Emma by Jane Austen

I tried to read this book about 8 years ago, just as I was finishing up my last semester of college, and I couldn't get through it. I think my brain was fried and couldn't handle any kind of intellectual literature. Now that I've been a mom for almost 4 years, my brain is still fried, but in a different way. At this stage in my life, reading some Jane Austen was like drinking a cool glass of water on a dry, hot day. I reveled in the language and enjoyed immersing myself in the English gentry of the early 1800's.

Emma is a delightful story. I've always loved the movie and was delighted to find the the book very closely follows the 1996 Gwyneth Paltrow adaptation. It is a story of a young woman who successfully set up her governess with a man in town and becomes determined to play matchmaker for those around her, particularly her friend Harriet. Unfortunately, she's not very good at what she does and continually misreads the people and situations in which she finds herself, resulting in some comedic blunders.

If you enjoy Jane Austen and other similar authors and have not yet read Emma, do yourself a favor and read it! It is wonderful. It takes a little patience; I definitely had to skim some parts (aka, any time Miss Bates started talking), but I am so happy I finally read this one. It's been on my mental to-read list for years.

4.5 out of 5

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

Let me start by saying how much I adore this movie!! I've made my husband watch it with me once or twice and it was fun to watch him squirm in the girly parts. I love it in all it's cheesy glory.

Now, moving on to the book, which is a completely different beast. Ella Enchanted in it's literary form is far more serious than it's movie counterpart. It still has lighthearted, silly moments, but Ella's struggles are more severe. She is under a fairy curse that makes her obedient to whatever anyone tells her to do. Her spiteful stepsister discovers this weakness and exploits it, making Ella do things like give up her deceased mother's necklace and end her relationship with her best friend. Ella eventually gets herself out of those situations by running away from the boarding school she attends with her stepsisters. She heads off in search of the fairy who gave her this "gift;" on her journey she gets captured by ogres, runs into long-time friend Prince Char, and with his help, manages to avoid becoming dinner. Ella in the book is far more empowered and strong than her movie self. She solves her own problems and makes hard choices. The final conflict in the movie where Ella is battling internally trying to defy an order to kill Char doesn't happen. Instead, a less dramatic scene occurs where Ella has the same internal struggle that leads to her breaking the curse, but it is over whether or not she will marry Prince Char. Not quite as exciting as how the movie does it, but the same ending is accomplished: Ella and the prince live happily ever after.

I very much enjoyed this book. More serious than the movie, but still a lot of fun. Though, I think I might like the movie better. You can't get better than cheesy, all-cast musical numbers. Dancing ogres? Yes, please!

4 out of 5 stars