Didn't get the word play of the title until I was writing out my notes

After what feels like a millennium, I have read The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde and I totally get the hype now. Oscar Wilde's play focuses on two men who independently of the other have invented alternate personas that allow them to cut loose without (hopefully) any repercussions. One of the men has created Ernest who is by all rights a scoundrel and his creator has finally decided to do away with him so that he can settle down and get married. The problem is that his friend (the other deceitful man) has decided to take on the mantle of Ernest so that he can win the heart of a girl that he's just met. (I recommend reading this in one sitting because otherwise you're liable to get confused.) Wilde uses word play and absolutely ridiculous circumstances to discuss the folly of youth and poke fun at the whims and fancies of people who believe they are really truly in love even if they don't truly know the other person. For instance, the two women of the play are determined that they will only marry someone named Ernest but as it turns out no one is named Ernest there is a bit of a kerfuffle. After all is said and done, no one comes out on top and everyone is depicted as foolish and unimpressive. It was thoroughly amusing and I guess now I'll have to see the movie that was based on it. :-P If you haven't read it yourself and you'd like a quick, fun read this will do just the trick. 9/10

And yes the title of this post is true. I was staring at the book's title and then it hit me: "Oh because it's about two men proclaiming to be Ernest and they do it will all earnestness."  *facepalm*

Source: wobcp.org

What's Up Next: The Goldfish Boy by Lisa Thompson

What I'm Currently Reading: The Portable Nineteenth-Century African American Women Writers

**If you're interested in buying this book or any books really, you can click here or here. The first will re-direct you to AbeBooks and the second will re-direct you to The Book Depository. These are great websites for purchasing books (AbeBooks carries inexpensive used and out-of-print books and The Book Depository ships free everywhere in the world). Full disclosure: I will receive a commission on all sales made by following either of these links. I wouldn't recommend a site that I didn't use and you are under no obligation to purchase anything. :-) **

A happy accident

I came upon Edward Carey's Iremonger series by mistake. I don't mean that I stumbled across his books and didn't know what I was getting into…it was more that I had Mr. Carey mixed up with Edward GOREY. If you've seen their artwork at a glance then you might see how I came to make such a grievous error. I had seen some of Gorey's art a few years ago and made a note to grab some of his work…and then I was recommended this trilogy and thought I had finally got around to completing my goal. However, I think this was a happy accident because I really enjoyed this disturbing set of books. Firstly, I appreciate authors who do their own illustrations because they see their characters and worlds most clearly and they tend to feel like living things instead of one dimensional drawings. Heap House, Foulsham, and Lungdon make up the Iremonger trilogy and they chronicle the story of that clan of foul, loathsome dealers of filth, the Iremongers. In particular, these books detail the misadventures of Clod Iremonger and the irascible Lucy Pennant. Even though this sits on the shelves of the young adult section and are chock full of illustrations I must caution that no punches are pulled. All that is base and evil is dragged to the front and shown in shocking detail which is probably why I like it so much. There are no characters without flaws. However, this is not to say that this is told in a realistic fashion because if it was then I'd immediately fear for our very lives. The Heaps are made up of all the trash of that great offal generating city that goes by the name of London. The Iremongers are Regents of the refuse and under them are the residents of Forlinchingam (or Foulsham as it comes to be called). They are kept separate from London (Lungdon to some) by giant walls. You'd think this cruel enough but there's a terrible illness striking at the people. It's ridiculous. It's unsettling. It's…well I don't want to give the game away. 😁 Fair to say, this Victorian tale has evildoers, unlikely heroes, romance, and lots of rubbish besides. My one complaint is that I felt the ending didn't meet the expectations created by the buildup of the story arc. It wasn't bad but it lacked the punch that I wanted. I do think this is worth a read if for nothing else than for the ghastly illustrations which I absolutely adored. 9/10

Source: edwardcareyauthor.com

I can't deal with how awesome this is. Source: edwardcareyauthor.com

**If you're interested in buying this book or any books really, you can click here or here. The first will re-direct you to AbeBooks and the second will re-direct you to The Book Depository. These are great websites for purchasing books (AbeBooks carries inexpensive used and out-of-print books and The Book Depository ships free everywhere in the world). Full disclosure: I will receive a commission on all sales made by following either of these links. I wouldn't recommend a site that I didn't use and you are under no obligation to purchase anything. :-) **

England: To infinity and beyond! OR I really like learning about England.

The Sherlock Holmes Handbook is a step-by-step instructional manual on how anyone can mold themselves into a consulting detective just like Arthur Conan Doyle's creation. More than that, Riggs provides the reader with trivia, factoids, and beautiful drawings of the detective in action. This book is excellent for anyone whether they're just being introduced to the famous detective or if they've been a diehard fan for many years. It's always fun to revisit old friends and bone up on the tricks of the trade. ;-)

Jane Austen lived during the Georgian era in England and her stories are a reflection of the time and the places she visited. She tended to focus on the areas she was most familiar with unlike many of her contemporaries who decided that far flung locations were much better suited for novels. Jane Austen's England: Daily Life in the Georgian and Regency Periods by Roy & Lesley Adkins takes a look at this time period and focuses on all aspects of the country. From wedding practices to the stratification of the classes this is a comprehensive look at all the minutiae not covered by Austen herself.

An opening of the eyes

I mentioned in my last entry that I was going to be reviewing titles from NetGalley. These titles are in pre-publication status which means that you won't be able to go and pick them up just yet (if you were feeling so inclined). However, if you like the sound of them I highly encourage you to mark them on your "Must Read" list (I have so many of these that it's ridiculous at this point). So with that thought in mind on with the review!

The Why of Things: Causality in Science, Medicine, and Life by Peter Rabins was just as interesting as its title suggests. As a species, humans are always looking for the answers to 'why' things happen. We are by nature curious creatures and the author explains in-depth why it is important that we continue to look for the causes behind different phenomena/events whether they be on a global level (How did the earth begin?) or on a personal level (Why did I develop lung cancer if I've never smoked cigarettes?). The methodologies and disciplines that seek to answer these questions and an infinite number besides were discussed (some quite thoroughly such as the biological sciences in regards to genetics).  If you're interested in learning more about a fascinating topic (and trust me when I say that it is fascinating) then this book is for you. If you're a science nerd (yay nerds!) then you'll love it. Keep an eye out for this one to hit shelves.

Switching gears slightly (are you surprised?) I'm going to be reading Jack the Ripper: The Facts by Paul Begg. It's exactly what it sounds like. A narrative tale about the exploits of one of the most well-known serial killers of all time. He claimed the lives of 5 women in 1888 and was never caught. Paul Begg uses case notes from the time as well as documented accounts to aid in his attempt.  This is a revision of a book that was published in the 80s but which the author explains in the Introduction is almost a complete reworking based on new facts about the cases. As I'm interested in both Victorian England (and England in general if I'm being honest) as well as accounts of criminality I know I'm going to enjoy this read.

I hope you're all taking advantage of the summer to get your hands on books. Please let me know of any that you think I should read/review!!

PS Ashley, I'm working on getting a copy of the book we discussed. Once I do I'll review here for you! :-)

I'm a huge slacker :-)

It's taken me entirely too long to finish up this last book and I have no plausible excuses except that I'm incredibly lazy. :-)  That being said, on to the review!!

The Meaning of Night: A Confession was every bit the Victorian mystery that it proclaimed itself to be on the book cover.  Chock full of suspense, romance, intrigue, and heartbreak!  The only complaint that I can give is that it was a slooooow workup to the main "meat" of the story.  For a book that's 695 pages long, it didn't get really interesting until around the 300 page mark. The first few pages started out with a BANG and then there was a lot of background information. A LOT.  If you're looking for an epic length story that will provide you with enough detail to build your own model of Victorian England, then this book is most definitely for you.

The next book was highly recommended to me by the bestie.  I'm sure you've seen the film version of it with Natalie Portman.  It is of course Where the Heart Is by Billie Letts.  If I remember correctly, it's about a young girl that gets knocked up and then has her baby in the town's Wal-Mart.  That's all I remember.  However, if Krystle is recommending it AND it was in Oprah's Book Club I'm sure I can't go wrong. :-)

Happy reading, everyone!!

PS I promise to be less lazy!

PSS Or at least I promise to try not to be so lazy. :-)

Yep, epically bad idea

When I first bought The Fault in Our Stars, it was simply because I had great admiration for the author and wanted to show my support.  I had heard from a lot of people that it was very well-written and that he was known for breaking hearts with his words.  These people were not wrong.  It's no secret (to those that know me off of the Internets) that someone that I loved very much was beaten by cancer.  She was young and vibrant and simply Jessica.  I've read other books about cancer and each of them has stabbed at me in differing ways.  This one focused on the dying part of cancer and not really the fighting part.  Yes, there was the "battle with cancer" aspect but the main character has terminal cancer and she knows that she is simply biding time.  She's accepted her fate.  I did cry while reading this book.  All I could think about were those short yet endless months of my friend's last days and how at the end it wasn't really a fight anymore.  She had accepted her fate.  It wasn't so easy for the rest of us.  Still isn't.

Oh the review.  The book was excellent.  I highly recommend it but I do caution that it will cause you to feel.

The next book in the rotation is a Victorian murder mystery with a bewitching love story (or so the back of the book says).  I chose it because there's a dude with a top hat on the cover.  I'm a sucker for top hats. The book is The Meaning of Night: A Confession by Michael Cox.  

And they said it couldn't be done!

Of course, "they" refers to everyone who said that I should be more focused on my thesis than reading for pleasure. I say to them, "PHOOEY!" :o)

Now, to recap (because it's been awhile) I've been reading Ben Macintyre's The Napoleon of Crime: The Life and Times of Adam Worth, Master Thief which chronicles the life of the man who inspired Arthur Conan Doyle's Professor James Moriarty of Sherlockian fame.  I admit that I chose this book primarily because of that fact alone.  However, I've recently discovered just how much I enjoy non-fiction that discusses Victorian England and this book was chock full of data about this fascinating era of history.  Also, there was a large dose of Pinkerton history which  found fascinating as I read that book all those months ago about the history of the Pinkerton agency.  So, if you're interested in true crime, Victorian England, or maybe you just like non-fiction this book is just the one for you.

I'm what one might call a bookaholic.  This essentially means that I am constantly buying new books and adding them to my "Must Read" list which is steadily growing longer.  This also means that when I finished reading The Napoleon of Crime I was at a loss as to which book I should start on next.  I employed the help of my best friend and she decided me on The Help by Kathryn Stockett.  Unless you've been living under a rock I'm sure you've at least heard about the movie which was adapted after the book.  In essence, the book is about "the help" or the African American women who raised white children in the South.  What were their lives really like?  Well, I can't wait to find out!

I hope you guys are cracking open those books because you never know what mysteries you'll find within its pages!!