The Count of Monte Cristo

The Count of Monte Cristo is a tale about revenge - anyone who has seen the movie knows the outline: Edmond Dantes, a young and successful sailor about to marry the girl of his dreams, is sent to prison falsely accused of being a spy. Presumed dead by his family, he vows revenge against those who got rid of him for their own greed and desires. Left a treasure by the only true friend he found in prison, he escapes and becomes the Count of Monte Cristo. One by one, he takes down his enemies. Consumed by revenge he sees nothing - not even the innocent.

I really enjoyed reading The Count of Monte Cristo. It was a light and easy read and those who like adventure, mysterious strangers, and fabulous treasure will love this book. For history geeks, the story captures the essence of France and Italy in the early 1800s and has a lot of references to historical figures. Actually, the whole story is historically inspired with Edmond being sent to prison because it was believed he was a Bonapartist - a follower of Napoleon.

This is the second book I've read by Alexandre Dumas that has been turned into a film. Like The Three Musketeers, the film is not completely faithful to the story. For one thing (spoilers ahead), Edmond doesn't end up with Mercedes!! Yes, that was a shock to me too, but as I read the story, I realized that the author wouldn't have him wind up with an 'old lady' when there was someone young and beautiful under Edmond's protection. Another huge change was that the villain in the movie was a morph of two villains in the novel. Unlike in the movie, Alexandre Dumas shows Edmond's interest and love for his old benefactor and employer Morrel and his family. The Count views them as his own family and does everything for them, taking care of them in their time of need. All in all, although the movie is good, there are a lot of differences from the novel and trust me, reading the book will be fun and different from the experience of the movie.

The Hobbit

My first book of 2012! I've finally read The Hobbit, and it was a good read - it had a similar writing style to The Lord of the Rings. I really enjoyed getting back into the Middle-earth world again, although I have to say I missed the elves and the men.

The ring isn't the central interest of the story - that lies with the dragon Smaug - and yet it plays a crucial role. Bilbo Baggins discovers the ring early on in his quest with the dwarves, and all his future adventures are tied to it. It helps him escape the goblins, because of it he manages to save his friends from the spiders, from the elves, and from the dragon.  The hobbit seems to have a lot of luck, which is why Gandalf had such implicit faith in him as a companion for the dwarves.

As for the "central interest", I didn't find it too interesting. That's because, although the dragon (and the gold) was the destination, it wasn't the high point of the adventure. When the dwarves and the hobbit finally reach the dragon, the novel isn't as intense as I expected. All the adventure had been played out before hand with the band's confrontation with other enemies. The novel lacked the depth that Tolkien was to give the more popular sequel. The history of the characters wasn't given in such detail and over all the novel was more light-hearted - the doom of middle-earth wasn't in everyone's mind. But all in all, it is a good prequel to The Lord of the Rings.

Kidnapped

It shows how clueless I am, and how much the My Blind Date with a Book feature will help me, when I don't even know that Robert Louis Stevenson is actually the author of Treasure Island! Of course, I know the book (haven't read it) and have seen the movie, but I didn't know who had written it, so that when I picked up Kidnapped by Robert Stevenson, I had no idea who the author was. So, you see, this new feature is already working at exapanding my knowledge!

Kidnapped follows the adventures of young David Balfour across the Highlands of Scotland. It involves some historical facts and figures, including a controversial murder case; by chance "Davie" finds himself caught up in the mystery.

Starting off, I didn't enjoy the novel; but eventually, it caught my interest and I found the reading light and easy. The novel was in the first person with David himself telling us his story. As a young boy of 17, he unexpectedly finds himself the heir to an estate. Unfortunately, his greedy uncle manages to get rid of him and from here begin David's adventures. Tossed in the high seas, shipwrecked and later running for his life across the Highlands with his new friend Alan Breck, David Balfour experiences more life in one year than he did in all his other seventeen.

What made the story for me was the friendship between Alan Breck and David Balfour. It was portrayed so naturally, with all its ups and downs and actually caused me to laugh quite a bit. The youth and emotions of David Balfour as he continues his journey were drawn realistically; he seemed like the 17 year old boy that he was, coping with the situation he found himself in.

Set in the Highlands, the whole atmosphere of the book has a mystical quality to it, with stories of fairies and superstitions a natural part of it; the people in the Highlands have a feel for their land - almost as if they were one with it. I love stories about the Highlands, and the bravery and loyalty shown by its people is often read about.

I enjoyed the book, and might even pick up a second adventure novel by Robert Stevenson. On the whole, I would rate this (see HERE for my ratings) number 3: First date was OK. Second may or may not happen. Having rated it, I still have to say that I'm not sure if the Adventure Novel is a genre I like. To find out, I'll have to read other books by different authors. Recommendations anyone??

The Lord of the Rings

On a drive home from a wedding, my cousins and I began discussing the books we had read and our favourites. Imagine my consternation when I turned out to be the only one who hadn't read The Lord of the Rings! I, who love classics, who love magic, who love anything fantasy! I hadn't read it. I decided to remedy that the first opportunity I could get. Consequently in a weeks time, I marched myself to a book shop and bought the book!

That is the story of how I began reading the greatest fantasy/magical/epic adventure tale ever.

It took longer than I expected. The world of Tolkien has a whole new reality - not the reality of another world, but a new reality of the world we live in. He has sketched a whole history and made it plausible to assume that Middle-earth's history naturally led to the realm of men - here and today.

I never really appreciated the movie until I read the book, and vice versa the book was enriched by the movie giving it an extra depth - especially The Return of the King. In today's world, despite globalisation, stories of valour and courage are less heard and remembered. We may have become a global village but the stories pass out as quickly as they come, and courage and loyalty is not revered as it used to be. The Lord of the Rings is just that - a story of courage and freedom and the lives that went into the building of a new world. Nowadays, one could wish for such a story that linked the people across Earth and unified us in such a way.

While reading the book, I was amazed at the amount of detail Tolkien put into each and every character's history, lineage and culture. We see how the legends of the Elves, their songs telling of a time long past, and Aragorn's history as King converges naturally with his love for Arwen, and his journey to "The Path of the Dead". All the little pieces of the puzzle slowly fall into place as we read along. Throughout the novel the role Gollum is to play is emphasized although none of us see it until his role is fulfilled. Nothing seems as if it were added on a whim, and the history flows so naturally that we can't think of it as anything but that - history.

Frodo's journey to Mordor, Aragorn's and Gandalf's journey to the Black Gate, the journey through The Paths of the Dead, the journey through Fangorn; that's what the whole book is, a series of desperate, life-threatening yet necessary journeys all to destroy the ring and stop the rising power in Mordor. Every step of the way is excruciating because the fate of Middle-earth depends on it.

The story:
The ring. That is what lies at the center. Forged in the crevices of Mount Doom by Sauron, it heralds the power of evil. It beckons and calls out the worst in all and no man can command it but Sauron.

But that is the story of a time long ago. Since then Sauron has lost the ring. Defeated in battle he vanishes. But soon he returns again, and now he seeks the ring. It is rumoured that it has been found - by a Hobbit. Frodo Baggins becomes the "Ring-bearer" when he becomes the heir to his cousin, Bilbo Baggins. As of yet no one knows of its true power. Gandalf the Grey, a wizard, suspects and fears its true origin. Convincing Frodo they set out with a group of travellers that become known as "The Fellowship of the Ring" to destroy the ring in the place that it was forged. It is the only choice they have because no living man can resist its allure and yet none can wear and control its power.

The books follow the journey of the nine men of the fellowship: Gandalf the Grey their leader, Aragorn son of Arathorn a Ranger, Legolas an elf, Gimli a dwarf, Boromir the son of the steward of Gondor, and the four hobbits Frodo, Sam, Pippin and Merry. Frodo must travel into Mordor, the realm of the enemy, and under his very nose throw the ring into Mount Doom. The burden of the ring is heavy and no one knows whether his quest will succeed, yet the men of the West must fight Sauron and his allies if only to give Frodo the chance to do his task. At the brink of ruin will Man succeed? Whether he does or not, the time of the Elves is over, and they must give place to the Third Age and the rise of the dominion of Men.