The Broken Heart

'Tis Pity's she a Whore so far as been my favorite John Ford play, but this was good. This play was written in the late 1600's.  Because of her brother Ithocles' unwise decisions Penthea has to marry the overbearing jealous Bassanes instead of Orgilus. Her brother soon realizes the error of his ways, but Orgilus sets out to get his revenge. The title of the play refers to the fate of Calantha, Ithocles love.  This covers topic like murder and suicide but 'Tis Pity was juicer. 

The Critic

 

This was just ok. Frankly I thought it was easily the worst Richard Brinsley Sheridan play I've read. It's about a critic Mr. Dangle and him seeing an atrocious play by a man named Mr. Puff. The play Mr. Puff wrote is supposed to be a satire of the plays of the time. I have to admit I probably would have appreciated this play more if I was more familiar with the plays of the late 1700's which is my own fault. Still, Sheridan's The school for scandal is an excellent play and The Rivals was good too. The man had talent. 

Boston Adventure

 

I love Jean Stafford, and this was her first book. It's promising but she did way better later with her masterpiece The Mountain Lion and her short stories. I loved those works so much that I read a biography of the author. This is probably loosely based on her life, a book where she talks of a childhood with a father who deserts them and a mother who eventually becomes mentally ill. Jean becomes a secretary for a rich woman writing her memoirs later on. The problem for me laid with the length. It was over 400 pages. I loved the first hundred, but it started to run out of steam. 

Loving

 

This was all right. It wasn't bad but it wasn't exactly a page turner either.  It concerns the life of the servants of the Tennant household during World War II. We go through the loves of the servants and various situations like the theft of a ring. I got lost because little happened. I kept thinking that maybe I missed something, but I didn't. The plot line of the IRA was kind of interesting, but I'll be surprised if I read another book by Henry Green. 

The Hairy Ape

 This was a good existentialistic play from Eugene O'Neill. The character Yank is a strong dumb man who works on a ship. When a wealthy girl refers to him as a beast at work, Yank loses it. He goes on a journey and realizes that both the rich and his own social class reject him. The ending is truly ironic when he comes across an ape itself. I found this play to be about the struggle to belong as well as a message on the social class. Eugene O'Neill was one of the better playwrights in the 1920s and his work is still riveting to read today. 

Time Cat

 

This was a pretty cute book from Lloyd Alexander about a boy and his cat time traveling. They see how cats were revered in Egypt and feared in Salem, Massachusetts. They even run into Leonardo da Vinci. This would be liked by history buffs or just parents who want wholesome fun entertainment. The Chronicles of Prydain would come later and then Lloyd Alexander would truly make his mark on children's literature.

Anna Christie

 I haven't read this play since I was eleven. I've seen the Greta Garbo movie a few times though. I was pretty impressed. It's about a prostitute whose father rarely saw her growing up just abandoning her to a farm. She comes to visit him as an adult with the intention of making a clean slate and lying about her past. She falls in love with a sailor. She enjoys the reputation of being a good girl, but guilt eventually creeps in. Anna doesn't feel worthy of the sailor. The truth comes out. While it does end on an upbeat note I think this is a pretty grim book about one's past. None of the characters are saints in this play. It's one of O'Neill's better plays. I need to revisit him.