Book 150: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams.

“What is the victory of a cat on a hot tin roof?—I wish I knew... Just staying on it, I guess, as long as she can...” 

I've only had one other experience with Williams, and it was pretty positive. And when I decided to pull this title down for a read during the readathon a couple weeks, I was expected a fast read and nothing more.

I think I should have learned by now that all the plays on my list are there for a reason. I can't so easily dismiss them.

Beginning this one, I was struck by the similarities to another play on my list, The Little Foxes by Lillian Hellman. It took me a little while to place my reactions to Hellman's play aside in order to concentrate on this one, and once I did, I realized that a lot of the similarities were only on the surface (both focus on a dying cotton plantation owner and matter of inheritance). And I believe the years between the "publications" of each play show a remarkable different. Hellman's play, first written/performed in 1939, is definitely fiery and full of passion. There is a lot of scheming and plotting on part of the main female character to insure that she will be left wealthy. She pushes her family and insists on having everything she thinks she deserves.

And while Williams' play also has a strong female lead in Maggie, there seems to be a lot more at stake for the family members. There is a lot more depth to the backstory, and it appears that Williams play is more about the individuals than the plot. Each of the characters has a motive and a desire that is brought to the surface of the play, then they disappear a bit into the background. As I was reading, I kept catching glimpses of each struggle, all kind of bubbling there under the surface.

Essentially, the play is about Big Daddy and his fortune. He recently went to the doctor, and while most of the family knows the truth-that he is dying of cancer-he doesn't. So, his two sons and their wives are trying to win favor to get his inheritance. And as they push and prod him, all kinds of issues come out-alcoholism, infidelity, jealousy, repression, desire, and death. All of these issues influence the characters in different ways until it all comes out-the truth about Big Daddy's impending death, the truth behind a friend's suicide, secret desires, and a whopping big lie.

By the end, I was reading and flipping pages as fast as I could to discover what happened. It was fast-paced, tense, and incredibly unsettling, but I really did love it.

However, like all the plays I've read for this project, there is only so much I can interpret from reading the lines of the characters. I wish I could see all the plays on my list, then read them. I think I would pull far more from the performances. But I am glad I have one more by Williams to read-A Streetcar Named Desire-and a slew of other poems. :)

“In all these years, you never believed I loved you. And I did. I did so much. I did love you. I even loved your hate and your hardness.”

Book 149: The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

 “In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.”

I'm pretty sure there is nothing new or insightful I can say about Tolkien's The Hobbit. It is everywhere and there has been so much conversation about Tolkien's Middle Earth that anything I DO say will just be swept under the rug.

Instead, I can tell you about my own experiences with the book, in hopes that my personal relationship to the book and Tolkien are enough to get you to read further, and perhaps, comment below. :)

I was obsessed with fantasy and science-fiction as a teenager. I discovered the genres in middle school, and quickly flew through some amazing series and examples of each. Then I ventured off to high school and learned that apparently, girls don't read those genres, let alone LOVE them. So I swept them under the rug in my first year and attempted to read "girly" things and books that would convince my Honors English teacher I was smart.

Eventually (and thankfully) I grew out of that stage and realized that it didn't really matter and that I loved fantasy. I purchased The Hobbit and read it for the first time (and later The Lord of the Rings, which I wrote about in this very early post on my blog). I fell in love with Tolkien's world and was convinced that there was nothing greater than Middle Earth.

I've read the book numerous times since then. In the Mystery/Science Fiction/Fantasy class that I took as a junior in high school, The Hobbit was part of the curriculum. I adored the whole unit (and the class), and we even watched the very old school animated version of the book. It was my own nerdvana, and I loved it.

Since high school, I've revisited the book from time to time. In fact, when I cracked open my battered copy on this most recent reread, all the memories of reading it came back-being in my mom's car, carrying it to school to read after a test, reading favorite parts in college as a break from other books, and lugging it in my move out of my parents' house and into our current apartment. It is a very well-loved book and holds so much comfort for me.

There is something to be said about that-finding comfort in a book and remembering not only the characters, setting, and plot, but also that places that you have been while reading the book. I wish I had the same strong feelings about each book I read.

As far as the story, it was everything I remembered. Since I read this in the fall, you can assume that I read it before we went to see the new movie (which I loved). On this most recent read, I really tried to focus in on the dwarves and Gandalf's role. I noticed only a few new insights and was happy to see that the new movie built on a lot of the back story (and hello, Radagast. He is awesome).

In any case, I loved the book, loved the memories it brought me, and I can't wait to read it again. :)

"Poppies on Ludlow Castle" by Willa Cather.

I started reading April Twilights by Willa Cather as the first official title in my Willa Cather project. This poem stuck out to me (perhaps because we live very close to a street named Ludlow? Perhaps because I just love the mood of the poem?). I wanted to share, so you could have a little poetry to get through the day. Enjoy. :)

"Poppies on Ludlow Castle" by Willa Cather

Through halls of vanished pleasure,
And hold of vanished power,
And crypt of faith forgotten,
A came to Ludlow tower.

A-top of arch and stairway,

Of crypt and donjan cell,

Of council hall, and chamber,

Of wall, and ditch, and well,

 

High over grated turrets

Where clinging ivies run,

A thousand scarlet poppies

Enticed the rising sun,

 

Upon the topmost turret,

With death and damp below,--

Three hundred years of spoilage,--

The crimson poppies grow.

 

This hall it was that bred him,

These hills that knew him brave,

The gentlest English singer

That fills an English grave.

 

How have they heart to blossom

So cruel and gay and red,

When beauty so hath perished

And valour so hath sped?

 

When knights so fair are rotten,

And captains true asleep,

And singing lips are dust-stopped

Six English earth-feet deep?

 

When ages old remind me

How much hath gone for naught,

What wretched ghost remaineth

Of all that flesh hath wrought;

 

Of love and song and warring,

Of adventure and play,

Of art and comely building,

Of faith and form and fray--

 

I'll mind the flowers of pleasure,

Of short-lived youth and sleep,

That drunk the sunny weather

A-top of Ludlow keep.

Weekly Wrap-up for January 13, 2012: Back to the Grind.

Phew. This was the first week back after our two-week winter vacation, and let me tell you, it was a rough one. On Tuesday afternoon, the district was working on the servers for our computer system...and everything went down. Teachers and students couldn't access files, laptops on our carts had no internet access, and the computers were SLOW. They finally restored full access YESTERDAY, so you can imagine it was rough.

Thankfully I keep most of my files on a flash drive (which I really need to back up), so I still had access to my final exam files (many teachers did not, and since we have exams THIS WEEK, you can imagine the panic). I did have to rearrange some lessons and took out a video that the kids were really looking forward to (I've been showing my U.S. History classes episodes from The History Channel show, "America: The Story of Us" as we get to that content. They really love the show, so it was a bummer not to get to the Great Depression episode as promised). But, it was actually a good way to push my own creativity as a teacher so that I didn't rely on technology. :)

This week will go by quickly, I am sure. We have two full days, followed by three half days-2 exams each day. I'm in relatively good shape for grading, since all I have are the handful of things I collected in this past week. I'm hoping that I can spend the time the kids are taking their exams on prepping and getting things ready for second semester.

With second semester also comes my unit on Maus, which I am more than excited for. I brought the copies of the novel down to my room this week, and they are currently sitting in a box on my big front table. They have caught the attention of my kids, and I think they are really going to love the book and the unit.

I'm also teaching The Great Gatsby in my sophomore English classes at the beginning of the semester, so I need to do a quick reread this week to refresh my memory.

Besides all the school stuff, I've spent a lot of time this week with my niece, Zoey. It's hard to believe that she is almost 3 months old! My mom is watching her during the day for my brother and sister-in-law, and there were 2 days this week she had an appointment, so I came over after school to spend a couple hours watching the little munchkin. I also babysat last night for a few hours while my brother and sister-in-law went out for a date night. Zoey is the cutest little thing, and except for one little bout of fussiness last night, she was a blast to play with and cuddle. I'm glad that I get to be a big part of her life.

In reading news, I launched my Willa Cather Project this week, which I am over the moon excited about. :) When I was planning it, I was looking into finding copies of her poems and essays. While they were sold in single-volume sets, they were so darn expensive! I decided to be 2 of the 3 titles in the "Library of America" series on Cather (I decided not to purchase one of the volumes since it just contained her novels, which I already own). I've never owned one of the editions before, so I took a chance and ordered them used on Amazon. The first one came yesterday, and thankfully, it was the one with her poetry (April Twilights), so I already started reading. :) There aren't an overwhelming amount of poems, so I imagine I will finish them this week.

I also finished Cold Sassy Tree, which, as I read, seemed more and more familiar to me. I could have sworn that I read it before, but I couldn't figure out when. Generally speaking, I have a pretty good memory of what I've read and when, but I was drawing a blank. It was only after the scene with the car that I was SURE I had read it, and after asking on Facebook, turns out that I read it in high school for my sophomore English class. I'm pretty sure I didn't read it as an assigned book, but as a book for fun.

Lastly, I started Anna Karenina yesterday morning. I've been meaning to read it, and I was disappointed I didn't get to it last fall. I'm already 50 or so pages into it, and I can imagine really sinking into it and flying through the pages. Assuming I get all my grading done between today and tomorrow, I'll have a good amount of time to read this week (the grading for my exams is pretty straight-forward). I'm also looking forward to next weekend since we have the following Monday off. I'm picturing a lot of time snuggled up and reading.

I hope you all had a pleasant week and that you currently have a good book waiting. Let me know what you're reading!

Book 148: Mansfield Park by Jane Austen.

It has been a long time since I have talked about a title from my 250 Project list, AND it has been an even longer time since I've read this title in particular.

I decided to read Mansfield Park for Adam's Austen in August event. And I did read the entire novel in the very beginning of that month. Then, my classes I was teaching changed, so I was in a planning craze, then I started feeling sick, then school started, and before you know it, here I am in January. Whoops.

But I can't let this one just slip through the cracks, so I must say something about Austen's novel, even though it probably won't be all that detailed (or insightful).

I had read Mansfield Park once before-back when Austen was a new obsession-and while I enjoyed it then, it wasn't my favorite. Mansfield Park is definitely a quieter version of Austen, and I much preferred her rip-roaring heroines in Pride and Prejudice and Emma. But, I was eager to read this one in August to see if my feelings had change at all.

Imagine my surprise when they didn't! I really thought that coming to this novel with a more mature perspective and outlook would increase my love for it. After all, I do love the quiet strength of Anne Elliot in Persuasion. And while I liked Mansfield Park more than what I remembered, I'm going to be honest and say it is still my least favorite Austen. While the clever wordplay and passion is still there, I just wasn't as invested in the story, or as interested. It was good, but I didn't think Austen was at her best.

That makes me wonder how many other authors that I love have books that will seem like a disappointment to me (and again, I want to stress that I liked the novel-it just paled in comparison to the other titles in Austen's name). By reading a lot of the "big" titles by these classic authors, will I find myself disappointed when I read their minor works? Will there be multiple books by them that I won't like? Will I get sick of reading them? Those questions taunt me a little, and I suppose I won't know until I read more by the authors I have merely been exposed to.

In any case, Mansfield Park is a book that I will return to again. Perhaps it still isn't the right time for me to click with the story, or see the depth that many other bloggers and readers do. So yes, I will read it again and again. :)