The Mists of Avalon

 

I bought this book years ago and put it on my bookshelf. It was one of those books that I told myself that I would get around to. Then a friend told me the plot and I finally took it off the bookshelf. It's a female perspective of the King Arthur stories. The one criticism I would give it is that it was very anti-Christian and I'm religious. But the stories were interesting especially the one about the barren Gwenhwyfar and her relationship with Lancelot. It's one of the longest books I've read. I need to read other books on King Arthur. All I knew before this was The Sword in the Stone so I have a ways to go.  

The Collected Poems Sylvia Plath

 

I've just started getting into poetry. I haven't really given it a try. I've read Anne Sexton and Emily Dickinson. I decided to reread this and then I'm going to do less famous poets. I read this three years ago. Some people on the internet say she's just famous for her life which was pretty fascinating. However, she was an incredible poet. The last 50 poems in the book are from her beginning period. They're all right. It's interesting to see how she developed and became more unique. Her poems became more emotional. My favorite poems here are the ones about her dad who was a beekeeper. He died in Sylvia's youth. I don't really care for the poems where she writes about a famous sculpture. Those are more at the beginning of the book. I heard the movie with Gwyneth Paltrow wasn't that good. I hope one of these days a proper movie is made preferably with a star that doesn't have a name yet. That would be even neater.  

Melancholy Play

 

Tilly, a melancholy girl has three people in love with her a tailor, a lesbian, and a psychiatrist. The play gets really funky in the end by having all of the characters turn into almonds. At first, I thought it was too cutesy but then I admired it for daring to be that eccentric.  I read The Clean House, another play she wrote earlier on this blog. While I liked that play more I still found this play to be a worthwhile read. Ruhl has an interesting style and I'm curious to read her more.  

J,M. Barrie and the Lost Boys

 This book is about the family that inspired Peter Pan. I didn't know how involved J.M. Barrie was with these boys. His friendship with them continued into their adult years. I always have dismissed J.M. Barrie as just the writer of Peter Pan. That would have been enough though creating one major children's classic. However, he was also an established playwright and some of the plays particularly Mary Rose sounded cool. I thought it was interesting how it only talked about the play of Peter Pan and not the book he wrote of it later on. I would have liked to learn about his creative process with the book. But overall it was a fine biography and I felt I learned some new things about J.M. Barrie along the way. 

Mary Ventura and the Ninth Kingdom

 When my library got this I was excited. It's a "lost" story from Sylvia Plath. This was written doing her college days. It was just ok. It's about a girl's hellish train ride. The ride takes an unexpected turn when the character learns that the train is taking them to an icy ninth kingdom. The girl manages to get off just before the train stops there. This story is worth reading because it shows Sylvia Plath's potential. But if you're expecting something as brilliant as The Bell Jar or Ariel you will be disappointed.

Nightmare Alley

 

The book starts with Stan working at a carny show and seeing a geek biting chickens. At the end, he becomes a geek but it's a fascinating journey to that destination. Stan becomes a successful mentalist but it is not enough. He keeps becoming more ambitious and he keeps using people until eventually, he is on the road to ruin. I thought that I would be satisfied when this incredibly unlikable protagonist goes to his doom. Instead, it was too sad and he was just too pathetic. I wonder why Gresham didn't write more. He clearly had the talent. This was made into a Tyrone Power movie and I remember liking it. I need to watch it again. There's supposed to be a movie coming out soon based on this directed by Guillermo del Toro. I'm looking forward to it. 

Geography of a Horse Dreamer

 You have to give it to Sam Shepard. He had one vivid imagination. This play is about a man who can predict the winners in horse and dog races in his dreams. Two gangsters have kidnapped him and are making their fortune off him. I got introduced to Sam Shepard through watching True West on PBS. Sam Shepard was one of the best playwrights of the past fifty years. How many people can say they got nominated for an Oscar (he was an actor in The Right Stuff) and won the Pulitzer Prize? The man was a marvel. I have yet to read a play by him that wasn't worth reading through. His stuff was packed full of interesting ideas.