Alana Estelle

Nancy Mitford is always a treat to read; her characters are funny, witty, and engaging and her writing is quite precise, yet cryptic in some instances. Mitford has a way of implying events, forcing the reader to think; she does not spoon-feed and that is something I always appreciate. I enjoy an author who trusts the intelligence of the reader. 

Love in a Cold Climate (LIACC) is narrated by Fanny, who shares the goings-on of her family, friends and acquaintances. The reader is immersed in the lives of the English aristocracy and it’s so entertaining. Most of these characters are so clueless and privileged, that for me, that’s the charm. There is nothing “politically correct” about Mitford’s books and it’s always fun to go back to novels like these written between WWI and WWII and observe lives that are completely unrelatable to most people.  Mitford is poking fun at her own social class. I

LIACC really doesn’t have much of a plot, though Fanny does focus quite a bit on the scandalous marriage of Polly (the daughter of a Lord) to her uncle through marriage and former love interest of her overbearing and comically rude mother. The timeline moves fluidly and it’s more about the characters and their antics. Fanny doesn’t even focus much on her self, though the reader is aware about what is going on in her life to some extent. 

I really enjoyed Uncle Davey, who’s obsessed with his health and believes the weirdest things. 

Isn’t that brilliant and delightful? LIACC was the perfect read for me to choose when I needed a palette cleanser from the heavier, though enjoyable, The Brothers Karamazov and the cringey Lolita. Even thought I laughed my way through the whole novel, Mitford sprinkles in bits of wisdom. 

“…the situation seemed dreadful to those … who believe all they see in print without recourse to past experience.” 

How relevant for today, when we live in a world in which most people believe everything presented to them by main stream news outlets and social media, without taking a minute to step aside, do their own research and then draw a conclusion. I’ve worked with the media on several occasions and it’s interesting to see how things work behind the scenes. 

This is my second Nancy Mitford novel; I read The Pursuit of Love last year and also thoroughly enjoyed it. I look forward to reading her remaining 6 novels. If you haven’t read Mitford yet and you’d like to, I’d recommend reading the Pursuit of Love first, in order to get introduced to many of the character that appear in LIACC. My reading choices so far this year have been winners - Rating: 4/5. 

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I am not necessarily an emotional reader - I can “turn off” my feelings and read a text clinically  (which is what I’m doing with Lolita by, Vladimir Nabokov), or I can “turn” my emotions back on and become as emotionally invested as I want - sometimes it just depends on the content of a book, why I’m reading that text, and if I’m enjoying what I’m reading). Yes, this may sound a bit cold; I’m not a cold person, but I’m a logical one (any fellow INTJs out there? Or ENTJs for that matter…). I don’t alwayds read a book for the sole purpose of having an emotional experience. 

You guys, I cried in Part II of The Brothers Karamazov. I had to get up, get a tissue and blow my nose. I’m not a huge crier, but this book - this masterpiece, has so much heart. The only other books that took me there were A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (the end….) and A Tale of Two Cities (THE END!). 

This section of the book spends quite a bit of time with the character Father Zosima, the revered Elder at the monastery and a particular favorite of Alyosha’s. An unskilled writer could easily make the life of a religious Elder extremely dull, but Dostoyevsky makes this engaging, evocative and beautiful. Even if a reader does not believe in God, I think it’d be difficult to not feel something as one reads those passages. Myself, as a Christian, felt especially tender towards this element. 

“I bless the daily rising of the sun, and my heart sings to is as it did of old, but now I am more enamored of its setting, its long, oblique rays, and the quiet, gentle memories that accompany them, the dear images from the whole of a long and blessed life - and above it all the truth of God, moving, reconciling, all-forgiving!”  

In Part II there is also a very interesting and at times endearing conversation between Ivan and Aloysha. The two brothers discuss God and how is it possible to reconcile God with the suffering of the innocent, especially children? Ivan dominates the conversation, as he shares his disillusionment and brings up arguments that may be challenging to Alyosha’s faith. I’m going to take an educated guess and say that this conversation between the two brothers is planting a seed in the “angelic” Aleksey.

“It is out of the question that the innocent one [children] shall suffer for one another, especially when it is such an innocent as that!”

Ivan goes on to make the argument that humans are in fact more cruel than animals. 

“Actually, people sometimes talk about man’s ‘bestial’ cruelty, but that is being terribly unjust and offensive to the beasts: a beast can never be as cruel as a human being, so artistically, so picturesquely cruel.”

There is also a more general discussion, raising the question: Why do people like to watch the righteous fall?

“… for men like to see the fall of a righteous man and to witness his disgrace.” 

Ah, I think we see this a bit today with “cancel culture”, but in the context of The Brothers Karamazov, I have a gut feeling that this theme is going to be relevant to Alyosha. 

Can I just say that I adore Alyosha? I can’t put my finger on it yet, but I feel a bit concerned for him - I have a feeling that experiencing his character go through whatever it is that he’ll be going through will be quite a ride. There is a reason why Dostoyevsky made him the principle character of the novel. 

I’m moving through The Brothers Karamazov a bit slower than I anticipated, but I don’t mind. This is a piece of literature that demands to be savored. Many passages deserved to be read and then reread. I’m glad that I’m taking notes on each Part and annotating this book as I go, so that I can refer back to my favorite passages whenever I please. 

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It’s Black History Month in the US - as I’m sure the majority of people are well aware. Here, I have two authors from my collection that I’m looking forward to reading. 

Alexandre Dumas - Infamous for his timeless classics The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo (I always want to say Crisco, like the shortening that makes pastries and cookies so good, but so bad…), people often over look that fact that Dumas was born in Saint-Domingue (now Haiti) and was the son of Alexandre Antoine Davy de la Pailleterie, a French nobleman, and Marie-Cessette Dumas, an enslaved woman of Afro-Caribbean ancestry. I’m quite eager to get to the Count of Monte Cristo, perhaps this year and if not, then next year. One thing I look forward to most regarding Dumas is his humor. 

Dorothy West - A novelist and short story writer during the Harlem Renaissance, mainly writing about the lives of upper-class black families. She wrote alongside notorious African American authors like Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes, though she is often glossed over. She’s another author I’m eager to get to this year, and I’m leaning towards starting with this collection of short stories The Richer, The Poorer. 

Have you read any of these authors works?

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There’s something intriguing about the lives of historical figures and in this case, the “person behind the pen.” I have three novels here that are on my TBR: 

• Miss Austen by, Gill Hornby - A novel about Jane Austen’s sister Cassandra, after the death of Jane. 

• Hamnet by, Maggie O’Farrell - I don’t think this novel needs much of an introduction, as it was awarded the 2020 Women’s Prize for Fiction. This is a fictional account of Shakespeare’s son, who died at the age of 11. Shakespeare is deliberately elusive in this novel. 

• In Love with George Eliot - A fictionalization of the infamous George Eliot. The author conducted a lot of research for this novel, which I can always appreciate. Eliot was quite the controversial figure in her day, so I’m hoping this will be a good read. 

Have you read any of these books? Are there other novels out there about infamous writers?

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Happy Valentine’s Day! I have to admit, I often forget about Valentine’s Day. My sister off-handedly mentioned it the other day and I thought, “Huh, how are we almost halfway through the month?!” Granted, I never make a big deal over holidays - even my birthdays. I remember when I turned 18, I came down the stairs that morning and my mom said “Happy Birthday!” and I was confused for a few seconds. 

Now, that being said, I did decide to put together a quick post for today - any excuse to feature books and ballet is a win. What is it about broken in pointe shoes that is so pleasing to the eye? 

This year, I plan to read my first Iris Murdoch novel - not this particular novel, but this cover matched in this instance. I also plan to read this collection short stories, Subtly Worded by, Teffi. Teffi was a Russian humorist writer and I love witting commentary, so I’m definitely looking forward to reading this collection by Pushkin Press.  

What are some reads you’re hoping to get to this year? 

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I think Virginia Woolf is brilliant. Last year, I read a collection of her essays in a compilation titled Genius & Ink, in which Woolf discusses her favorite authors, books and why we read. I thoroughly enjoyed it and loved her writing style. Highly recommend if you like books about books and reading!

However, I have never read one of her novels; I find Woolf intimidating. I’ll be conquering that fear this year, starting with Mrs. Dalloway. I found that reading some of her essays first made me more eager to pick up her fiction; I was able to familiarize myself with her voice as a writer, making her seem more approachable. 

Do you have a novel or an author that you are nervous to dive into? 

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I recently finished Part I of The Brothers Karamazov by, Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Crude Fyodor Karamazov can’t seem to say no to a glass of liquor and his four sons: Dmitry (who comes across to me as being turbulent, thought well meaning), Ivan (the intellectual atheist, who ironically writes texts in supporting religion), Aleksey (the religious, quiet, introverted brother who wants his family to get along), and Smerdyakov (the bastard half-brother who is currently weirding me out). 

An idea that I’m musing over in Part I is the concept of the father-figure. Fyodor is neglectful of his sons and he mistreated his two wives. Fyodor’s neglect is evident in the brother’s behaviors and even though they all have someone who attempted to care for them, love and nurture from a parent is invaluable. I’ll be curious to see how this continues to develop throughout the rest of the novel, especially since it’s known going into this novel that Fyodor will be murdered. 

Dostoyevsky spends a lot of time providing background information on each character and their personalities. I think one reason he does this is because he’s showing how each son carries specific personality traits that can be traced back to Fyodor and his wives. How much of our personalities are engrained in us and even if we try to rectify some of our issues, can we ever really escape genetic dispositions? I’m particularly interested in Aleksey; he’s seen as the innocent, kind brother and yet the narrator is constantly harkening to something dark bubbling beneath the surface. 

“You’re a dark horse Alyosha, my lad, I agree that you’re a saint, but you’re a dark horse, and the devil only knows the things you’re thought about, the things you know about!”

The Brothers Karamazov is known for its religious and philosophical debates. In Part I, Dostoyevsky gives the reader plenty to chew on, mainly about religion, the role of the church, socialism, and the Church vs. the State. I have to take a moment and applaud Dostoyevsky for his ability to write debates and play Devil’s Advocate. It’s easy for long-winded conversations, in which there are literally pages of one character speaking with no paragraph breaks, to be tedious. This is not tedious at all! It’s so readable and engaging that once I’m sucked in, I’m flying through the pages. 

Dostoyevsky makes several jabs at socialism. Dostoyevsky was imprisoned in Siberia and his time there really helped solidified his views on socialism. I actually studied Marxism in school and I’m actually in the process revisiting his writings (a slow, arduous process as Marx makes me cringe). Dostoyevsky would argue that socialism dismisses man’s spiritual nature and focuses on man’s material needs. Though in The Brothers Karamazov, Dostoyevsky does critique religion and the church, he also argues that the church provides society with a moral compass and a means for the problematic in society to be rehabilitated. 

“If Christ’s Church did not exist at present there would be nothing to restrain the criminal from his wrongdoing, or even any punishment to follow it…”

Marx believed that religion caused man to be alienated from himself. “Man was not the personification of spirit; rather spirit was the thought process taking place in man.” Marx was an atheist, however there are studies that actually argue that he wasn’t atheist, but rather, he was a Satanist; go read his poetry, it’s beyond dark. So, Dostoyevsky’s comments about how socialism destroys society’s spirituality are spot on when you consider Marxism socialism. I like Dostoyevsky’s balanced arguments; he knew what it was like it be the considered an enemy of the state for going against the narrative. 

So far, I’m really enjoying The Brothers Karamazov. Reading Dostoyevsky is like having a conversation with a relatable genius who going to force you to think for yourself. I’ve also come up with an OG name for Dostoyevsky: D-Sky Fresh (with the help of my friend Rebekah). Once an author gets a rapper name, they’ve become a favorite. 

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“The more cultivated a person is, the more intelligent, the more repressed, then the more he needs some method of channeling the primitive impulses he’s worked so hard to subdue.

It took a while for me to gather my final thoughts about The Secret History; there’s so much to discuss and it seemed a bit daunting to put them all down on paper. I had to let this novel marinate for 4-5 days before some things began to “click” and more knowledge from my Ancient Greek Civilization class came back to me. 

The Secret History begins by telling the reader that one of the main characters was murdered and sets the reader on the path to discover the motive. This novel also explores how committing such a violent crime impacts those involved. The concept of “Divine Madness” plays a significant role in this novel. Divine madness (theia mania/θεία μανία), according to the Ancient Greeks, was brought on by the gods. After the murder, these characters spiral into chaos. Tartt does an excellent job creating a sense of claustrophobic panic and frenzy.  

“It was like walking into the cockpit of an airplane and finding the pilot and co-pilot passed out drunk in their seats. … I was struck with a black, horrendous horror … Who is in control here? I thought, dismayed. Who is flying this plane?”

Tartt also toys with the Ancient Greeks’ belief that the dead will come back to haunt, if they were treated wrongly; a warning that is heavily emphasized in Homer’s The Iliad. The Ancient Greeks had three categories for the deceased: ataphoi (those not properly buried), aoroi (those who died prematurely), and biaothanatoi (war victims). In The Secret History, because the characters are so engrossed in ancient civilizations, they believe that the restless dead may haunt them. 

“There are such things as ghosts. People everywhere have always known that. And we believe in them every bit as much as Homer did. Only now, we call them by different names. Memory. The unconscious.”

Another concept The Secret History made me think about is how we tend to romanticize the past, regardless of how problematic certain aspects of those ancient civilizations maybe; we tend to hone in on their brilliance instead of viewing them as a complex whole. The Ancient Greeks and Romans were a bit insane; one only needs to briefly study their wars to see their violence. As I like to say, “Don’t throw the baby out with the bath water!” The characters in The Secret History do this; they fall in love with ideals at the expense of their sanity. 

“He refused to see anything about any of us expect our most engaging qualities, which he cultivated and magnified to the exclusion of all our tedious and less desirable ones.”

I could go on and on about all the elements that Tartt wove into this narrative. I’ll just conclude by saying that I haven’t been able to stop thinking about this novel since I finished it. The Secret History reminded me how much I loved studying Ancient Greece and Rome and thanks to this novel, I’ll be doing so again. I’m actually quite thankful for that; in the chaos of life, one can tend to forget things that one previously enjoyed. The Secret History is dark, unique and often problematic. I like that it’s not politically correct, a bit coarse, vulgar at times and even offensive; we live in a society now that is so afraid to say the wrong thing - it’s evident that this book was published in the 90s. I was so enraptured with this story up to the very last page and as soon as I finished the book, I wanted to go back and start it over again. One day, I’ll got back through this novel and heavily annotate it; there’s so much to explore. 

Dare I say I have another novel added to my favorite novels list? I think so! 

Rating: 5/5. 

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Let’s call a spade a spade; Henry VIII was nuts. So many times while reading The Six Wives of Henry VIII (TSWH) by, Alison Weir  did I think, “It’s YOU! You are the problem! You are the common denominator! Do the Michael Jackson and look at the Man in the Mirror!” 

There’s nothing more intriguing than Tudor history; for one Henry the VIII had 6 wives and he had two of them beheaded. This was a time of great intrigue, debauchery, political scheming. If you want to start getting into Tudor history, I think this is a place to start. Alison Weir is known for her thorough research on the kings and queens of England, especially the Tudors. Her historical writing is accessible and she also writes historical fiction. I haven’t read any of her historical fiction yet, but I plan to read her fictionalizations of Henry’s wives and see what she embellishes. 

TSWH is very thorough, spending the most time on Henry’s first two wives, Katherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn. I don’t find this unbalanced, as Henry was married to Katherine for two decades before Anne, and he schemed to make Anne his wife while still being married to Katherine for seven years before finally marrying her. He didn’t remain married to Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Katherine Howard and Katherine Parr were short in comparison, sometimes VERY short. 

Weir pulls a lot of supporting material from letters and other primary sources, which really bring these figures to life. I got a sense of who they were as people; their likes, dislikes and quirks. The wife that stuck out to me the most was (gasp) Anne Boleyn; not because of her tragic death, but because of how she treated Katherine and Mary (the future Queen of England). Anne, in her scheming to become queen, treated Katherine horribly. Anne even implied that she would have welcomed the death of  them both. I don’t care how ambitious you are, it’s never okay to help overthrow a legitimate marriage, connive and manipulate, to achieve you own means. 

I find Henry to be an interesting and complicated figure. In some ways, he was quite brilliant intellectually. That being said, Henry overall was changeable, narcissistic and to me, unlikeable. He sacrificed the happiness, security, and even the lives of 6 women for his own agenda. Yes, he ultimately strove to have another male heir, but during that time they didn’t know that  the man determined the gender of a child. 

I like that Weir delves a bit into the lives of Henry’s three children; Mary, Elizabeth and Edward. Again, Weir does a good job bringing their personalities to life and also attempts to show how having Henry as a father and having several step-mothers had negative impacts on them as children. Their turbulent upbringing definitely impacted their lives as adults and future English monarchs. 

Lastly, Weir dives a bit into the political intrigue of Henry’s court. One cannot discuss Tudor England without mentioning Thomas Cromwell. Weir gives the reader just enough to put the political climate into perspective without deviating too much, because this isn’t really the story she’s telling here. 

I really enjoyed TSWH and it’s whet my appetite for more. I already knew a decent amount about Henry’s wives, but this filled in a lot of gaps. It also made me want to research more about Mary and Elizabeth as queens and their turbulent relationship, as well as go more in depth about Thomas Cromwell. 

Rating: 5/5. 

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My February reading list is pretty ambitious, with two of the texts spilling over from last month because I too, was overly ambitious in January. 

The Brothers Karamazov - My main read for this month. I had to made this Russian classic a priority this year, after I literally kept dreaming about it for a straight week in December. Due to the size, I’ll be together 4-5 about The Brothers, because I want my review/thoughts to be thorough. These massive, complex works of literature deserve more space than IG’s mere 2,200 character limiter per caption. 

Lolita - My first buddy read of 2021! My friend Rebekah and I are already a few pages in and we are already greatly disturbed. This will be a great one to buddy read so we can suffer together. 

Love in a Cold Climate - Nancy Mitford is always such a treat to read; her sarcasm and wit provides an interesting and satirical view into the  lives of England’s aristocracy in the early to mid 1900s. Love in a Cold Climate was on my January list and I did manage to start it at the end of the month. 

Hamlet - I read Hamlet ages ago and actually remember nothing. This was another one on my January list that didn’t happen. 

Hamnet - It’s pretty clear that I strategically placed this book on this month’s TBR because of Hamlet. I’ll read Hamnet after Hamlet. 

What’s on your February reading list? 

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