The Scapegoat, by D. Du Maurier

This is another book I read as part of the Classics Challenge.  The only book I'd read by this author is Rebecca, so I wanted to try one of her other books.

A quick summary: John, an Englishman on vacation in France, runs into someone who looks exactly like him.  They have a few drinks together and the next morning, John realizes that the other man (Jean - not only do they look alike, they have similar names!) switched their clothes and belongings and left John there, basically stealing his identity and leaving John to pose as Jean.  So the rest of the book is about John trying to be Jean, figuring out who Jean is, and learning about his past.

I bought this book at a book sale almost a year ago, and it took me this long to read it partly because I wasn't too convinced about the premise.  Why would John simply accept the fact that someone else stole his identity?  Why would John feel like his only option was to pretend to be Jean?  But once I started reading, I was able to understand the character a lot more and why he would accept this.  I thought the author did a good job of making John a character you can identify with in many ways. 

I enjoyed this book very much! I will look up some other books by this author so I can read some more in the future.

March Prompt - A Classics Challenge

It's time for the next prompt! This month, we have to answer questions related to setting.

The classic I read was Lady Susan, by Jane Austen, and there are multiple settings, because there are different places Lady Susan lives/visits throughout the book.  But I would say the main one would be her brother-in-law's house, where most of the action takes place, so I will focus on that one.

How do you envision it?
I pictured one of those big houses I've seen in Jane Austen movie adaptations.  Maybe something like this:

Do you feel the setting is right? or was it a weak point of the author?
I think the setting was right. I don't think it was described very well, but it is where most of the story took place, and I thought it worked.

If this particular setting was changed how would it affect the course of the story?
The story would change very much! While we learn about Lady Susan's actions while visiting other places, the main plot is about what happens when she comes to visit this place, and how her visit affects everyone there.

Lady Susan, by J. Austen

I love Jane Austen! I have read her major six novels several times, but had never read Lady Susan. This book differs from her other books in several ways.  First, it's in letter format, so all we read are letters the characters send to each other.  This is interesting because you get to read about events from different perspectives. Second, Lady Susan, unlike Austen's other main characters, is not very likeable. If I had to describe her using one word, it would be manipulative. She wants to control people so that she gets her way in everything, and she doesn't care who she hurts in the process.

I enjoyed the book very much. I couldn't believe how manipulative Lady Susan was. But in the end, as in Austen's other novels, evil does not prevail (a characteristic I always enjoy in a novel - and real life!).

Getting to Know Thomas

Ever since I read James Martin's books, I was interested in reading something by Thomas Merton. I decided to start with The Seven Storey Mountain, his autobiography. In this book, Merton writes about his life from childhood to around the time he became a monk. After reading this book, I read No Man is an Island, which is a collection of essays on different topics. Both books were very good. They were not always easy to read, so I did not read these as fast as I thought I would, but it was definitely worth it. Merton is an example of how much God can do in and with a willing person. The more I read, the more I couldn't help being amazed at the beautiful person God turned Merton into.

I would definitely recommend these two books.