My Weekly Calendar

I used to have a goal here about eventually reading one book a day and writing fifty pages each week. Someday I may be able to get to fifty pages written, but I've had to come to terms with my inability to read fast enough to ever reach the other goal. Instead, I've begun pacing myself for what I think I can accomplish around work and other priorities. It will drastically cut back how many books I get through each year, but sometimes life is also about accepting what you won't achieve. It's beautiful and necessary to believe in infinite possibilities, but it's also beautiful and necessary to understand limitations.






Friday, November 12, 2010

The Princess Bride

I just got done reading the abridged version of The Princess Bride and it was very very good. I want to say 'A'. I want to. Here's why I want to:

The abridger, William Goldman is hilarious and I'm fine with his asides. I don't need fifty pages on what the Queen packed when she was going to visit the other city.

The author, Simon Morgenstern, is equally hilarious. And fine with being anachronistic. So am I. I love that Westley was wearing blue jeans in medieval France. Love.

The characters are interesting. As you may or may not know, this is the most important aspect of any story for me. I wonder if it's why I have such a hard time getting into poems.

Anyway, why won't I give this an 'A' but am instead giving it a really high 'B+'?

I don't know. I enjoyed it immensely. I read it in one day. I ususally can only accomplish this if I am truly engaged with the novel. I was. So what's eating me?

I don't think I'll reread it. The novels I give an 'A' grade are ones I will return to, time and again. For this purpose, Stephen King's The Drawing of the Three, which is the second book of The Dark Tower Series, only receives a high 'B'. It's not my favorite and I don't reread it. I think the one thing, and I'll talk about this eventually on this blog, the one thing that earns any novel an 'A' has to be visceral and extremely personal. I would recommend this book to others, especially those who enjoy adventure books, but now that I'm done, I'm done. I don't want to go back and find the little details I feel like I overlooked the first time.

Goldman would of course give this book a 'A'. He responds to it on such an emotional level (boy does he) and I think that's beautiful, and if he had explained to me why he thought I should read it I would, just based on his explanation, and I don't think I would regret it even if I didn't enjoy it because I knew it brought someone else such pleasure. I don't regret it. I just won't be revisiting it.

I will however, forever revisit its greatest line:

"Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die."
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