I liked the first chapter or two but after that, I was underwhelmed. I just had a really hard time keeping track of who everyone at the farm was and reading the dialogue. I had heard it was so funny but kept wondering if I missed the joke or if I just had set my expectations too high. I stuck with it though and by about 1/3-1/2 way through, I had completely changed my mind and started loving it. It is the classic British humor - dry and sarcastic and if I hadn't already had a comedy selection (which was also British and highly sarcastic :-) this would make a good choice for that category too.
Flora, the heroine, is recently orphaned, but mostly in a financial way, so she heads to her extended families home where she is appalled by their backwards ways and begins to reform everyone and everything there. I've heard others describe the heroine Flora as too perfect and a bit of a know it all and its true that she gets her way in the end but I think if you really give her that description, you've kinda missed the point. It's almost the equivalent of Mr Bean is a sad show because bad things always happen to him. While technically true, that sort of review just leaves you scratching your head.
Anyway, I ended up liking it a lot so I'm glad I stuck with it and now I need to go watch the movie, which I've heard is pretty good too.
Cold Comfort Farm is my Back to the Classics Challenge 20th Century Selection. For more about the Back to the Classics Challenge information, visit Karen over at Books and Chocolate.
My library doesn't have this one. :(
ReplyDeleteI'm enjoying reading along behind you! I've been challenged by your reading, especially since we are in a similar stage of life! Next up, Three Men in a Boat and The Europeans. I'm going to give Henry James another chance, but I'm still bitter about Daisy Miller.
You should definitely do the challenge with me next year! I have really branched out of my normal reading rut and found some great stuff that I never would have found on my own.
ReplyDeleteDoes your library have ILL? I have used it sporadically in the past but this year I've got a running list of things to request and have found it fairly easy. I hate buying books so getting used to that part of our library's system has opened up a whole new world for me. And it makes me happy when I get a book that I can see hasn't been read for a while.
I don't know if I'll do the challenge officially, but I will definitely keep shadowing your book choices. It's great to have someone pre-read and recommend! I finally gave up on Don Quixote, and I'm moving on with the Well-Trained Mind book list.
ReplyDeleteI have used the ILL, but I don't trust myself to be in a place where I can read something harder when it becomes available. Maybe I need to get over it, but I feel a lot of pressure around ILLs. I think I'll try to find an Aggie to check it out for me from the TAMU library.