The Mists of Avalon

The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A retelling of the Arthurian legends from the perspective of the women who are traditionally in the background of the tales this is a complex book full of moral dilemmas.
The lives of these women are harsh and full of deaths and forced marriages and they struggle with the choices the men around them make which made this novel tough going in places.
The conflict between the pagan matriarchal society of Avalon and the increasingly Christian Camelot is a focus in much of the novel and is very well presented in all its facets. Morgan Le Fay is a familiar character in popular culture and is typically a one-dimensional evil sorceress. Here she is the main character (called Morgaine) and the villainous actions that she is known for in film and literature are understandable now that we see her side. In this respect the book reminded me of Gregory Maguire's Wicked.
I am counting this book as my 'retelling of a classic story' for the Read Harder Challenge. 

Spring into a Good Book!

The Book Dragon's Lair is hosting a make-it-your-own Spring Into a Good Book Reading Challenge. I haven't made as much progress on my various challenges so far this year as I would have liked, so I am creating my own list of reading for this challenge to get some progress made. I always do better with a list to work from. And, I had to join this challenge because I love the picture!

Between March 20 and June 20, 2014 I want to:

• Finish the Letters of Edna St. Vincent Millay for the  2014 Postal Reading Challenge
• Start a second 'postal' book
• Finish 3 books for the Foodies Read Challenge
• Read 2 Canadian books
• Finish 3 books (one per month) for the TBR pile challenge
• Start Mists of Avalon
•  Finish one book for the What's in a Name Challenge 

 This commits me to reading a dozen books. One book may check off multiple goals (there is at least one foodie book on my TBR pile list, for example so that would be 2 goals with one book). I may read (ok, will probably read) other stuff as well.

The challenge kicks off with a read-a-thon March 20-26 which I can't fit into my schedule. A second read-a-thon is planned as well, so hopefully I will be able to do that one.

Challenge: Tea and Books 2013

I completed the 2012 Tea and Books Challenge at The Book Garden and am signing up to try the 2013 Tea and Books Challenge. However, I am signing up this time at the "Chamomile Lover" level which only commits me to read 2 books over 650 pages (thank you for the rule change from 700 pages!). I hope to be able to upgrade during the year to the next level (because I can't stand chamomile tea), but don't want to take on more than I can manage and have quite a few other reading challenges planned for 2013. A review of my reading pile found several books over 600 pages, but only a couple over 650.

I plan to read The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins (702 pages) and The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley (876 pages).