I am Grigg! [The Jane Austen Book Club]

I am Grigg. Well, okay. Maybe not him exactly. We are more like kindred spirits.

I discovered him while watching the flick, The Jane Austen Book Club. I laughed out loud when Grigg mentioned that he read The Mysteries of Udolpho by Ann Radcliffe because it was mentioned in Northanger Abbey. The other book club members gave him a hard time about it. I totally understood. I do the same thing. I read the books (and watch the movies) mentioned in the books I am reading.

I picked up this habit after watching a movie that referenced other movies. I took out my writing pad and scribbled a note to watch all of them. I would have never thought to watch some of the movies on my own. It turned out to be a great move. So I started doing this with other movies. I soon realized that I would watch almost any kind of film. However, my choices in books were pretty limited.

So I decided to attach part of my TBR list to movies. Now I read scribbles that have been adapted into flicks. That’s what this blog is primarily about. Scribbles turned into flicks and their  associated tangents. "Associated" according to my random thoughts.

For example, I watched the flick The Jane Austen Book Club. That prompted me to read the scribble from which it was adapted – also titled The Jane Austen Book Club. The flick’s literary tangents added the following to my TBR list:

Persuasion – Jane Austen

Emma – Jane Austen

Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen

Northanger Abbey – Jane Austen

Mansfield Park – Jane Austen

Sense and Sensibility – Jane Austen

The Mysteries of Udolpho - Ann Radcliffe

Left Hand of Darkness – Ursula K. Le Guin

The Lathe of Heaven – Ursula K. Le Guin

Here’s to the Grigg in all of us.

P.S.

I am also going to add a scribble to my TBR for each of the sci-fi authors he mentioned. I almost choked when Grigg mentioned Pat O’Brian’s twenty book navy series at the very end of the movie. That’s a lot of books. I am still debating adding the set. Do you think that I should?

Side Notes: The Jane Austen Book Club

Read an excerpt of the book courtesy of Penguin.com (usa).

Related Audio/Video ~
Austen-Mania! - Penguin.com (usa)'s all things Austen site. Check out the audio lectures (on the left middle side of the page) about The Jane Austen Book Club, Emma, Mansfield Park, and Northanger Abby.

Articles of interest ~ "The Jane Austen Book Club proves to be "Austentatious!" by Maxwell McKee by Sacramento Press

Movie Site ~ Sony Picture Classics Presents The Jane Austen Book Club

e Jane Austen Book Club trailer

Emily Blunt talks The Jane Austen Book Club

by Empire Magazine on YouTube.com

Prudie was my favorite character (Grigg a close second). The hair. The clothes. The French. The nuttiness. Who was your favorite character in The Jane Austen Book Club?

Robin Swicord talks The Jane Austen Book Club

by Empire Magazine on YouTube.com

Great interview with the screenplay writer and director of "The Jane Austen Book Club." For more insight into the movie, watch the behind the scenes featurette under Special Features on the movie DVD (very interesting).

The Jane Austen Book Club (flick)

"Reading Jane Austen is a freaking minefield."  - Jocelyn

I was a tad bit reluctant to watch The Jane Austen Book Club movie. I am a book club drop-out and  not really a Janite. I was pleasantly surprised to enjoy the movie. After watching it, I decided to read the book from which it was adapted, Karen Joy Fowler's novel. I recommend watching the movie first and then reading the novel.

The movie focuses more on the relationships of the book club members and uses the book club as a backdrop. It managed to make the novels feel relevant to modern-day dilemmas. A feel-good movie, the flick can be enjoyed by those who haven't read much Austen and those who have (which is hard to pull off). Folks expecting a detailed academic dissection of Austen's novels might be disappointed.

Actors: Kathy Baker, Hugh Dancy, Amy Brenneman, and Maria Bello 
Director: Robin Swicord
Movie Rating: PG-13
Length: 103 minutes

Posted by Sony Pictures Classics at YouTube.com

What is you favorite book written by Jane Austen? [vote]

I read Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility a long time ago (in high school). I recall thinking that they were okay. I didn't feel compelled to read the others for fun. Perhaps the pressure of grades killed my Jane Austen buzz? I dunno. Fast forward to the present. A different time. A different reader.

Watching The Jane Austen Book Club movie made me want to read the book from which it was adapted. Reading the book inspired me to read all of Jane Austen's novels. I stopped half-way through Emma and decided to start again with the new year. I am picking up the torch again. When I finish the six novels, I am moving on to The Jane Austen is My Homegirl Reading Challenge.

A lot of folks really seem to love Jane Austen!

What is you favorite book written by Jane Austen? Why?

Jane Austen Is My Homegirl Reading Challenge

Jane Austen is not my homegirl, but perhaps she should be.
 
After reading The Jane Austen Book Club, I thought that it would be good to read the actual Austen books too. I read some of them so long ago that it shouldn’t even count. I have decided to join the “Jane Austen Is My Homegirl Reading Challenge” issued by The Book Buff.

You can find all the details including a suggested reading list on the site. There is a truckload of books.  The challenge is going on for one year (1 Aug 2010 – 31 July 2011).  By the end, you’ll have gotten your Austen fix or developed a new addiction (ha!). The Book Buff is giving participants who enter a chance to win books. Reads like win-win to me!

Follow my progress on Una's Reading Challenges page.