My literary historical chapter is finished (pending 2008 publications), and my latest reviews (for Booklist and Choice) have been turned in, so it was time to get back to reading once again. Normally I do read fiction alongside the writing, but with my schedule so busy, it was pretty much impossible to find the time.
But last week I picked up the newly republished trade pb edition of Margaret Mitchell's Gone with the Wind, which, I'm ashamed to say, I'd never read before. I also own a mass market pb from the 1970s, but the binding is so tight, and the paper so thin and transparent, that it was a deterrent. A 1000-page novel practically begs to be read in hardcover or trade - and the latter may be preferable, if the binding holds up, simply because of the weight. The 2007 Scribner edition is kind of floppy, but it's not hard to hold onto when reading. This is important.
I'd made a New Year's resolution to read at least one classic in 2007, and I suppose GWTW qualifies? (If not, then The Sylph definitely does. Review isn't on Amazon yet.) I must be the last person I know to read it, as even friends who don't read historical fiction have done so. Not sure why I'm surprised, given its popularity, but it's an engrossing novel that, apart from the derogatory references to African Americans (which reflect attitudes of the time), doesn't feel as if it was written 70+ years ago. It may be superficial of me, but the newly designed cover and new typesetting help modernize the reading experience. It's also interesting to read firsthand about characters who have become American icons.
I already know the basic storyline, but not all the details - and as I've never seen the movie either, no spoilers please!
About Me
- Sarah Johnson
- Collection management librarian, readers' advisor, avid historical fiction reader, NBCC member. Book review editor for the Historical Novels Review and Booklist reviewer. Recipient of ALA's Louis Shores Award for book reviewing (2012). Blogging since 2006.
I read GWTW in high school in the old mass market paperback size, and I enjoyed it even though as a woman of color I supposedly shouldn't. For me, it's a story of survival, and the end of a civilization that no longer had a place in the world. You could say that Scarlett represents the New South, but she could just have easily lived during the English Civil War. Yes, the depiction of African-Americans is stereotyped, but but totally true to the characters and the setting.
ReplyDeleteI've never even heard of The Sylph, let alone read it!
ReplyDeleteHave fun! I read this the summer after 8th grade and consider it my first "adult" read, so aside from its being a good yarn, it has sentimental memories for me.
ReplyDeleteYou're not alone - I haven't read it either! Nor have I seen the movie. I tried to watch it once but just couldn't get into it.
ReplyDeleteI'm finding Mitchell's dialogue interesting... the way she has her African-American characters speak in an exaggerated dialect that I frequently have trouble puzzling out, while the white characters' dialogue is written as though they have no accent. That says a lot.
ReplyDeleteThe Sylph (the second novel, I believe, written by Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire) was better than I expected, although it was a slow read. It's funny to see how wittily she skewers her peers in society in the guise of fiction! Quite an accomplishment for a woman of twenty-two, also.
However did you manage to avoid seeing the film? Even I've seen it half a dozen times. Have fun!
ReplyDeleteI don't know - I don't watch that much TV, so I never paid attention to the movies that were on! I'll probably borrow the DVD from the library after I'm done with the book, though.
ReplyDeleteA sequel/prequel/parallelquel is coming out soon, "Rhett Butler's People," which will be Rhett's perspective on events.
ReplyDeleteYou've NEVER read GWTW????? OR seen the movie???? Oh my. I read it when I was 12 and LOVED it. I promise, no spoilers :)
ReplyDeleteYes, I know... (hanging my head in shame)
ReplyDeleteI'm up to p.850 now, and am getting pretty tired of listening to Scarlett. Just like Rhett.