Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

I know I promised a book review of The Goose Girl but I ditched it when I got Wuthering Heights at Borders for five bucks. I'll get to it soon, but in the meantime here's a review of Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights.

"...I am surrounded with her image! The most ordinary faces of men and women—my own features—mock me with a resemblance. The entire world is a dreadful collection of memoranda that she did exist, and that I have lost her!"
-Heathcliff

Mr. Lockwood is new to the area and as a diversion to fight off the boredom of living in an isolated part of the country, he asks his new housekeeper to tell him the history of his interesting neighbors, including his landlord, Mr. Heathcliff. Mrs. Dean, the housekeeper, turns out to have known this intriguing Heathcliff for most of his life. She launches into a fascinating narrative of the lives and troubles of the Earnshaws and Lintons, the two great families of the neighborhood, and in the middle of all of it, Heathcliff. He starts out as a homeless child with no family or history that anyone knows of. Mr. Earnshaw finds him and takes him into his home to live with his two other children, Catherine and Hindley. Catherine gets used to him eventually and comes to love him dearly; they become as close as twins. Hindley, however, hates Heathcliff for the attention he gets from old Earnshaw and persecutes him throughout their childhood, even making him act as a servant after his father dies. When Catherine and Heathcliff are about seventeen, Catherine becomes friends with their well-to-do neighbors, the Lintons. Their son, Edgar, falls in love with her and she, in a way, with him. Although she privately declares her love for Heathcliff to be incredibly strong, indeed, to be the most important part of her, she ends up marrying the richer, kinder Edgar.
As it turns out, Heathcliff worships Catherine, but he hates Edgar Linton passionately, and begins to carry out a grand scheme of vengeance on the Lintons and Earnshaws that spans nearly twenty years.

No matter what you've heard, this is not a love story. It's a story about a passion, an obsession, and the depressing, often terrifying effects it has on the people involved. The love, if it is love, between Catherine and Heathcliff is very intense and very serious, but it certainly didn't make anyone happy.
I had been scouring Borders for an hour and a half trying to find something affordable that I'd actually read. I found Wuthering Heights and thought, hey, I love one of Charlotte Brontё's works, why not try her sister? In a way, I enjoyed this book. It is well written, though rather drawn out at parts, suspenseful, and fascinating. It is also depressing and disturbing. It's an intense examination of love, hate, compassion and the lack of it. I'd say it is worth reading, especially if you're a fan darker stuff. It wasn't exactly my kind of story, but I understand why it's considered a classic.

So if this sounds good to you, go on and enjoy it. But if you prefer happy endings, read at your own risk.

Because of the Pudding: A Tragic Love Story

(AAAH! I'm sorry! I don't know how we missed this Wednesday. Here's the poem. Apologies!)

**We Katies and some of our friends were challenged to write a poem and the only rule was that it had to involve pudding. I present to you a tragic story of love never fulfilled...make sure you have some tissues handy.**

'Twas April, and love
With the flowers was blooming.
And so in the cool evening air of spring,
He fell to his knees and offered a ring
With nary a thought of the pudding.

"Marry, me darling!"
He clasped her hand to his heart.
But she turned from him, that maiden fair
And through the curtain of her hair
Said, "I can not...because of the pudding."

"The pudding?!" cried he
And let go of her hand in astonishment.
So with a tear in her lovely eye,
She explained to him the reason why
They could not wed because of the pudding.

"Thou hast made it clear
That thou never didst care for it.
I love the pudding, canst thou not see?
We never could be happy, we three
For thou dost not like pudding."

"Must thou break my heart so?"
He implored, so pitifully.
"I tried to like pudding, for thy sake, I did!
It did not agree with me and made me quite sick.
Dost thou remember how ill I was, because of the pudding?"

"I do remember, love!
And it doth break my heart too,
For though 'tis true it maketh thee sick, lo!
A thousand such suitors may come and go,
But my first loyalty is still to the pudding."

"I cannot live without thee!"
He cried, and she cried also.
Hearts torn, they went their melancholy ways.
She heard of his death the very next day.
'Twas by his own hand; he'd taken two helpings of pudding.

Inconsolable, the maid
Despaired, and nevermore was joyful.
Though she lived long, she never was wed.
Every night, silent tears she did shed,
And she lost all her love for the pudding.

Coming soon!

We seem to be suffering from a shortage of happily volunteering poets...so, for now you're stuck with us. :-P

Coming Soon!
An interview with singer Jackie Francois
A review of The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale
On Wednesday: Because of the Pudding: A Tragic Love Story
A review of Oceans Apart by Karen Kingsbury

Right after these messages!
(OK fine, there are no "messages". But I was so into that TV moment...)

Yours

I'm Yours,
My Lord,
I'm all Yours.
Take my impurities,
My fears and my hurts.
Transform my heart
To look like Yours
Make it my deepest desire
To dwell with You.
Make my dream
Only to praise You.
Take it all,
Lord,
It's all Yours.
I am nothing without You.
With You,
I need nothing more.
Clean my soul,
It's Yours.
Take me,
My Lord,
Do as You wish with me.
I'm Yours.
Here I am,
Lord.
I come to do Your will.
I'm Yours.

 - The Original Katie

The Truth

You're beautiful
Inside and Out.
You don't need makeup.
You don't need a man to love you.
You already have three in one.
Your body is beautiful.
You're not an object.
Love is not sex,
And sex is not love.
You ARE worth it,
Someone would give His life for you.
Your worth dying on a cross for.
Your life is worth living.
You are unforgettable
Irreplaceable.
You are forgivable
Lovable.
You are perfect the way you are:
The Divine Artist makes no mistakes.
You ARE loved.
The perfect man doesn't want you to change.
In His eyes, you are worth everything.
The Truth is so beautiful.
Why are we lied to?

- The Original Katie

An Interview With The Director

Hey there! You may know that there is a movie being made for The Shadow Of The Bear, the book that was reviewed earlier this week. We interviewed Elizabeth H., the director/writer/producer; in other words, the talented young lady that is making it possible. Enjoy!

The Katies: How did you first hear about the Fairy Tale Novels?

Elizabeth: My friend pulled them off her bookshelf and said I should read them sometime. Me being me, I made 'sometime' happen immediately and read them both that night.

What first inspired you to make a movie of The Shadow of the Bear, and when did you officially decide to do it?

There were four incidents that got the idea squarely in my head.

#1 - my friend Ella (Froggy on the FTN forum) read the books and said we should do an informal film of it. I didn't take it very seriously at the time, but it did sort of get the idea in my brain.

#2 - several fans were talking about getting together and shooting the film over a two week period. This got me thinking about the logistics of making such a project happen.

#3 - However, I wasn't seriously thinking of doing a film at this point because I had given up my filmmaking career plans officially about six months previously. I went through a really dark period in my life and was only just beginning to come out of that in the spring of 2008. That's when my friend Josh (always my co-director) told me that he really thought I should get back into filming, because it made me more alive than he'd seen me at any other time. Because I respected him greatly, I took this to heart and really started wondering about SOTB.

#4 - I joined a production of "Beauty and the Beast" and at our first official read-thru I met our "Beast." A quiet guy with dreadlocks who radiated so much 'Bear' it was nearly impossible for me to remember that this was a guy named Jed, and not the real Arthur Denniston. When Josh kickstarted my film thoughts, one of the first things I did was ask Jed if he'd consider joining the project. When he said "yes"... well, it's all history from there.

(You can find a more in-depth answer at: http://theshadowofthebear.blogspot.com/2008/12/inspiration-of-this-film.html)

How difficult was the casting process?

I sometimes think I have a gift when it comes to casting. In just about every film I've done, I've been able to look at the people I know and choose exactly who would be best for each part. I give the credit for that to God, because he brought together all the right people at the right time. I could never have pulled everyone together if God hadn't introduced them to me. That said, the four main characters were fairly easy. Jed was the first on board, and I already knew Hannah and Anthony would be brilliant for their roles. I didn't know Sharayah very well, but had a hunch she might be a good Rose. Actually, I had been tossing around the idea of Sharayah as Rose almost since I first met her, even though I wasn't seriously thinking about the project at that point. I was really surprised when she said yes, and once again it turned out to be God's hand at work.

Harder roles to cast were the adult parts, because adults tend to be a bit wiser about making these sorts of commitments. The last character to be cast was Sister Geraldine, whom we only signed on yesterday!

Which part of film making is the most fun?

My absolutely favorite part is when we're in the middle of a take and I get to see the characters really come to life. I've spilled my guts out doing everything I could to get to this point... but I'm no puppeteer. The actors are in control, and it's like magic when Jed becomes Bear, and Anthony Fish and they start yelling at each other and I think I've fallen into another world...

Which part is the hardest?

SCHEDULEING! I hate scheduling with a passion. You can't even begin to imagine how incredibly frustratingly difficult it is trying to coordinate the insane schedules of a dozen different people who are not getting paid to comply with you. My personal hell would be me being forced to schedule films like this for eternity. It's miserable.

How did you get interested in film making to begin with?

It was my Dad's fault. When I was about a month old he made a film about what an important baby I was when we went to visit my mum's hometown. It was a pretty hilarious film and it must have made an impact on little sleeping me because I've never been able to escape filmmaking since. I learned how to use the camera when I was about 7 years old and I've been making projects of some sort ever since. My first feature length production took place when I was fifteen years old and consisted of me directing a horde of junior high guys running around with swords and capes all summer.

What has been your favorite scene to film so far?

Oh that is an insanely hard question! Probably the scene in Freet's basement. That was just really awesome and I had way too much fun putting blood on Anthony. That guy is amazing for letting us tie him up to a post for hours. Seriously amazing.

Which of the scenes left to do are you most looking forward to?

We've done most of the fun ones... oh, the end scene! I am SO looking forwards to shooting those girls in their dresses and those guys in their suits!

We all adore them....who is your favorite male hero in the FTNs?

FISH! Need you ask? I adore Fish. Though according to Regina, if they were real (and not already hooked up with the FTN girls), I'd probably end up with Paul. He's not my favorite, but I can see the truth in that.

Which of the two sisters, Blanche and Rose, do you feel you most relate to?

I used to be very Blanche-like. In fact, my experiences at private school were in some ways quite similar to Blanche's. However I really identify more with Rose. I'm not nearly as sanguine or easy-going as she is, but we have very similar interests and flights of imagination. To be perfectly honest, I really consider myself more of a 'third Brier sister' who has parts of both girls, but is totally unique. I think the three of us would get along spendidly, although I'd probably tell Blanche she needed to loosen up and go skydiving or something.

When, approximately, will the movie be released?

God willing, June 2011!!!

When it is released, how will people order it, and about how much will each DVD go for?

I believe it will be available for order on our blog, (www.theshadowofthebear.blogspot.com) and I am estimating that the total cost will be between $15 and $20.

RANDOM: What is your favorite kind of pie?

I LOVE pumpkin pie! Ooh, I shouldn't have done this interview on an empty stomach. Now I want some!

Thanks so much for doing this interview! We can't WAIT for the movie! Keep up the good work! :-)

If you haven't checked it out yet, there's a button for the official movie blog on our sidebar. Just click the image, it'll take you straight to the blog! That concludes Fairy Tale Novels Week; thanks for reading!

Alex O'Donnell and the Forty Cyberthieves: A Guest Review

There's a brand new Fairy Tale Novel! Here is a guest review by Mary C. *applause*


The book Alex O’Donnell and the 40 CyberThieves was an excellent addition to the Fairy
Tale Retold series by Regina Doman. It follows the story of two characters introduced in Waking
Rose, Alex O’Donnell and Kateri Kovach, and its fairytale counterpart is the Arabian Nights
narrative, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. When Alex’s family mysteriously ends up with a
fortune, strange happenings begin to occur. At the same time, the orderly and efficient Kateri is
trying to discern the direction she should travel in her own life; however, she gets drawn into the
lives of Alex’s easy-going family. This, of course, includes both the O’Donnell family’s positive
aspirations and successes, as well as their troubles. And, unfortunately for all those involved,
those troubles just might prove to be life-threatening.
Like in all of the Fairy Tale Novels, Regina Doman used Alex O’Donnell to address
a moral concern relative to the modern world. In this case, it is the dangers of becoming too
addicted or involved in the cyber and electronic worlds – to the point of excluding real life and
relationships. Although Mrs. Doman did not “stick it in your face,” the message was still clear.
When it comes to the story itself, this fifth book was written in a much lighter manner
than the previous four. Regina does an awesome job at balancing humor with the more serious
matters in the book, all while adding an adventurous theme. Readers of Waking Rose will find
the characters of Alex and Kateri wonderfully written, and true to their original personalities.
Alex’s family is a great addition to the story; they contribute to the fun as Kateri attempts to
understand them – which, for her, often ends in exasperation. It does not take long to find
oneself feeling quite affectionate towards Alex’s riotous younger brothers. While Alex’s father
remains somewhat cryptic throughout the book, the two mothers, of both the O’Donnell family
and the Kovach family, add their maternal wisdom and joy to the story. There is also a surprise
appearance of some of the former much-loved Fairy Tale Novel characters, and mentions of
others. As for the plot itself, the upcoming events in the book are not obviously laid out; I
personally was kept guessing (incorrectly, I might add) at what was about to happen next, up until
the end of the book.
Overall, the book was beautifully done, and a worthy addition to the series. For myself, it
is definitely one of my favorites. I have every intention of reading it several more times, as soon
as I am able to get it back from where it has already been loaned out. ;)


Thanks so much for the great review, Mary! :)