This is a collection of some of Dylan Thomas' most beloved poetry and stories, as well as his infamous play, 'Under Milk Wood'.
The majority of the poeThis is a collection of some of Dylan Thomas' most beloved poetry and stories, as well as his infamous play, 'Under Milk Wood'.
The majority of the poems focused on natural imagery and heightened emotion, which I greatly appreciated. The stories, however, were focused on more personal, small town recollections. These had a distinctly Welsh feeling to them and, being Welsh myself, I could greatly connect to that....more
Oh, Eliot! Why does your brilliance continue to allude me?
Whilst I can appreciate the philosophical nature of the piece the 'enjoyment' factor was unfOh, Eliot! Why does your brilliance continue to allude me?
Whilst I can appreciate the philosophical nature of the piece the 'enjoyment' factor was unfortunately missing for me. All that was revealed, between the precise wording, indicted truth as it imprisoned understanding. This play delivered an intriguing body of paradoxes and I was a body of inconsistent feelings, whilst reading it. However, none were enough to ensure long-lasting remembrance and this failed to deliver a closure that would commit this to any sort of precise feeling, as can be communicated by my middling rating....more
I read the transcript for this extraordinary piece of one-person theatre and was spellbound from the very first page and left open-mouthed on the veryI read the transcript for this extraordinary piece of one-person theatre and was spellbound from the very first page and left open-mouthed on the very last. The entire piece is one extended monologue, and as the female talks her audience through the details of her life the sickening details are slowly unfurled with a deadly precision and perfection of timing that left my both spellbound and horrified....more
This year I made it my goal to increase the amount of Shakespeare plays I have read and this included revisiting some of my favourites. I first read KThis year I made it my goal to increase the amount of Shakespeare plays I have read and this included revisiting some of my favourites. I first read King Lear whilst in school, and can remember relatively little about my experience of reading it but could recall the most significant moments of the plot.
This focuses on the family drama that ensues after King Lear requests his three daughters to pronounce their love for their father. The two eldest daughters freely proclaim their love whilst younger and most favoured daughter, Cordelia, states little of her affections. Due to this recalcitrance her portion of her father's land is split between the other two sisters and Cordelia is cast out. Little does Lear know of the self-serving nature of his remaining two daughters, and how their pretty words to do not reflect their heart's true desires.
Perhaps it is due to this being my second reading or maybe it is the increase of Shakespeare I have read recently, but I found the readibility of this piece flowed far smoother than with other of his plays. There was little I struggled with and I absorbed the entire drama in one sitting.
I have found other of the bard's plays to be so renowned as they primarily dealt with timeless concepts. This can be evidenced, again, here in the focus of the conflicts between parents and their children, which is also evident in the clever mirroring of sub-plot with central plot. This is actually quite infuriating as the reader is made aware of who the 'good' characters are before the other characters themselves do. With both their suffering and the reader's intensified because of this.
Shakespeare has created some classically-structured, villainous characters and yet managed to make them not seem two-dimensional to the modern-day reader, who can clearly identify them. That, and the timeless and still-relevant topics covered, as well the the sublime prose used to depict them, makes this another example of exactly why Shakespeare is still so beloved....more
How does one begin to review a play by Shakespeare!? Honestly, I haven't enough words in my vocabulary to do his work justice and find myself repeatedHow does one begin to review a play by Shakespeare!? Honestly, I haven't enough words in my vocabulary to do his work justice and find myself repeatedly blown away by both the depth of emotion I experience whilst reading him and overwhelmed at joining the generations whose long-lasting adoration hasn't allowed his name to become relegated to history.
Whilst I have still only read a small selection of his work, I have found that Shakespeare has managed this ageless devotion due to the themes that permeate his writing. His plays are actually little about what the synopsis will tell you and are, instead, about the perpetual, driving machinations of the human psyche. Hence the timelessness. We are not such evolved creatures as we thought....more
Despite Romeo and Juliet being my second favourite book of all time, I have read remarkably little of Shakespeare's other work. I was lucky enough to Despite Romeo and Juliet being my second favourite book of all time, I have read remarkably little of Shakespeare's other work. I was lucky enough to recently receive an ARC for Rose & Poe, a The Tempest retelling, so I thought the time was nigh to finally read this epic tragedy.
The story follows the complicated lives of Prospero and Miranda, the former Duke of Milan and his precious daughter. After a plot is unearthed to take the former Duke's life, he flees from his coveted position and escapes to a remote island, along with his beloved daughter. There they live in relative harmony and seclusion, until one fateful night when a storm is conjured and a ship, carrying those who would have once done Prospero harm, is wrecked just off-shore of the island. The ship's human cargo is saved a watery grave and unknowingly deposited at Prospero's vengeance or mercy.
The lyrical prose gave this already profound tale a haunting edge and an atmospheric quality. The sincerity of emotion unleashed the character's fury and remorse, their joy and their despondency, their terror and their relief, onto the reader with a ferocity only, I believe, Shakespeare is capable of producing. Despite the large area of exposition this play begins with, there is such raw power exhibited from such a remarkable storyteller that made me forget the centuries between my reading and the original penmanship. His lasting power is phenomenal and works like this expertly prove why....more
I was kindly gifted a copy of this book from the author, which has in no way impacted my opinion. Thank you to the author, Joseph Cognard, for this opI was kindly gifted a copy of this book from the author, which has in no way impacted my opinion. Thank you to the author, Joseph Cognard, for this opportunity.
This play includes layer upon layer of false starts, false clues and false endings, and I was intrigued and enraptured with this strange but beautiful story from the very first page!
This play follows Bob as he attempts to live a semblance of a normal life despite being plagued by depression and tangential speech patterns. We glimpse segments of his work life and his meetings with his therapist, Dr. Beale. Bob's main sorrow is his inability to get those in his life to read the manuscript for his debut novel. His obsessive pestering and preoccupation drive all those he encounters to distraction and becomes a source of contention in all of their lives.
This synopsis could lead you to believe that this is a very dark read, which it is in places, but, for the most part, this was a book that was as humorous as it was disturbing. I don't think there was one completely sane character in the entire play (we're all mad here).
Despite its relatively short length, this managed to incorporate many layers to the reality and the perceived reality of the protagonist as well as deceptively misleading the reader multiple times before the real purpose of the text was revealed at the very end.
This converged into many genres, from humour to crime fiction, and kept me hooked and second-guessing all of the character's motives. Don't let the unimaginative sounding protagonist's name fool you; this is an insane and intense story!...more
It was only while half the way through this that I realized that I had actually read this once before, whilst in school. I can remember detesting thisIt was only while half the way through this that I realized that I had actually read this once before, whilst in school. I can remember detesting this after my first read as it felt like a pointless story that took the reader nowhere. My second read has unveiled so much that I missed the first time! Perhaps it was my lack of maturity, but I definitely did not appreciate the complexities that were packed into this short tale. The nuances of human emotion and the focus on the human condition are so expertly and artfully dissected here that I can fully see why this has earned its status as a timeless classic....more
Disclaimer: this book could be one paragraph long and I would STILL give this five stars.
This has given me all of the feels and I have been transporteDisclaimer: this book could be one paragraph long and I would STILL give this five stars.
This has given me all of the feels and I have been transported in time back to my eleven-year-old self with this new installment in the Harry Potter series!
I was a little hesitant going in to this, due to the format of the text being set in play form. I had previously only read Shakespeare in this way and wasn't sure how my beloved fandom would translate from the expected novel format. A few pages in and I completely forgot that this was written in any alternate way! The story was, of course, dialogue heavy and yet I still managed to bring the magical world to life in my imagination, and the plot felt as fully-formed as any of the previous novels.
I know this has received some mixed opinions due to this being partially fan-fic, but as someone who has never read or written any, this delivered the shock-factor on so many fronts! I had stayed away from any news concerning anything to do with the play or this book and so my reading journey remained spoiler-free and my experience unmarred.
There were so many additions to this to delight the true Potter fan. Foremost, the inclusion of many characters from the initial cast was something I had not anticipated, and the fact that they played such primary roles, even less so. Many lines from the play were also seized directly from the original series and given new contexts, which had me reading open-mouthed at the brilliance and care taken in writing this.
This was such a poignant read as my beloved childhood reads were once again brought back to life and I will never not give anything Harry Potter related five-stars!
I feel it is only appropriate to finish this review with one line: After all this time... Always!...more
“Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet o“Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name!”
This was one of the most powerful stories I have ever had the pleasure of reading. Although pleasure does not seem an apt word to summarize this reading experience. Haunting, poignant, intoxicating, distressing, portentous- these adjectives are much more suitable.
The story is set in the Puritan New England town of Salem, Massachusetts with the events depicted contributing to the start of the infamous Salem Witch trials. The whole play emitted an eerie and ominous quality that was made even more intense by my modern perspective of the actual events that took place.
But knowing the facts and having then re-imagined are quite a different thing. The hysteria that ensues in this novel feels almost unbelievable, and yet it is a part of American history. The actions of the young women of the novel feels exaggerated and amplified, and it makes for a poignant reading when you know that this is not the case at all. This is a phenomenal and accurate portrayal of historical events that really brings to life a whole generation of people and a whole era of history....more
Everything, from the play on words in the title to the bumbling main male characters and their misguided attempts at wooing the objects of their affecEverything, from the play on words in the title to the bumbling main male characters and their misguided attempts at wooing the objects of their affections, made for a a surprisingly witty and charming little play.
Beneath the veneer of this charm lies a penetrating critique of high Victorian society, marriage and morality. Wilde's genius is that he addresses these issues without even seeming to address them at all. The absurdity of the play takes centre-stage (I do love a pun) and it is only with later reflection that I realised how much had been packed and processed into something so relatively short. This seemingly simple comedy of errors sure does pack a punch!...more
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