Hello everyone,
Today, I thought it would be best to go back to our BBC list and discuss a book I think is... well interesting.
A couple months ago, a few friends and I decided to start a book club. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to attend because of school duties. I did however try to read the book, The Picture of Dorian Gray.
About the book:
The book begins with the tale of an artist, Basil Hallward, painting a young gentlemen by the name of... you guessed it, Dorian Gray. Dorian Gray is claimed to be handsome, innocent, and an all around sweet guy. Basil, who becomes great friends with Gray, puts it upon himself to keep him innocent for as long as possible. However it is not to be. Dorian soon becomes like everyone else in the world; tainted with bad news and ill fates. Although as the years progress, Dorian notices that he is not aging. In fact, the portrait that Basil painted of the man is aging. Afraid, Gray hides the portrait and denies anyone access to see it, even the painter himself.
What I thought of it:
To tell you the truth, I could not get into it. The beginning is, in my opinion, quite slow and very boring. After 150 pages, I moved on to other texts. The first pages deal with the set up of the plot, and the romance that occurs ( you would have to read to find out about that). I will hopefully be able to finish the novel, but I thought I would post on it, to give everyone a heads up. I did hear that it has a fantastic ending, very Stephen King like. So, if you can get past the first ten chapters or so, let me know if it's worth continuing. As I stand now, I will give it a 2 out of 5. If I do finish it, I will repost with perhaps a different outlook.
Does it deserve to be on the BBC?
I want to say no due to the beginning being slow, but I will say yes because of its message. I think everyone should get an understanding of the words between the lines of this book. Does it deserve to be number 118? Probably not. I think it should be farther down on the list, like very far down.
On a side note, I decided to become part of the reading revolution and buy a Kindle Fire. I will be rating and reviewing this particular eReader soon. I can say that so far, it's a nice thing to have (just don't let it replace your favorite printed novels).
I noticed that most of the classics are free on Amazon. I find this helpful because I get to read a good portion of the BBC books for free. If you are following what I read, and you have a Kindle, it might be a good idea to check those out ( I do know that The Picture of Dorian Gray is free).
I hope everyone has a Happy Halloween! I find that the Legend of Sleepy Hallow is a great read for tomorrow night:)
Keep Reading.
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