mind that this book was written in the late 19th century, when a woman’s role was mainly to be a wife, Mina was much more independent and powerful. Even though women were considered and sometimes even expected to be weak, Mina was quite strong, making her own decisions and speaking up even in a room full of men! She was always freely saying her opinion which was taken into consideration and respected by everyone in this book.

What I felt missing from this book was the perspective of Count Dracula. He was supposedly the main character of the book and we only get to see him through the eyes of others. I would definitely like to learn his side of the story and also his thoughts, plans, motives and actions.

The movie is also nicely done and quite accurate to the book. Check it out at imdb.

All in all I did appreciate the book even though it wasn’t exactly my taste. If you want to find out what a real vampire is like and enjoy classics, definitely give this book a chance! On the other hand if you enjoy fast paced action/thriller books, this is not the book for you.