Austenland

As they say at Pemberley, I blame Jane! But I can hardly be angry. :) I'm marathoning through her six novels. I've read them all but never in a row. I can eat these up like candy because they always make me laugh. Except for Emma...I always stumble on Emma.

This time, though, I decided to give her a fair chance. I'm trying to really pay attention and find the Emma love. I've been inspired to give her more of a chance due to the critical acclaim Emma often gets and, very interestingly to me, especially with men. Northanger Abbey almost always gets the shaft but I'd rather read it three times over before Emma. And here I am again stuttering over Emma. In my haphazard order Emma is 5 out of 6. I read the first 4 in less than two weeks and I've been on Emma for almost a week now. It's so hard for me to stick with it. I'm going to wait until I've completed it before I go into what it is I dislike...maybe my mind will be changed by the time I finish this reading.

As a movie, I adore Emma. Jeremy Northam kicks some major ass as Mr. Knightley (so dreamy and sexy) and Gwyneth Paltrow makes me feel that Emma love I'm always looking for. Her portrayal is perfect, her Emma is equal parts ridiculous, naive, and genuine. You want to gently wring her neck in the beginning and then it's all smiles when she finally steps a bit outside of herself by the end. It's a gorgeous movie. It's slow and quiet but missing nothing in essentials.

And if you're in the mood for some Austen but you don't have the time to read all the novels I suggest this and this to get your fix!