Challenge Update - October 2013

Since July 1st I have read 4 books for the Canadian Book Challenge 7, so I am on track with 1 per month. I need to read two books one month to hit the goal of 13, but mostly one book per month will suffice.  I have a good sized pile of Canadian books (thanks Lisa!) waiting to be read, plus there are 2 more books in the MaddAddam trilogy that I must read now that I finished Oryx and Crake. Also my friend Rob pointed out this cool list of Canadian authors.

Tea and Books Challenge: The book I am working on for this is 1,076 pages (not counting indices or the notes which I read as I go along). I have  484 pages to go which should be doable in 2 months. The book is a biography of Eleanor Roosevelt which is very well written and keeps my attention. The tough part is that the book is too heavy to carry around with me or to read in bed. It is a good thing I only signed on for 2 books.

For the colorful reading challenge I have 2 books left to read, so if I read 1 in November and 1 in December I will complete this challenge.

In my first year of Classics Club (Sept. to August) I finished 10 books from my list. My goal for that project is to read 10-12 titles from that list each year so I did fine for year 1. Since the beginning of September I have read Something Wicked This Way Comes, Agnes Grey, and To the Lighthouse, so I am a little bit ahead at this point for year 2.

I need to read one more book for What's in a Name. Something with a "party or celebration" in the title. Recommendations would be welcome.

I am a few books ahead of schedule (at 88%) with my Goodreads goal of 101 books in 2013 and have read at least the minimum number of books committed to for my other 2013 challenges.

Agnes Grey

This is the first of Anne Bronte's two novels and its events are said to be based on Anne's own brief career as a governess. I found the book a bit bleak at first, but Agnes's generally positive attitude and her efforts to see the larger picture helped to give the story a less dire tone as it went along. The style of the novel made it an easy read. The fact that there are occasional mentions of the fact that the narrator is looking back from a future time when all has turned out well helps keep the bad things that happen from seeming too horrible. There are a view philosophical/moral digressions in the story, but they were fairly short and I thought that they did help to illuminate Agnes's character. The reflections on beauty, most of which basically boil down to "pretty is as pretty does," made it very clear how Agnes's feelings for Mr. Weston evolved through the novel. Her descriptions of his looks reflected her knowledge of his character and the observations about beauty made it obvious what those changes meant.

I thought the contrasts between the various marriages that were depicted, some based on love and some on money, was very striking. I also liked the way that Agnes' mother was depicted. Her management of her husband was a strong counterpoint to the relationships between the husbands and wives in the households where Agnes goes to work.

Agnes is a very religious young woman, as was Anne Bronte, but she sometimes struggles with her choice to do what she knows is right which I thought made her a more appealing character than she would otherwise have been. I thought the ending was quite predictable, but it was also just what was wanted.

The character of Agnes Grey reminded me of Little Women's Meg March. I thought this was a very well written story about an appealing character.

This book was my September 2013 Classics Club Spin book and it counts toward the Colorful Reading Challenge.

#4

The Classics Club Spin number came up today and it was 4. 
That means I am reading Agnes Gray by Anne Bronte between now and October 1. I'm happy with this choice at it counts toward my Colorful Reading Challenge and my sister liked it.

Challenge: 2013 Colorful Reading

I am signing up to do the 2013 Colorful Reading Challenge hosted at Lost in Books.

The rules are simple:

1. Just choose 9 books with colors in the titles.   2. The books can overlap with other reading challenges (because let's face it, we need them to.)   3. Post your links to your reviews each month to share with other participants. 4. The challenge runs from January 1, 2013 to December 1, 2013. 5. Read to your heart's content!

I plan to start with The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins, The Bordeaux Betrayal by Ellen Crosby, and Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte.