Tag: Classics

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy

by The Lit Bitch12 Comments on Review: Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy

2015 promises to be a big year for books into movies, one of which that caught my eye was Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy.

The trailer looked beautiful and intriguing, not to mention the description of the book itself.

A love….square I guess….three men one woman….a tale of love and unrequited desire? Plus cute little sheep? I’m in!

I haven’t read anything by Thomas Hardy before so getting used to his prose was difficult. Very descriptive and flowery, and thick at times but after getting used to it, it wasn’t too bad.

Bathsheba Everdene is everything a bad-ass heroine should be….strong willed, bold, and independent. She has come into possession of her own lands and farm where she plans on being her own mistress and running her own estate.

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Announcement: Winner What Maisie Knew by Henry James

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Announcement: Winner What Maisie Knew by Henry James

And the winner of What Maisie Knew by Henry James is…..

Ty W(follows on Twitter).

The winner will be notified via email.

Thank you to everyone who entered and a huge thank you to Viking/Penguin for making this giveaway possible!

If you haven’t gone out to watch the film yet, do. This isn’t one that you want to miss! A modern retelling of a classic featuring the sexy and talented Alexander Skarsgård? I’m in!

Books, Giveaway, Reading

Special Feature and Giveaway: What Maisie Knew by Henry James

by The Lit Bitch3 Comments on Special Feature and Giveaway: What Maisie Knew by Henry James

The classics are making a vivacious come back to the silver screen this year! This year we have seen modern takes on old favorites with such blockbusters as Anna Karenina, Les Misérables and The Great Gatsby.

The Henry James classic, What Maisie Knew, has also been made into a feature film!

Though there hasn’t been as much buzz about this film as some of the others, it has been highly praised by the critics after its debut at the Toronto Film Festival in Sept 2012.

The movie has now been released to the masses in May and continues to   garner much critical praise for the performances of Julianne Moore, Alexander Skarsgård, Steve Coogan, and the young Onata Aprile.

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Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: Appointment in Samarra by John O’Hara

by The Lit Bitch1 Comment on Review: Appointment in Samarra by John O’Hara

Haven’t we all fantasized about acting on pure impulse? Have you ever thought about removing all filters and just saying exactly what you think about someone?

How about throwing a drink at someone because you honestly can’t stand to listen to them for a minute longer? Sure, we all have but for the most part we control our impulses and the filters remain in place.

Luckily we can live vicariously through some of our favorite literary characters! Meet Julian English. Julian is going to act on those impulses and what follows is a train wreck of self destruction.

This is a story about how easily you can fall from grace when you give into rash behavior and you take for granted your “innocents” and become arrogant instead. Julian manages to destroy his life in a matter of three days.

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Book Challenges, Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading, Reading Challenges

Review: Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

by The Lit Bitch20 Comments on Review: Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

Trapped in a love less marriage to a man with good social standing, Anna Karenina does the unthinkable–she enters into a doomed, passionate love affair with another man.

Society will torment her, her husband will ridicule her, but her own guilt will drive her to the breaking point.

With one of the most memorable opening scenes in western literature, Anna Karenina is a literary masterpiece about life, passion, and love.

This lengthy novel is spread over eight parts featuring two alternating protagonists, Konstantin Levin and Anna Karenina.

The elegant and proper Anna, is married to a high-ranking government official, Alexei Karenin. For the past eight years they have maintained a fragile facade. On the outside their marriage appears amiable but in the absence of love, there is nothing but respect and understanding to fill the missing pieces.

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