Tag Archives: Word Cloud Classics

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

Book Review, ,
Overview
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Title: The Count of Monte Cristo
Author: Alexandre Dumas
Series: Word Cloud Classics
Rating Out of 5: 2 (Managed to read it… just)
My Bookshelves: Classics
Dates read: 3rd – 16th January 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Novel
Publisher: Word Cloud Classics
Year: 1844
5th sentence, 74th page: “Yes, Noirtier.”

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Synopsis

“Alexandre Dumas’s novel of justice, retribution, and self-discovery – one of the most enduringly popular adventure tales ever written – appears here in a newly revised translation.” “This novel tells the story of Edmond Dantes, wrongfully imprisoned for life in the supposedly impregnable sea fortress the Chateau d’If. After a daring escape, and after unearthing a hidden treasure revealed to him by a fellow prisoner, he devotes the rest of his life to tracking down and punishing the enemies who wronged him.” “This newly edited version of the original nineteenth-century English translation speeds the narrative flow while retaining all the essential details of Dumas’s intricately plotted and thrilling masterpiece.” The classic nineteenth-century translation has been revised and updated by Peter Washington, with an introduction by novelist Umberto Eco.

Sent to prison on a false accusation in 1815, Edmond Dantes escapes many years later and finds a treasure which he uses to exact his revenge.

Thoughts

I seriously struggled with this classic. Normally I love the different ways in which language is used through time. Even when the version I have has been translated from another language… but there was just something about The Count of Monte Cristo that I just couldn’t get behind. I’m definitely going to give it another try in the future. Just at this point in my life… it was a big nope not into it for me.

I did give this a really good shot for the first 150 pages… and then from henceforth I just skimmed it. As I said, there was just something about it that didn’t capture my attention. It was just an incredibly slow journey…

I can understand why this is a classic though. It is full of great symbolism and storylines. Full of themes which are impossible to forget. I’m looking forward to rereading this again when I’m kind of old and slow… it’ll probably be more the type of story I want when I start to slow down too. Or at least, that’s the theory.

<- The Adventures of Sherlock HolmesThe Three Musketeers ->

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Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
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Title: Anne of Green Gables
Author: Lucy Maud Montgomery
Series: Anne of Green Gables #1, Word Cloud Classics
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Classics, Family
Dates read: 5th – 11th November 2019
Pace: Medium
Format: Novel
Publisher: Word Cloud Classics
Year: 1908
5th sentence, 74th page: Isn’t that a perfectly elegant name?

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Synopsis

Best-selling Canadian author Lucy Maud Montgomery published the first book in her charming series in 1908, making it a literary favorite for more than a hundred years. Published as a children’s novel, the story of Anne Shirley, an orphan, was inspired by the author’s childhood adventures on rural Prince Edward Island. It follows Anne’s journey as she moves to a farm on Prince Edward Island to live with a middle-aged brother and sister who had intended to adopt a boy to help them with farming chores. The story follows Anne as she makes a home and comes of age on the island.

  • This chic and inexpensive edition comes with a heat-burnished cover, foil stamping, luxurious endpapers, and a smaller trim size that’s easy to hold.
  • The widely popular novel has sold more than 50 million copies and has been translated into more than twenty languages since its first publication.

Anne of Green Gables has been one of the world’s most charming coming-of-age stories for more than a century.

Thoughts

I didn’t really know what to expect when I picked this classic up. I know that a lot of people enjoy the story. And that is honestly the extent of my knowledge. It made it a pleasant surprise when I realised how much I loved this. Especially when Anne is such an unbelievably relatable character. Probably my favourite classics lead since I started trying to expand on my classics knowledge.

This is an incredibly sweet coming of age story. Mostly because it is all about love and family.  Not the family we are necessarily born into, but the one that we choose. Or, that fate chooses for us in any case. It’s not just about the two people who choose to parent Anne, it is about their relationship as siblings. The relationships they’ve formed with the rest of the town and Anne’s desire to fit into a bigger world.

Normally I find coming of age stories a little bit of a hard slog and not that engaging. But, this isn’t like that. It is impossible to put down, funny and filled with so much light and compassion that I won’t be able to forget this story. Not for a long time yet.

The language in this story is one of my favourite things… the language that Montgomery uses is open, relatable and simple. The long-winded, intense dialogue that fills Anne’s head is a great counterpoint to this. The ramblings and intensity are a great way to show the jumpy thought process that Anne follows. Probably what makes her so damn relatable… because I kind of go off on the same fanciful tangents.

<- Moby-DickAnna Karenina ->

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The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
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Title: The Wind in the Willows
Author: Kenneth Grahame
Series: Word Cloud Classics
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Book to Film, Classics, Easy reading
Dates read: 2nd – 6th August 2019
Pace: Slow
Format: Novella
Publisher: Oxford
Year: 1908
5th sentence, 74th page: ‘When they went,’ continued the Badger, ‘the strong winds and persistent rains took the matter in hand, patiently, ceaselessly, year after year.

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Synopsis

Join in the delights and disasters on the riverbank with Mole and his new friends, Ratty, Badger, and fun-loving Toad. There’s never a dull moment!

Thoughts

I found this a hard book to get through. Not because it was bad writing, not because it was bad in any way, shape or form. But I just felt like not much was happening. And, since I recently read Mark Twain, which is kind of similar in its rambling manner, I needed something with a bit more direction to it. So, although I didn’t mind this story, it’s definitely one I will be picking up again in the future when I’m more in the mood for this style of storyline.

Part of me was quite surprised that I didn’t love this book more, I remember Toad and Badger incredibly well from the movie I used to love as a child. And, I think, in hindsight, I probably would have loved this book as a child too. I’ve just picked up some incredibly amazing, more grown up books recently, so wanted to read more of those as opposed to a children’s book that was a little disjointed and mostly about a lot of fun between four great funs. Or at least, that’s how I still experience this.

What I loved about the movies as a child, and what I loved about this book as an adult is mostly the fact that this is a story about friendship and loyalty. The four friends, even though they are incredibly different they still stick together. My friendship group is kind of like this myself, we are so intensely different, yet, we’re always there for each other, no matter what the circumstances…

<- The Prophet and Other TalesClassic Westerns: Zane Grey ->

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Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
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Title: Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Author: Mark Twain
Series: Word Cloud Classics
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Classics, Contemporary, Race
Dates read: 15th – 10th July 2019
Pace: Slow
Format: Novel
Publisher: Word Cloud Classics
Year: 1884
5th sentence, 74th page: That’s a Frenchman’s way of saying it.

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Synopsis

No home library is complete without the classics! Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a keepsake to be read and treasured.

One of the most popular books of all-time, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has been both venerated and vilified since it was first published in 1885. The story of a young abused boy on the run and his friendship with a runaway slave is about loyalty, compassion, and doing what is right, and it remains one of Mark Twain’s greatest achievements. Now available as part of the Canterbury Classics series, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a must-have addition to the libraries of all classic literature lovers.

Thoughts

This is my first ever Mark Twain, and it certainly makes me glad that I have more of his books on my shelves. There was something fun and easy about his writing. Which I don’t often find in classics. For something which was published many, many, many years ago, this was kind of amazing. The meandering storyline was something that I would have loved as a child – living on a river free of every kind of responsibility, living on the land… that’s the kind of childhood that I would have loved.

One thing I tend to struggle with when reading is storylines that don’t have a clear beginning, middle and end. Tales that are a little more meandering and random I find a little harder to get hooked into. They don’t grab and keep my attention as well as stories which you need to keep reading to find out exactly what happens. Although this did follow that meandering trend, I didn’t find myself putting the book aside as frequently as I usually would. It still took me a little while to finish this considering how much I loved the writing style and language.

For a fantastic kids’ journey, the issues of racism and class are touched upon beautifully in this tale.  Huck’s original feelings towards Jim are those of someone who feels entitled and with power over someone who is almost four times his age. But, as the tale evolves, he begins to see Jim as a fellow person. One with his own desires, needs and wishes. Whilst there is no outright commentary on slavery, the underlying message felt strongly skewed towards this ideal. And it was one that I loved dearly.

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is the kind of story that drops you in a world any child would be happy in. Or at least, any child that was a bit of a ratbag like me. I would have loved travelling down the Mississippi on a raft, choosing my own life, dinner and making all of my own decisions. Alright, as an adult I’m well aware of how non-idyllic this would actually be. But as a child, this would have been wonderful.

<- Walden and Civil DisobedienceThe Adventures of Tom Sawyer ->

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Persuasion by Jane Austen

Book Review, , ,
Overview
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Title: Persuasion
Author: Jane Austen
Series: Word Cloud Classics
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Classics, Romance
Dates read: 2nd – 5th July 2019
Pace: Medium
Format: Novel
Publisher: Word Cloud Classics
Year: 1817
5th sentence, 74th page: They did not like each other, and no renewal of acquaintance now could do any good; and were Lady Russell to see them together, she might think that he had too much self-possession, and she too little.

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Synopsis

Published in 1818, Persuasion was Jane Austen’s last completed novel. In this compelling love story, Anne Elliott is unhappy and unmarried twenty-seven. At the urging of her family, she broke her engagement to the man she loved eight years before because he was poor and didn’t have good family connections. When they meet again, he is wealthy, a captain in the navy, and looking for a wife, but he has not forgiven Anne for her rejection and resolves not to fall in love with her again. With a heat-burnished cover, foil stamping, and designed endpapers, the Word Cloud Classics edition of Persuasion is the perfect addition to any bookshelf!

Thoughts

I always forget how much I love Jane Austen until I pick up one of her books and start sinking my teeth into it again. The fact that there’s still a few that I haven’t read yet makes me think that I need to finish reading the books on my shelves. Especially since this was the first time I’ve ever read Persuasion, and I seriously couldn’t put it down once I got about a third of the way in. after all of the introductory, family history nonsense.

My heart broke a little as Anne’s plight and treatment by her family was fully revealed. There was something so sweet and kind about her from the very first introduction, and the fact that she was completely ignored and abandoned by her family was just… well, heart wrenching. But it also made this story all the more romantic and endearing. There is one man that truly understood her worth and he waited around for her for years and years.

We’ve all been persuaded to do something that we’re not really sure is right, or away from something that we know we really want and need in our lives. Although this story was written in the 1800’s, that is a theme that still occurs repeatedly today. Yet, I love that Anne has a chance to make things right and fix her mistake of being persuaded away from true happiness. Persuaded to go against her heart and work with her head and the sensibilities of others.

This is one of those novels that is going to the top of my favourites list. One that I’m going to read again and again. Whenever I’m feeling low, in a reading slump or just in need of a good story that will provide me with a little hope that the world isn’t actually that bad.

<- Northanger AbbeyPride and Prejudice ->

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Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
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Title: Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
Author: Jules Verne
Series: Word Cloud Classics
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Classics, Oceans, Science fiction
Dates read: 31st May – 3rd June 2019
Pace: Slow
Format: Novel
Publisher: Word Cloud Classics
Year: 1870
5th sentence, 74th page: I was in ecstasies with the vivacity of their movements and the beauty of their forms.

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Synopsis

French naturalist Dr. Aronnax embarks on an expedition to hunt down a sea monster, only to discover instead the Nautilus, a remarkable submarine built by the enigmatic Captain Nemo. Together Nemo and Aronnax explore the underwater marvels, undergo a transcendent experience amongst the ruins of Atlantis, and plant a black flag at the South Pole. But Nemo’s mission is one of revenge-and his methods coldly efficient.

Thoughts

This is one of those stories that you can read again and again and find something new and fun each and ever time. This first read I mostly just got an overall impression of amazing writing, in depth characterisation and vivid settings. Ones that I just couldn’t get out of my mind’s eye even after I turned the final page of the book.

There are some classics that are tedious in the extreme. Don’t get me wrong, you can understand why they’re a classic. But, they’re just long-winded and difficult to read. Verne still has a convoluted and beautiful way with words, but there is something so much more accessible about the way he uses them and twists the world around him. Something about the journey that you are swept away on that makes it really hard to look away. And, even though I absolutely know that I didn’t pick up on every small detail of the storyline, I still loved every moment. Every beautiful, meandering stop along the adventure.

One of the aspects of this writing that I loved the most was the fact that each chapter was its own adventure. There was a strong connection with what happened in the preceding section, but it functioned incredibly well by itself as well. It meant that although I found the novel hard to put down because of the amazingly talented writing, there were also pauses in which it felt feasible and logical to put aside to act like a real adult…

<- The Adventures of Huckleberry FinnThe Age of Innocence ->

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Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

Book Review, , ,
Overview
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Title: Wuthering Heights
Author: Emily Bronte
Series: Word Cloud Classics
Rating Out of 5: 2 (Managed to read it… just)
My Bookshelves: Classics, Gothic
Dates read: 12th – 18th February 2019
Pace: Slow
Format: Novel
Publisher: Word Cloud Classics
Year: 1847
5th sentence, 74th page: “What ails you, Cathy?” he was saying when I entered: “you look as dismal as a drowned whelp.”

Synopsis

Discover a passionate tale of love lost, found, and avenged in Wuthering Heights. Lockwood, a wealthy man from England, rents a house from an eccentric gentleman named Heathcliff, who is the tortured master of Wuthering Heights. Through Lockwood and the housekeeper, Nelly, the story of Heathcliff’s adoption, upbringing, revenge, and love for Catherine is told. The unconventional relationships and complex story structure will keep you turning pages long into the night

Thoughts

Heathcliff is a douche. Total and utter, pain in the bum, can’t even get into this story kind of douche. There’s a chance that Catherine might also be a bit of a douche. But I really couldn’t move past my blinding hatred for Heathcliff to even concentrate on the object of his obsession.

I was kind of disappointed by the utmost douchiness of Heathcliff. If it wasn’t for him, I would have absolutely loved this book. The writing style was engaging, the storytelling complex but brilliantly done. There was a lot of fantastic imagery throughout the half of the story I read (yes, I hated Heathcliff that much that I only got about halfway through before the rage became too much). And the themes throughout are just striking. But then it all comes back to Heathcliff.

This is definitely one of those books that I’m going to try again in a year or so… it just wasn’t the right time to try and tackle the dark obsession and douchiness of Heathcliff. But, I can see this being a great read if I am feeling down and out against the world. Or, more specifically, men and romance in general…

<- Jane Eyre101 Fairy Tales ->

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The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
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Title: The Jungle Book
Author: Rudyard Kipling
Series: Word Cloud Classics
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Classics, Easy reading, Fantasy
Pace: Slow
Format: Novel
Publisher: Word Cloud Classics
Year: 1894
5th sentence, 74th page: What’s that?” said Sea Vitch, and he struck the next walrus a blow with his tusks and waked him up, and the next struck the next, and so on till they were all awake and staring in every direction but the right one.

Synopsis

Penned by English Nobel laureate Rudyard Kipling in 1894, The Jungle Book is a collection of allegorical stories that take place in the Indian jungle. The most famous stories of The Jungle Book are those featuring a young boy named Mowgli who was raised by wolves, is friends with a panther, and was educated by the animals of the jungle. Also popular in this collection is “Rikki-Tikki-Tavi,” about a mongoose who protects his human family against cobras. This edition also features tales from Kipling’s Just So Stories. These origin fables answer many questions about why things are the way they are, and readers will delight in tales like “How the Rhinoceros Got His Skin,” “The Beginning of the Armadillos,” and “How the First Letter Was Written.” A treasure trove of children’s literature, The Jungle Book and Other Stories from the Word Cloud Classics series is a chic and affordable addition to any library.

Thoughts

I had no idea what to expect from The Jungle Book. I’d honestly only ever watched the Disney movie and hadn’t read any blurbs attached to Kipling’s writing. It was just one of my many impulsive moments where I picked up the book, ready to read it and unsure of what to expect. Which was nice, because I also didn’t have any huge expectations placed upon the words. My main expectation was just that it would be about Mowgli, which was wrong.

I did wonder how an entire book about a man cub would turn out, and I’m actually really glad that this wasn’t the case in any way, shape or form. I loved that there were only about half a dozen short stories (or chapters) devoted to Mowgli, and the rest were a series of stories and poems based all across the Indian countryside. It made me feel like I was transported to a different place and a different time. Learning about how things were in a fantastical land that is part fact, and part fiction.

This is definitely going to be one of those classics that I’ll pick up again and again and again, and I’ll probably find something new and interesting to say about it each time. A new story or meaning that I wasn’t able to pick up on before.

<- The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other StoriesThe Phantom of the Opera ->

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A Christmas Carol and Other Holiday Treasures by Charles Dickens

Book Review, , , , ,
Overview
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Title: A Christmas Carol and Other Holiday Treasures
Author: Charles Dickens
Series: Word Cloud Classics
In: A Christmas Carol and Other Holiday Treasures (Charles Dickens)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Christmas, Classics, Short story collections
Pace: Slow
Format: Collection
Publisher: Word Cloud Classics
Year: 1843
5th sentence, 74th page: A merrier Christmas, Bob, my good fellow, than I have given you, for many a year!

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Synopsis

Most famous in the realm of holiday literature for his 1843 publication, A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens was in fact a prolific writer in the yuletide genre and a great contributor to many now-prevalent traditions of the holiday itself. In 1944, A Christmas Carol, Dickens released The Chimes: A Christmas Story of Some Bells That Rang an Old Year Out and a New Year In, which combined his usual sympathy for the poor with the notion that we must always strive to live in nobler ways. In 1845 came the novella The Cricket on the Hearth. The years 1846 and 1848 respectively saw published The Battle of Life and The Haunted Man and the Ghost’s Bargain. Because of this wealth of Christmas-themed works, Dickens is sometime referred to as “the man who invented Christmas.”

Thoughts

I can’t believe that it has taken me until I was almost twenty-six to read this collection! Actually, I can’t believe that it has taken me almost twenty-six years to read anything written by Charles Dickens. Normally I find anything written in the 1800s pleasurable, but a little difficult to get through. Not so with Dickens’ writing. It is so much more accessible and, although it still has the same mouthy, lyrical feel as much of the writing from that time, it is just somehow less formal, and more… real.

I know that sometimes Dickens is known as the father of the Christmas spirit. And, after reading these five “Christmas stories”, I can understand why. They all have the underlying theme of giving, love and family. Most of the stories feature the poor, and highlight that they almost have a better time in the holiday season than the rich – because for them it isn’t confused by the cost of Christmas, but of the love that surrounds everyone.

<- The Upturned FaceA Christmas Carol ->

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110 Grimmer Fairy Tales by Brothers Grimm

Book Review, , , , ,
Overview
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Title: 110 Grimmer Fairy Tales
Author: Brothers Grimm
Series: Word Cloud Classics
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Classics, Easy reading, Fairy tales, Short story collections
Pace: Slow
Format: Collection
Publisher: Word Cloud Classics
Year: 1819
5th sentence, 74th page: So she did the old woman’s bidding, placed herself at the window and looked on the distant country, as if she were very sorrowful.

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Synopsis

We all know the stories — or do we? We know who Snow White is, but what about Rose Red? And what happens to an all-too willful child? Learn more intriguing stories about “Wise Folks,” “The King’s Son Who Feared Nothing,” and . . . well . . . “Donkey Cabbages”–to name a few. Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm were well-known nineteenth-century German storytellers, academics, linguists, and cultural researchers who did not hold back when telling terrifying tales, including parables and fables designed to teach and entertain readers of all ages.

The Brothers Grimm Volume 2: 110 Grimmer Fairy Tales is perfect for the short story lover, and offers many entertaining tales to delight–and fright–literature lovers.

Thoughts

There seems to be a lot of stupid Hans’ in this collection. Or at least a patch towards the later middle that has a lot of stories that feature a dumb young man named Hans. And the recurrent theme seemed to be honesty, truth and fairness. Give to others. The typical ideas of fairy tales that I grew up with. Just with a far more twisted take and journey.

It’s a little difficult for me to seriously review a collection of traditional fairy tales. The things which normally trigger me and make me frustrated are rife throughout (stories of women beating, princess needing saving, etc.). But it is a different time, and I don’t really believe in rampaging about ideals of different times and places. The fact that the underlying message and themes are all about integrity and honesty. Not taking others for granted. Treating people as you wish to be treated. The kinds of things that I love to see perpetuated through tales, stories and journeys.

<- 101 Fairy TalesBulfinch’s Mythology ->

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