KDanae Reads

At first I wasn't too sure if I was going to make it past the first chapter of Emma. I have attempted to read it a few different times, but could just never get past chapter 1. But I am proud to say that not only did I make it past chapter 1, I actually finished the entire book! WOOHOO! I was quite excited and despite having moments of not liking it at all, I did enjoy Emma overall. It didn't make it to the favorites list and probably won't be a re-read for quite some time. But overall, it was a good read and I am glad that I stuck with it. One of the things that I really just couldn't get past or enjoy or appreciate was Emma herself. She was such a silly, petty, gossipy, nosy, young lady. Not to mention rude and ridiculous. I know she was Miss Austen's main character and so I can't rip her a part too much. But my goodness. She drove me crazier than Mrs. Norris in Mansfield Park I think. I just don't have much patience for girls like her. For girls who ar

I finished Jane Austen's Mansfield Park on Sunday and have just now sat down with the intention of writing about my final thoughts of it. I took a day of not starting any new books or do anything book related so that I could just sit, soak in the memories of Mansfield Park and form my thoughts about it for my wrap-up post. In my last post about Mansfield Park I wrote that I was falling in love with the book despite it having so many reviews against it. And I have to say that I finished the book absolutely loving it. While there were moments and characters in particular that drove me crazy and made me want to spit, I loved the story as a whole and Jane Austen's expert way of weaving a story that touches the heart.  It was my second book of Austen's that I have read in its entirety and was definitely worth every minute and even staying up way past my usual bedtime on Sunday to finish. I wrote in my first post about things I loved. The slowness of the story and the cha

I don't know what my problem is, but I am just having a hard time remembering to record and post my reading stats at the end of each month. I feel like I just posted June's and here we are already a good way into August and I haven't posted July's yet. Oh well. Maybe one day I'll get back on track with it.  It's not that I haven't been reading. I've been reading a ton. Maybe too much. Maybe not enough. Who knows. I have been soaking in book after book and as always enjoying reading through my long list of favorite blogs. I just haven't taken the time to stop reading for ten minutes and record my stats. Yes, that sounds incredibly lazy of me. But it's true. And why give up even ten minutes of reading when you are caught up in the middle of an amazing story? That's just silly to me. Oh, and being only 7 months done with the year 2013... I have already read 14 more books and 73 more pages than what I read all of last year. Not too shabby!

Mansfield Park by Jane Austen is often known as the most difficult and least-loved of her 6 major novels. It has some very mixed reviews on Goodreads, Barnes and Noble and Amazon. It has been criticized and thrown away half-read by some. Not to mention it's film adaptations have some pretty strong reviews against them as well. But while many have disliked it, it has been dearly loved and cherished by others. While it is disappointing that so many have discarded Mansfield Park , I am glad there are those who have held onto it and seen it's value. That there are those who love it every bit as much as her other novels. That encourages me as I am reading and falling in love with it this weekend.  I am currently half way through my first reading of Mansfield Park... my first of 3 books chosen for "Austen in August" hosted by Roof Beam Reader. And so far, despite a very slow beginning, I am loving every bit of it. I started reading it in bed last night and have spent mo