The weekend was too hot to do much of anything. Friday night we had a BBC Clarissa marathon and watched–I can’t believe I did this–the entire three and a half hour production. The homemade peppermint mocha and popcorn helped. It was fantastic! Sean Bean was hunky and perfectly evil and Saskia Wickham did a marvelous job at looking beautiful and virtuous in her distress. I really enjoyed how the movie played up Clarissa’s desire to live a single, independent life. The rape scene was really well done and nearly brought me to tears. And then, of course, there is the aftermath of it all with a sad ending for everyone. It really got me charged up about reading the book. The movie is not narrated in letters and the book is so I am very interested to see how all of the upcoming action is handled. I am on page 796 out of 1499, a little over halfway.
I mentioned not long ago that my Bookman and I are listening to the Odyssey and didn’t much like the reader. We decided to ditch the version we were listening to and go for the version read by Ian McKellan. We started listening to it from the beginning Saturday evening. I am so glad we switched! What a difference a reader makes. Since the version we are listening to and the version I am reading are both the Fagles translation, I have decided to follow along in the book while McKellan reads. We have made it through book one and already I like the story better than I did before.
Also this weekend we ventured out in the heat to Ikea and got a new bookcase. We have a wall in our living room with two bookcases on it that hold our poetry and what we consider classics. The shelves were packed and the books were piling up in front of the properly shelved books. We carefully measured and decided the wall had enough room for another bookcase but we had to move the two shelves over to make room for the new one. My Bookman isn’t a bookman for nothing. He had the shelves cleared of books in a flash, at least it seemed a flash to me. And since the bookcase we got matched the two we already had, putting the new one together was a snap. Up it went. Then the books that we took off the shelves, having been removed in an orderly fashion, were back on within minutes. Now we have an empty shelf to spread the books out on and to properly shelf the books that had been piled up. And even better, there will even be room for books we have not yet bought! The extra space probably won’t last long though, a month or two maybe. I will have to take some photos to share as we get it all organized.
Funny how that “empty” shelf is almost full of books already. Oh, since they aren’t alphabetized and subjucated (porpoisely misused word), they aren’t really there.
Room for books you haven’t yet bought — magical words! And a great excuse to buy more books … I will simply have to get the movie version of Clarissa. Maybe it will make me want to read the book again?
Glad Ian McKellen is helping out for your Odyssey. It’s true, the reader can make the experience! I need bookcases, too. Thank goodness for Ikea…
Almost all of my bookshelves are from IKEA…. but old. From long ago.
I was in IKEA just last weekend and stopped at the shelf area and noticed how the styles have changed. They are much better looking nowadays then back when I bought my own [a decade ago]. Really quite sturdy.
I think IKEA still carries the “Billy” series [which mine are] but these new ones, MARKOR [with two dots above the "O", which of course, changes the pronunciation to something like "Shplugenfarrg"]… these Markor ones were quite nice.
So, your shelves must look great!
Now I am going to have to read Clarissa! The movie sounds like fun, too!! Aren’t new shelves great! If I had anymore room for them I would buy more, but all my wall space is now covered (in my book room that is). Now I either have to weed, stop buying books, or just keep stacking on the floor.
Hey Bookman, the shelves are a little way from being almost full!
Dorothy, definitely magical words. You would probably really enjoy the movie version of Clarissa and given your love of 18th century literature will probably find yourself wanting to re-read the book because it’s been a long time and even though it’s slow, it’s still a good story
Gentle Reader, Ikea is a marvelous place and McKellan is a fabulous reader.
Cipriano, the bookcases are quite sturdy aren’t they? Good Swedish design. Who says cheap can’t last a long time? The Billy series is very nice and we almost went with those, but decided on different ones with a nice antique finish.
Danielle, since you so admirably tackled War and Peace, Clarissa will be a breeze! And maybe it is time for your books to start migrating out of the book room
Oh that last bit is so me. This winter around February I bought a new bookshelf. I reorganized and there is a bit of room on my two old bookshelves but the new one is already crammed full of books I’ve purchased since then.
My husband isn’t so keen on it and would pull his abundant hair out if he thought it would do any good.