The Yellow Wallpaper

I read The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman while I waited for my books to arrive in the mail.  I was a little bit familiar with it before I discovered that it was on the 1001 list, and was rather glad that it was there.  My ears had perked up any time I'd heard a reference to it, but never really had the mind to take note of it to pull it into motion.

It is the story of a woman's descent into delirium, though she may already have been on the verge to that from the beginning - I'm not quite sure.  The dark, claustrophobic tone was similar to Poe's gothic style though in a slightly more relaxed voice.  The cluttered, hasty style in which the writing was presented as well, was a successful way in which to present the frantic state of the speaker's mind.

I think everyone has experienced the frightful things your mind can create when staring at natural shapes.  I used to sleep in a closet-sized space in my apartment in Chicago which had imperfections on the old walls that I would often identify into various likenesses.  For that I think the situation that envelopes the speaker in the nursery is all the more haunting and relatable, even at a time when all of the medical injustices of the 1900s are now history.

Elementary Particles was stuffed in my teeny tiny mailbox today so I think this little guy will have the honor of being the first to be cracked open among my new book friends on my trek toward 1001.

The House of Mirth

I think this makes it to 100/1001!  Too bad it landed on The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton because it was not really all that many thrills.

First of all, could someone please tell me what everyone's problem with Mrs. Hatch was?  I don't get it.  All she wanted was to marry some guy like every other female character in this book and she was somehow revolting for this.  I really don't get it.

Now that that's out there, I guess I can explain why I was so let down by this.  The forward talked it up by saying how "real" it was about high society in 1890s New York, and that it revealed an insider look at the world that Wharton herself grew up in and looked down upon.  I was pretty excited to see some down to earth-ness and expected to see a vast difference from other books of this age (everyone seemed like they very strongly thought it was for the Austen haters out there)...but it really wasn't anything all that special.  The forward also described Bart as "innocent", but I really found this to be completely false. Basically my initial perception of what I was going to be reading was all based on slanderous lies.

I guess I see how the author is pushing all her hate for this society into Lily Bart by giving her what she deserves for being a spoiled little pretty socialite, but tragedy befalling a central character is nothing ground shattering, even at that time.  I would rather have read a story about Gerty than a 350+ page book about someone's self entitlement.  I guess people had nothing better to amuse themselves with in the 1900s than the petty problems of rich folk, but I need a main character who is a little more aware of her surroundings rather than just concerned about where her next dress is going to come from.  The afterward or whatever it was at the end of my copy said that it is a story that modern audiences cannot relate to, and I totally agree.  There are books that deserve to stay in their times and remain there, and this is indeed one of them.

Anyway, I just ordered a bunch of contemporary books from Amazon and I'm pretty gosh darn excited. They are all separately coming from all over America so it's like I get a bunch of penpal packages to look forward to.  Whoopee for getting yourself gifts.