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Writer's Block: Best book ever!
Mar. 7th, 2010 10:21 pm[Error: unknown template qotd]
Yes, actually. I usually don't respond to these-mainly because I almost never see them, since I usually access livejournal straight from my toolbar instead of by going to the login page-but this one caught my attention.
I re-read A Little Princess, by Frances Hodgson Burnett, almost every year. I read it several times in a row when I discovered it in sixth or seventh grade, and have always been completely captivated by little Sara Crewe and her horrifying story. She's so stoic and noble, even in the face of utter ruin, and she never for a moment stops behaving as though she is a princess and more fortunate than everyone else, causing her to be generous, kind, and loving, even when she is literally starving and freezing. Then, of course, at the end of the book she is restored to her full (and deserved) glory, and she handles it gracefully and with delight, and not with a sense of entitlement.
I wish more Americans would read this book and try to behave as Sara does. I do my best, but I know I am nowhere close to her level of philanthropy. Fictional characters do have the benefit of being endlessly patient.
There aren't many things for me to discover in re-reads of the book, these days. I think I have absorbed each and every detail by now (it really isn't a terribly complex book), and each one is more like an old friend than a new gem.
If you haven't read it, you should. And try to put yourself in Sara's shoes. Or even her father's. It's an incredible experience.
Yes, actually. I usually don't respond to these-mainly because I almost never see them, since I usually access livejournal straight from my toolbar instead of by going to the login page-but this one caught my attention.
I re-read A Little Princess, by Frances Hodgson Burnett, almost every year. I read it several times in a row when I discovered it in sixth or seventh grade, and have always been completely captivated by little Sara Crewe and her horrifying story. She's so stoic and noble, even in the face of utter ruin, and she never for a moment stops behaving as though she is a princess and more fortunate than everyone else, causing her to be generous, kind, and loving, even when she is literally starving and freezing. Then, of course, at the end of the book she is restored to her full (and deserved) glory, and she handles it gracefully and with delight, and not with a sense of entitlement.
I wish more Americans would read this book and try to behave as Sara does. I do my best, but I know I am nowhere close to her level of philanthropy. Fictional characters do have the benefit of being endlessly patient.
There aren't many things for me to discover in re-reads of the book, these days. I think I have absorbed each and every detail by now (it really isn't a terribly complex book), and each one is more like an old friend than a new gem.
If you haven't read it, you should. And try to put yourself in Sara's shoes. Or even her father's. It's an incredible experience.
