Summer Blogging Hiatus... Over

Well, for a variety of reasons (many of which will be blogged-about at a later date) I've taken a couple weeks of hiatus from my blog.

During that time I've tried a watermelon granita recipe, explored my new Kindle Fire and loaded it up with apps like Scrabble and Tune-In, bought a Krups juicer for $3 at a thrift shop, moved from one household to another (several bins and boxes still pending unpacking), slept in, stayed up late, broken up about 50 sibling battles, battled extreme irritability due to previous, sweated it out to Just Dance 3 with my daughter, scored a used trumpet from a friend who wanted to get rid of it, found out I have Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, explored my husband's company's new website (they are launching their foot soon!) and read Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen (finally.)  See, now I am qualified to read Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.  Then I can read about Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.  (Then I can see the movie.)  Then I will be a tiny bit on my way to catching up on my paranormal literature and pop culture (almost a job requirement for me.)

At any rate, I've had some lying-around time, but things have been darn busy.  I still have a laundry list of to-do items that have been waiting around for months.  It'll all get done by the time school begins.

My review of Pride and Prejudice:

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had great fun reading this book, especially at the end of the school year. I felt that I already understood the broad lines of the plot because there are just so many references to this book in popular culture (movies, etc.) My literature professors would probably be disappointed to know how many times I had Bridget Jones Diary flashbacks while reading. Jane Austen is of course awesome, and it was fun to finally read the original.

I've been moving houses, too, and reading this during my moments of complete exhaustion has made me realize that moving houses has a strange way of bringing out the Victorian in me. I find in myself a renewed interest in household furnishings, whether things match, where items are hung on the walls, or which way they are placed onto surfaces. I stand and unwrap the most frivolous and unsentimental knick-knacks thoughtfully, evaluating whether they can be of good to anyone. I am temporarily convinced that children are to be seen and heard as little as possible-- can't someone else be in charge of feeding them after a day of moving? I can't be bothered. A governess seems highly desirable. I invent a thousand small projects I can do to beautify things-- armrest covers for our child-worn couch, touch-up grout in the shower, the exact combination of color and design and economical value for the shower curtain. All these domestic details would have amused Jane Austen. As I read I imagined Lady Catherine de Bourgh making her way through my tiny abode, disapproving of every room.

Also, I love the story between Elizabeth Bennett and Darcy. Jane Eyre is one of my favorite books, but this one is superior in terms of the balance of power in the relationship. Jane Eyre still wins out in terms of the Gothic good-times and the mousy heroine, but from a feminist perspective and within the limitations of the culture and time period, Lizzy Bennett is awesome.

View all my reviews