The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne (#8 American Lit)

Mr. Hawthorne sure had to have a dark side to come up with both The Scarlet Letter and The House of the Seven Gables. Pretty much the whole book is dark, dreary, and depressing. Poor Clifford was falsely imprisoned 35 years ago and Hepzibah scares all the townsfolk because she has poor vision, which causes her to always have a squinty frown on her face. But, then young and vibrant Phoebe is introduced as a ray of sunshine in an otherwise cursed home. What a random assortment of characters that are all not what they seem. Hawthorne loves to incorporate many characters where "what you see" is NOT "what you get." Judge Pyncheon is always smiling and happy looking, so when he first comes into the shop you believe he is well-meaning, but turns out he is actually evil. The way Hawthorne describes and forms his characters is reminiscent of Ayn Rand and The Fountainhead. It takes a much more in depth look into each character's true self to understand their desires and motivations .

The book was rather odd. I think I may have to include the "Governor Pyncheon" chapter up in the top ten weirdest chapters ever. Judge Pyncheon is dead in a chair and the narrator continues to speak to the reader sort of asking-- why isn't the Judge getting up? doesn't he have places to go? what about the important dinner he is missing? Quite bizarre.

Apparently when a book is labeled a "romance" that just means there can be ghosts, curses, and portraits of creepy old men who have emotions (sort of like Harry Potter!). For a book that started off so dark and was sort of slow, Hawthorne sure did tie it up into a very nice little ending. Everyone who deserved success and wealth found it and those who were evil and spiteful got what they deserved--eternal damnation. :) Karma is a bitch.

Persuasion by Jane Austen (#7, British Lit)

She never fails me. I have been proclaiming for many years that Persuasion is my favorite Jane Austen novel, and upon rereading it I still adore it.

I love the writing, I love the characters, I love the humor, and yes, I also love the happily ever afters. Anne and Captain Wentworth may not have all their teeth, but their story is a true happily ever after. They were meant to marry 8 years ago, but because of the persuasions of others in Anne's life she refused him. His pride and her sensibilities kept them apart, yet neither ever truly got over the other. (notice the use of all the other titles? :) In the end he allows her back into his heart, even after she broke it so many years ago.

Happily ever after, does it really happen? I may have some cynical tendencies, but deep down I think I am a sucker for it.

Predator by Patricia Cornwell (#6, Just for Fun)

I think this one speaks for itself. I finished Eat, Pray, Love and didn't have another book lined up. Bad things happen when I don't have a book waiting on the nightstand. Regardless, I will always have a soft spot in my heart for criminal thrillers, I admit and embrace my bad taste. Like i've said, no one is perfect.

On a side note, I still plan on reading my genre classics, and I did start Le Miserables, but I didn't finish it before I moved and had to return it to the library. But I will read it at some point this year, that is a promise.

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert (#5, Nonfiction)

After over a year of my posts, I think everyone is aware of the fact that I strongly dislike reading "bestsellers". But, at the same time, sometimes there are books that I just have to know what the big deal is all about. Eat, Pray, Love was one of those books. I think it is sort of like that band you have found that no one knows about, and then a year later you can't stop hearing them on the radio. I know a lot of people who claim that they read Eat, Pray, Love long before the neverending buzz about it, and they claimed to have enjoyed it for what is was without all the hoopla. So, I just had to find out for myself.

I enjoyed it. I found her prose interesting. Somehow she makes present day conversational writing work. Stories about foreign countries always interest me because I love to travel, and I think her general messages were good, but I do have to take issue with what caused her to have the need for such an intense spiritual journey.

Everyone has problems. As we get older, we realize that everyone has baggage, everyone has a past, and we are all far from perfect. I don't believe that a "charmed life" actually exists. I guess it just irked me how her itty bitty little problems are made to be such a big deal. Yet, I can't blame her, because I think we live in a society where we all expect everything, right now, how we want it, a pill to fix all our problems, material goods, designer fashion, constant entertainment, expensive bags and jeans, beauty and perfection. We all feel entitled and when things don't go our way, we throw a tantrum. What happened to being happy with what you do have? How about living in a country where we don't have to worry about Genocide, clean water, public education or living under a dictator? Are family and friends not enough? Simple pleasures people, simple pleasures!!

But, I did love the message of the book--creating your own happiness and spirituality. Like some people, I didn't read the book to find my own happiness or spirituality, for me I don't need a book for that. I actually found the perfect paragraph, one in the whole book, that I thought was apropos to characterize me. Liz is in India, during her "Pray" portion of the journey, and she talks about another person at the Ashram, a dairy farmer from Ireland named Sean. He has spent a great portion of his life traveling and searching, to "understand the workings of existence." She writes about Sean, "He was sitting in the kitchen of the old stone house with his father--a lifelong farmer and a man of few words--and Sean was telling him all about his spiritual discoveries in the exotic East. Sean's father listened with mild interest, watching the fire in the hearth, smoking his pipe. He didn't speak at all until Sean said, 'Da--this meditation stuff, it's crucial for teaching serenity. It can really save your life. It teaches you how to quiet your mind.' His father turned to him and said kindly, 'I have a quiet mind already, son,' then resumed his gaze on the fire."

Maybe I should be a dairy farmer in Ireland. :)