My Brilliant Career

For my literature discussion group, we are reading this Super Spectacular autobiographical book by Miles Franklin (her pen name) about a girl living in the bush of Australia in poverty, and it’s so brilliant. It was written by Stella Franklin as a sixteen year old, and accepted by a publishing company when finished. When Stella sent it to Henry Lawson under the pen name of Miles Franklin, he recognized it was written by a girl; to quote his preface to the book, “I hadn’t read three pages when I saw what you will no doubt see at once–that the story had been written by a girl.” After the book was accepted and reviewed by some dunces, Stella decided to suppress the publication of her book. Which, if you think about it, kind of makes A WHOLE TON OF SENSE. That project was REALLY private and personal and HERS. If someone were to get hold of my journal and want to publish it (you know, because it’s BRILLIANTLY written and INCREDIBLY articulate, and altogether AWE-INSPIRING– no), I would claw their face. Legitimate face-clawing would happen.
Okay, maybe not really. Intense glaring would happen.
Back to Stella, you should read her book. Do it, yes. It’s fantastic, and she’s hilarious and sarcastic in that 1880s way that WE ALL KNOW IS THE BEST HILARITY AND SARCASM.
I have a quote for ye, but first, a little filler:
At this point in the book, Sybylla Melvyn (Stella’s own self in the book– so many different names for her) has established that she is “ugly” and “plain,” and unfit for the “marriage market.” As we know, in that era, basically a girl’s highest goal was to get married to some guy with money, and have children, and obey their husbands to the last command. Yep. So being “plain” would be a simply horrid thing, I suppose. Anyway, because of behaving badly (a.k.a. being a teenage girl and not getting along with her mother at all times, duh), Sybylla is being sent to live with her grandmother, who invited her through a letter including the quote, “She might do something good for herself up her: not that I would ever be a matchmaker in the least degree, but [Sybylla's younger-by-eleven-months sister, Gertie] will soon be coming on, and Sybylla, being so very plain, will need all the time she can get.” The lovely marriage market. Without further ado, Sybylla is travelling to her grandmother’s in Caddagat:

Mr Hawden was not at all averse to talking. After emptying our tongues of the weather, there was a silence for some time which he broke with, “So you are Mrs Bossier’s grand-daughter, are you?”
“Not remembering my birth, I can’t swear; but I believe myself to be the same, as sure as eggs is eggs,” I replied.
He laughed. “Very good imitation of the coach driver. But Mrs. Bossier’s grand-daughter! Well, I should smile!”
“What at?”
“Your being Mrs Bossier’s grand-daughter.”
“I fear, Mr Hawden, there is a suspicion of something the reverse of complimentary in your remark.:
“Well, I should smile! Would you like to have my opinion of you?”
“Nothing would please me more. I would value your opinion above all things, and I’m sure–I feel certain–that you have formed a true estimate of me.”
At any other time his conceit would have brought upon himself a fine snubbing, but today I was in a high feather, and accordingly very pleasant, and resolved to amuse myself by drawing him out.
“Well, you are not a bit like Mrs Bossier or Mrs Bell; they are both so good-looking,” he continued.
“Indeed!”
I was disappointed when I saw you had no pretensions to prettiness, as there’s not a girl up these parts worth wasting a man’s affections on, and I was building great hopes on you. But I’m a great admirer of beauty,” he twaddled.
“I am very sorry for you, Mr Hawden. I’m sure it would take quite a paragon to be worthy of such affection as I’m sure yours would be,” I replied sympathetically.
“Never mind. Don’t worry about it. You’re not a bad sort, and I think a fellow could have great fun with you.”
“I’m sure, Mr Hawden, you do me too much honour. It quite exhilarates me to think that I meet with your approval in the smallest degree,” I replied with the utmost deference. “You are so gentlemanly and nice that I was alarmed at first lest you despise me altogether.”
“No fear. You needn’t be afraid of me; I’m not the bad sort of fellow,” he replied with the greatest encouragement.

Is she the most marvelous, drippingly sarcastic person ever or what? I LOVE HER.
“He twaddled.”
HE TWADDLED HAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

twad·dle   [twod-l] noun, verb, twad·dled, twad·dling.
noun
1.
trivial, feeble, silly, or tedious talk or writing.

Twaddle. *laughs to tears*
“I replied sympathetically.” Oh my gosh, just be my best friend, please.
All right, in conclusion, read this book because it’s stunning and hilarious and truthful.
Much love,
Ellie

Those Insane Bloodsuckers

Well, we all know how freaking popular vampires and werewolves and all that stuff is now, especially in teen literature, especially romance novels. Admit it. You’ve read or seen the movie of a paranormal romance book. I know you have. Don’t lie, it’s rude and untrustworthy. But, the question is, why? Why are part-human creatures so incredibly awesome now? Well, actually, what with Bram Stoker’s Dracula and Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, these “monsters” seem to have been pretty cool for a while.
But what with Twilight by Stephenie Meyer, these “things” have become the ultimatum at the top of the awesome-ness pyramid.
A few of these series, you know, with all the part-human and human falling in love and all that, or maybe just in adventure or something, are good. Some are really, really awful. Like, “I’m trying to copycat twilight exactly, which a ton of people hate, and just change it from vampires to *blank*” bad. I’m totally not going to name any books, because I don’t want people to do that to my books when they’re the ones that are horrible. Plus, that’s just kinda mean. Anyway, as you can see, I have done lots of research (aka, ransacking the library’s young adult section, coming back with 20 books, rejecting a dozen and obsessively reading the remaining 8, and returning all to the library, coming back with 20 books, etc.) on this subject, and, gosh, I didn’t think I could really hate so many books so profusely. But, then again, I didn’t think I could really love so many books either.
I would, of course, list them, but honestly, there’s way too many of them. I’ll make a new book list soon, though.
Until then!
Ellie

Old Yeller

Old Yeller is a book by Fred Gipson, about a boy and a dog.

The boy’s name is Travis, and he has a brother called Little Arliss. His father has gone on a cattle drive to sell their cattle. He will not be back for almost a year. Shortly sfter Travis’s father sets off, a big “yeller” dog shows up. Little Arliss imediately loves the big ugly dog, and throws rocks at anyone who treats him roughly.

I don’t really want to ruin the story for you, because my mom did that to me by reading the teacher overview out loud. So don’t read the next paragraph. Just skip it.

Soon, Travis learns to love the dog they call Old Yeller, because he rescues the people he loves most. Old Yeller first rescues Little Arliss from a mama bear protecting her cub. Then, he saves Travis from some wild hogs who slash him with their tusks. Both Travis and Old Yeller are severely injured, Travis has a very deep cut in his leg that prevents him from walking, and Old Yeller’s stomach is slashed open. (It’s really gross when he describes this part. Something about pushing the entrails back in and carrying him home…shudder.) Then, Old Yeller saves them all yet again by allowing himself to be infected with hydrophobia (rabies) to save them all from a mad wolf.  Travis then has to shoot Old Yeller to prevent his family from getting infected and going mad. What a cheerful story it is.

 

All right. You can read this part now.

I liked this book because it shows that sometimes you have to do something you really don’t want to do to prevent something that you don’t want even more, even if its hard.

Turn Homeward, Hannalee!

Turn Homeward, Hannalee! is a book by Patricia Beatty.

It takes place in the Civil War. The Reed family lives in Roswell, Georgia, and the children, Hannalee and Jem, work in the town mill. Davey, the eldest, fights in the Confederate army. Mr. Reed had been killed in the war, leaving his three children and pregnant wife alone. Then, the war comes closer to home then anyone expected; the Confederate army comes and burns down their own bridge to prevent the “bluebellies” from coming across. The Union army gets into Roswell anyway, and take all the mill hand away, including Hannalee and her brother Jem. They were all told they were under arrest for making cloth and rope for the Confederate army in their mill. Hannalee, Jem, and Rosellen, who was going to marry Davey if he lived through the war, stayed together, even though the soldiers separated the boys and girls. Hannalee tricked the soldiers by cutting her braids off and sewing them to her bonnet. She took Rosellen’s bonnet to hide her short hair, and gave Jem her apron and plopped the bonnet on his head. The three were still separated after their efforts, because Jem threw a bit of a tantrum, when an interested employer insulted him. Hannalee was put to work in the place of a dead servant girl, and didn’t enjoy it at all. She ran away and went to get Rosellen, who didn’t want to leave. She got away from her, after being taught to read by the boarder she stayed at, and set off to find Jem. He willing left, and they went off to go home. They met a peddler who covered for them when Union soldiers came by and gave them a ride to Atlanta. Jem and Hannalee got home the day after Christmas. The next day, their brother Davey, who they believed dead, came home. The end.

I like this book because it shows the value of courage, determination, and hope.

Shades of Gray

Shades of Gray is a book by Carolyn Reeder. It is about a boy named Will, after the Civil War, who has lost his whole family because of the war. He goes to live with his mother’s sister, whose husband did not fight in the war. Will is not happy about living with a traitor, as he calls him at first, because he did not fight for the Confederacy, and refuses to call him “uncle.” As he lives with his aunt, uncle, and cousin, he learns to respect them, and to see things from their view. Will gets a chance to go back where he used to live, in a different part of Virginia, but finally decides, after weeks of thinking, to stay with his aunt, uncle, and cousin.

I liked this book because it re-establishes the saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” and it show how, when we think we’re always right, we’re sometimes not. There are different ways of seeing things, and sometimes more than one is right.