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Since I last blogged about Jane Austen, I've read Emma
Next up: Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights
and Mansfield Park and Mummies
Mad Hungry: Feeding Men and Boys, by Lucinda Scala Quinn.
As the mom of four boys, I was of course highly interested in the subject matter of this book. On a daily basis, sometimes right after dinner, I hear cries of "mom, I'm still hungry!". And they're not even teenagers yet. I found the first part of this book, with discussion and ideas and cooking tips, quite interesting. However, the recipes aren't always kid-friendly. There are some basics here, like fried chicken and beef stew. But others would work great for a family that's a bit more "into" food than ours. Still worth checking out, though.
Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar . . .: Understanding Philosophy Through Jokes
This is a fun book, short, easy to read. It gives a basic overview of philosophy, illustrated with a lot of really funny jokes.
Interesting review of Ralph Nader's novel "Only the Super-Rich Can Save Us!"
Being the type of person who likes to thoroughly exhaust a genre or author before moving on, I decided not to stop at just one cinematic interpretation of the novel, but four. Bride and Prejudice is the Bollywood version staring, among others, Lost's Naveen Andrews (who knew he could dance?). It was a fun movie. Then Bridget Jones's Diary which borrows a plotline from Pride and Prejudice. I thought it was just ok; my husband didn't like it at all. Bridget Jones stars Colin Firth, who also played Mr. Darcy in the workmanlike 1996 BBC production of Austen's classic, which I watched as well.
I also started reading Seth Grahame-Smith's Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. When I picked up the book at the library, I was not at all surprised to learn that it was published by Quirk Classics, a division of Quirk Books. Quirk Classics is specializing in the literary mash-up, which aims to "enhance classic novels with pop culture phenomena." The tongue-in-cheek Reader's Discussion Guide at the end of the book explains:
10. Some scholars believe that the zombies were a last-minute addition to the novel, requested by the publisher in a shameless attempt to boost sales....Can you imagine what this novel might be like without the violent zombie mayhem?
What to read next? There are so many options. I could read (or in some cases, re-read) the rest of Austen's novels - I've already finished Persuasion and started in on Emma
. I could read one of the many Pride and Prejudice sequels
and prequels on the market, but I'm still recovering from the disappointing Scarlett
, the sequel to Gone With the Wind. Or I could wait for Dawn of the Dreadfuls, the prequel to Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, being released later this month. Perhaps Mansfield Park and Mummies? or Emma and the Werewolves
? So many books, so little time...ETA: Quirk Classics is giving away 50 Dawn of the Dreadfuls prize packs here.